NFL Fantasy Recap: Achane Climbs, Thomas Jr. Slips
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ big win added some impressive fantasy statlines to cap NFL Week 2 on Monday night. Despite the Miami Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars losing Sunday, each team produced quality performances.
Check out this week’s fantasy football winners and losers.
Winners
De’Von Achane
After the Week 1 collapse, Dolphins fans thought it can only go up from here. While the team fell to the New England Patriots in dramatic fashion, there were some highlights of the game.
A bright spot for the Dolphins (0-2) is running back De’Von Achane. The third-year Texas A&M product totaled 26.2 fantasy points this week. He finished the contest with 11 carries for 30 yards and eight receptions for 92 yards and a touchdown.
Achane had a 44-yard catch-and-run on a swing pass with just 1:16 left in the game. After initially being ruled a touchdown, the review showed that the ball carrier stepped out of bounds at the 26-yard line.
The score would have propelled Miami in front, putting it in a prime position to come out with a win. Instead, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was sacked on fourth down to close out the defeat.
The former third-round pick has shown immense promise early in his career. The Dolphins should be thanking Achane for keeping the game competitive Sunday.
Bucky Iriving and Rachaad White
Tampa Bay’s running back duo both turned out worthy performances on Monday Night Football. Irving finished with 18.1 fantasy points while White had 14.6.
The two combined for 136 rushing yards. Irving also contributed 50 yards in the receiving game, while White scored the game-winning touchdown.
With just six seconds remaining in the contest, White powered through the defense for a two-yard score. The ball carrier’s first touchdown of the season gave the Bucs a Week 2 win, sending the NFC South squad to 2-0.
While not an eye-popping total, White’s 14.6 points came after a poor Week 1 performance of just 2.6 points. He saw an increase in production, making him more attractive for fantasy owners.
Irving also had a bump in his total carries with 17 total rushes this week. On the receiving end, the Oregon product caught six passes on the same number of targets. Irving’s Week 2 performance should slot him into many PPR fantasy lineups.
Losers
Brian Thomas Jr.
Brian Thomas Jr. fantasy owners look away. The Jaguars wide receiver came out of Week 2 with 8.9 points, just 0.1 points shy of what he finished with in his last showing. The Cincinnati Bengals defense held Thomas to just four catches on 12 targets. He generated 49 yards in the loss.
Thomas led the Jaguars (1-1) last season with 1,287 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns. The LSU product was Trevor Lawrence’s go-to receiver, making Thomas a consensus late first or early-second round pick in fantasy drafts. He finished last season with 284 total points, which put him at fourth across the league.
This year, it’s a different story. Thomas is ranked 49th out of all receivers. Is the sophomore slump real?
Travis Hunter
Jaguars coach Liam Coen made it clear that Travis Hunter would see many more defensive snaps this week compared to last.
Against the Carolina Panthers, Hunter played 39 offensive snaps and just six defensive. Sunday’s matchup with the Bengals had him on offense for 42 snaps and defense for 38.
The increase in defensive efficiency will hurt his offensive production. This proved to be correct in the 31-27 loss. The 2024 Heisman Trophy winner came out of the contest with 5.2 fantasy points. He corralled three catches for 22 yards, a 50% decrease in receptions.
Yes, Hunter has extra pressure to succeed as the second-overall pick in this year’s draft, but he has not lived up to expectations.
Mike Evans
Is it time to worry about Mike Evans? The wide receiver finished Monday’s contest with 10.6 fantasy points on 56 yards. Despite being targeted 11 times, Evans only brought in five passes.
The veteran was slotted in a prime position this season. With wide receiver Chris Godwin sidelined throughout the season thus far, Evans had an opportunity to shine.
While Emeka Egbuka has been a bright spot on offense, Evans should not have seen such a massive drop in his production. He saw a similar point result last week with 10.1.
Evans has not totaled less than 11 points since Week 7 of the 2024 season, and has now done so in back-to-back weeks this year.
On the bright side, the Bucs are winning without leaning on Evans. But when will be the time that they need their big-time receiver to show up?
Category: Football, NFL, Uncategorized
