Week 3 Rankings

Rankings updated 9/27 at 12:00 PM ET. Removed Julio Jones. Ticked up other Falcons WRs. Ticked down Matt Ryan. Added Sammy Watkins. Moved Mecole Hardman down. 

Week 3 Quarterbacks 

QB Notes: Heading into the highest-totaled game of the season so far (56), Russell Wilson has nine touchdowns and 11 incompletions. He is completing 82.5 percent of his passes and averaging 9.7 yards per attempt. If he managed five touchdowns on the Patriots, 2018 Patrick Mahomes only knows what he will do to the Cowboys. … As Davis Mattek put it on Twitter, “the Ravens being this good is a disaster for Lamar Jackson’s fantasy value.” Thankfully for Jackson managers, the Ravens finally have an opponent more their own size for Week 3. That means Jackson might actually have to throw in the second half. Allowing 8.7 yards per attempt through two games, the Chiefs are headed to Baltimore for a Monday night tilt with a 54 over/under. … Opposing Jackson will be Patrick Mahomes, who woke up from his sleepy start in the second half against the Chargers, heating up his connection with Tyreek Hill while repeatedly burning the Bolts with scrambles. Hopefully the cobwebs have been knocked off. … Predictably ascending his second year in the league, Kyler Murray enters Week 3 as the QB4 by average points. His reward is a Lions Defense that barely even bothers to take the field.  

The biggest fantasy effort by any quarterback thus far this season was Dak Prescott’s 46.3 points against the Falcons. The Seahawks are allowing 415 passing yards per game through two contests. That is not a typo. … Leading in total fantasy points is Josh Allen. How is he doing it? By blowing away his efficiency numbers from 2018-19. As Mike Clay points out, Allen’s YPA has gone from 6.5 and 6.7 to 9.0. For completion percentage, it’s 53 and 59 to 70. For “off-target throw percentage” it’s 23 and 22 to 16. Of course, this came against arguably the two worst teams in the league, the Jets and Dolphins. The Rams, who made life miserable for Dak Prescott and Carson Wentz, are a much stiffer test. … Cam Newton notched the second most rush attempts of his career in Week 1 and followed it up with his third most passing yards in Week 2, where he found slot man Julian Edelman for a career-high 179 yards. Newton has four rushing scores in two games. It’s not fair how easy the Patriots make things look. Drew Brees might not know it, but Newton has a smash spot in the Raiders.     

Matt Ryan has picked up where he left off before last season’s high-ankle sprain, supporting three receivers as he lights up the stat sheet. The Bears are offering stiffer aerial resistance than Seattle and Dallas, but Ryan’s floor is too high to fade any further. … Matthew Stafford is getting Kenny Golladay (hamstring) back just in time to duel with Kyler Murray in the desert. Stafford remained aggressive even without his alpha, placing top 10 in both average intended air yards and Next Gen Stats’ “aggressiveness” metric amongst quarterbacks to start both Weeks 1 and 2. The over/under in Phoenix is sitting at an astronomical 55. … Ben Roethlisberger was not at his best in Weeks 1 and 2 and was still damn good. As his arm rounds into form, it is finding a new alpha option in Diontae Johnson alongside JuJu Smith-Schuster. He just needs the Texans to keep a game competitive for once. … The “warpath” is the only word for where Aaron Rodgers has been. Through two weeks, his average intended air yards is at 9.6, good for second amongst QBs to play both weeks to completion. The Saints would seem to be ripe for the picking after making Derek Carr look like Peyton Manning, but they are heading back to the Superdome, where Rodgers could be missing Davante Adams (hamstring). Adams’ health will determine Rodgers’ final rank.     

Merely the QB15 in average points through two starts, Deshaun Watson has yet another brutal matchup in the Steelers. The schedule eases up in Weeks 4 and 5 with the Vikings and Jaguars, respectively. … It was another inconclusive effort for Tom Brady in an excellent spot against the Panthers. For Week 3, he will finally have Chris Godwin and Mike Evans at full health at the same time. Brady needs to show more vs. the Broncos’ short-handed defense. … The only non-Russell Wilson quarterback to throw for at least three touchdowns in Weeks 1 and 2? Gardner Minshew, who now gets a Dolphins Defense that will be missing Byron Jones (groin). It’s hard not to view this ranking as a gimmick, but the Dolphins are permitting an inconceivable 10.6 yards per attempt after dates with Cam Newton and Josh Allen. … Riding high off play-action and spreading the ball around as much as any quarterback, Jared Goff gets a tough Week 3 road test in the Bills. If he will be tempting to start thinking “QB1” if Goff aces this assignment, but the Rams’ run-heavy ways could curb his upside.   

