Fantasy Football Week 2: 5 Biggest Takeaways

The five biggest fantasy football takeaways from Week 2 of the 2016 NFL season.

Just about every week in the NFL there are going to be takeaways that fit the same pattern: impressive performances, disappointing performances, and injuries. And of course, that always means fantasy football implications all across the board.

Sunday in Week 2 was no different.

Here are the five biggest fantasy football takeaways from Sunday.

Sep 18, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings defensive end Danielle Hunter (99) sacks Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) and forces a fumble in the first quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports

5. Defenses Are Taking Shape

After two weeks, we are starting to see what defenses to pick on and which ones to shy away from when constructing the best possible fantasy lineup. In back-to-back weeks the Minnesota Vikings, Houston Texans, Seattle Seahawks, and Carolina Panthers defenses played well. In Week 2 the Denver Broncos, New York Giants, and Arizona Cardinals held their own to say the least.

Each one of those teams have defensive playmakers, Pro Bowlers, All-Pros and/or Defensive Players of the Year. It should be no surprise offenses are having trouble moving the ball against them.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are defenses out there who couldn’t stop an infant’s runny nose. The Oakland Raiders, Atlanta Falcons, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars and Cleveland Browns are giving up yards and points at an alarming rate.

Until these teams defenses prove they are competent enough to slow down offenses for at least a couple weeks, keep picking on them.

Sep 18, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Bradford (8) against the Green Bay Packers in the first quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports

4. Bradford Gives Boost to Passing Game

On Sunday Night Football Sam Bradford (22/31, 286 yards, 2 TDs and 0 INTs) delivered a surprising and promising performance against the Green Bay Packers.

The one statistic that stands out most is Bradford’s 31 passing attempts. Last year (including the playoffs) Teddy Bridgwater only attempted 31 passing attempts or more in six out of 17 games.

There are three points to keep in mind when examining his performance:

Both WR Stefon Diggs (9 receptions, 182 yards, 1 TD) and TE Kyle Rudolph (3 receptions, 31 yards, 1 TD) stocks are on the rise with Bradford’s showing on Sunday.

Sep 18, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (3) looses the ball as he is sacked by Los Angeles Rams defensive end Robert Quinn (94) during the first half of a NFL game against the Seattle Seahawks at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

3. Seattle Seahawks Look Ugly

If you recall, the Seattle Seahawks offense was on a tear last season. Of their final nine games in 2015 (including playoffs) Russell Wilson managed to throw multiple touchdown passes in eight of them. During that span he amassed 30 total touchdowns.

So far in two games in 2016, Russell Wilson has led the Seattle Seahawks offense to just one touchdown.

Right now Wilson has more turnovers (2) than touchdowns (1).

In Week 1 Wilson only had 16 rushing yards. In Week 2 he only had 14 rushing yards. Out of 19 games in 2015, Wilson had at least 20 yards rushing in 16 of them. Not only is Wilson struggling to move the ball with his legs but so are his running backs. The Seahawks haven’t had a running back with more than 66 rushing yards in a game so far in 2016.

To make matters even worse, their No. 1 receiver Doug Baldwin has to get an MRI after suffering a knee injury yesterday. Their No. 1 running back, Thomas Rawls (7 carries, -7 rushing yards), also suffered an injury after dealing with one the entire offseason.

The Seahawks started off slow last year, but were eventually able to find a rhythm. That might be the case this year but their top offensive weapons and fantasy players (Wilson, Rawls, Michael, Baldwin and Graham) all have question marks surrounding them.

The Seahawks offense is operating on a wing and a prayer so proceed with caution with all of their players right now.

Sep 18, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley (30) carries the ball in the second half of the game against the Seattle Seahawks at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

2. Early Round RBs Not Delivering

With the exceptions of Cardinals RB David Johnson and Broncos RB C.J. Anderson, early round running backs are not living up to the hype.

In two games, Adrian Peterson and Todd Gurley have yet to find the endzone. They also haven’t had more than 51 rushing yards in each of their first two games. Falcons running back Devonta Freeman hasn’t scored a touchdown in 2016 and hasn’t had at least 10 fantasy football points (in standard leagues) in each of his first two games.

Lamar Miller, Doug Martin, LeSean McCoy and Mark Ingram have also grossly underperformed through two games.

There’s plenty of time for all of these running backs to turn it around but just know this: some of them won’t.

1. Injuries, Injuries and Injuries

Listen, I could have told you in the beginning of the season the waiver wire is where most fantasy champions will be made. However, this Week 3 waiver wire claims might as well serve as second re-draft for some leagues.

I honestly can’t remember a Sunday where so many injuries happened to significant fantasy football players.

Danny Woodhead, Jonathan Stewart, Arian Foster, Thomas Rawls, Adrian Peterson, Doug Martin, Jimmy Garoppolo, Ameer Abdullah, Doug Baldwin, Donte Moncrief, Virgil Green all suffered injuries on Sunday.

Some of these players were considered important pieces to many owners anticipated fantasy success. At the very least, some of them were expected to be key contributors.

Now some injuries appear to be worse than others. Some of these players will miss maybe only a week or two if that. However, this Sunday has left plenty of owners scrambling for answers.