Week 2 was brutal for players and fantasy teams across the board. Did you survive? If not, hopefully, you got your waiver wire picks and are taking a deep breath and playing on. After all, it’s only the second week.
But if the NFL continues to litter the field with bruised and broken bodies, the sleeper options will start looking like must-start (spoiler alert some already do). With the current state of player availability, it is smart to have that extra player on your bench or radar, just in case.
Here are sleeper options to consider for Week 3 fantasy football redraft.
Chicago Bears | QB
I know this could go sidewise quickly. But we also know that Williams is too good not to have a great game with the weapons and his talents, and this defense may be the one.
For the not-good stats, Williams has taken a league-high nine sacks in two games. He has been blitzed 38.4% and the Colts are third in blitz rate at 33.9%, they are also 15th in the league in blitzes sent with 19.
For the good but not great, the Colts leading defensive rusher DeForest Buckner is on IR, on a defense that was 31st in yards allowed, Buckner was responsible for seven tackles and 1.5 sacks through two games.
Rookie defensive end Laiatu Latu has a hip injury, and safeties Julien Blackmon and Rodney Thomas, as well as cornerback Kenny Moore, are also on the injury report.
For the good, although Williams is only averaging 4.0 yards per attempt he has 11 deep ball attempts in two games. He is also averaging 33 pass attempts per game and the Bears are eighth in pace of play 2.15.
Also, per Next Gen Stats the Colts have allowed the most carries of at least 10 yards and the eighth most yards before contact, 1.78. And while this may seem like a sweet spot for D’Andre Swift, Williams does have 59 yards on 10 carries.
Williams still has the weapons we were all giddy about in preseason and he is going against a defense that is down its best player and wasn’t so great when he played. The game is indoors, the Colts’ defense is beatable and Williams and the Bears are due.
However, if you aren’t feeling this squirrelly, Gardner Minshew still exists.
Prop Bets
- Passing Yards, O/U 215.5 (-137)
- Rushing Attempts, O 30.5 (-115) U 30.5 (-105)
- Interceptions, O 0.5 (-135) U 0.5 (-105)
Seattle Seahawks | RB
This one comes with a big ole’ asterisk, and that is if Kenneth Walker remains out with the oblique injury. Last week with Walker out, Charbonnet was on the field for 57 of the 60 offensive snaps, in that game Charbonnet had 14 carries for 38 yards and a touchdown. He was also targeted five times for five receptions and 31 yards.
The Dolphins defense has allowed an average of 118 rushing yards per game, which is 15th in the NFL. But they have also surrendered the fourth most fantasy points to the running back per game (24.0) while allowing 3.5 targets per game and 32 receiving yards per game to the position.
Both the Dolphins and the Seahawks are in the top 10 for the most plays per game, Seattle is tied for ninth with 63 and Miami is third with 70. However, without quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, look for Miami to slow the game down, consequently allowing Charbonnet and the Seahawks to grind out a win at home.
You aren’t counting on Charbonnet to hit that boom play, you are playing him for the volume, last week his 95.5% snap share included two red zone rushing attempts and an 11.6% target share.
Tank Bigsby averaged 6.1 yards per carry on 12 carries against the Dolphins in Week 1 while James Cook averaged 7.1 yards per carry on 11 carries against them in Week 2. Charbonnet should get his.
Prop Bets
Neither BettingPros nor DraftKings Sportsbook had rushing props for Charbonnet at the time of writing.
Carolina Panthers | WR
Hello, Andy Dalton. The Panthers are moving on from Bryce Young, with Young in two games Johnson has a 21.8% target share, and 89.5% route participation rate that has resulted in 12 targets and five receptions. He has an 8.5 aDOT that has resulted in 102 air yards.
This isn’t about Johnson’s ability but about the quarterback. Unfortunately, Young entered the season with a better (objectionably) offensive line and Johnson whose claim to fame is his ability to separate, which doesn’t matter when 25% of your quarterback’s throws are deemed off-target.
Last week per Fantasy Footballers, Johnson had a 23.1% target per route run, which calculated to him running 26 routes and having six targets. In comparison, the top three for last week were:
| Name | Targets/Route Run | Routes | Targets |
| Malik Nabers | 63.0% | 27 | 17 |
| Chris Olave | 37.5% | 16 | 6 |
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba | 36.4% | 44 | 16 |
It’s not like we are expecting Dalton to suddenly become this year’s version of Derek Carr, last season Dalton played in four games for the Panthers and finished with a 58.6% completion percentage, 361 yards, two touchdowns, zero interceptions, and averaged 6.2 yards per attempt.
Young so far has a 55.4% completion percentage, 245 yards, zero passing touchdowns, and three interceptions. He is averaging 4.4 yards per attempt.
The Raiders defense isn’t going to be an easy start for Dalton as they haven’t allowed a receiver to get more than 91 yards and only Zay Flowers and Ladd McConkey have scored a receiving touchdown against them.
But with the veteran Dalton under center, Johnson should be good enough to put in your flex this week.
Prop Bets
If you are a believer that the change will be good, here are a few prop bets to consider:
- Receiving Yards, O/U 46.5 (-115)
- Receptions, O 3.5 (-165), U 3.5 (+125)
- Fantasy Points, O/U 10.0 (-137)
Atlanta Falcons | TE
Last week, the Cincinnati Bengals tight end Mike Gesicki led the Bengals in targets (9), receptions (7), and receiving yards (91) against the Kansas City Chiefs. In Week 1, Baltimore Ravens TE2 Isaiah Likely led the team in targets (12), receptions (9), and receiving yards (111) while adding a touchdown against the Chiefs. And to no one’s surprise, with those stats the Chiefs are giving up the most fantasy points per game (16) to the tight end position.
Pitts is still a disappointment in the fantasy football landscape, but so far you can say that about almost all of the tight ends.
This game is in Atlanta. Quarterback Kirk Cousins looked better in Week 2 than Week 1 (low bar). If Pitts doesn’t wake up against this very generous Chiefs defense, it may be time for fantasy managers to give up the fight.
Prop Bets
- Receptions, O 3.5 (-120) U 3.5 (-108)
- Receiving Yards, O/U 39.5 (-114)
- Fantasy Points O/U 8.5 (-137)
