RADIO
Week 2 may have been one of the most interesting individual weeks of NFL football in recent memory. With massive individual performances and insane comebacks, this Sunday was just a constant dopamine rush for football fans everywhere.
With massive performances from stars around the league, there were also huge statistical outputs from some unlikely sources. In this article, I’ll be getting into some of the most unexpected “boom” performances from Week 2.
Are these players worth a look in future weeks or are they just one-hit wonders? Let’s take a look below.
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Unexpected Week 2 Fantasy Football Performances
Nelson Agholor, New England Patriots
In a Patriots offense that lacks overall explosiveness, the possibility for an explosive day from a wide receiver is pretty uncommon. In Week 2, New England still gave a heavier snap share to Jakobi Meyers and DeVante Parker but Nelson Agholor was the receiver that made the most of his targets. Against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 2, Agholor caught all six of his targets for 110 yards and a touchdown.
His touchdown came on an awesome contested catch that Agholor stole from the cornerback and then completed the play for a 44-yard touchdown.
NELSON. AGHOLOR.
📺: #NEvsPIT on @NFLonCBS pic.twitter.com/zA0sH2gzLq
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) September 18, 2022
With this great game, there is the possibility that Agholor has earned more snaps as the go-to explosive option in this receiver room. Tyquan Thornton is still injured and Kendrick Bourne is losing snaps for whatever reason. Agholor may have this role locked up for the near future and he’s worth a look if you’re needy at receiver.
Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
What an insane performance. After being the butt of every joke about quarterback arm strength in the offseason, Tua Tagovailoa put up a performance to remember in Week 2 against the Baltimore Ravens. In a classic comeback win, Tua threw for 469 yards, six touchdowns, and two interceptions while blowing his former career high in passing yards (361) out of the water.
It’s no secret that a decent portion of this performance can be credited to the 171 yards from Jaylen Waddle and the 190 yards from Tyreek Hill. The offensive makeup that was envisioned by Mike McDaniel was in full force on Sunday and it was a beautiful thing to witness.
While Tua was amazing, expectations need to be tempered. Not every secondary is banged up like the Ravens’ was on Sunday so that may have been the cause for so many open deep shots. But then you also have to look at the Dolphins and realize that not every team has two of the fastest receivers in the NFL on the field together.
Tua should definitely be on the radar of fantasy managers but the Dolphins do have a tall test coming up as they face the Buffalo Bills in Week 3. We’ll be able to really gauge if this performance was more than just a one-off based on how he performs against a very impressive defense.
Garrett Wilson, New York Jets
The Jets had one of the more unexpected comebacks of the day and a large portion of that comeback was sparked by rookie wide receiver, Garrett Wilson. The expectations are very high for Wilson considering he was the 10th overall pick, but nobody would’ve expected him to flash onto the scene this quickly.
In just his second career start, Wilson had eight receptions for 102 yards and two touchdowns. Many assumed that second-year receiver, Elijah Moore, would be the one to lead this receiving room. But, from what we’ve seen so far, Wilson appears to be on the fast track to stardom.
SOURCES SAY GARRETT WILSON IS HIM#NYJvsCLE on CBS | @GarrettWilson_V pic.twitter.com/l79cp2OIvg
— New York Jets (@nyjets) September 18, 2022
While he has been impressive, the one question surrounding Wilson at the moment is if the production will be the same once quarterback Zach Wilson returns to the lineup. Veteran Joe Flacco has been the quarterback peppering Garrett Wilson with targets and there’s no guarantee that the usage will be the same once New York’s quarterback of the future returns from injury.
We will see where it goes but Garrett Wilson is looking like a budding star through the first two weeks of the season.
Noah Brown, Dallas Cowboys
During the Dallas Cowboys offseason and after the trade of Amari Cooper, there was little clarity about who the new starting receiver would be next to CeeDee Lamb. Most wanted to point to rookie Jalen Tolbert, but he’s apparently been fairly disappointing and was a healthy scratch in Week 2.
But as of the Cowboys' upset win over the Cincinnati Bengals, the answer to this conundrum appears to be fifth-year wide receiver, Noah Brown. Brown has been a member of the Cowboys since 2017 but he’s been limited in the offense and hasn’t even topped 200 receiving yards in a season. Now, in just the first two weeks, Brown is already up to 159 receiving yards.
On Sunday, Noah Brown finished the game with five receptions for 91 yards along with his first career touchdown.
Cowboys WR Noah Brown scored his first TD since entering NFL in 2017.
"I told him congratulations like 50 times," CeeDee Lamb said. "I can’t stop smiling, I can’t stop congratulating him." pic.twitter.com/jdTW9Nu8mu
— Jori Epstein (@JoriEpstein) September 19, 2022
It remains to be seen if Brown can hold onto this role, but this offense is pretty unpredictable at the moment while being quarterbacked by Cooper Rush. Noah Brown had a great game, but due to the offense being in flux, he’s no more than a stash at the moment.
Joe Flacco, New York Jets
Piggybacking off of the great Garrett Wilson performance and a great Jets comeback is Joe Flacco. Flacco has been a walking punchline for the past few seasons due to his mediocre performances and his uncanny ability to find his way into slight relevancy in every NFL season. But in Week 2, he looked possessed as he threw for 307 yards, four touchdowns, and no interceptions.
While it was pretty fun to see Flacco have a blast from the past performance, there is no shot that he should be considered at all in any format outside of deep Superflex leagues. What is more interesting about Flacco is how this offense will change without him at the helm and what the Jets have planned for Zach Wilson once he returns from injury.
It was nice to see Joe Flacco playing at a level that hasn’t been seen in years, but his performance should be viewed as more of an anomaly.
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