It was 2019 all over again for Ryan Tannehill in Week 2, as he generated four touchdowns on only 24 attempts vs. the Jaguars. The pathetic Vikings are another smash opportunity for Week 3, though the Titans could end up following the Colts’ blueprint and attempting 40 rushes. … Carson Wentz has been straight up bad through two weeks. The Bengals, who just evacuated Baker Mayfield from Dunkirk, are hoping they have the antidote for that. … Drew Brees’ arm strength, which was already noticeably diminished in 2019, is noticeably diminished on 2019. The short arms made it easy to miss the fact that he still generated 312 yards and averaged 8.2 yards per attempt in Las Vegas, but no Michael Thomas is going to make it difficult to bet on Brees’ increasingly limited upside. … Joe Burrow actually leads the league in “expected fantasy points.” That can happen when you have 97 attempts through two games. My QB1 optimism would be higher if not for the Bengals’ line. … I can’t believe this, but the Falcons’ essentially-nonexistent pass defense keeps Mitchell Trubisky QB2 relevant. … Philip Rivers will be free to hide behind the Colts’ rushing attack for another week vs. the laughingstock Jets. … Derek Carr never offers ceiling, but his floor is looking legitimate. … I am a Justin Herbert skeptic, but you had to come away impressed if you watched Sunday’s spot start. The Panthers are the matchup.   

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Week 3 Running Backs

RB Notes: There are not going to be too many games where Ezekiel Elliott gets vultured three times by Dak Prescott. Zeke has a gorgeous setup in a guaranteed shootout with the Seahawks. … It’s been a frustrating two weeks for Derrick Henry, but the Titans’ commitment is unsurprisingly through the roof. Henry is first in carries (56) and second in rushing yards (200). Now he gets a Vikings Defense that will be tired after getting run on 40 times in Week 2 and is undermanned after losing Anthony Barr. … Alvin Kamara was the biggest beneficiary in the Saints’ Michael Thomas-less offense, turning a team-high nine targets into 9/95 while supplying 13/79/2 on the ground. His outlook is enhanced as a three-point home favorite in a game with a 52.5 over/under. … The Colts put their offense on Jonathan Taylor’s back against the Vikings. There is every reason to believe they will do so again vs. the scarily-bad Jets. … Refusing to regress, Aaron Jones leads the league in rushing and yards per carry amongst running backs while finding the end zone four times in two games. Even for tough matchups like this week’s with the Saints, his case no longer needs to be made.   

Returning from a soft-tissue injury behind an offensive line missing both guards vs. a tough defense, Miles Sanders was much crisper than I was expecting in Week 2. He has a mouthwatering matchup vs. a Bengals run D that just got detonated for 35/215/3 by Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. … Josh Jacobs’ 52 carries are second only to Derrick Henry. That will be put to the test in a contest where the Raiders are operating as six-point road ‘dogs. It also doesn’t take a rocket scientist to deduce that master game-planner Bill Belichick will be especially keyed in on Jacobs and Darren Waller. … Kareem Hunt’s 29 explosive touches have been a real problem for Nick Chubb, though he still cashed in his glorious Week 2 matchup. The Washington Football Team is a much stiffer challenge up front. Chubb managers can hang their hat on the Browns being touchdown home favorites. Anything under 15 carries would be stunning, while 20-plus is firmly in play. … Absolutely destroyed on the ground through the first two weeks, the Panthers will be rolling out the red carpet for Austin Ekeler, whose targets increased from one to four with Justin Herbert under center.

