I met the son of my fraternity brother Dave Tobin last week at our annual reunion at Syracuse. Lorenzo, a senior, is in a fantasy league with his fraternity, SAE. His team’s name is the Village, because he believes it takes a village of NFL players for him to succeed. You do not want to come in last in his league, as the punishment is donning an all-leather masochist outfit at a SU tailgate. Who comes up with these crazy ideas? Regardless, I was impressed with Lorenzo from the start. He’s a good man. It’s unfortunate he didn’t join the same fraternity as his father and me. But it’s not his fault. Our fraternity was kicked off campus in 2007. Cheers to a winning season, Lorenzo!
GIDDY UP!
QB Jake Browning at Vikings — I feel for all the Joe Burrow owners. Hopefully you have a decent backup. If not, grab Browning. He excelled when replacing Burrow in 2023, tossing 12 TDs and going over 300 yards three times in eight games. Additionally, he’s got some guy named Ja’Marr Chase to throw to in Minny this week.
QB Bryce Young vs. Falcons — Another possible replacement for Burrow, Young returned to late ’24 form last week (328 yards, 3 TDs) and faces an Atlanta defense that he torched for 42 Fantasy points last year.
RB J.K. Dobbins at Chargers — R.J. Harvey was supposed to lead the Broncos backfield, but his five carries for eight yards explains why he’s playing behind Dobbins, who has a TD in both games thus far. Dobbins should notch another score as he seeks revenge against the Chargers, his former team.
RB Bucky Irving vs. Jets — Irving could be Buffalo’s James Cook’s twin. They are the same size (5-10, 195-pounds) and have a similar skill set. Cook humbled the Jets D last week for 132 yards and two TDs. I predict identical results for Irving.
WR Rome Odunze vs. Dallas — Good things come in threes. After catching three TDs all last year, Odunze has three in the last two games. Dallas has given up three TDs to WRs this year. Odunze completes the hat trick with a TD in Chicago this Sunday.
WR Puka Nacua at Eagles — Target share is Nacua’s bread and butter. A healthy Nacua should continue his string of eight or more targets since Week 9 last year, giving the Rams a big game against the Eagles.
TE Juwan Johnson at Seahawks — From not being drafted in any fantasy leagues to the No. 2 TE so far, Johnson has gone from the outhouse to the penthouse logging back-to-back 15-point games. Ride him until he cools off, which I don’t see happening in Seattle.
WHOA DOWN!
QB Russell Wilson vs. Chiefs — With an awesome target like Malik Nabers, it’s always advantageous to start his QB. But facing an angry Kansas City team on the brink of an 0-3 start is not ideal for Wilson.
QB Tyrod Taylor at Bucs — With Justin Fields ruled out this weekend with a concussion, don’t get cute and start Taylor. Granted he’ll probably do a better job getting the ball to Garrett Wilson, but with his injury track record he probably won’t last the game anyway.
RBs Zach Charbonnet and Kenneth Walker vs. Anybody — I had a tooth pulled this week. I’d rather have another one pulled than have to decide who to start between Charbonnet and Walker. It’s painful to pick between them, and you certainly can’t start both. Charbonnet had the better stats in Week 1. Walker had the better stats in Week 2, even though he had fewer carries than Charbonnet. What’s a frustrated toothless fantasy owner to do? Trade them away or keep them on your bench until there’s a clear-cut lead back.
WR Dontayvion Wicks at Cleveland — Jayden Reed is out two months with a broken collarbone. The next man up is Wicks. But we’ve seen this story before. He was in a similar position in 2024, replacing an injured teammates, but finished over 50 receiving yards just once in 17 games.
WR Khalil Shakir vs. Jets — The highest score you’ll get out of Shakir nowadays is between 10-12 fantasy points. That’s not a high enough ceiling to justify a spot in your lineup, even against the defensively challenged Fish of Miami.
TE Evan Engram at Chargers — Maybe the strained calf muscle is to blame, but Engram has played second fiddle to fellow TE Adam Trautman, who gets 60% of the snaps in Denver. The inflated expectations for Engram in the offseason have dissipated into the thin mile-high air.
Thursday Night Special: The Bills might be better than we think after blowing out the Jets, but the Dolphins are just as bad as we thought they were. Bills 35, Dolphins 23
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Bill Reinhard is a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association and a columnist for FantasyGuru.com. Catch Bill every Wednesday night at 6:15 on “This Week in Pro Football” on YouTube TV.
