Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em Week 2: Smart Matchup Plays, Sleepers and More

By and large, matchup plays and sleepers got fantasy football owners through the first week of the season.

Drew Brees against the Oakland Raiders? Easy. Jordan Matthews against the Cleveland Browns? Too easy. And while nobody would claim to have suggested starting Indianapolis Colts tight end Jack Doyle (the dude led all tight ends in scoring going into Monday), Kansas City Chiefs running back Spencer Ware was a superb sleeper against the San Diego Chargers—he posted 25 points.

This week, it’s more of the same, though owners now have more reliable data to use. Rather than completely hinging on last year’s results and projections, established data from the first week exists.

Let’s compare some of the biggest scorers from last week to find the best matchup before breaking down notable plays.

    

QB

Top Matchup Play: Eli Manning, NYG (vs. NO)

Share Tweet Embed

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning didn’t blow away the fantasy world last week, scoring 18 points. 

The good news seems unlimited, though, as the younger Manning tossed a trio of touchdowns on just 28 attempts against an iffy Dallas Cowboys defense. It’s on to another questionable defense for Manning in Week 2 thanks to an encounter with the New Orleans Saints.

Those Saints not only allowed the most points on average to quarterbacks last year, the unit coughed up 21 to Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr despite his only throwing one touchdown.

With Odell Beckham Jr., Victor Cruz and breakout rookie Sterling Shepard to work with, Manning looks ready to post one of the highest-scoring days of any at his spot.

    

Sleeper: Carson Wentz, PHI (at CHI)

Maybe a rookie quarterback isn’t such a bad idea. 

Carson Wentz made his NFL debut with the Philadelphia Eagles last weekend and found himself above names such as Manning and Carson Palmer in terms of fantasy scoring thanks to a pair of touchdowns and 19 points.

While Wentz only played the Cleveland Browns, NFL reporter Rand Getlin provided some advanced metrics to show just how well he did:

PFF: #Eagles QB Carson Wentz earned an 86.6 grade this week. 3rd-highest among NFL QBs so far, trailing only Andrew Luck and Drew Brees.

— Rand Getlin (@Rand_Getlin) September 12, 2016

It doesn’t get much more difficult for Wentz this week, not against a Chicago Bears defense that gave up two passing touchdowns to Houston Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler.

    

RB

Top Matchup Play: Jonathan Stewart, CAR (vs. SF)

…

continue reading in source www.bleacherreport.com