Off to a sluggish start, Kenyan Drake has a get-right spot in a Lions “run defense” allowing 204 yards per game and 6.5 yards per carry. Matt Patricia is a joke. … Sabotaged by the Vikings’ off-the-rails passing attack in Weeks 1 and 2, Dalvin Cook now finds himself as a 2.5-point home underdog vs. the Titans. Coach Mike Vrabel’s defense has at least been soft against the run, coughing up over 5.0 yards per carry despite facing a pair of unimposing backfields. … Whatever they injected into James Conner’s ankle did the trick. The Texans are welcoming any and all comers on the ground. … The Ravens came out of matchups with David Johnson and Nick Chubb permitting the fewest running back fantasy points, putting Clyde Edwards-Helaire on the RB1/2 borderline for Week 3. … Even though Joe Mixon has been ceding a number of passing downs to Giovani Bernard, his workload has mostly been fine. It’s his offensive line that remains the biggest concern. Game flow could go south in a hurry in Philly. … The Cowboys haven’t been quite as flammable on the ground as through the air, while Chris Carson is losing a few too many snaps to Carlos Hyde and Travis Homer to force his way into the RB1 mix for this shootout.

As expected, Todd Gurley is looking like a textbook workload-based RB2. … It’s no longer possible to leave James Robinson out of the RB2 ranks, especially against a predictably soft Dolphins run defense surrendering over 5.0 yards per carry in the early going. … Mike Davis appears poised to slide in as the Panthers’ 1-for-1 replacement for Christian McCaffrey. It’s a shame it’s for such a difficult matchup in the Chargers, but even as a 6.5-point road ‘dog, Davis is all but guaranteed to reach 15 touches. … There will be no 1-for-1 replacement for Saquon Barkley in New York, only Week 3 chaos. Free agent addition Devonta Freeman is the heavy favorite to lead the G-Men’s post-Barkley committee, but he is doubtful to be up to conditioning/playbook speed vs. the 49ers. Dion Lewis is an uninspiring FLEX, with Wayne Gallman more or less off the radar. Freeman is a hail mary FLEX. … Good: Melvin Gordon has the Broncos’ backfield to himself. Bad: With the Broncos missing Drew Lock and Courtland Sutton, a Bucs defense permitting just 2.9 yards per carry through dates with Alvin Kamara and Christian McCaffrey will be free to load up the box.  

Leonard Fournette has dispatched Ronald Jones with extreme prejudice. … With Cam Akers (ribs) doubtful and Malcolm Brown (broken finger) highly questionable, Darrell Henderson is looking like a plug-and-play RB2 for a tough date with the Bills. … Antonio Gibson has been rising to the occasion in Washington’s backfield, impressing the coaching staff. Week 1 nuisance Peyton Barber received all of one Week 2 touch. … Out-touching Zack Moss 26-20, Devin Singletary’s snap percentage is 57 to the rookie’s 45. Moss is also battling a toe issue. …. 15 carries are all but guaranteed for Bolts 1B back Joshua Kelley vs. the Panthers’ horrendous run defense. … The 49ers have entrusted Jerick McKinnon with only nine touches through two weeks. That number should at least double with Raheem Mostert (knee) and Tevin Coleman (knee) on the shelf, but Jeff Wilson figures to soak up most of the work on early downs as the Niners avoid forcing the issue with their fragile third-down back. … It’s concerning that Mark Ingram has not piled up more work during back-to-back blowouts. Coach John Harbaugh seems to be following through on his pledge of a full-blown committee. Ingram does have an enhanced Week 3 scoring outlook in a likely shootout vs. the Chiefs’ subpar run D. … Myles Gaskin has reached seven carries and four catches in 2-of-2 games. If you must start a Dolphins back, this is the one.   

Week 3 Receivers 

WR Notes: Devouring targets as a weaponized Julian Edelman for Kyler Murray, DeAndre Hopkins has a golden spot vs. a Lions’ defense that only exists according to NASA calculations. It has never been spotted by the naked eye. … Tyreek Hill finally snapped his regular season slump in Los Angeles, scoring a diving 54-yard touchdown vs. the Chargers. The Ravens are the toughest of matchups, but there is not a defense in the league that has an answer for Hill’s deep game. … Davante Adams (hamstring) appears on the wrong side of questionable for the Packers’ notoriously conservative medical staff. ... The Seahawks have allowed 50 receptions for 731 yards and two touchdowns to receivers through two games. That is not a misprint. I had to double check. Amari Cooper, meanwhile, has gone at least 6/80 on nine targets each time out. Behind Cooper, both Michael Gallup and CeeDee Lamb are in the WR2 mix. … Opposing the Cowboys’ triplets will be DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, who check in as the WRs seven and 16, respectively, by average points in half-PPR leagues. The Cowboys’ pass defense has provided slightly more resistance than Seattle’s but is obviously a unit to attack with a full force in a game with a 56 over/under. That is rarefied NFL air. 

