Must Know Fantasy Football Notes: Week 1

It truly is tough to pay attention and be aware of everything that happened in a given NFL week. Most fans are hyper-focused on their home team, and their personal Fantasy Football teams, so they often miss details outside of that. The details surrounding usage, roles, production, injuries, opportunity, and other variables have direct impacts on Fantasy Football. So understanding the fine details can give you an edge in Fantasy Football. That is where I come in.

Each week in this series I will go team by team and give you my notes on what happened. These notes have direct ties to Fantasy Football and are important to know when playing this game moving forward. This can be your one-stop shop after every week to see what happened without digging for details yourself. The intention here is to give you an edge in your Fantasy Football league – which this article will. Let’s talk about Week 1.

Must Know Fantasy Football Notes: Week 1

 

Arizona Cardinals

• James Conner continues to thrive as a Cardinal when healthy. 16 rushing attempts for 50 yards and a touchdown paired with three catches for 33 yards meant 19.3 Fantasy Points. Rookie Trey Benson finished with four touches and poses no threat to Conner’s workhorse role.
• Kyler Murray attempted 31 passes and here are important wide receiver / tight end targets to know: First-round rookie Marvin Harrison Jr. earned three targets, Trey McBride led the team with nine targets,  Greg Dortch finished with eight targets, and Michael Wilson earned two targets. Dortch led this group with 11.1 Fantasy Points.

Atlanta Falcons

• Bijan Robinson rushed 18 times for 68 yards and caught five passes for 43 yards. 16.1 Fantasy Points is a solid start to Bijan’s sophomore season. 23 touches for Robinson vs. just three for Tyler Allgeier says all you need to know about how the workload looks.
• Kyle Pitts caught all three targets for 26 yards and scored a touchdown. Drake London caught two of three targets for 15 yards. Ray-Ray McLoud III surprisingly was targeted seven times and caught four of them for 52 yards. Darnell Mooney caught one of his three targets for 15 yards.
• Kirk Cousins throwing 16/26 (61.5%) for 155 yards, a touchdown, and two interceptions was a rough start that impacted the above players.

Baltimore Ravens

• Isaiah Likely has a major role, and this time it is with Mark Andrews on the field. Likely caught nine of his 12 targets for 111 receiving yards and a touchdown. Likely was a big toe on the line away from catching a second touchdown in this one, and looked great in general. 26.1 Fantasy Points. One of the biggest waiver wire moves to come.
• The 2023 MVP fell short of a major come-back but put up elite numbers. Lamar Jackson threw 26/41 for 273 passing yards, a passing touchdown, rushed 16 times for 122 yards, and scored 25.1 Fantasy Points. QB1 overall territory if LJ8 can continue to hit both the passing and rushing numbers to this level.
• Derrick Henry scored his first touchdown as a Raven, but the game script was not in his favor as he finished with just 13 touches. Justice Hill played an important role in Week 1, catching six passes for 52 yards which is big for PPR leagues.
• Zay Flowers caught six of his 10 targets for just 37 yards. Jackson missed Flowers wide-open in the end zone, throwing it behind him, which would have made a big Fantasy difference. Rashod Bateman caught two of his five targets for 53 yards. The big question mark of the night was Mark Andrews only being targeted twice, and looking like a non-factor. I think there is much more context to Andrew’s usage.

Buffalo Bills

• Josh Allen looked like typical Josh Allen. 18/23 (78.3%) for 232 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, 39 rushing yards, and two rushing touchdowns. 31.18 Fantasy Points. Allen continues to be a Fantasy Football cheat code.
• James Cook rushed 19 times for 71 yards and caught three passes for 32 yards. Rookie Ray Davis finished with just four touches, which makes him look to not be so much of a threat to Cook’s workload.
• Khalil Shakir caught all three targets for 42 yards and a touchdown. Mack Hollins caught both targets for 25 yards and a touchdown. Rookie Keon Coleman caught four of his five targets for 51 yards. Curtis Samuel (coming off of a turf toe) caught both targets for 15 yards. Most surprising was Dalton Kincaid catching just one of two targets for 11 yards. Most encouraging, for me, was the rookie’s five targets.

Carolina Panthers

• The Panthers were a disaster all-around in their loss to the Saints 10-47. No player scored 10 Fantasy Points
• Bryce Young threw 13/30 (43.3%) for 161 yards and two interceptions. Adam Thielen was targeted four times, rookie Xavier Legette was targeted seven times, Jonathan Mingo was targeted five times, and Diontae Johnson was targeted six times.
• Miles Sanders finished with five touches to Chuba Hubbard’s six touches, but Miles led the backfield with 22 vs Hubbard’s 14 rushing yards. Neither back caught a pass.

