Week 1 Underperformers Who Will Keep Struggling in Week 2: Kenny Pickett, Cam Akers, D.J. Moore, Kyle Pitts

We love overreacting after one week, but some players who struggled in Week 1 will continue to disappoint in Week 2 (and maybe longer).  I've identified one fantasy-relevant player at each position who had a down Week 1 and explain why they will fail to excel in Week 2 also.  Some players are in bad situations, and others just have tough matchups to start the season.

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Quarterback

Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh Steelers

Pickett will be worth starting some weeks, but he opens the season against the 49ers and Browns, two very tough defenses.  San Francisco did their part, limiting the second-year passer to just 232 yards on 46 attempts with one touchdown, two interceptions, and five sacks.

The Cleveland defense had a dominant Week 1, holding the high-powered Bengals to three points and star quarterback Joe Burrow to 82 yards on 31 attempts.  The rain falling in Cleveland helped dampen the offenses, but the Browns have a good defense and will continue to hold teams down.

Myles Garrett is a superstar pass rusher, and he’s joined on the line by free agent signings Dalvin Tomlinson and Za’Darius Smith.  Fellow free agent and Super Bowl champion safety Juan Thornhill missed Week 1, but Pro Bowler Denzel Ward and a group of talented young defensive backs held up the back of the unit.

The Browns are going to be good on defense all year, and Pickett is likely to struggle in Week 2.  Cleveland allowed the second-least fantasy points to quarterbacks last season, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them in the top five again this year.  Top receiver Diontae Johnson left Week 1 with an injury, so Pickett might also be short-handed.

 

Running Back

Cam Akers, Los Angeles Rams

Akers scored a touchdown, but his 22 carries in Week 1 produced only 29 yards.  That’s appalling.  Adding to his down week, his backup, Kyren Williams, ran for 52 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.  Akers may see his carries dwindle if that trend continues.

The Rams host the 49ers in Week 2, the team that allowed the least rushing yards and fantasy points to running backs last season.  Pittsburgh running backs only ran for 37 yards against San Francisco in Week 1, showing they still have a great defense (which we knew).

Part of Pittsburgh’s low output was falling behind early and being forced to pass, but that could be a common theme throughout the year.  San Francisco looks like one of the best teams in the league again this year, and we should probably start thinking of the 49ers like the Chiefs in that teams need to throw to keep up.

I don’t know how the touches will be split in the Los Angeles backfield, but I am confident that Akers will struggle to have a good week either way. 

 

Wide Receiver

D.J. Moore, Chicago Bears

Moore had just two catches on two targets for 25 yards against the Packers in Week 1, a struggle I predicted.  I think it will be a season-long thing for Moore, as he’s on the team that threw the least passes last season and ran the ball the most times.

Moore is talented and will probably have a few big games, but that won’t come in Week 2 against Tampa Bay.  The Bucs allowed 344 passing yards last week to the Vikings, but Justin Jefferson had 150 of those.  I’ll just say, Fields isn’t Cousins as a passer, and Moore isn’t Jefferson.

Tampa allowed the eighth-least passing yards per attempt last season, and that is more indicative of their defensive talent.  The defense still has stars in Vita Vea, Lavonte David, and others, and they held Minnesota to just 17 points.

Darnell Mooney had a touchdown in Week 1, but defenses are surely going to key on Moore in the passing game.  While the Bears threw 37 times Week 1 (10th-most through Sunday), that was as they were trying to catch up from a big deficit.  The normal plan will mean a low volume for Moore and the other Bears pass-catchers.

 

Tight End

Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons

Pitts had just two catches for 44 yards against the Panthers, the team that gave up the 10th-least fantasy points to tight ends last season.  In Week 2, he will play the Green Bay Packers, the team that gave up the ninth-least fantasy points to tight ends last season.  The Packers gave up just 44 yards to Bears’ tight end Cole Kmet in Week 1.

On top of the tough matchup, I’m not sure I believe in Pitts.  He was the fourth overall pick in 2021 and had a good rookie season, but he only topped 44 yards twice last season in 10 games and had just two touchdowns.

Atlanta threw just 18 passes in Week 1, the least in the league through Sunday.  They threw just 24.4 passes per game in 2022, a number no team from 2015-2021 was lower than (and only the Bears threw less last year).  Much like Moore in Chicago, there doesn’t seem to be enough opportunities for Pitts to be a consistent performer.