Are you pointing and laughing because I still have Julio Jones ranked ahead of Calvin Ridley? That’s totally fair. At some point, these situations — an alpha wideout’s over-the-top defensive attention freeing up layups for his teammates — tend to correct themselves, but Ridley now has as many scores over his past 31 games (21) as Jones does in his past 60. Perhaps Julio’s pins are forever doomed to be knocked down by someone else. … We have yet to see a healthy Mike Evans and Chris Godwin take the field at the same time for Tom Brady. Godwin better fits Brady’s historic M.O., but Brady had little trouble freeing Evans for a 100-yard game after coach Bruce Arians practically ordered one. I’ll give Godwin a week to knock the rust off. … Were it not for the Seahawks, the Falcons would be allowing 78 more passing yards per game than any other team. Mitchell Trubisky is not Russell Wilson or Dak Prescott, but there are not any scary monsters on the other side of Allen Robinson’s Week 3 door. … 84 of Terry McLaurin's 125 Week 2 yards came after the catch. The prophecy is coming true. 

We know Adam Thielen has target carte blanche in this offense, but Week 2 vividly illustrated the dangers of relying of wideouts in bad offenses. There will be peaks, and there will be valleys. … D.J. Moore predictably bounced back from his down Week 1. Less predictably, Robby Anderson did not come back down to earth, once again having a 100-yard day. If Anderson remains at 8-10 targets per game, there is no way it does not ding Moore’s weekly WR1 status with Teddy Bridgewater at quarterback. As for Anderson, he has our WR3 attention, even in a bottom-basement matchup with the Chargers. … The Ravens didn’t get a competitive game in Week 2, so Marquise Brown didn’t get his targets. The Chiefs are a Monday night eruption spot. … Stefon Diggs is tied for the league lead in yards (239). Even heading into a tough matchup with Jalen Ramsey, I have to put some respect on the man’s name. … Is JuJu Smith-Schuster still the Steelers’ No. 1 receiver? Diontae Johnson leads Pittsburgh in targets, catches, receiving yards and air yards. JuJu does have the advantage in routes run and touchdowns. The Texans are a splendid matchup for both.   

Kenny Golladay (hamstring) is nearing his 2020 debut. Practice reports will determine his final rankings resting place. Patrick Peterson is no longer a matchup to fear. … Will Fuller, what can you even say? Even in a tough matchup, you still have to trust in his week-winning ability. … Odell Beckham has never had momentum as a Brown. The Washington Football Team will do its best to finally provide it. … I would like to get Keenan Allen higher in such a pristine matchup, but it’s hard to bet on his upside over that of the players ahead of him. … That was certainly different, Julian Edelman. The Patriots are going full wild man on offense. Despite what Drew Brees would have you believe, the Raiders are exploitable deep. … Especially heading into a tough matchup with the Bills, I basically feel like I need a minute with Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp. With Jared Goff spreading the ball around more than ever, Woods is averaging 6.5 targets, Kupp 5.5. … T.Y. Hilton is another player I am pressing pause on. Yes, the matchup is amazing, but it’s difficult to envision the Colts attempting fewer than 35 rushes. A drop machine thus far — including a 44-yard touchdown vs. the Vikings — Hilton currently checks in as Pro Football Focus’ No. 80 receiver. 

