Depth Chart Watch: Fallout From Week 1

Week 1 has come and gone, so now's the time for us to start irrationally hating or loving our fantasy rosters. Whether you're planning to go undefeated or you don't know how your team will ever win a game, it pays to watch the movements on the depth charts; that glorious team you drafted is only as good as its ability to avoid injury and your ability to complement it with savvy waiver-wire pickups. So let's take a look at how things went in the season opener and what we can expect moving forward.

QUARTERBACK

Cleveland Browns

So, the Robert Griffin era in Cleveland didn't last too long, as the 2012 No. 2 pick has a fracture in his left shoulder, which has landed him on IR and is likely to end his season. Welcome back to the starting lineup, Josh McCown!

Dallas Cowboys

Dak Prescott started out rather efficiently in his NFL debut, but faded over the course of the game and ended up 25-for-45 for 227 yards, no touchdowns and no picks; he also rushed just twice for 12 yards, rounding out a quiet debut. Supposedly, if Prescott shows something more while Tony Romo (back) remains sidelined, the rookie has an outside shot at holding onto the starting role.

Denver Broncos

Trevor Siemian turned in a mixed bag in his first NFL start, going 18-for-26 with a touchdown (efficient!), but throwing two interceptions (not great!). That's enough that there's no more controversy here for the time being.

Los Angeles Rams

So, the Case Keenum era is off to a brutal start, as he completed fewer than half his passes and was intercepted twice in Monday night's shutout in San Francisco. The Rams will thus again go looking for their first points since moving to Los Angeles in Week 2, but with Keenum probably under center again, keep your expectations extremely low. Immediate backup Sean Mannion and No. 1 pick Jared Goff are lurking in the background, but which of them ultimately replaces Keenum (once the starter seemingly inevitably loses his job) remains an open question.

Minnesota Vikings

Shaun Hill got an unimpressive Week 1 start in, but Sam Bradford is set to take the reins in Week 2, by which time he'll presumably know the playbook well enough.

RUNNING BACK

Atlanta Falcons

Week 1 provided vindication for the Devonta Freeman apostates, as he had a brutal game against Tampa – 20 rushing yards on 11 carries and 20 receiving yards on four catches. While Tevin Coleman was also stuffed on the ground (eight carries for 22 yards), he excelled through the air, catching five passes for 95 yards. As you might expect from those stats, the snaps were nearly even – 36 for Freeman, 32 for Coleman. It's unclear how the carries will break out moving forward, but Freeman owners have to be monitoring the situation with trepidation.

Baltimore Ravens

With Justin Forsett and Terrance West splitting touches in a low-scoring Week 1 affair, there wasn't much fantasy value to be gained from the Ravens' rushers (or really anyone else). West actually touched the ball more – 12 carries and two catches to Forsett's 10 carries and three catches – even though the 30-year-old was much more efficient, posting a 4.1 YPC. Javorius Allen, meanwhile, was inactive. Keep your expectations low for all these guys right now.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Chris Ivory was hospitalized with a mysterious "general" ailment Sunday after being questionable all week long with a calf issue, allowing T.J. Yeldon to pick up the start against Green Bay; unfortunately, he gained only 39 yards on 21 carries, though his fantasy day was saved by a five-yard TD run and 30 receiving yards. It's no sure thing that Ivory will be back for Week 2, and Yeldon will again have all the touches he can handle if the veteran doesn't return.

Kansas City Chiefs

If you didn't start Spencer Ware at his bargain-basement price in DFS, you missed out – the dude went off for 199 total yards (129 of it via seven receptions) and a touchdown on only 18 touches against San Diego, playing a major part in the Chiefs' comeback from a deep deficit in Week 1. With no Jamaal Charles (knee), Kansas City used Ware overwhelmingly on early downs, and while Charcandrick West played just as many snaps (34), West's usage was almost entirely restricted to the receiving game. (He wasn't able to break any big plays there, with six catches for 24 yards.) Word is that Charles has made only nominal progress toward a Week 2 return.

Miami Dolphins

Apparently, Jay Ajayi wasn't happy with losing out to Arian Foster for the starting job, and his petulance caused the coaches to leave him behind for Week 1, with Damien Williams instead backing up Foster. The veteran used his 13 carries inefficiently (38 yards), but made himself a 100-total-yard day by grabbing three passes for 62. Williams wasn't called upon much as the backup, but did make a 29-yard reception. Word out of Miami is that the Ajayi situation has been rectified, which means he'll probably be active for Week 2, although he'll still be the distinct second fiddle to Foster. For now.

