Fantasy Football Starts & Sits for Week 2 (2023)

September 15, 2023 Chris Burns
2023 Starts and Sits Week 2 | Fantasy In Frames

Welcome to our second Start & Sit article at Fantasy In Frames for the 2023 fantasy football season!

This week, I, Chris (@dynastydeviant on X), will be giving you my start and sit recommendations on offense and defense/special teams. I know you are as excited as I am to kick off week 2 of the fantasy football season. Therefore, here are my Fantasy Football Starts & Sits for Week 2 (2023).

Start  

  1. Geno Smith (Seattle at Detroit)
  • This game is projected to be high scoring boasting a 47.5 O/U; which is the 2nd highest total of all the Sunday/Monday Games.
  • PFF has graded both teams’ pass coverage as bottom 10 after week 1; but graded Detroit’s passing game a top 10 unit.  Expect to see Seattle having to throw a lot to keep up with the high-powered Detroit offense.
  1.  Brock Purdy (San Francisco at LA Rams)
  • The Rams have the 3rd worst pass coverage grade per PFF and 4th worst total defense.  It will be difficult to stop Purdy from finding his guys all over the field and making plays.
  • Since making his first start last year, Purdy has been efficient and gaining confidence with each start.  Purdy completes 67% of passes and runs that high-scoring offense well.
  1. Mac Jones (Miami at New England)
  • Mac threw the ball 54 times last week against the Eagles.  While odds are he won’t throw that much as the year progresses, it’s possible to see a high number of pass attempts as the Dolphins  #1 graded offense for PFF in week 1.  
  • The Miami Dolphins are susceptible in the secondary and coverage in the middle of the field.  The best-receiving options for Jones thrive in this area.

Sit

  1. Deshaun Watson (Cleveland at Pittsburgh)
  • Last week, Watson completed 16 of 29 attempts against Cincinnati.  He looked much like he did last year with low and uncatchable throws.  He did have a touchdown and an interception, but his shaky play is a concern.
  • Deshaun completed 55% of his passes last week and is expected to have a low volume of attempts this week with Cleveland having a top rushing attack going against Pittsburgh’s bottom 11 rushing defense this week per PFF.
  1. Daniel Jones (New York Giants at Arizona)
  • After the abuse Jones took Sunday night against the Cowboys, he’s going to be happy to hand the ball off to Saquon often. With the low O/U of 40 and the Giants favored by 5.5; you can expect them to run the ball heavily against a bottom-half defensive unit.
  • The WRs that the Giants have right now have been uninspired.  The game against the Cowboys got away from them, but no one really asserted themselves.  It makes Daniel Jones hard to trust until we see a consistent return from the group.
  1. Justin Fields (Chicago at Tampa Bay)
  • Fields was one of the lowest-graded QBs in passing per PFF last week.  Even though he completed 65% of his pass attempts, his average depth of target (aDot) was only 3.6 yards, making him 2nd from worst of qualified starters.  
  • Fields was under pressure from the defense 26 times, and that pressure never allowed him to have a clean pocket to take the deep shot. 

Start

  1. Breece Hall (New York Jets at Dallas)
  • In his first game back, the Jets gave him 17 plays and he looked explosive with them even coming off the knee injury.  He had 10 carries for 127 yards and looked much better than backfield mate, Dalvin Cook.  Expect Hall’s usage to climb and become the primary in this committee.
  • The New York Jets offensive line has been graded the highest by PFF for run blocking.  The line sprung Breece for huge gains in week 1 and look to continue on that success against the Cowboys 17th ranked defense.
  1. Brian Robinson Jr. (Washington at Denver)
  • Robinson dominated the rushing attempts for Washington in week 1 with 19 compared to just 3 from Gibson and Rodriguez.  Robinson also hauled in 2 catches as well.  His position in the Commanders’ backfield is solidified, so his volume will provide a solid floor.
  • This game projects to be a low scoring affair having the lowest O/U of the week, and those game scripts generally lean to the run game. Denver has a middle of the road run defense so expect a nice dose of Robinson.
  1. AJ Dillon (Green Bay at Atlanta)
  • Aaron Jones who suffered a hamstring in week 1 has missed the last 2 practices.  If Jones is unable to go, AJ Dillon will benefit greatly from the increased usage.  And usage leads to production.  Even if Jones does play, it’s likely he will be eased for fear of setback; still giving Dillon a heavier workload than usual.
  • AJ Dillon is also very capable of catching passes which adds to his value if he has the backfield to himself.

Sit

  1. Josh Jacobs (Las Vegas at Buffalo)
  • Jacobs and the Raiders will be heavy underdogs in the matchup with the Bills(-9.5) and an O/U of 47.  Projects for a negative run script for the Raider run game.
  • The bottom tier run block grade of 20 per PFF coupled with the Buffalo looking to redeem themselves from the loss to the Jets is a good reason to sit Jacobs if you have better options
  1. Jahmyr Gibbs (Seattle at Detroit)
  • Gibbs only saw 7 rush attempts to David Montgomery’s 21 attempts.  They both had 2 targets as well.  Detroit has to show a willingness to use Gibbs more as he looks dynamic, but after the first game it seems Montgomery is the volume back.
  • Detroit should be playing from ahead which would suggest that Montgomery will be the back to use as they try to slow the game and run out the clock.
  1. Najee Harris (Cleveland at Pittsburgh)
  • In week 1, Harris had 6 carries for 31 yards.  One of those carries went for 24 yards.  Despite the YPA average, Harris was very inefficient.
  • Harris out touched Jaylen Warren with rushing attempts, however Warren had 3 more pass attempts.  This is a full blow committee and Harris can’t be trusted to give you steady production this week.

