The loss of Marlon Mack to a season-ending Achilles injury leaves
Taylor as a very good option as the only other alternate for the
Colts, Hines, is almost exclusively a receiver out of the backfield.
Taylor wasn’t all that impressive on the ground in Week 1, but
should have a better time against the Vikings who allowed 139
yards to Packers running backs. He was also surprisingly good
as a pass-receiver (6-of-6 for 67 yards) something he didn’t do
much of at Wisconsin.
As I previously mention in the Brady paragraph, this Carolina
defense isn’t good. OK, they’re bad. In 2019 they were 31st in
points allowed (470), 32nd in rushing touchdowns allowed (31)
and 28th in rushing yards allowed (2,296). They yielded a Week
1 high three rushing touchdowns. Ron Jones is the starter for
the Bucs, not Leonard Fournette and dominated the opportunities
against New Orleans 17-5. Jones ran hard and produced better than
Fournette too, with a combined 82 yards to just 19 for Fournette.
He should come at a fairly reasonably priced level for DFS players
and was only started by 31% of fantasy owners which should be
much higher against the Panthers.
Sure all the talk this week will be of rookie J.K. Dobbins’ two
touchdowns, but that was in a blowout win over Cleveland. Ingram
is the heart of the Ravens running back group and will see more
than the 10 touches in Week 1. Houston was run over and around
by rookie Clyde Edwards-Helaire last Thursday and the Ravens ground
game with Jackson, Ingram and Dobbins figures to inflict even
more damage. Ingram combined for 85 yards from scrimmage and a
score playing just 32-of-67 offensive plays (48%) in last year
matchup with the Texans.
In O.J. Simpson’s first few seasons, before the “Electric
Co.” arrived, his best runs were just to get back to the
line of scrimmage because there was no such thing as a hole to
run through. Why am I telling you this? Because with all the injuries
to the Eagles offensive line (Brandon Brooks, Andre Dillard, Lane
Johnson and Jack Driscoll) not even a Hall of Fame running back
would be able to produce fantasy-worthy yards or points.
It’s Pittsburgh. Stay away, far away. The Steelers averaged yielding
just 90.4 yards per game on the ground last season and stonewalled
an elite running back, Saquon Barkley, in the 2020 season opener
(15 carries, SIX yards!). Gordon’s only likely source of points
will be catching the ball out of the backfield. He faced Pittsburgh
in Week 6 last season as a member of the Chargers and produced
18 yards on eight carries and 30 yards on three receptions. Find
another option.
The Ravens faced Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt last week and yielded
a combined 19.7 fantasy points. David Johnson isn’t as good
a runner as Chubb nor as good a receiver as Hunt. Week 1 wasn’t
a fluke. They held running backs to 19.3 FPts/G last season, fourth-best
in the league. Johnson was very good in the first two drives (six
touches, 47 yards 1 TD), but the Chiefs held him in check over
the final 50 minutes. The Ravens will analyze their strategy and
repeat it.
