START: Carson Wentz, QB
Week 2 opponent: at Detroit Lions
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,800 / FanDuel — $7,400
Why you should start him: Carson Wentz threw for 313 yards and four touchdowns last weekend against the Jacksonville Jaguars. He gets another favorable matchup this weekend against a Detroit Lions team that just gave up 38 points to the Eagles.
SIT: Tom Brady
Week 2 opponent: at New Orleans Saints
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $6,400 / FanDuel — $8,000
Why you should sit him: Hear me out — the Tampa Bay Buccaneers haven’t beaten the Saints in the regular season since 2018. Tom Brady is 0-4 in the regular season against the Saints as a Buc, including last year’s December meeting when Tampa was shut out at home, with Brady throwing for just 214 yards.
It’s tough to justify sitting Brady given his usual upside, but if you have another serviceable quarterback on your roster, this might be the week to use them.
START: Derek Carr, QB
Week 2 opponent: vs. Arizona Cardinals
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $6,200 / FanDuel — $7,300
Why you should sit him: Derek Carr and the Raiders struggled against the Chargers last weekend, but they should be in much higher spirits against a Cardinals defense that gave up more points than any other team in the NFL last week. For daily fantasy players, stacking Carr with wide receiver Davante Adams and/or tight end Darren Waller feels like a solid all-in play on the Raiders offense.
START: Josh Jacobs, RB
Week 2 opponent: vs. Arizona Cardinals
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,800 / FanDuel — $6,600
Why you should start him: Again, I think the Raiders are in for a big day against the Cardinals. While Chiefs running back Clyde Edwards-Helair is not always the star of the show, he had quite a day against Arizona in Week 1, finishing with 74 total yards and two touchdowns. If Jacobs sees his workload reach the levels it was near the end of last season — 15 or more carries — you’ll want him in your lineup on Sunday.
SIT: Cam Akers, RB
Week 2 opponent: vs. Atlanta Falcons
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,600 / FanDuel — $5,500
Why you should sit him: If you drafted Cam Akers, I’m sorry. In the season opener against the Bills, it felt as though Akers was hardly on the field, and when he was out there, he was ineffectual. Comments from head coach Sean McVay after the game didn’t exactly inspire confidence that a big shift of touches in Akers’ direction was coming any time soon. If you have other options, lean on them until Los Angeles shows they are interested in getting Akers involved. You might miss his first week of big production, but being a week late is better than having a 0 in your lineup.
START: Jeff Wilson Jr., RB
Week 2 opponent: vs. Seattle Seahawks
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,100 / FanDuel — $6,300
Why you should start him: This feels like an underprice on the part of DraftKings, likely because prices were set before starting running back Elijah Mitchell’s status for this week was clear. With Mitchell now expected to be out for two months, the 49ers will likely be giving Jeff Wilson a lot of carries. Last year, Wilson was quite productive when given the opportunity.
SIT: Breece Hall, RB
Week 2 opponent: at Cleveland Browns
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,200 / FanDuel — $5,900
Why you should sit him: The Cleveland Browns defense did a pretty good job at containing Christian McCaffrey in Carolina last week. If they were capable of shutting down one of the most dynamic rushers in the NFL, Breece Hall is going to have his work cut out for him on Sunday.
START: Michael Pittman Jr., WR
Week 2 opponent: at Jacksonville Jaguars
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $6,700 / FanDuel — $7,800
Why you should start him: Michael Pittman Jr. is already a must-start in most fantasy leagues if he is on your roster, but he could be set to exceed even high expectations on Sunday. For daily fantasy players, Pittman is one of the few players capable of putting up numbers comparable to the top tier of fantasy receivers in the league —and yet still available at a relative discount.
SIT: CeeDee Lamb, WR
Week 2 opponent: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $6,900 / FanDuel — $7,700
Why you should sit him: CeeDee Lamb didn’t have a great game against the Buccaneers, even when Dak Prescott was under center, coming down with just two catches on a whopping 11 targets. It’s tough to imagine him faring much worse, but with Cooper Rush taking over at quarterback, anything is possible.
