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Justin Carter looks at NFL offenses that struggled in Week 1 of 2024. Do players like Davante Adams and Courtland Sutton still have fantasy football upside?
Week 1 featured some truly awful football from a handful of teams. Notably, the Panthers, Giants, and Raiders all scored 10 or fewer points. And while the Denver Broncos scored 20, four of those came via safety and another nine were from field goals.
With how poorly some of these offenses played, fantasy managers who have players on those teams certainly have to be worried at this point. Are any of those teams going to end up turning things around?
Let's take a look at the offense of these four teams and figure out if there are going to be any fantasy-relevant players on them.
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Carolina Panthers
The Panthers had the most embarrassing loss of Week 1 as the team was destroyed by division rival New Orleans to the tune of a 47-10 defeat. The team trailed 30-0 before finally getting on the board with a field goal as the first half expired.
Second-year quarterback Bryce Young didn't look like he'd improved at all, going 13-of-30 for 161 yards and two interceptions. He added four carries for 12 yards and a late touchdown to salvage his fantasy day a tiny bit, but unless the Panthers start letting Young run a lot more often, he's almost impossible to trust in fantasy.
Some progress for Panthers QB Bryce Young: In the first half, his very first pass was intercepted.
In the second half, he didn't get picked off until his second pass.— Scott Fowler (@scott_fowler) September 8, 2024
At running back, we thought Chuba Hubbard would be the No. 1 until Jonathon Brooks was healthy, but he has just one more carry than Miles Sanders and finished with fewer targets. Sanders also had two targets to Hubbard's zero. I wouldn't trust either as more than a desperation RB3 play right now.
The leading receiver was Adam Thielen with three catches for 49 yards, but his four targets ranked fourth on the team. Rookie Xavier Legette led the team in targets with seven, while Diontae Johnson had six. Somehow, Jonathan Mingo had more yards than both of them.
Players with fantasy upside?
There's not much appealing here. Brooks should take over as the RB1 and has a fantasy RB2 upside once he's healthy, but that'll be a while. Legette's target number was interesting, but as long as Mingo and David Moore are combining for eight targets, the better receivers have their upside capped. It's a messy situation.
Denver Broncos
One concern about quarterback Bo Nix coming in was that he made his living at Oregon off safe passes. Would he be able to push the ball down the field with the Broncos? Well, Nix had the second-lowest completed air yards in Week 1, so ... yes, it's fair to say that's still a concern.
Bo Nix threw 12 passes past 10 yards yesterday. 2 of them were intercepted and he threw THREE more (video below) that could've easily been picked.
Last one is the most egregious. pic.twitter.com/7to9SPR5Gk
— Carter Donnick (@CDonnick1) September 9, 2024
Nix attempted 42 passes in his NFL debut but finished with 138 yards and two picks. He also added 35 rushing yards and a score. On the one hand, that wasn't good. On the other, that level of attempts gives him some fantasy upside.
Jaleel McLaughlin led the team with 10 carries, while Javonte Williams had eight. Neither cracked 30 yards. If McLaughlin is going to cut into Williams' carries that much, Williams loses a lot of his fantasy value.
Courtland Sutton caught just four passes for 38 yards, but he was targeted 12 times. Josh Reynolds and Devaughn Vele each had eight targets, with Vele catching all eight. There has to be something there, right?
Players with fantasy upside?
If Nix is going to throw 40-plus passes a game, he should get to a point where he has QB2 appeal, though he won't be particularly safe. The volume also keeps Sutton in play as a startable fantasy option, albeit one with a lower ceiling and floor than expected. Vele is intriguing in deep leagues, but I need to see a bit more first before I trust him.
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders only converted one drive into a touchdown, but the passing attack wasn't awful. Just ... mediocre?
Quarterback Gardner Minshew II was 25-of-33 for 257 yards, one touchdown, and one pick. He's not worth starting in fantasy, but numbers like that should support at least one fantasy-relevant receiver.
The issue is that Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers, and Brock Bowers are fighting for a piece of the piece. Bowers led the team in targets with eight, while Adams was just behind with six. Meyers was targeted just three times, but his 61 yards led the team.
I guess what I'm trying to get at here is that there are talented players on this offense, but it's also probably going to be a fantasy headache most weeks. The talent of Bowers and Adams probably makes that worth it for their big games, but Adams, in particular, has a lower floor than you'd like, considering what he costs you in fantasy drafts.
As for the run game, Zamir White led the way with 13 carries but had just 44 yards. Alexander Mattison had only five carries, but he caught four passes for 43 yards and a touchdown. It's just not a very exciting group and you're looking at low-end RB2 production at best from White.
Players with fantasy upside?
I'd still play Adams and Bowers most weeks unless they have a bad matchup. Bowers should keep improving and will be a top-10 option at tight end. Meyers has some boom-or-bust appeal in deep leagues.
New York Giants
The New York Giants already had to publicly state that they aren't benching quarterback Daniel Jones. That should tell you all you need to know about whether Jones is worth starting in fantasy or not. If you have to say you aren't benching the dude who had 186 yards and two picks, you're eventually going to be benching the dude.
Daniel Jones has thrown THREE PICK-SIXES and only TWO TD's since signing his 4-year, $160M deal 😬 pic.twitter.com/RSZG3EUjW4
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 9, 2024
There was some hope that Devin Singletary would be a solid RB2 this year because he faced no competition for touches. Well, he had 10 carries and five targets in Week 1, so that upside is still there based on volume.
However, unless the passing game improves, Singletary will face stacked boxes and will be in that running back no man's land where he gets too much work to be dropped but produces too little to be worthy of playing in fantasy most weeks.
Rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers had a solid debut, catching five of his seven targets for 66 yards, while Wan'Dale Robinson was targeted 12 times, catching six for 44 yards. There's likely something there with both guys, but their upside is capped by Daniel Jones being Daniel Jones.
Players with fantasy upside?
Nabers is going to have some explosive games despite the shaky QB play, while Robinson is intriguing as a deep-league PPR option based on the target volume he saw in Week 1. Beyond that, things are questionable, but those two receivers are worth roster spots, and Nabers is a weekly flex option for now.
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