San Diego Chargers

The Chargers are coming off a most unusual season opener, and the running game's quirky stats fall right along those lines. Melvin Gordon played only 23 of 73 offensive snaps, but carried the ball on 14 of those, gaining 57 yards and two touchdowns; surprisingly, Danny Woodhead led San Diego in carries, running 16 times for an impressive 89 yards and adding five grabs for 31 yards and a touchdown. Considering the Chargers jumped out to a big lead in this game and yet Woodhead was in on more than twice as many plays as Gordon, we may want to start thinking of the veteran as the starting back here.

Seattle Seahawks

With Thomas Rawls (ankle) getting brought along slowly, Christine Michael led the way for Seattle in Week 1, rushing 15 times for 66 yards. Rawls did carry 12 times, but gained just 32 yards; he did, however, contribute three grabs for 26 additional yards. Even though Michael was more efficient, word is that Rawls will take a full workload in Week 2 – one that could include more reps in the passing game, as third-down back C.J. Prosise suffered hand, wrist and shoulder injuries in the opener.

Tennessee Titans

Well, the early returns are in. DeMarco Murray took a big edge in touches Sunday, rushing 13 times and catching five passes; that said, he averaged only 3.2 YPC and totaled 77 total yards with a fumble, so his big fantasy day was entirely reliant on the fact that he scored two touchdowns through the air. For Henry's part, five carries for three yards won't bring home the bacon, but he did gain 41 yards while catching both his pass targets.

Washington Redskins

The 'Skins got stepped on by Pittsburgh on Monday night, which will naturally limit the running game, but neither Matt Jones nor Chris Thompson did much of anything through the air either. Even considering the context, it has to be concerning for Jones owners that he rushed only seven times – with Thompson taking four carries, including a one-yard TD plunge. After all the semi-hype, Rob Kelley didn't even touch the ball.

WIDE RECEIVER

Atlanta Falcons

Who led Falcons wideouts in snaps, receptions and yardage in Week 1? Julio Jones, right? Slow your roll – it was Mohamed Sanu, who tied Jones with eight targets. If Sanu's kicking around on your waiver wire, go make moves. Few other Atlanta receivers appear set to receive meaningful targets.

Buffalo Bills

Sammy Watkins' foot kept him out of practice Monday following a quiet Week 1 performance against Baltimore, but he says he'll play against Darrelle Revis and the Jets on Thursday. Even if he does, though, it wouldn't be surprising for Watkins to be more of a decoy than anything else, keeping things open for Robert Woods and Greg Salas to do something more than the painfully negligible totals they were able to offer in the opener.

Carolina Panthers

Kelvin Benjamin's return after missing all of last season went rather decently, as he caught six balls for 91 yards and a touchdown on a dozen targets in Thursday's opener. The main victim of that success was Devin Funchess, who was thrown at only four times, catching just a single ball for nine yards.

Denver Broncos

Demaryius Thomas turned in a quiet season opener (not that any Broncos wideout didn't), catching four balls for 48 yards, and he came down with a hip injury; the status of the injury is an open question still, but the two-time 100-catch man is supposed to practice in some capacity Wednesday. If he's unavailable in Week 2, look for Bennie Fowler and Cody Latimer to split the leftover targets while Emmanuel Sanders gets an even bigger share than usual.

Detroit Lions

Although Golden Tate caught all seven balls thrown to him in Week 1, he gained only 41 yards despite the Lions and Colts engaging in a shootout. Surprisingly, new addition Marvin Jones got the most attention from Matt Stafford, with 10 targets – although he caught just four of those, it was plenty enough to lead the team in receiving with 85 yards. Tate will remain a target monster, but this is a high-volume passing game, so there'll be plenty of opportunity for Jones if he can stay healthy.

Houston Texans

We knew Will Fuller had won himself a starting job in preseason, but no one expected him to out-target DeAndre Hopkins and nearly double up his stud teammate in yardage straight out of the gate. Indeed, Fuller was targeted 11 times to Hopkins' eight, and he racked up 107 yards on five catches, showing great after-the-catch burst. With Hopkins demanding plenty of attention from opposing secondaries, it wouldn't be a big surprise to see Fuller enjoy regular targets and a big rookie season. Make sure no one left him lingering on your waiver wire.

Los Angeles Rams

Tavon Austin had about as useless a game as you'll ever see in Week 1 – a game worth adapting to film. We'll call it How To Do Nothing With 12 Targets, in which Austin catches four of those targets for 13 yards. Yikes. Kenny Britt was much more efficient, reeling in four passes for 67 yards on six targets.

Miami Dolphins

DeVante Parker (hamstring) couldn't go in Week 1, which left Kenny Stills as the starter opposite Jarvis Landry for Miami's season-opening loss to the Seahawks. Landry was his typically PPR-friendly self, but Stills caught only a single pass for 16 yards on five targets – including muffing a surefire touchdown pass with no defenders anywhere near him. That very well might be the ugliest drop I've ever seen.

