Winds of Change in Cleveland

How’s it going? Well, I hope! I hope your waiver claims were granted and you have a fresh start going into week 3 this week. Whether you’re 2-0 and looking pretty or 0-2 and feeling down, there’s a lot of football left to be played, don’t get discouraged. Stay the course.

I’m typing this up before the Thursday night game because I am on a short, much-needed vacation with my lovely wife. So because I didn’t want you guys to miss any content or leave you hanging after some events leading up to this newsletter, I’m prepping it now.

There were two big transactions on Wednesday. First, the Browns signed Kareem Hunt to the roster. Then, the Vikings made a trade for the Rams Cam Akers. It certainly puts a twist on everything we’ve thought of Jerome Ford over the last day, and over Alexander Mattison for, heck, the entire offseason. So let’s jump on it to that and get the ball rolling.

What to do with the Browns and Vikings Running Backs

So first let’s go over the Browns, my team. So favorite team bias I guess 😆. The Browns had Ford and Hunt on the roster last season and chose Ford. They had all summer to go after Hunt and didn’t. That in and of itself should say something. Maybe they wanted to go with Hunt as their No.2 but not at his asking price, I don’t know.

What I do read from this situation is this: the Browns needed another body after Chubb went down. Hunt happens to know the system and the team, so he will fit in much better than another guy off of the street. This is still Ford’s backfield, and unless he struggles mightily (Week 3 against Tennessee aside, because I believe they’ll give him grace for that), it’s his job to lose.

Now for the Vikings. They traded for Cam Akers, and I think he’s going to compete with Mattison for touches. Through two weeks Mattison has been unimpressive, and the Vikings need to get something going. He may have a shot this week against the Chargers while Akers learns the offensive system, but if he fails to show potential, we could quickly see a switch at RB. Both have iffy dynasty value, but to me, Akers seems to have the higher upside of the two.

For the Rams, it’s wheels up for Kyren Williams, who I sadly have no shares of. I doubt the Rams backfield stays as is, they’ll need someone to come in behind Williams, but I don’t think there is a running back out there that can come in and be a significant threat to his touches. If there was, they’d likely already be on the roster.

Things to look out for in Week 3

• Obviously, what do the backfield splits look like for Cleveland, Minnesota, and LA? There are some significant changes to every backfield, and this one can’t be understated.

• 🐆 Start Travis Etienne. He’s getting a Houston team that got shredded by Baltimore and Indianapolis, and he’s coming off of a down week against KC. Last year in two games against them he had 19 carries for 179 yards, a rushing score, and he caught six passes for 75 yards. He’s trending towards a DFS lock for me.

• Can Deshaun Watson get it together? He does not look like the QB he was in Houston, but he’s been ok for fantasy. If you’re a little wary of him, then it’s fine to drop him for another option, like Jared Goff.

• 🟠 However, I will tell you to start your Browns receivers against the Titans. Amari Cooper is probably locked in, but Elijah Moore is an interesting option. Both have been getting great target volume, but for Moore, it’s just a matter of being able to have his targets stay in bounds (not his fault). Jerome Ford may be the top waiver pickup, but unless I have to, I’m sitting him this week.

• 🐦️ Are Drake London and maybe, just maybe, Kyle Pitts going to have an ok week against the Lions? Desmond Ridder could be throwing more than usual unless Arthur Smith has his way (which to his credit it’s working). London I’m okay starting, Pitts you pretty much have to given the tight end position.

• One of the Vikings and Chargers is going to end up 0-3. It’s the battle of the never can win a one-score game vs. always wins in a one-score game. At least, that was Minnesota till this year, where their luck from 2022 is starting to bite back.

• 🐂 C.J. Stroud is entering the streaming conversation, with Nico Collins and Tank Dell becoming reliable starts/flex plays if this sort of target share continues. I’ve been in on Dell since the draft, but Collins I just recently turned around on. Both are fine starts this week.

• 🐻 I’m sorry Bears fans, but Justin Fields is in trouble this week. I hope I’m wrong but we just saw what a Chris Jones-led defense can do to a promising offense. It wasn’t pretty. For fantasy, he should be ok, but I’m worried about his real-life prospects, especially if he keeps taking sacks at an alarming rate.

• I’m curious to see how the Steelers’ offense does against the Raiders. While this might sound a bit of a homer take, had the Steelers D not come up with two great defensive touchdown returns (not to mention Nick Chubb staying healthy), they probably would have lost to the Browns on Monday night football. George Pickens and Jaylen Warren are the only two I want to start. Calvin Austin is intriguing, but not starting territory. Najee Harris just looks awful so far.

• 🐅 Joe Burrow is a start because as long as he can put a ball on target, he can have a good fantasy day. So far, it hasn’t been there for the Bengals offense, but they are too good and you invested too much to sit them now.

That is all I have for this week! Don’t forget to check out the discord and make sure to set your lineups, don’t forget to take your Thursday night players out of the flex spot, alright? Cheers and best of luck!