Fantasy Football Rankings Week 2: Sleepers, projections, starts, sits | Justice Hill, Jordan Addison

Publish date: 2024-06-21

Read the latest edition of Jake Ciely’s fantasy football rankings ahead of Week 11.

We’re already talking about Week 2 fantasy football rankings! Can you dig it? Sucka! That’s a hint to this week’s fun with ranks. There is a new format to the weekly ranks and sleepers, so read the “heads up” section, #CheckTheRanks and get ready to win Week 2.

#CheckTheLink-age
Week 2 Waivers | Week 2 SOS Ranks (Wednesday)
Fantasy Football 101 (weather, lineups, trading, more)
All in Football Podcast

🚨 HEADS UP 🚨

New Format! Let me know what you all think. Instead of pure sleepers — and to add a bunch of context for why I might rank players a certain way — I’m sharing weekly matchup breakdowns… of sorts. I’m giving you some tidbits I find interesting, which could help you make tough start/sit decisions.

WEEK 2 FANTASY FOOTBALL PREVIEWS

The Athletic has live fantasy football lineup advice, rankings, injury news and projections ahead of Week 2.

Vikings at Eagles

Kenneth Gainwell dominated touches (18, 81.8%), but has a rib issue on a short week.
Alexander Mattison had 70% of the touches in Week 1, suggesting a bellcow role.
Despite a big Week 1, Jordan Addison only played 55.6% of the snaps and ran 66.0% of the routes — though he was also the only Vikings player with two end zone targets.
The Eagles are prone to slot receivers and tight ends doing major damage this year.

Packers at Falcons

Jordan Love had the sixth-highest aDOT (10.4) on the ninth-highest Deep Throw% (14.8). Christian Watson could return, and Aaron Jones is questionable.
Desmond Ridder had a 3.5 AirYD/ATT. For reference, Matt Ryan was league-low at 6.0 last year. And, Ridder targeted Drake London just once.
Tyler Allgeier out-touched Bijan Robinson 18-16 but likely comes in lower when the Falcons are playing from behind. Allgeier has standalone value.

Raiders at Bills

Jimmy Garoppolo keeps things short-to-intermediate, and Jakobi Meyers was fourth in the league in TmTGT% (38.5) with a 41.7 TGT% (percent of routes targeted).
Hunter Renfrow if Meyers is sidelined.
Damien Harris had just three touches — one rush, which was a goal-to-go attempt.
Gabe Davis tied with Deonte Harty and both tight ends with just four targets.

Ravens at Bengals

Gus Edwards got the first carries, while Justice Hill had more passing snaps and two goal-line rushes to zero for Edwards.
Despite zero receptions, Tee Higgins had 25.8 TmTGT%, way ahead of Irv Smith (third) at 16.1%. It was just Higgins’ third game as a starter with zero receptions (one and zero targets, respectively, in the two previous).
Zay Flowers was targeted on 35.7% of his routes, while Odell Beckham and Rashod Bateman had jut three targets each, and Bateman saw just 37.9% of the snaps.

Seahawks at Lions

Reminder: Jared Goff averaged 21.3 points at home to 11.5 on the road, including 7.7 TD/INT to 1.5.
Ken Walker — fresh off preseason injury concerns — handled 16 of the 22 running back touches.
Jahmyr Gibbs averaged 6.0 YPT on just seven carries and two receptions — David Montgomery wasn’t targeted.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba only ran 19 routes but was targeted on 26.3% of them, a team-high.

Chargers at Titans

Justin Herbert had a 6.4 AirYD/ATT mark last year and 7.2 in Week 1 against the Dolphins. The Titans allowed a league-high 11.5 AirYD/ATT to Derek Carr in Week 1 and 27.3 DeepThrow%.
No starting quarterback was worse than Ryan Tannehill at CPOE (Comp% Over Expectation) with -16.1% (Daniel Jones second at -13.0%).
Joshua Kelley is a must-start if Austin Ekeler is out (ankle) and a deep flex option after mixing in for 16-91-1 on the ground in Week 1. Tyjae Spears outsnapped Derrick Henry but had just four touches.

