Week 2 Preview

Burrow My Face in TDs (1-0) vs. Trimeniscus in sept (1-0)

The only matchup between two 1-0 teams.

Chuck: Joe Burrow, Kenneth Walker, David Montgomery, Puka Nacua, Malik Nabers, Mark Andrews, Chris Godwin, Breece Hall, DET
Buscho: Drake Maye, Bijan Robinson, Cam Skattebo, George Pickens, Tee Higgins, Michael Mayer, Christian Watson, Chuba Hubbard, DEN

Both managers spent the week actually managing.

Chuck moved Chris Godwin into the lineup ahead of Brian Thomas Jr., who is working through a shoulder issue. Defensible, maybe even correct, though Jacksonville expects Thomas to play. The larger question is the one at the top: Burrow was very limited Wednesday with back tightness and volunteered that only surgery would keep him off the field. That's the quote you want. It is not the same as a full practice, and a sore back against Houston is a real variable.

There's also a quiet problem: his Detroit defense plays at Buffalo tonight, against Josh Allen, who just threw for 334 yards and four touchdowns. That is a hard place to be a fantasy defense.

Buscho gets full marks for the tight end handling. Bowers went under the knife, Buscho benched him, and Michael Mayer slots in as Las Vegas's primary tight end — exactly what the reporting says to do in any game Bowers misses. No panic, no hole in the lineup.

His problem is the quarterback. Drake Maye threw three interceptions in the opener and now draws Pittsburgh, with T.J. Watt coming off a two-sack, pick-six afternoon. Bijan against Carolina is a gift, Watson has earned the flex spot, and Skattebo's role is real — but if Maye posts another 12, the math gets hard.

Pick: Burrow My Face in TDs — flip it if Burrow is scratched

Haasinator5 (0-1) vs. ChrisConte47 (0-1)

Both 0-1. Only one of them has learned anything.

Haas: Justin Herbert, Saquon Barkley, Javonte Williams, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Luther Burden, Kyle Pitts, DeVonta Smith, Terry McLaurin, NE
Conte: Josh Allen, Jahmyr Gibbs, Travis Etienne, Nico Collins, Jaylen Waddle, Harold Fannin, Parker Washington, Mike Evans, JAX

I want to be careful here, because I have been wrong in this space before. So let me state it plainly and without embellishment.

Kyle Pitts scored 0.0 in Week 1. Isaiah Likely scored 27.8 on Haasinator5's bench. Both are in exactly the same place this week.

Pitts is starting. Likely is benched. Atlanta is starting Cooper Rush, whom one analyst this week described as the worst quarterback he saw in Week 1 and whose continued employment as a starter was called "organizational malpractice." Likely, meanwhile, caught all eight of his targets for two touchdowns and looks like the clear 1B in the Giants' offense behind Malik Nabers.

That is the entire matchup preview, honestly. But there's more: McConkey did not practice Wednesday, and if he's out, Justin Herbert's top two receivers are Quentin Johnston and Tre' Harris. Herbert managed 14.26 with McConkey for half a game. JSN is now catching passes from Drew Lock. Jordan Mason went to IR off Haas's bench.

Conte, for his part, did adjust. Mike Evans is in the starting lineup after putting up 16.9 from the bench, and Jayden Reed is out. Good. That's the correction this column asked for.

Two things he hasn't fixed. Nico Collins is limited with a hamstring and flagged as one to watch — Conte is starting him anyway with no obvious contingency. And TreVeyon Henderson took a full practice Wednesday and is tracking to debut Sunday, yet he's on the bench behind Travis Etienne, who just lost carries to a now-healthy Alvin Kamara.

Josh Allen and Gibbs also play each other tonight, which caps the ceiling of that stack somewhat — one of them is going to be on the losing side of a divisional-caliber Thursday game.

Pick: ChrisConte47 — comfortably

Tom DaBombadil (0-1) vs. Champion of the Sun God (1-0)

The league's high scorer against its thinnest bench.

Tom: Jalen Hurts, James Cook, De'Von Achane, Garrett Wilson, Davante Adams, Trey McBride, Colston Loveland, Rhamondre Stevenson, LAR
Max: Lamar Jackson, Kyren Williams, Chase Brown, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Ladd McConkey, Juwan Johnson, Stefon Diggs, Jalen Coker, SEA

Max read the notes. Jadarian Price is out of the lineup and Stefon Diggs is in — the exact swap this column asked for last week. He also correctly benched Zay Flowers, who hasn't practiced and is expected to miss. Two tricky calls, two right answers.