Chicago Bears

• The Bears won in an ugly way guided by their defense and special teams who scored two touchdowns, had two interceptions, one fumble recovery, three sacks, and a block. 24-17 win.
• DJ Moroe was the only player on offense to score 10 Fantasy Points. DJM caught five of his eight targets for 36 yards and rushed once for 14 yards.
• Slow day at the office for Caleb Williams’ NFL debut, completing 19/29 passing attempts for just 93 passing yards. Williams rushed five times for 15 yards as well. Outside of DJM’s eight targets, Keenan Allen earned 11 and Rome Odunze earned four. Not much offense here

Cincinnati Bengals

• Zack Moss rushed nine times for 44 yards, scored a rushing touchdown, and caught two passes for 17 yards. 14.1 Fantasy Points. Chase Brown rushed three times for 11 yards and caught three passes for 12 yards. This is a game the Bengals lost, so the perceived “pass-catching running back” in Brown not factoring in much here says a lot about Moss’ role.
• Joe Burrow completed 21/29 (72.4%) passes for 164 yards but failed to throw a touchdown. Burrow added 15 rushing yards.
• Ja’Marr Chase caught all six targets for 62 yards for just 12.2 Fantasy Points. Andrei Iosivas caught three of his six targets for 26 yards. Mike Gesicki was targeted four times and had a touchdown get called back by a penalty.

Cleveland Browns

• Jerome Ford rushed 12 times for 44 yards and a touchdown and caught six passes for 25 yards. 18.9 Fantasy Points against a powerful Dallas defense was unexpected but says plenty.
• Deshaun Watson had a rough start to the year, completing 24/45 passing attempts (53.3%) for 169 passing yards, a passing touchdown, two interceptions, and rushed for 39 yards.
• Jerry Jeudy caught just three of his eight targets for 25, and the touchdown score elevated him to be the only pass-catcher with double-digit Fantasy Points. David Njoku caught four of five targets for 44 yards and has an ankle injury worth monitoring. Amari Cooper was targeted nine times but only caught two of those for 16 yards which is a glaring concern. Elijah Moore earned six targets but caught half.

Dallas Cowboys

• Brandin Cooks led the Cowboys with 14.5 Fantasy Points. Cooks caught four of his seven targets for 40 yards and a touchdown. CeeDee Lamb caught five of his 10 targets for 61 yards and scored 13.6 Fantasy Points.
• Ezekiel Elliott rushed 10 times for 40 yards and a touchdown and caught two balls for nine yards. This is where Zeke is going to have his relevance – thriving in the red zone over putting up big numbers elsewhere. Rico Dowdle finished with eight carries for 26 yards and caught a pass for six yards. Would not be shocked if Dalvin Cook moves up the depth chart over Dowdle.
• Jake Ferguson suffered a sprained MCL, so be on the lookout for the exact timeline for Ferg but he is going to miss time.

Denver Broncos

• Rookie Devaughn Vele caught all eight targets for 39 yards and led the Broncos with 11.9 Fantasy Points. Josh Reynolds caught five of his eight targets for 45 yards and Courtland Sutton caught just four of 12 targets for 38 yards.
• Bo Nix looked rough, completing 26/42 of his passes for 138 yards and two interceptions. Nix did rush five times for 25 yards and a touchdown which saved him from a true Fantasy nightmare.
• Javonte Williams rushed eight times for 23 yards and caught a pass but took it nowhere. Jaleel McLaughlin rushed 10 times for 27 yards and caught five passes for just a single yard. Both running backs scored under six Fantasy Points.

Detroit Lions

• Jameson Williams finished Week 1 with the best game of his NFL career thus far. Jamo caught five of his nine targets for 121 yards and a touchdown and also added a 13-yard rush. Williams accounted for 121 of Goff’s 217 passing yards. 24.4 Fantasy Points in Week 1 could hint at more big weeks to come.
• Jahmyr Gibbs rushed 11 times for 40 yards and a touchdown and caught four passes for 34 yards. David Montgomery rushed 17 times for 91 yards and a touchdown and caught a ball for two yards. 18 to 15 touches in Monty’s favor but both backs were very Fantasy productive with 17.4 Fantasy Points to Gibbs and 16.3 to Montgomery.
• Sam LaPorta caught four of his five targets for 45 yards. Amon-Ra St. Brown caught three of his six targets for just 13 yards. Disappointing Fantasy outings for these two would be an understatement.

