This article is part of our Run 'N' Shoot series.
As much as I want to start in Buffalo, any Week 1 recap has to begin in Dallas, where the Giants simply handed the Cowboys a win. I'm not sure which part was the worst -- calling a pass play up by three on third-and-goal from the 1 with 1:43 remaining, Eli throwing the ball away on that play (and stopping the clock) or the Giants kicking a field goal on the ensuing fourth down. If New York had called two straight runs, its worst-case scenario was Dallas getting the ball on its own 1 with a minute left, needing a field goal to tie (and playing for such). Instead, the Giants gave Dallas more time, better field position and forced them to play for the win. We won't see worse coaching in the end-game all year.
(Edit by Stopa: Holy schmoly. I just read a quote from Rashad Jennings that the coaches told him not to score. No flippin' way ... I can't make this up; it's too bizarre. Now, to be clear, there are scenarios where an offense should not score, but Sunday night plainly wasn't one of them.)
It wasn't all good fortune for Dallas, though, as Dez Bryant is out 4-6 weeks. Jason Witten is an obvious upgrade with Dez shelved, and Terrance Williams is an immediate waiver add.
• Now ... how about them Bills? If you didn't watch, the 27-14 final doesn't do the throttling justice. Buffalo led 24-0 at one point and made
As much as I want to start in Buffalo, any Week 1 recap has to begin in Dallas, where the Giants simply handed the Cowboys a win. I'm not sure which part was the worst -- calling a pass play up by three on third-and-goal from the 1 with 1:43 remaining, Eli throwing the ball away on that play (and stopping the clock) or the Giants kicking a field goal on the ensuing fourth down. If New York had called two straight runs, its worst-case scenario was Dallas getting the ball on its own 1 with a minute left, needing a field goal to tie (and playing for such). Instead, the Giants gave Dallas more time, better field position and forced them to play for the win. We won't see worse coaching in the end-game all year.
(Edit by Stopa: Holy schmoly. I just read a quote from Rashad Jennings that the coaches told him not to score. No flippin' way ... I can't make this up; it's too bizarre. Now, to be clear, there are scenarios where an offense should not score, but Sunday night plainly wasn't one of them.)
It wasn't all good fortune for Dallas, though, as Dez Bryant is out 4-6 weeks. Jason Witten is an obvious upgrade with Dez shelved, and Terrance Williams is an immediate waiver add.
• Now ... how about them Bills? If you didn't watch, the 27-14 final doesn't do the throttling justice. Buffalo led 24-0 at one point and made Indy look nothing like the Super Bowl darling many predicted. It was an all-around disaster for the Colts -- they couldn't block (just two sacks, but several offensive holding calls killed the offense), T.Y. Hilton and Frank Gore got hurt, and Andre Johnson looked like another team's castoff. (Watching on Channel 702, I actually thought Johnson was a tight end more than once -- obviously not a compliment.) If I'm an Indy fan, my hope is that this game forces the Colts to play some of their younger (better?) players, particularly Donte Moncrief.
I'm not a Colts fan, of course -- I'm a Bills fan ... and what a time it is to be such. Tyrod Taylor looked fantastic in his starting debut, and about the only negative I can say based on Week 1 is the Bills defense is so good it will keep his volume down in fantasy. With rookie CB Ronald Darby emerging opposite Stephon Gilmore and a front seven full of Pro Bowlers, this might be the NFL's best defense. If that sounds like hyperbole, remember -- Buffalo shut down Luck (5.0 YPA) without its 100-million dollar DT, Marcell Dareus. I can't wait for Week 2, when the Patriots bring their Gronk show to Buffalo and we all see if the Bills are truly a contender.
• As good as the Broncos defense appears, Denver fans have to be restless. Peyton Manning looks done. How many more performances like that before the mainstream media starts asking about Brock Osweiler? If that sounds crazy, consider this: Blake Bortles was awful on Sunday and posted a 4.6 YPA. Peyton was 4.4.
• After a dynamic first drive taking over for an injured Josh McCown, Johnny Manziel reverted to the turnover-prone disaster we saw in 2014. The lack of skill-position talent around him certainly doesn't help, but so long as Manziel is under center, the Browns fantasy relevance from 2015 will come from starting the defense they're playing that week.
• The Rams have a bad offensive line and played without Brian Quick and their top two running backs, yet Seattle still gave up 297 yards passing and 11.0 YPA to Nick Foles. With Kam Chancellor out, a couple of free-agent defections and Earl Thomas hurting, we may not need to bench our fantasy players against this Seattle defense.
• If I knew Carson Palmer would play 16 games, I'd pick Arizona to win the NFC West. But please stop giving touches to Chris Johnson!
• Let's do some quick-hitters on players whose Week 1 performances moved the fantasy needle:
UP
Marcus Mariota: Four touchdowns, three incompletions and thousands of Bucs fans wondering why the team drafted Jameis Winston
Tyler Eifert: A lot of tight ends had great Week 1s, but Eifert's 9-104-2 on 12 targets moved the needle like no other. Buy, buy, buy.
Donte Moncrief: This is the Colts' best receiver so long as T.Y. Hilton is out. Put him atop your FAAB claims.
James Jones: Who cares if Jones has been cut by other teams? He's the No. 3 WR in Green Bay, and Aaron Rodgers trusts him. Jones will be hit or miss based on TDs, and I prefer Moncrief, but Jones should be owned in most formats.
Keenan Allen: I'm not sure what happened to Allen in 2014, but his Week 1 performance looked like the young stud we saw in 2013. I'd rather own Allen than Emmanuel Sanders -- zero hesitation.
NO CHANGE
Jameis Winston: In real-life, Winston's debut was a nightmare. For fantasy, though, nothing is different here. If anything, I'm encouraged knowing Mike Evans will be back and Austin Seferian-Jenkins looks like a legit talent. If the Bucs defense continues to play so poorly, there's fantasy potential.
Chris Ivory: Game flow and a bad Browns defense were significant reasons for Ivory's Week 1 performance. The Jets won't always be playing from the lead, and Bilal Powell is still the third-down guy.
Danny Woodhead: I'm not rushing to the waiver wire. Woodhead had just 3.5 YPC and only 20 yards receiving on seven targets. Plus, the game flow in Week 1 was odd, with San Diego playing from behind most of the game. I still think Woodhead's significance in the fantasy community is by detracting from Melvin Gordon, not being starter-worthy in his own right.
Jarvis Landry: The punt return TD was nifty, and the eight receptions helps in PPR, but 53 receiving yards on 12 targets against a bad Redskins defense is a major red flag. I'd prefer Jeremy Maclin, even in full-point PPR.
DOWN
All Broncos: Peyton's demise is going to drag down the whole offense, and Ronnie Hillman is taking carries from C.J. Anderson. If I could get close to 100 percent of value for Demaryius Thomas, I'd sell.
Joique Bell: 6-14-0 isn't going to hold down the fort when Ameer Abdullah is making highlight reels. Abdullah should be the Lions' bell-cow and Theo Riddick (perhaps the NFL's best back out of the backfield) deserves the third-down role. It won't be long before Bell is a fantasy afterthought.
Sammy Watkins: There are a lot of mouths to feed in the Bills offense, and the defense will prevent volume. I'd rather own Kendall Wright.
Andre Johnson: Watch the tape and tell me Johnson doesn't look like a tight end. If I owned Andre, I'd play up the Hilton injury and look to sell.
Ravens Defense: Losing Terrell Suggs to a torn ACL is a needle-mover for this defense.