Start

  1. Jakobi Meyers (Las Vegas at Buffalo)
  • As I’ve mentioned with Jacobs earlier, this game looks to be one sided and the Raiders will need to pass to stay in it.  
  • Meyers was targeted the most on the offense in week 1.  Adams will take that away from him during the season, but it bodes well for Meyers to be the secondary option to avoid Buffalo’s best cover corner.
  1. Zay Jones (Kansas City at Jacksonville)
  • Zay Jones will build on his week 1 performance where he was targeted 7 times and scored a touchdown.
  • The Chiefs secondary was torched by the Lions in the NFL opener and now face a Jags team with more firepower and a better qb.  
  1. Michael Pittman Jr (Indianapolis at Houston)
  • Coming off a strong game of 8 catches for 97 yards and a touchdown.  
  • The unquestioned #1 in that WR room and appears to already have a rapport with Anthony Richardson.

Sit

  1. DJ  Moore (Chicago at Tampa Bay)
  • Justin Fields poor throwing metrics make it hard to trust Dj this week.  Low volume/ low scoring offense should be avoided until proven consistency.
  • Darnell Mooney saw 5 more targets and was more efficient as well.
  1. Mike Williams (Los Angeles Chargers at Tennessee)
  • Williams was shaken up after a play and missed some time during the game.  He did come back, but it’s concerning considering his injury history.
  • Keenan Allen is the target monster in this offense and the running backs get a fair share as well.  Don’t expect Williams to get a lot of volume and touchdown dependency is hard to trust.
  1. Brandon Aiyuk (San Francisco at LA Rams)
  • Aiyuk is coming off of a strong game, but the game script is leaning more towards a negative game script for his skill set.
  • Deebo Samuel is notorious for having big games against this division rival.  Expect this to be another Deebo game and just sit Aiyuk.

Start

  1. Zach Ertz (New York Giants at Arizona)
  • The ageless Ertz was targeted 10 times in week 1; the most of anyone on the team.  He caught 6 of those for 60 yards.  
  • Ertz appeared to be a safety blanket for Dobbs.  The big target should continue to be there for his QB as no one else has stepped up for the team in the receiving game.
  1. Tyler Higbee (San Francisco at LA Rams)
  • Higbee will see more targets this game as Nacua’s 14 target performance is not sustainable for this offense.
  • The 49ers pass rush showed it’s dominance against the Steelers and will force Stafford to get the ball out quickly and to his safety valve; Higbee.
  1. Logan Thomas (Washington at Denver)
  • Logan Thomas surprised a lot by tying for the team lead in targets.  He caught 4 for 43 yards.
  • Thomas is a big body that plays in the middle and is a best friend to a young QB like Howell.  Expect a decent amount of usage inside.

Sit

  1. Kyle Pitts (Packers at Atlanta)
  • Atlanta is one of the slower pace of play teams and they like to dominate with the run game.
  • Ridder only attempted to pass the ball 18 times against the Panthers.  This game looks like the Falcons will continue to run the ball and not let the passing game take flight. 
  1. David Njoku (Cleveland at Pittsburgh)
  • Expect a lot of running from Chubb in this game which will keep the passing of Watson to a minimum.
  • Njoku was only target 3 times in the Browns win over Cincy.  I don’t trust Watson and therefore can’t trust his targets outside of Amari Cooper.
  1. Hunter Henry (Miami at New England)
  • Hunter Henry found the endzone last week but I think this is a revenge game for Mike Gesicki, the former Dolphin.
  • Mac spread the ball around a lot in week 1 which could leave Henry in the cold if the hot hand is elsewhere.  You really cannot trust him in this offense.
  • I like Dalton Schultz going forward, but I don’t feel comfortable starting him here in Week 1 against a solid defensive unit with the Baltimore Ravens. Sit Schultz here in the season opener.

Start

  1. Indianapolis Colts (at Houston)
  • Going against a rookie in his 2nd professional start.  Rookies can be prone to turnovers early in their careers.
  • Low Over/Under of 40 points and essentially a pick-em game.  I don’t expect a lot of offense.

       2. Houston Texans (vs. Indianapolis)

  • The exact same thing I said about the Indianapolis Colts.  Richardson had a couple of throws in his debut that could have easily been turnovers.
  • This is the type of defense that can cause problems for a rookie QB, so both teams will live by the run and die by the turnovers.

Sit

  1. Washington Commanders (at Denver)
    • The Washington defense did not put away the lowly Arizona Cardinals like many expected them to do.  Denver and Russell Wilson are a better opponent.
    • Chase Young did practice today, but can’t be sure of his dominance early in the season coming off an injury.

       2. Miami Dolphins (at New England)

  • The Dolphins secondary was torched in the opener against Justin Herbert and Keenan Allen showed ways to get open against them.
  • The Dolphin run defense wasn’t very good at stopping Ekeler and company in week 1.  New England may have to air it out if the game becomes a shootout and the weak secondary replacements can be exposed.

        3.  Pittsburgh Steelers (vs. Cleveland)

  • The 49ers manhandled the Steeler defense with brute strength.  The Browns offense will be able to move the ball on this team.
  • Nick Chubb is poised to benefit from what seems to be a run-heavy game script for the Browns.  2 touchdowns and big yardage are on the table for Chubb.