Faraz's Preseason Week 2 Takeaways
- Faraz Siddiqi
- 15 hours ago
- 5 min read
Scramble at WR Behind Nico
New OC Nick Caley didn’t deploy 11-personnel (3 WR) as much as we would like for the sake of the WRs behind Nico Collins. It’s possible he’s masking offensive line issues by doing so, but his history has shown otherwise. Christian Kirk had the most usage of any non-Nico WR with the starters, while Jayden Higgins, Jaylin Noel, and Xavier Hutchinson all worked in while CJ Stroud was still on the field.
Tyler Warren Continues to be a Focal Point
Warren ran a route on almost every dropback with the starters and tied with Michael Pittman with three targets. For the second straight week, both QBs targeted Warren early and often. A top-10 fantasy season could be underway as soon as Week 1.
Patriots Want Henderson in a Timeshare
With Rhamondre Stevenson inactive due to an injury, Antonio Gibson started the game and mixed in with Henderson (who saw more snaps) while the starters were on the field. Regardless, Henderson is going to get his touches, and he’s going to be a playmaker - but the point is that there might not be an opportunity for Henderson to completely take over the backfield as long as Stevenson stays healthy.
Harold Fannin Jr. Rested with Starters
Kevin Stefanski has long been a proponent of a 2-TE system, so it seems as though Fannin will be a factor in the Browns' passing attack this year. This lines up with the conversation I had on our podcast with Browns beat writer Daryl Ruiter, who said Fannin has been impressive in camp and has been running with the starters alongside David Njoku in 2-TE sets. For a rookie to be rested in preseason - that’s quite significant.
Will Shipley in the Lead for Eagles' RB2 job
Shipley rested in this weekend’s preseason game while AJ Dillon played. Shipley also started their first preseason game, with AJ Dillon coming in after Shipley was done for the night. As of now, Shipley is the Saquon Barkley handcuff.
Ricky Pearsall Showing Out
Pearsall has had an opportunity to build rapport with Brock Purdy during all of training camp, with Jauan Jennings dealing with a re-aggravated hamstring strain and Brandon Aiyuk recovering from ACL/MCL surgery. Purdy went to Pearsall on 4 of his 7 throws this past weekend, for a 57% target share. Draft Ricky Pearsall.
Ashton Jeanty Will be a Bell Cow
Ashton Jeanty has barely left the field with the starters through two preseason games, staying on for 18 of 19 snaps through two weeks. He has a chance of leading all RBs in snaps share this season, so yes, he’s worth a late 1st round pick.
KLS Next-Man-Up Ahead of Tre Harris
Ladd McConkey, Keenan Allen, and Quentin Johnston were the three WRs to start for the Chargers alongside Justin Herbert. When Johnston left the game due to a concussion, KeAndre Lambert-Smith came into the game ahead of Tre Harris and immediately started to get targeted by Herbert. Harris came in on the next drive, after Herbert left the game, but had a great game himself (6/85 with a sick catch). Probably still a competition between KLS and Harris, but very notable. KLS is a solid dart throw at this point.
Corum Seems to be Ahead of Hunter
Corum started the game again this week, played only one drive, while Hunter came in after that and played into the second half. Corum looked good with his opportunities, so I don’t expect any changes to the depth chart for now.
Braelon Allen Continues to Mix In
It seems as though Allen is going to be part of the mix in the Jets' backfield. Isaiah Davis was out with an ankle injury, and he was pretty involved alongside both RBs last week. In Week 1, Hall was on the field for 50% of snaps with the starters, while Allen/Davis shared the other 50%. This week, Hall was on the field for 61%. Most of the opportunities still flowed through Hall. Given this, third-round ADP might seem a little rich, but I wouldn’t let him fall too far in drafts.
Mason Taylor Plays Big Role
Taylor didn’t play last week due to an ankle injury, but started this week and ran a route on 5 of Justin Fields’ 6 dropbacks. That’s significant playing time for a TE, and puts him above the 80% threshold we like to see for fantasy relevance.
Bucky Irving Plays Bell-Cow Role
With Rachaad White out with a groin injury, in three drives with the starters this weekend, Irving was on the field for 95% of snaps (18 of 19 snaps). Despite Todd Bowles talking up Sean Tucker, he wasn’t going to take anything from Bucky. Tucker came in once Bucky was pretty much done. Bucky’s ceiling is sky-high.
Kaleb Johnson Continues Slow Start
This could speak to a slow start for Kaleb Johnson, but we’re also talking about Arthur Smith here, too. Either way, Jaylen Warren got the night off, so it seems like he’s the Steelers RB you want for Week 1 as of now. Is he the one you want for the rest of the season? Possibly. Kenneth Gainwell started over Johnson for the second straight week, while Johnson saw zero touches with the first team.
RJ Harvey Continues to Build Momentum
JK Dobbins got the rest alongside other veterans, while Harvey played a workhorse role with the starters over two drives before leaving the game, and looked good with the work he got. No other RB got a rushing attempt while Harvey was in the game, which points to a seemingly clear 1-2 punch between him and Dobbins.
Elic Ayomanor Making His Case
With Calvin Ridley and Tyler Lockett resting, Ayomanor took the role of the #1 WR for Cam Ward, earning 3 targets on Ward’s 7 passes (43%). There’s a chance that Ayomanor can earn targets ahead of Lockett, so keep an eye on him on waivers post-Week 1.
Seahawks' Run Game Looks Magnificent
The outside zone scheme change OC Klint Kubiak is bringing to Seattle has shined through two preseason games. Kenneth Walker continues to rest with what the team is calling planned management, but Zach Charbonnet, George Holani, and Damien Martinez all looked great. As long as Walker is healthy, he can thrive in this new scheme - but the real question is whether Charbonnet will carve out a significant role alongside him.
Elijah Arroyo Still Without a Clear Role
While the coaching staff has been talking Arroyo up this offseason, he only ran a route on one of Darnold’s four dropbacks this past weekend. Don’t depend on Arroyo in your TE-punt strategy.
Sneak Peek at Bears' New Offense
A couple of takeaways. One - Olamide Zaccheaus is the primary slot receiver as of now, and scored a TD from Caleb Williams in that role last night. Rome Odunze ran 40% of his routes from the slot, as well (4 out of 10), which is encouraging for him. Luther Burden didn’t play with the starters, but had a very encouraging night on a few catches and key blocks; I can’t imagine Zaccheaus holding back Burden too much longer. Colston Loveland and Cole Kmet shared routes relatively 50/50.
Jags Hint at Early RB rotation
Travis Etienne started last week, but Tank Bigsby got the start this week, while Bhayshul Tuten came in after the starters came off. Based on the rotation we saw this week, we’re seeing a relatively 50/50 split (in all aspects) between Etienne and Bigsby, but the ADPs don’t reflect that at all - with Etienne going off the board a lot earlier than Bigsby.
Brenton Strange Separating as Receiving TE
Last week, we didn’t see the route participation we wanted to see from Strange with the starters, but his 80% on Sunday is a strong number that indicates he could be fantasy relevant this season. He was targeted on 25% of his routes on Sunday, as well as 20% of his routes in Week 1 of the preseason.
