Big Blue View
Welcome to Week 3! The big story this week is quarterback injuries, which impact fantasy lineups in multiple ways. As many as five opening day starters – Joe Burrow, Jayden Daniels, Brock Purdy, Justin Fields, and J.J. McCarthy – could miss this week’s games. I’ll have more to say about this later in the column.
Week 3 is when the panic meter starts to get uncomfortable. Through two weeks, none of the rookie running backs (several of whom went in the first 3-4 rounds of fantasy drafts) is in the Top-25 at the position. I warned against starting a number of them right out of the gate, and that cautionary note stands. Stay patient if you can.
At wide receiver, things are worse. BTJ, Drake London, and Terry McLaurin all sit outside the Top-50. Nico Collins, Mike Evans, and Marvin Harrison, Jr. (among other prominent names who went in the Top-50 of fantasy drafts) are outside the Top-35. A.J. Brown is the WR91 right now. 91!!! So, Devonta Smith must be nuking, right? Nope, he’s the WR66. Ladd McConkey not only sits at WR40, but he ranks third among Chargers’ WRs in fantasy points. You get the picture. It’s a long season, folks.
Stats of the Week:
Last season, the Chiefs finished 15-2 and didn’t get their second loss until Week 18, with their starters in street clothes. This season, they got their second loss on September 14.
More: The Chiefs were 10-0 in one score games in 2024. They’re 0-2 in such games so far in 2025.
Since David Tepper bought the Panthers in the summer of 2018, the team has a 38-82 record.
The Colts are the first team in the Super Bowl era to not punt in either of their first two games of a season.
Brandon Aubrey is the first player in NFL history to hit a game-tying field goal as time expired in the fourth quarter and then a game-winning field goal as time expired in OT (in the same game).
Week 3, here we go!
**Bye Weeks: NONE
Week 3 Rides, Fades and Sleepers
For those who are familiar with this column, you know the drill. For everyone else: The Rides, Fades, and Sleepers is an analysis of players that I think are primed for an especially strong or poor performance, often as compared to consensus expectations. This isn’t a straight-up Start/Sit exercise. As a general rule, start your studs. I’ll rarely list the most obvious names at a position as “Rides” because those players are almost always expected to have strong performances. You don’t need me or anyone else telling you to start Lamar Jackson or Bijan Robinson. While this analysis is intended for season-long play, it works for DFS formats too. Half PPR scoring and Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) are used for the column.
Each week, I’m picking a Ride, Fade,and Sleeper of the Week. The rules: The Ride of the Week can’t be a truly elite...