Bears at Buccaneers

Justin Fields attempted 37 passes with a woeful 3.1 AirYD/ATT. He averaged 21.2 passes and 9.1 AirYD/ATT last year.
A fair share of Roschon Johnson’s touches came on third or fourth down, and/or after the Packers were up by 7+ points.
Sean Tucker equaled Rachaad White’s two targets despite just 10 snaps to White’s 54.
DJ Moore was quiet but ran a route on 46 of Fields’ 48 drop-backs — Cole Kmet was second at 42.

Chiefs at Jaguars

The Athletic’s Nate Taylor preaches patience with Skyy Moore and Kadarius Toney, but it’s hard to start any Chiefs receiver until clear production and pecking order is established.
Matt Nagy messing with us, giving Jerick McKinnon 20 snaps, Clyde Edward-Helaire 14 and Isiah Pacheco 29. Pacheco’s health was a question, suggesting Pacheco is the solid leader.
Tank Bigsby took the goal line carries, but standalone value will be tough without a heavier share (just seven of the 31 running back touches).
Christian Kirk is a distant third among Jaguars receivers with 10 fewer routes than Zay Jones (33).

Colts at Texans

Texans allowed the second-highest Adjusted Comp% (85.7) in Week 1.
Zack Moss is likely to return after Deon Jackson failed to do anything with a heavy workload, and Evan Hull is hurt — Texans interestingly allowed zero explosive runs against the Ravens.
Josh Downs 17.9 TmTGT% was second behind Michael Pittman despite being third in routes.

49ers at Rams

Kyren Williams had 15 touches to Cam Akers’ 22 but 52 yards to 29, plus 35 passing down snaps to just four for Akers.
The 49ers defense is worrisome, but as seen with the Steelers — even with a terrible showing — slot work can win, as the 49ers had the third-most favorable EPA for slot receivers (behind Buccaneers and Eagles).

Giants at Cardinals

Andrew Thomas could be out, and that’s after Daniel Jones already blew away the league in pressure rate at 66.7% in Week 1 (Justin Fields second at 54.2%).
With Adoree Jackson as the nickel corner for the Giants and rookies outside, they are going to be a slot receiver problem.
Darius Slayton and Parris Campbell for the Giants, and Marquise Brown and Michael Wilson for Arizona, are the top-two receivers for their respective teams.
Saquon Barkley had 71.4% of the running back touches, even in a blowout, while James Conner had 79.2% for the Cardinals. Barkley also had 50% of his rushes come with eight defenders in the box.

Jets at Cowboys

Michael Carter only had three touches, with Dalvin Cook at 16 and Breece Hall 11 in Hall’s first game back from injury.
Garrett Wilson had 25.0 TmTGT% and 31.6% of the Jets’ Air Yards last year. He had 27.8 and 41.3, respectively, in Week 1 with Zach Wilson.
The Cowboys had just 25 drop-backs against the Giants, but Brandin Cooks and Michael Gallup both ran 19 routes (CeeDee Lamb, 23).

Commanders at Broncos

Brian Robinson had 20 touches to Antonio Gibson’s four with Gibson having 87.5% of his snaps on pass plays (21). Robinson had 18 pass plays as well.
The first week had 54.8% of the touches for Javonte Williams and 38.7% for Samaje Perine.
Jahan Dotson led the Commanders in routes at 37 — Terry McLaurin, coming off injury, had 33.
Logan Thomas was targeted on 26.7% of his routes and led the Commanders with eight targets.

Dolphins at Patriots

Of running backs with 10+ carries, Raheem Mostert was fifth in percent that went for 10+ yards (20.0%) — Nick Chubb, Breece Hall, Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier were ahead of him.
Rhamondre Stevenson out-touched Ezekiel Elliott 18-12 and had a goal-to-go attempt while Elliott only had the two-point conversion attempt.
JuJu Smith-Schuster ran fewer routes than Kendrick Bourne, Kayshon Boutte and Hunter Henry.

Saints at Panthers

Jamaal Williams handled 20 of the 21 Saints running back touches.
Only two Panthers targets came 20+ yards downfield. The group struggled to separate, as well.
Michael Thomas ran the most Saints routes and finished 8-5-61 with a 24.2 TmTGT%. Thomas had stat lines of 8-5-57, 9-6-65 and 5-5-49 with a combined three touchdowns in three games last year.