Green Bay Packers

• Jordan Love is expected to miss three to six weeks with a diagnosed MCL sprain in his left knee. Huge blow to start the season off. I would not be shocked if Ryan Tannehill receives a call from the Packers because they want to compete and Malik Willis likely does not give you that chance.
• Jayden Reed opened up the season reminding us all that he is the most versatile and valuable pass-catcher in Green Bay. Four receptions for 138 receiving yards and a touchdown paired with a 33-yard rushing touchdown. This is the Packer’s version of a Deebo Samuel. 33.1 Fantasy Points won matchups this week
• Josh Jacobs rushed an efficient 16 times for 84 yards and caught two passes for 20 yards. Emmanuel Wilson filled in the RB2 role for an injured rookie MarShawn Lloyd and rushed four times for 46 yards as well as caught two passes.
• Christian Watson caught three of his five targets for just 13 yards but scored a touchdown. Romeo Doubs caught four of his seven targets for 50 yards. An important last note when looking at the two tight ends is that Tucker Kraft caught two of three targets for 37 yards while Luke Musgrave finished without a catch.

Houston Texans

• Joe Mixon earned a massive workload in his first game as a Texan, rushing 30 times for 159 rushing yards and a touchdown. Mixon also caught three passes for 19 yards. Volume is king and 33 touches is heavy volume. 26.8 Fantasy Points.
• CJ Stroud completed 24/32 (75%) of his passing attempts for 234 yards and two touchdowns. Stroud also rushed four times for 13 yards.
• Stefon Diggs caught all six targets for just 33 yards but scored two touchdowns which resulted in 21.9 Fantasy Points. Nico Collins caught six of his eight targets for 117 receiving yards and finished with 17.7 Fantasy Points. Tank Dell caught three of his seven targets for 40 yards and also rushed the ball twice for 19 yards.

Indianapolis Colts

• Anthony Richardson completed just 9/19 passes but made some huge plays with those which resulted in 212 passing yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. Richardson also carried the ball six times for 56 yards and a touchdown. 26.08 Fantasy Points to kick off AR’s sophomore campaign.
• Alec Pierce had a big day on just three catches because of the 125 receiving yards and a touchdown (21.5 Fantasy Points). Michael Pittman Jr. was disappointed, catching four of his eight targets for 31 yards. Rookie Adonai Mitchell was targeted five times but only came away with one reception.
• Jonathan Taylor’s day was saved by a rushing touchdown as he finished with 16 carries for 48 yards which is not his typical rushing production.

Jacksonville Jaguars

• First-round rookie Brian Thomas Jr. was the most Fantasy productive Jaguar in Week 1. BTJ caught all four targets for 47 yards and a touchdown for 14.7 Fantasy Points. BTJ drew a pass interference on a contested catch in the end zone, which could have meant a two-touchdown game in his NFL debut.
• Travis Etienne Jr. rushed 12 times for 44 yards and a touchdown and caught two passes for 15 yards. Beyond the fumble, what was concerning was Tank Bigsby rushing 12 times for 73 yards. Bigsby matching Etienne’s rushing, with more production, could be worrisome.
• Gabe Davis caught all three targets for 62 yards. Christian Kirk caught one of his four targets for 30 yards. Evan Engram also caught just one of his four targets for five yards. Trevor Lawrence struggled under Miami’s pressure, completing just 57.1% of his passes on the day.

Kansas City Chiefs

• First-round rookie Xavier Worthy put his explosiveness on full display on Thursday Night Football, catching two of his three targets for 47 yards and a touchdown and then adding another touchdown through a 21-yard rush. Massive efficiency on only three touches for 20.8 Fantasy Points, but the involvement surely can go up.
• Rashee Rice caught seven of his nine targets for 103 receiving yards which resulted in 17.3 Fantasy Points. The sophomore picked right back up where he left off from his impressive rookie season.
• Isiah Pacheco rushed 15 times for 45 yards and a touchdown and also caught two passes for 33 yards. Pacheco accounted for 17 of the 20 running back touches for KC.
• Patrick Mahomes threw an efficient 20/28 (71.4%) for 291 passing yards and finished with both a touchdown and an interception. Travis Kelce was quiet catching three of his four targets for 34 yards. I have said countless times that Mahomes may not need to force-feed Kelce this season with other playmakers present with the Chiefs preferring the healthy veteran tight end for a playoff run.

