The first week of the NFL season provided a lot of ups and downs for Fantasy Football managers. There are definitely a few people who were happy with how things turned out, but just as many who want to blow up their roster already.
If you are one of the managers who had a good week, it could have come courtesy of a fluky performance from an unexpected source. Some of those players could be in store for breakout seasons, while others may have peaked in Week 1.
The players who may have peaked in Week 1 are sell-high candidates. One of those players could be Atlanta Falcons running back Tyler Allgeier. People were low on Allgeier coming into the season after Atlanta used the No. 8 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft on running back Bijan Robinson.
That didn’t stop Allgeier from turning in a huge Week 1 performance, rushing for a team-high 75 yards while adding three receptions for 19 yards with two rushing touchdowns. He out-touched Robinson, but there is a caveat; most of that work came in the fourth quarter icing the game away and Cordarrelle Patterson was inactive.
That may not be the case going forward, so selling high would make some sense. Another running back who benefited from extended fourth quarter work was Cam Akers of the Los Angeles Rams.
Akers received 12 carries in the fourth quarter, eight of which came in the last four minutes of the game. He didn’t do much with them, gaining only 29 yards on 22 carries with a touchdown. He was outplayed by Kyren Williams, who the team prefers in passing work and now seemingly early downs as well.
Another running back that could be worth shopping around is David Montgomery of the Detroit Lions. He had a larger-than-anticipated role in Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs as the Lions want to work rookie Jahmyr Gibbs in slowly.
That was frustrating for Fantasy Football managers in Week 1, but Gibbs was the more explosive back and will see his workload increase as the season goes on. This is the time to sell high on Montgomery unless you believe the Lions will keep the same roles for this year’s running backs as Jamaal Williams and D’Andre Swift had last year.
Fourth on the list is New England Patriots wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. Smith-Schuster is reportedly nursing a knee that could go at a moment’s notice. He also ran fewer routes in Week 1 than rookie Kayshon Boutte and Kendrick Bourne, who went off against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Demario Douglas joined those two in 11 personnel, as Smith-Schuster was relegated to the bench. That could have been to save his knee, but if that is going to be a season-long issue, better to get out now.
Last but not least, Nico Collins of the Houston Texans. A darling of the advanced analytics crowd all offseason, Collins came through in Week 1 as one of 12 wide receivers to surpass the 80-yard mark.
Rookie Tank Dell is breathing down Collins’ neck for playing time, as he was his direct backup and the two didn’t share the field. John Metchie III will also be returning at some point, clouding the wide receiver pecking order even more as rookie Xavier Hutchinson will move outside as well.
After a good performance, the time to sell on Collins could be now for a player with a more locked-in long-term role. Constantly changing roles will lead to headaches fo Fantasy Football managers.