Browns at Steelers

Kenny Pickett was pressured on 47.1% of his drop-backs — Joe Burrow saw 36.4% in Week 1 (mid-pack).
Allen Robinson stepped in for Diontae Johnson with 8-5-64 and a team-high 17.8 TmTGT%.
Elijah Moore might not be the worry, as he tied with Amari Cooper for a team-high seven targets but also tied for a team-high 28 routes… with Donovan Peoples-Jones. Cooper came off the field for Marquise Goodwin and ran 22 routes.

WEEK 2 FANTASY FOOTBALL SLEEPERS

These are sleepers (DuckTales and Darkwing Duck style — Woo-oo is worthy of the risk in most leagues, and Dangerous is if you need a Hail Mary). They will not mimic my rankings 100%. This is about chasing upside and often carries more risk — put simply, they are potential upside players you might consider over a quality replacement.

Woo-oo Worthy

QB: Geno Smith, SEA
RB: Jamaal Williams, NO; Justice Hill, BAL
WR: Jordan Addison, MIN; Michael Thomas, NO
TE: Hunter Henry, NE

Let’s Get Dangerous

QB: Brock Purdy, SF
RB: D’Andre Swift, PHI
WR: Nico Collins, HOU
TE: Luke Musgrave, GB

FUN WITH RANKINGS!

Don’t ask me why, especially because with the NFL season here and the Bloodline story starting to wane, wrestling finishers were on my mind (and I didn’t include “submission finishers” FYI). So, that’s where we’re headed this week…

Top 10 Wrestling Finishers

RKO — Out. Of. Nowhere! That’s the only explanation you need… and you already know all of the reasons (and have probably tried it a dozen times). Diamond Dallas Page’s diamond cutter was great, but Randy Orton made it perfect.

Stone Cold Stunner — There is no needed wait time, setup, etc. because it uses a kick to start. The over-the-top reactions of the victims added to it.

Tombstone Piledriver — The fact that it’s been banned, if real could kill you, and is tied to one of the GOATs — Undertaker — makes this a must.

People’s Elbow — Let’s face it, the “move” isn’t all that devastating. However, it might have the single greatest build-up. The Rock kicking the arm in, tossing his elbow pad, the run up to it… Amazing.

Pedigree — Seth Rollins has come close to Triple-H in the beauty of his, but man, something about Trip’s made it feel like the opponent’s face was eating some serious mat.

Styles Clash — Speaking of eating mat… some have accidentally eaten a bit too much, as this move is hard to pull off, impressive and even hard to avoid a bit of pain.

Sweet Chin Music — If we’re talking Shawn Michaels only, it would rank higher, but it’s now commonplace and overused.

Razor’s Edge — Hey, yo! An improved variation on a power bomb and it looks painful… and cool, like Razor Ramon!

One Winged Angel — Great finisher, but even better reference to Sephiroth from FF7. Wrestling and video games combined?!

Sister Abigail — Thanks to Ryan S. for reminding me. Can’t believe I forgot about this. Great move, and RIP Bray Wyatt.

Honorable Mention

Dudley Death Drop (Usos 1-D) — Essentially a tag-team version of the RKO/Diamond Cutter for added “knockout effect.” Plus, the Dudley Boyz often included a table.
Shooting Star Press — It’s the top-row splash but oh so better, especially when Billy Kidman did his.

WEEK 2 FANTASY FOOTBALL PROJECTIONS

🚨 HEADS UP 🚨 These can differ from my rankings, and my ranks are the order I’d start players outside of added context, such as, “Need highest upside, even if risky.” Also, based on 4-point TDs for QB, 6-point rest, and Half-PPR

Week 2 Projections Download Saturday Update

WEEK 2 FANTASY FOOTBALL RANKINGS

🚨 HEADS UP 🚨

There is no perfect widget out there, sadly, still. I know many view this on your phone, but 1) use the rankings widget on a PC/laptop/etc. if possible or 2) open in your phone’s browser, especially for Android users, to get the scrolling to properly work.
Updated regularly, so check up to lineups locking.

(Photo by Nick Wosika/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

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