Los Angeles Chargers

• JK Dobbins showed plenty of promise, rushing 10 times for 135 yards and a touchdown and adding three receptions. 22.9 Fantasy Points on the day. Gus Edwards rushed 11 times for 26 yards and caught a pass. Dobbins may just have earned himself a separation for Week 2 from Gus Bus.
• Second-round rookie Ladd McConkey caught five of his seven targets for 39 yards and a touchdown in his NFL debut. Quentin Johnston caught three of his five targets for 38 yards. Joshua Palmer caught two of his four targets for 15 yards. Tight ends Hayden Hurst and Will Dissly were targeted three times apiece.
• Justin Herbert finished the day 17/26 (65.4%) for 144 passing yards and a touchdown, and rushed for six yards.

Los Angeles Rams

• Cooper Kupp flashed his former triple-crown self, catching 14 of his 21 targets for 110 receiving yards and a touchdown. Kupp rushed for 10 yards as well on two carries and totaled 32 Fantasy Points. This is massive if he can stay healthy.
• Puka Nacua caught all four targets for 35 receiving yards and rushed once for seven yards. Unfortunately, Puka suffered an injury we are going to have to monitor, to his right knee. Tyler Johnson was highly involved, catching five of his seven targets for 79 yards. Demarcus Robinson caught four of his seven targets for 42 yards.
• Kyren Williams rushed 18 times for 50 yards and a touchdown and caught three passes for four yards. 14.4 Fantasy Points. Ronnie Rivers rushed twice for 16 yards, and Blake Corum did not log a touch. As of today, Kyren does not look like he has competition.

Las Vegas Raiders

• Alexander Mattison led all Raiders in Fantasy scoring with 16.2 points. Mattison rushed five times for 19 yards and caught four balls for 43 yards and a touchdown. Zamir White rushed 13 times for 44 yards and caught two passes for two yards which was only 4.6 Fantasy Points.
• Brock Bowers caught six of his eight targets for 58 yards in his NFL debut. 11.8 Fantasy Points is a good score for the tight end position at the end of the day. Davante Adams was less involved, catching five of his six targets for 59 receiving yards.

Miami Dolphins

• Tyreek Hill caught seven of his 12 targets for 130 receiving yards and scored a touchdown. 26 Fantasy Points to open up Cheetah’s season. Jaylen Waddle left for a brief period to be evaluated for a concussion. Waddle still managed to catch all five targets for 109 receiving yards and rushed for three yards. 16.2 Fantasy Points.
• De’Von Achane rushed 10 times for 24 yards and scored a rushing touchdown. Even more impressive was Achane’s seven receptions for 76 receiving yards with a result of 23 Fantasy Points. Raheem Mostert rushed six times for nine yards and caught two passes for 10 yards. Jeff Wilson rushed five times for 26 yards. It is very clear who the RB1 is.
• Tua Tagovailoa threw 23/37 (62.2%) for 338 yards and a touchdown. Last year’s league leader in passing yards made a statement that he wants to repeat.

Minnesota Vikings

• Aaron Jones started hot in his first game as a Viking, rushing 14 times for 94 yards and a touchdown and catching two passes for 15 yards. 18.9 Fantasy Points. Ty Chandler rushed eight times for 17 yards and caught three passes for 25 yards.
• Sam Darnold looked alright in this one, throwing 19/24 (79.2%) for 208 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, and an interception. Justin Jefferson caught four of his six targets for 59 yards and a touchdown which meant 15.9 Fantasy Points.

New England Patriots

• Rhamondre Stevenson was the only Patriots player to score nine or more Fantasy Points, as he finished with 21.6. Stevenson rushed a massive 25 times for 120 yards and a touchdown and caught three balls for six yards. As of right now, Stevenson may be the only Patriot you can play.

New Orleans Saints

• Alvin Kamara scored 22 Fantasy Points, which should not be a surprise after he averaged the third-highest Fantasy Points last season. Kamara rushed 15 times for 83 yards and a touchdown and caught five passes for 27 yards. Jamaal Williams rushed 11 times for 38 yards and a touchdown and caught a pass for 13 yards.
• Derek Carr was a major surprise for Fantasy Football, scoring 21.3 Fantasy Points in the opener. Carr threw 19/23 for 200 yards and three touchdowns on the day. Rashid Shaheed accounted for 73 of those yards and a touchdown on just three catches.