The third one is live, and it's at tight end. Juwan Johnson missed Wednesday with an illness — not an injury, and nobody is worried about his availability. But Max is also sitting George Kittle, who played in Week 1 and is limited rather than out. Jake Tonges tore his MCL and is done for the season, which means San Francisco's tight end volume is about to concentrate, and it concentrates on Kittle. Johnson is the safe start. Kittle is the one with a rising role and a reason to check the Friday report.

The other live risk is McConkey, who did not practice Wednesday with a ribs injury. Max is starting him and has Matthew Golden sitting there. That's a Sunday-morning decision, not a Thursday one, but it needs making. Jalen Coker's ankle looks like noise — his coach expects him to play.

Tom is in a worse spot than his 106.22 suggests, because his bench has gotten thinner, not deeper. Wan'Dale Robinson and Quentin Johnston are gone; Devaughn Vele and Kaelon Black are in. Colston Loveland is still starting in the flex after posting a 0.0, which — to be fair to Tom — is the defensible version of this mistake. Loveland played 65 snaps and ran a team-high 35 routes in Week 1. The usage is real. The production was zero. Chicago hosts Minnesota this week and will need to score.

Hurts and McBride remain the two things Tom can count on. Davante Adams at 5.6 in a Rams offense that got dismantled in Melbourne is the one that needs to change, and the Rams host the Giants on Monday night with a rest advantage.

Pick: Champion of the Sun God

louieyu2000 (1-0) vs. alindeman (0-1)

Highest floor in the league against the highest ceiling.

Louie: Jayden Daniels, Jonathan Taylor, Bucky Irving, Justin Jefferson, Drake London, Tucker Kraft, Tetairoa McMillan, D'Andre Swift, MIN
Lindeman: Caleb Williams, Christian McCaffrey, Jeremiyah Love, Rome Odunze, Emeka Egbuka, Sam LaPorta, Dalton Kincaid, Rico Dowdle, BAL

Lindeman fixed his tight end problem, and he fixed it the right way: Kincaid is in the lineup, starting alongside LaPorta in the flex. That 42-snap, 22-route workload in Week 1 was a role change, and he's treating it like one. A.J. Brown to IR forced Rome Odunze up into a starting spot, which is less a decision than an obligation.

Caleb Williams put up 37.26 last week and gets Minnesota at home, with the Vikings possibly on their backup quarterback again if Kyler Murray can't clear protocol. That's a live path to another big number.

The problem is everything in the middle. McCaffrey managed 13.8. Rico Dowdle scored 4.1 and is behind Jaylen Warren. Jeremiyah Love is a rookie with one touchdown and an unsettled backfield share.

Louie is the least dramatic team in the league and it keeps working. Four starters over twenty last week and the cleanest lineup in the league — roughly 2.6 points left on his bench, best mark of any manager. Swift's knee and ankle are being called routine. The one soft spot is Drake London, who managed 5.5 and is still catching passes from Cooper Rush, with Michael Penix Jr. not yet ready. That's two straight weeks in a bad spot.

Pick: louieyu2000 — floors win in September

hodoryourhorses (0-1) vs. Fudge Friends (1-0)

The commissioner draws the league's best team.

Sean: Dak Prescott, Omarion Hampton, Quinshon Judkins, Jameson Williams, Chris Olave, Travis Kelce, CeeDee Lamb, Rashee Rice, PHI
Fudge Friends: Trevor Lawrence, Derrick Henry, Ashton Jeanty, Ja'Marr Chase, DJ Moore, Tyler Warren, Bhayshul Tuten, Dallas Goedert, PIT

That's the schedule for you.

Credit where it's due: Sean made the sharpest waiver pickup in the league. Jordan Mason went to IR with a fractured thumb, and Aaron Jones is the direct beneficiary of that backfield — Sean grabbed him. Jones is the clear Minnesota lead back for the foreseeable future and he's sitting on the bench this week, which is a fine problem to have.

The starting lineup is still asking a lot of the same guys who let him down. Omarion Hampton faces Las Vegas after 43 yards, a fumble, and zero targets in an offense that collapsed without McConkey — and McConkey may not play again. Rashee Rice and Travis Kelce both draw Indianapolis on Sunday night with Mahomes now through his first game back, which is the best thing on this roster. Chris Olave goes to Baltimore, where the Ravens are suddenly thin at receiver but stout enough on defense.

Fudge Friends learned the Goedert lesson. He's in the flex this week after scoring 24.7 on the bench in Week 1, with Carnell Tate demoted. He also added Xavier Worthy. Henry and Jeanty both come off monster openers, Lawrence gets Denver in a tougher spot than Cleveland was, and Ja'Marr Chase — two catches, twelve yards, 3.2 points — travels to Houston with a great deal to prove.

Here's the thing about Fudge Friends: they won by 61 with their first-round pick scoring 3.2. If Chase shows up at all, this roster is terrifying.

Pick: Fudge Friends — the commissioner starts 0-2