New York Jets

The surprise of Week 1 in New York was the rise of Quincy Enunwa, who turned a team-leading seven catches into 54 yards and a score. He tied for the team lead in targets with Brandon Marshall (eight), one more than Eric Decker (who saved an inefficient day with a touchdown). It's questionable whether a Ryan Fitzpatrick-led offense can support more than two receivers, but Enunwa merits watching, especially considering that Marshall got nicked up in the preseason. Of course, Enunwa himself has a bit of a rib injury.

Pittsburgh Steelers

No one is surprised by the high-flying performances of Antonio Brown, but with Markus Wheaton (shoulder) out, speculating fantasy owners were rewarded nicely by second-year rookie Eli Rogers, who missed all of last season with a foot injury. He reeled in six catches for 59 yards and a score on seven targets. Sammie Coates, meanwhile, gained 56 yards of his own on two grabs. Brown's touches are guaranteed; the rest of the targets may be inconsistently distributed, especially when Wheaton's on the field.

San Diego Chargers

Man, Keenan Allen just can't catch a break. He caught himself a torn ACL on Sunday, ending his 2016 season after less than one game. Accordingly, Travis Benjamin saw eight targets (catching seven, but for a meager 32 yards), and he stands to benefit from a big volume increase the rest of the way. Little-known undrafted sophomore Tyrell Williams ended up leading the Chargers in receiving with two catches for 71 yards (five targets), and he's the one who projects to start opposite Benjamin moving forward. Maybe Dontrelle Inman will get a bit more of a look too, as he was decent when called upon last season.

San Francisco 49ers

If there's one target monster no one saw coming, it's Jeremy Kerley, who had Blaine Gabbert throw his way a team-leading 11 times. He came down with seven grabs for 61 yards, both team-leading marks as well. Predictably, we saw the "bust" version of Torrey Smith again, as he caught only two of his six targets for 13 yards. Quinton Patton, however, made a positive impression, catching all five of his targets for 60 yards. Those three guys figure to be the most-targeted receivers on a week-to-week basis, but the Niners aren't built around the pass, so keep your expectations low.

Tennessee Titans

Not only is Tajae Sharpe starting, but he dominated Marcus Mariota's attention Sunday, easily leading the team with 11 targets, seven catches and 76 yards. Andre Johnson surprisingly had seven balls thrown his way, but turned them into only three catches for 30 yards. Rishard Matthews was more efficient with fewer opportunities, grabbing three for 26 on four targets. Harry Douglas was the least efficient of all, snagging just two of five for 21 yards. There are a lot of bodies in this mix, but Sharpe and Matthews remain the most intriguing bets.

TIGHT END

Cincinnati Bengals

With no Tyler Eifert (knee), C.J. Uzomah easily led the snap count at TE in Week 1 and got noticed, tallying a 54-yard catch as well as a five-yard grab among his five targets. There's some degree of short-term fantasy appeal here, as Eifert has several weeks left until his return.

Detroit Lions

Eric Ebron made it back from his ankle ailment in Week 1 and looked good doing so, catching all five of his pass targets for 46 yards and a score. He may have been left on the wire in a lot of leagues, so look into it.

Green Bay Packers

Jared Cook's first exposure to regular-season action with the Packers didn't exactly leave a mark – he caught only one pass for seven yards on two targets despite leading the team's tight ends in snaps (33). Ouch. Richard Rodgers caught one pass of his own (22 yards) on 25 plays. This timeshare doesn't seem good for anyone, and with Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb taking up lots of Aaron Rodgers' attention, there may simply not be enough targets available on a game-to-game basis for Cook to be relevant in fantasy. Even so, don't give up on him quite yet.

New England Patriots

Rob Gronkowski's hamstring injury blew up into a big problem seemingly out of nowhere last week thanks to the opaque nature of NFL injury reporting, leaving Martellus Bennett to draw the start by himself; unfortunately, Bennett ended up primarily in a blocking role, ultimately catching just three passes on five targets for 14 yards. Gronk's Week 2 status remains up in the air, and his fantasy owners will surely be looking for news on that front anxiously.

Philadelphia Eagles

Zach Ertz caught a collarbone injury in Week 1 in the middle of enjoying a solid day (six catches for 58 yards), which means Brent Celek will get at least some short-term run as the Eagles' starter after notching only 11 yards in the opener.

Seattle Seahawks

As predicted, Jimmy Graham (knee) saw only a limited workload Sunday, notching just 17 snaps and catching a single pass on a single target for 17 yards. Luke Willson got a heavy workload, but didn't produce much with it, catching just two passes for 26 yards. Graham should continue to see his snaps increase moving forward, but he's more of a bench option than a guy you want in your lineup until there's evidence he's ready for a full-time role.