New York Giants

• Wan’Dale Robinson led the team with 12 targets, catching six of them for 44 yards. Robinson also rushed for 14 yards. First-rounder Malik Nabers caught five of his seven targets for 66 yards.
• Devin Singletary rushed 10 times for 37 yards and caught four passes for 15 yards. Eric Gray rushed twice for six yards and had a nine-yard reception. Tyrone Tracy Jr rushed twice for two yards and caught a pass for five yards. Singletary’s clear job.

Philadelphia Eagles

• My off-season takes that Philly looked at San Fran’s impacts of bringing in Christian McCaffrey which propelled them to their Super Bowl run, and tried to mirror that by bringing in Saquon Barkley. Barkley rushed 24 times for 109 yards and two touchdowns and caught two passes for 23 yards and a receiving touchdown. 33.2 Fantasy Points. Monster Week 1 for what could be a monster season.
• Jalen Hurts threw 20/34 (58.8%) for 278 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Hurts rushed 13 times for 33 yards. Hurts did not look great at times but we do not have to overreact here.
• AJ Brown caught five of his 10 targets for 119 yards and a touchdown which resulted in 22.9 Fantasy Points. The AJB upside was on full display. DeVonta Smith looked solid as well, catching seven of his eight targets for 84 yards and scoring 15.4 Fantasy Points.

Pittsburgh Steelers

• George Pickens caught six of his seven targets for 85 yards and scored 13.5 Fantasy Points. Pat Freiermuth caught all four targets for 27 yards.
• Justin Fields threw 17/23 (73.9%) for 156 yards and rushed 14 times for 57 yards. Not the elite Fantasy Football upside we saw in Chicago, and we are unsure if the Steelers will turn to Russell Wilson if healthy, but the potential is there for better weeks.
• Najee Harris rushed 20 times for 70 yards and caught a pass for nine yards. Jaylen Warren rushed twice for seven yards and caught two balls for 13 yards. Cordarrelle Patterson rushed four times for 13 yards. Looking like the Najee Harris contract season show.

Seattle Seahawks

• Kenneth Walker III had a great day rushing 20 times for 103 yards and a touchdown and adding two catches for six yards. Unfortunately, he suffered an abdominal injury we will have to monitor. Zach Charbonnet rushed eight times for 12 yards and caught two passes for 29 yards with one of them being for a score.
• Geno Smith threw 18/25 (72%) for 171 passing yards, a touchdown, an interception, 30 rushing yards, and a rushing touchdown.
• Tyler Lockett caught six of his seven targets for 77 yards and scored 13.7 Fantasy Points. DK Metcalf caught three of his four targets for 29 yards and scored 5.9 Fantasy Points. Jaxon Smith-Njigba caught both targets for 19 yards and scored 3.9 Fantasy Points. This bullet was gross to type out.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

• Baker Mayfield started the season on absolute fire throwing 24/30 (80%) for 289 passing yards and four passing touchdowns. 29.66 Fantasy Points.
• Mike Evans picked up where he left off from his big 2023, catching five of his six targets for 61 yards and two touchdowns. Chris Godwin looked like his former self catching all eight targets for 83 yards and a touchdown. This duo scored 23.1 and 22.3 Fantasy Points in the order I listed them. Rookie Jalen McMillan hauled in a touchdown on his lone catch.
• Rachaad White rushed 15 times for 31 yards and caught six passes for 75 yards. 16.6 Fantasy Points for the RB4 from last year. Rookie Bucky Irving rushed nine times for 62 yards and caught two passes for 14 yards.

Tennessee Titans

• Tony Pollard rushed 16 times for 82 yards and a touchdown and caught three passes for 12 yards. 18.4 Fantasy Points in Pollard’s debut as a Titan. Tyjae Spears rushed four times for 21 yards and caught four passes for 11 yards.
• Will Levis threw 19/32 (59.4%) for 127 yards and a touchdown. Seven targets went to Calvin Ridley, who caught three of them for 50 yards and will have better days.

Washington Commanders

• Jayden Daniels made a Fantasy Football splash instantly in his NFL debut. The 2024 second overall pick threw 17/24 (70.8%) for 184 yards and rushed 16 times for 88 yards and two rushing touchdowns. 28.16 Fantasy Points is a great start, with more of that to come.
• Brian Robinson Jr. rushed 12 times for 40 yards and a touchdown and caught three passes for 49 yards. Austin Ekeler rushed twice for 10 yards and caught four passes for 52 yards.

Make sure to check out all of our Week 2 Fantasy Football Rankings and Analysis!