Week 1 is a great example of why it’s acceptable to rely on a bold prediction once in a while when making decisions for your fantasy lineup. For instance, players like Jordan Mason and J.K. Dobbins finished the week inside the top three in rushing yards. Four kickers scored over 20 fantasy points including two tying for the most points with 26. Brock Purdy didn’t throw a touchdown pass! That being said, let’s look at some bold predictions by our Fantrax writers that could help swing your Week 2 matchup.
Week 2 Bold Predictions for the 2024 Fantasy Football Season
Brandin Cooks, WR, Dallas Cowboys
Bold Prediction: 6 receptions, 100 yards, 1 touchdown
22.0 fantasy points
Fantrax Writer: Colin McTamany, @Colin_McT
Colin’s Breakdown: I don’t expect tight end Jake Ferguson to play in Week 2 after suffering a knee injury that forced him out of Week 1. That said, Brandin Cooks is worth serious consideration as a Week 2 starter in fantasy lineups.
It’s time for a Cowboys wide receiver not named CeeDee Lamb to step up this season. Cooks did so in Week 1 hauling in four of his seven targets for 40 yards and a touchdown. His seven targets account for a 22.5% target share from Week 1, second to Lamb. Cooks also found the end zone in the first quarter on Dallas’ second drive, prior to Ferguson’s injury, which is a good sign for his involvement regardless. Above all else, Cooks ran the most routes on the team in their Week 1 road win against the Cleveland Browns.
The Cowboys will host the New Orleans Saints in Week 2 for their home opener. New Orleans is expected to be without star cornerback, Marshon Lattimore. That’s going to make for a very stressful day game planning for CeeDee Lamb especially, which should open things up even more for Cooks on Sunday. My Week 2 bold prediction factors in at least one big downfield shot for Cooks that has a good chance of putting points on the board. Brandin Cooks has a safe enough floor to be a flex option, but my bold prediction suggests he outperforms his Week 2 ranking.
Check out all of our Week 2 Rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE | Flex
Brock Bowers, TE, Las Vegas Raiders
Bold Prediction: 7 receptions, 69 yards, 1 touchdown
19.9 fantasy points
Fantrax Writer: Ryan Kirksey, @CableBoxScore
Ryan’s Breakdown: Brock Bowers had perhaps the most impressive debut for any rookie skill player in Week 1 in his game against the Los Angeles Chargers. He saw eight targets from Gardner Minshew and pulled in six of them for 58 yards, a strong 11.8 PPR fantasy points. But his underlying usage was even more impressive. Among tight ends (who were a wasteland last week), Bowers was 11th in route participation (72.5%), third in target share (24.2%), fourth in air yards share (25.2%), and 10th in yards per route run (2.00). His usage was elite and it was clear he and Minshew already have quite the rapport.
J.K. Dobbins, RB, Los Angeles Chargers
Bold Prediction: 15 carries, 142 yards, 1 touchdown; 3 receptions, 23 yards, 1 touchdown
31.5 fantasy points
Fantrax Writer: Brandon Blanco, @BrandonBlancoFF
Brandon’s Breakdown: The Los Angeles Chargers displayed the new era under Jim Harbaugh and the running game did not disappoint. With 176 rushing yards, J.K. Dobbins accounted for 135 of them on just 10 carries. He also scored a touchdown. Dobbins saw his first top-12 finish since Week 14 of the 2022 season with an RB4 finish in Week 1. Now, Dobbins gets another soft-like-butter match-up against the Carolina Panthers.
The Panthers look like the worst team in football once again and just lost their star defensive tackle, Derrick Brown, for the season. J.K. Dobbins will once again finish as a top-five running back in Week 2. This time, my bold prediction is that he will be the overall RB1. You may have drafted him and left him on your bench in Week 1. Maybe you got him off of the waiver wire. Whatever the situation, he should be in your Week 2 lineups.
Bucky Irving, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Bold Prediction: 15 carries, 95 yards, 1 touchdown; 4 receptions, 40 yards
23.5 fantasy points
Fantrax Writer: Ray Kuhn, @Ray_Kuhn_28
Ray’s Breakdown: One of the highest expected scoring games of the week is between the Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. There will be fantasy production galore, but the focus of my bold prediction here is on fourth-round pick Bucky Irving. Irving showed off skills both on the ground and through the air in college as he turned in strong production. That includes back-to-back 1,000+ yard seasons in 2022 and 2023 as well as 87 receptions during his time at the University of Oregon specifically.
In making his debut last week, Irving wasted no time in getting going. The rookie gained 62 yards on nine carries as he clearly was the better runner for Tampa Bay. Rachaad White did carry the ball 15 times, but he was a lot less efficient. White gained just 31 yards on the ground and it’s hard to dispute the fact that Irving looked better carrying the ball. It’s clear that Tampa Bay has no issues utilizing the two running backs and going with the hot hand. White’s real impact came in the passing game as he caught six passes for 75 yards. In comparison, Irving caught just two passes for 14 yards.
It wouldn’t surprise me to see Irving take on more of a role as a ball carrier while absorbing a few more targets as well. There will be a lot of offense overall in Week 2 and Irving figures to see his role increase. My bold prediction counts on it.
Daniel Jones, QB, New York Giants
Bold Prediction: 180 passing yards, 2 touchdowns; 30 rushing yards, 1 touchdown
24.2 fantasy points
Fantrax Writer: Bradlee Kilgore, @SirBradleeK
Brandon’s Breakdown: Daniel Jones was horrendous in Week 1. Easier said than done, but my bold prediction says we move past it. The reason you might want to target Jones for Week 2 is because he’s playing a dreadful Washington Commanders defense. The case could be made that Washington has the single worst cornerback roster in the entire NFL. According to Pro Football Focus, Washington’s top three perimeter cornerbacks, Benjamin St. Juste (21), Emmanuel Forbes (18), and Michael Davis (18) combined for 57 explosive pass plays allowed last season.
More recently, they were torched by Baker Mayfield in Week 1. He threw for just under 300 yards passing and four touchdowns. I don’t know if Jones’ confidence will allow him to repeat that performance, but if you’re in a pinch and you need a quarterback, don’t be scared to start Jones for this Week 2 matchup. This is a matchup-driven bold prediction more than anything else.
Make sure to check out all of our Week 1 Fantasy Football Rankings and analysis!