Fantasy Stars Who Will Struggle In Week 2: Najee Harris,Garrett Wilson, CeeDee Lamb, Kyle Pitts
Last week, I named a player at each offensive fantasy position who would struggle in Week 1. I wasn’t just looking for a player to sit; I chose a star, an obvious starter, at each position and called their poor performance. I hate to brag (that’s not true; I love it), but I pretty much nailed it!!
Joe Burrow had the worst game of his career in rain-soaked Cleveland; Najee Harris had just 33 yards on eight touches; DeAndre Hopkins led his team with seven catches, but that took 13 targets and gained only 65 yards; Darren Waller joined the entire Giants organization in a rough day at the office, struggling against a dominant Cowboys defense.
Let’s try it again this week. I will choose a “star” at each position, though that term is sometimes used loosely, but it will be a player who will be started in most leagues, who I think is going to disappoint.
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Quarterback
Anthony Richardson, Indianapolis Colts
This isn’t as easy as in Week 1, and I don’t like it. Richardson has only played one game, but he scored over 20 fantasy points and finished fifth at the position. He’s close to a weekly starter because of his rushing ability, though there could be a few duds.
Week 2 might be one of those duds, as the Houston Texans allowed the fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks last season. They added multiple starters to that defense, including third overall pick Will Anderson Jr., and Houston looks like a defense that could make things tough for opposing quarterbacks.
Lamar Jackson threw for just 169 yards with no touchdowns and one interception and was sacked four times against Houston in Week 1. It wasn’t a game in which Jackson needed to throw a lot, but Houston still made life difficult for the former MVP. Richardson took four sacks of his own in Week 1, and he averaged just 6.0 yards per attempt compared to Jackson’s 7.7.
Richardson is a comparable player to Jackson as a phenomenal athlete who can do a lot of work with his feet. Houston held Jackson to just 38 rushing yards on six attempts, a paltry number for the star QB. In 2022, Houston gave up a league-average number of rushing yards to quarterbacks despite facing the seventh-most rushing attempts.
While Richardson will do his damage, Houston has a good defense ready to chase the young quarterback around the field. He is unlikely to repeat his 20-point performance from Week 1, and Richardson may be a non-starter in Week 2.
Running Back
Najee Harris, Pittsburgh Steelers
Is it OK to pick on Harris again? I tried looking for another back, but it just wasn’t there. Harris has played against the Browns four times, and his surface stats look tremendous: 104 yards per game and a touchdown in each of the four. I won’t argue with numbers, but there is a little more to the story.
Pittsburgh won three of those games, and Harris had at least 23 rushes in each win; he had only 15 in the game the Steelers lost. He had at least 80 yards in the three they won and just 56 in the one they lost. Harris has been most productive when Pittsburgh has been running to kill the clock; that’s not as likely in 2023 with a possibly great Browns team and an unsure Steelers offense.
In one of those four matchups, Harris had 28 carries for 188 yards, 6.7 yards per attempt. His averages in the other three games were 3.5, 3.5 and 3.7 yards per attempt. Harris averaged less than four yards per attempt in each of his first two seasons. He has been an inefficient runner while grinding against Cleveland.
Lastly, this Browns defense is really good. There is a solid starter at every spot, and they held Joe Mixon to just 56 yards in Week 1 and all non-quarterback Bengals’ rushers to under 4.3 yards per attempt on a day where the passing game couldn’t do anything.
Kenny Pickett and the Steelers’ offense struggled mightily against a great 49ers defense on Sunday, and I see something of a repeat in Week 2. Top receiver Diontae Johnson is expected to miss a few weeks with an injury, and tight end Pat Freiermuth is limited in practice, though he will probably play.
Pickett is still trying to figure out the quarterback position at the NFL level, and a mean Browns defense is likely to have a good Monday night. I see Harris being limited in opportunities in Week 2, like he was in Week 1, and struggling against a solid defensive line when he does get the ball.
Wide Receiver
Garrett Wilson, New York Jets; CeeDee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys
I don’t feel great about any of the options I considered for receiver, so let’s look at two top receivers in the same game.
Wilson lost his new quarterback after four plays. That’s tough. So much of his breakout was tied to the upgrade he was projected at quarterback. Wilson did score a touchdown in Week 1, but his five catches produced just 34 yards, and his ceiling is much lower with Zach Wilson stepping back in to replace the injured Aaron Rodgers.
The Dallas defense terrorized the Giants throughout Sunday night, turning the game into a blowout before the offense really had to do anything. The Cowboys' offense really didn’t do anything, as they mainly needed to run the clock and protect the football. They can’t expect the same dominance every week, but this is a Jets team with a shaky quarterback and questions on the offensive line going up against the team with the most sacks in Week 1.
Lamb was one of the few fantasy-relevant players for Dallas in Week 1, hauling in four catches for 77 yards. Lamb’s possible struggles have nothing to do with him and everything to do with a scary Jets defense. Sauce Gardner is a true number-one corner in his second year, and the rest of the team is very talented, as evidenced by the way they shut down the Bills Monday night to lead an upset win. New York’s defense can quiet any offense, even one as good as the Cowboys. In 2022, the Jets allowed the least receiving yards and least fantasy points to wide receivers.
Stefon Diggs was able to go over 100 yards against the Jets last week, and I’m not confident in this pick. Lamb is just as likely to go off against the Jets, but there’s a chance of slowing him down. Wilson is the real pick here, as the Jets’ offense will be adjusting to life without Rodgers on the fly while facing one of the best defenses in the league.
Tight End
Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons
I have been on the “dump Drake London and Kyle Pitts” train for a few days now, so I’ll just summarize the points for you:
- The Falcons threw the second-fewest passes per game last season; their 24.4 attempts were less than any team from 2015-2021, and only the Bears were lower last year at 22.2.
- They ran the ball the second-most times per game in 2022, then drafted Bijan Robinson eighth overall to add to Tyler Allgeier, who had 1,000 yards rushing his rookie season.
- Atlanta threw the least passes of any team in Week 1 with 18 (four less than the next team).
This all adds up to a team that isn’t going to throw the ball enough for their pass-catchers to perform consistently. Pitts (and London) are going to struggle mightily most weeks. They will probably add some great games, but I see the lows coming more often than the highs.
On top of that, the Packers are a bad matchup. Green Bay allowed the second-fewest receiving yards and ninth-fewest fantasy points to tight ends last season. Bears tight end Cole Kmet did have five catches against the Pack in Week 1, but they produced just 44 yards. They are a tough defense overall, and it could be a long day for Atlanta.
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