Matchups haven’t proved to be the most reliable thing in fantasy football through a week and a game of action this year.
Fantasy owners know where this heads. The perfect example is New York Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis. Normally, the guy with the nickname Revis Island is one to avoid at all costs. Yet in Week 1, A.J. Green of the Cincinnati Bengals went for 24 points in the matchup and Thursday, Buffalo Bills wideout Marquise Goodwin scored 17.
Still, this and things like Devonta Freeman scoring four points in Week 1 shouldn’t scare owners away from playing the matchup game, especially when there are so many notables to exploit.
QB
Matchup to Exploit: Eli Manning, NYG (vs. NO)
Look, each and every fantasy article won’t stop beating its chest about Eli Manning this week until the New York Giants suit up for the shootout with the New Orleans Saints.
Manning scored a cool 18 points in Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys via three touchdowns in a low-scoring affair. This weekend should be anything but, as Manning encounters Brees for a standoff sure to light up fantasy scoreboards.
The Saints surrendered 319 yards, one touchdown and 21 points to Oakland’s Derek Carr last week. Manning should surpass the number with ease while leaning on Odell Beckham Jr. And when he doesn’t look there, Victor Cruz. And when not looking at either of those spots, Sterling Shepard deep down the field or Rashad Jennings out of the backfield.
Owners get the idea.
Matchup to Avoid: Andy Dalton, CIN (at PIT)
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton on the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers isn’t a good idea.
Dalton struggled from a fantasy standpoint last week against a strong New York Jets defense, throwing for 366 yards with a touchdown and an interception, totaling 16 points.
Pittsburgh, on the other hand, held the Washington passing attack to all of nine points. Making the outlook even more bleak is the fact Dalton only scored nine points against the Steelers in one encounter last year, leaving the second one early with an injury.
With Green on the field and Tyler Eifert eventually back from injury, Dalton will be a great play. This isn’t one of those weeks, though.
RB
Matchup to Exploit: Spencer Ware, KC (at HOU)
Keep riding the Spencer Ware train, folks.
The Kansas City Chiefs don’t have a bad situation on hand with Ware, who filled in well for the injured Jamaal Charles in Week 1. Given Charles practiced with the scout team Wednesday, it’s hard to imagine he suits up against the Houston Texans this weekend.
Ware finished the opening week tied for the second-highest tally among running backs at 25 thanks to a touchdown on the ground and through the air. Now he gets to play a Houston defense that just lost Brian Cushing to injury.
Last postseason in a 30-0 stomping of the Texans, Ware had a 4.2 yards-per-carry average and a score over all of 16 carries. He’s in for another big performance.
Matchup to Avoid: Adrian Peterson, MIN (vs. GB)
It’s never easy to avoid a guy like Adrian Peterson, but so it goes when the current Minnesota Vikings have to take on the Green Bay Packers.
Peterson was a major disappointment last week, scoring all of three points despite taking 19 carries.
So much for opportunities equal production.
The Packers only allowed 12 points to Jacksonville Jaguars running backs last week. Peterson didn’t fare well against the Packers last year, never scoring more than 12 points over two games. Given the weakness at quarterback, Green Bay is free to throw everything it has at stopping Peterson.
WR
Matchup to Exploit: Larry Fitzgerald, ARI (vs. TB)
Arizona Cardinals wideout Larry Fitzgerald exploded last week against the New England Patriots, scoring 20 points by way of eight catches for 81 yards and two scores.
Fitzgerald doesn’t make the biggest fantasy headlines these days and continues to go about his business in a quiet manner. That said, it wouldn’t be much of a shock to see him post something of a repeat performance against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers over the weekend.
Those Buccaneers coughed up 10 catches, 146 yards and two touchdowns to Atlanta wideouts last week, which translated to 28 points.
Tampa Bay doesn’t have a player who can lock down Fitzgerald on his own, bad news considering the defense also has to focus on Michael Floyd and running back David Johnson.
Matchup to Avoid: Jarvis Landry, MIA (at NE)
Thanks to a status as a target hog, Miami Dolphins wideout Jarvis Landry boast a 97.9 ownership percentage.
Target hog indeed, as Landry caught seven passes last week against the Miami Dolphins. The problem? He scored five points.
This isn’t a new problem with Landry, who functions as a chain-moving player, not a big-play threat. Now he heads into an encounter with the Patriots, a team he met twice last year and only scored seven points in each contest.
While Landry has his value, New England has figured out how to shutter him over the years—he’s never scored a touchdown against the Patriots.
TE
Matchup to Exploit: Eric Ebron, DET (vs. TEN)
Eric Ebron of the Detroit Lions put on a nice fantasy performance in Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts, catching five passes for 46 yards and a score, good for 10 points.
Ebron doesn’t get a ton of credit for the Lions with Marvin Jones and Golden Tate at wideout, but he’s in a great situation going into a matchup with the Tennessee Titans.
The Titans only allowed four catches to tight ends last week, but they went for 65 yards. The opponent was the quarterback-needy Vikings, meaning one has to take into account all of the weapons around Ebron and his big-play ability.
Doing so produces one of the top matchups of the week.
Matchup to Avoid: Jordan Reed, WAS (vs. DAL)
On paper, Washington tight end Jordan Reed looks like he has one of the best matchups of the week thanks to an NFC East battle against the Dallas Cowboys.
After all, those Cowboys ranked among the worst in football after giving up eight points to the position last week.
Here’s the problem—Reed has problems with the Cowboys. He only scored seven total points over two games against Dallas last year. Over the 2013 and 2014 seasons, he didn’t post more than 70 yards in a game against the Cowboys, either.
Regardless of the reason, Reed historically isn’t one to start against the Cowboys, especially not after his offense only mustered 16 points in a season-opening blowout loss.
All scoring info and statistics courtesy of ESPN.com standard leagues, as are points-against info and ownership stats.
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