One spot ahead of Hilton is A.J. Green, who looked like one of the worst starting receivers in the league last week. Behind on conditioning, it is possible Green was just out of sorts after an early big fall had him in pain. Darius Slay won’t make life easier this weekend. …  D.J. Chark has only seven targets through two games. That fever will break, but the Jaguars’ targets rotation is bigger than expected. With Chark battling a chest injury ahead of TNF, I’m hitting pause on his WR2 rank as I wait on more information. … With Sterling Shepard (toe) back on the shelf, Darius Slayton gets a WR3 mulligan vs. the Richard Sherman-less (amongst many others) 49ers. … With Jalen Reagor (thumb) out indefinitely, the time for DeSean Jackson to have a 10-target game is now. Week 3 opponent William Jackson III is capable of creating a little havoc. … N’Keal Harry’s 12 Week 2 targets are certainly worth taking notice of. …The WR4 ranks are big enough for the two of Jerry Jeudy and K.J. Hamler, but the Bucs are a rough matchup for fill-in QB Jeff Driskel. … It appears there is more life in Tre’Quan Smith’s bat than Emmanuel Sanders’.         

Week 3 Tight Ends

TE Notes: Lopsided scores have limited Mark Andrews to nine targets through two games. That changes against Travis Kelce and the Chiefs this Monday. … George Kittle (knee) appears unlikely to return for Week 3 over concerns with MetLife Stadium’s atrocious turf. Jordan Reed remains a plug-and-play TE2 coming off last week’s eight-target, two-score outburst. … Darren Waller’s 24 targets are four more than any other tight end. It is worth noting that he is only averaging 8.2 yards per catch. He has also caught the attention of Week 3 opponent Bill Belichick, who said it’s “been a long time since we’ve seen a guy like this.” You can guess which Raider will be a point of emphasis for BB’s defense. … Jared Cook managed a touchdown in his quiet Week 2. Despite his down night in Las Vegas, Cook remains a good bet to hog targets for the Saints’ Michael Thomas-less offense in a Packers tilt with a 52.5 over/under. … Hunter Henry has gone at least 5/70 on eight targets in each of his first two games despite playing with different quarterbacks. The Panthers’ defense is soft up the seam (as well as everywhere). 

It has not been pretty for Zach Ertz, who has been out-produced by Dallas Goedert while his younger teammate draws a higher target share. There is still a chance this is early-season statistical noise, but it’s a continuation of a trend that began in the second half of 2019. The only reason Ertz isn’t getting faded farther for Week 3 is an A+ matchup with the Bengals. His overall workload (14 targets) also remains strong for a tight end. … As for Goedert, he is a clear-cut top-10 option in an offense that just found out it has lost Jalen Reagor (thumb) until at least Week 10. … The volume hasn’t quite been there for Tyler Higbee in the Rams’ deep offense, but Gerald Everett has not been a concern. Playing at less than 100 percent, Everett has two total targets. … The volume has been there for Evan Engram. It won’t be going anywhere in an offense suddenly a lot more reliant on the pass. … Coming off a career effort and playing 79 percent of his snaps in the slot, Mike Gesicki has a dream matchup in a Jags defense that badly lost the battle for the seam in Week 2 vs. Jonnu Smith. 

T.J. Hockenson has posted at least 56 yards in back-to-back games. Now it’s a flow-chart week vs. the Cardinals’ ever-leaky tight end defense. … Jonnu Smith was a Week 2 monster. With A.J. Brown (knee) still sidelined, Smith will get more opportunities vs. the Vikings’ suddenly Anthony Barr-less defense. … Week 2 was more like it for Hayden Hurst, but the Falcons have their first tough matchup of the year in the Bears. Hurst has also been out-targeted both weeks by No. 3 receiver Russell Gage. If that continues, it will be a tough way to make a TE1 living. … Noah Fant looks like a damn beast and will be desperately needed in Courtland Sutton’s absence. The Bucs are simply a terrible Week 3 matchup. … Logan Thomas is averaging a running back-esque 7.9 yards per catch, but only Kelce and Waller have more targets amongst tight ends. … I don’t think I overestimated how badly the Jets need Chris Herndon, but I apparently did not account enough for how truly awful Gang Green is. … Mo Alie-Cox can be streamed another week vs. the Jets. … Dalton Schultz’s Week 2 volume is worth a flier in one of the league’s highest-flying offenses. Drew Sample’s Week 2 volume is worth a flier in an offense whose protection issues will continue to force the ball out quickly.     

Week 3 Kickers 

Week 3 Defense/Special Teams