START: Jerry Jeudy, WR
Week 2 opponent: vs. Houston Texans
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,600 / FanDuel — $6,300
Why you should start him: After a disappointing opening game, the Broncos return home with a solid get-right opportunity against the Houston Texans. Russell Wilson should dial up a big throw for Jerry Jeudy to catch in stride for a deep touchdown early on. Jeudy has been a speedy weapon for years, but Wilson is the first quarterback that can give him a chance to show off that potential.
SIT: Hunter Renfrow, WR
Week 2 opponent: vs. Arizona Cardinals
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,500 / FanDuel — $5,600
Why you should sit him: While the Raiders look like they’re in for a solid day against the Cardinals, I am less high on Hunter Renfrow, based solely on opportunity. Renfrow’s greatest value to the Raiders was his sure hands, but with the addition of Davante Adams, the Raiders now have a superstar with sure hands and big play potential. Renfrow will still get his looks, and could even be more open if defenses are over-committing to stopping Adams. Still, he got just six targets on Sunday, when he was averaging nearly eight per game last year.
START: Allen Robinson, WR
Week 2 opponent: vs. Atlanta Falcons
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,500 / FanDuel — $5,700
Why you should start him: This is a bit of a dart throw, as Allen Robinson was barely involved in the Rams offense last week against the Bills. But Sean McVay isn’t the type to let a player of Robinson’s talent level go ignored for long. Given how quiet Robinson was in his Los Angeles debut, I wouldn’t be surprised if they have a red zone look dialed up for him in Week 2.
SIT: Tyler Lockett, WR
Week 2 opponent: at San Francisco 49ers
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,600 / FanDuel — $6,200
Why you should sit him: Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith looked solid, but he was spreading the ball around quite a bit, which can make things difficult for fantasy players, especially those with Tyler Lockett on their roster. Lockett got just four targets against the Broncos.
START: DeAndre Carter, WR
Week 2 opponent: at Kansas City Chiefs
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $4,000 / FanDuel — $5,600
Why you should start him: You might be hesitant to make such a risky play early in the week, but with Keenan Allen expected to miss Thursday night’s game against the Chiefs, DeAndre Carter should be in for a pretty good game. These two teams combined for 112 points over the course of two regular season meetings last year.
START: Dalton Schultz, TE
Week 2 opponent: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $5,200 / FanDuel — $5,600
Why you should start him: I do not believe much in Cowboys backup quarterback Cooper Rush. However, in fantasy, it’s good to remember that there’s no safety valve a backup quarterback likes more than his tight end. If the Cowboys finally manage to score their first touchdown of the year on Sunday, I think Schultz is the one that finds the end zone.
SIT: Pat Freiermuth, TE
Week 2 opponent: vs. New England Patriots
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $4,400 / FanDuel — $5,400
Why you should sit him: Pat Freiermuth was on our start list last week and showed with a solid outing, finishing with five receptions for 75 yards. While he should get plenty of targets, this week he’s up against the New England Patriots, and no coach in the league is better at shutting down opposing tight ends than Bill Belichick.
START: Tyler Higbee, TE
Week 2 opponent: vs. Atlanta Falcons
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $4,200 / FanDuel — $5,300
Why you should start him: The Rams are still missing receiver Van Jefferson. While he’s out, tight end Tyler Higbee should be up for a bigger share of targets in the Los Angeles offense.
START: Bengals defense
Week 2 opponent: at Dallas Cowboys
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $2,200 / FanDuel — $3,900
Why you should start him: This price was undoubtedly set before Dak Prescott’s injury. If the Bengals defense is available in your league and you can spare the roster spot, pick them up this week. And if you are a daily fantasy player, the Bengals defense should be one of the first selections you make in at least 70% of your lineups this week.
SIT: Dallas Cowboys defense
Week 2 opponent: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Daily fantasy price: DraftKings — $3,000 / FanDuel — $4,400
Why you should sit him: The Cowboys defense performed well against Tom Brady and the Buccaneers, despite a stagnant day from their offense. But this week, Cooper Rush could leave them with a few short fields to defend against Joe Burrow and the Bengals. Further, while Burrow was bullied last week to the tune of seven sacks and five turnovers, that doesn’t seem like a performance likely to repeat itself.