It looked like the safest game of the early games. Eagles vs. Saints, set at 49.5 total. Yards projection, points projection. Let's settle for three hours and watch them score.
Of course, this is snow globe league: variance hurts: some results are less than satisfying, some just don't make much sense.
The Eagles won 15-12 on Sunday, which was a fair result. Philadelphia dominated the game, gaining 460 yards to the Saints' 219. It's amazing that this game was in doubt for three hours.
At the very least, most of the major fantasy players were productive. Saquon Barkley scored two touchdowns for Philadelphia and rushed for 147 yards on the ground, erasing a late slump in Monday's loss to the Falcons. Barkley also had four short receptions and a two-point conversion run.
It's only an hour and a half from Giants HQ to Eagles HQ, but Barkley will be living in a very different world in 2024. As we went to print this week, he was sitting comfortably as the RB1.
Jalen Hurts threw for 311 yards, but had a lost fumble, an interception, was sacked four times and didn't score a touchdown. He didn't run much either, only 25 yards. Hurts won't be a top 12 fantasy QB this week. The Eagles were able to galvanize Dallas Goedert to a phenomenal 10-170-0 (11 targets) record, but losing DeVonta Smith (concussion) in the midst of a productive second half game was a blow. Philadelphia's passing attack just isn't the same without AJ Brown and could be last in the league if Brown and Smith miss the same game.
Well, at least the Eagles won the game. After two weeks as the NFL's favorite, the New Orleans offense fell flat. The Saints managed just 12 first downs and struggled to play strong.
The Saints turned to Alvin Kamara, who had 26 carries and three receptions. He didn't find the end zone, but his 127 total yards should be good enough for fantasy play. Keep an eye on New Orleans' offensive line, which was hurt in this loss. Chris Olave completed all six of his targets for 86 yards and a touchdown. Olave was everyone's favorite in fantasy this week, so I'll give him a point across the country.
Rashid Shahid didn't catch five passes, including one that nearly went for a touchdown that Derek Carr just missed. Carr had such a day, completing 14 of 25 passes for 142 yards and just 5.7 yards per attempt. After two weeks of pinball, the Saints came out fired up for this matchup.
Both teams are expected to have some entertaining games in Week 4, with the Saints traveling to Atlanta and the Eagles visiting the Buccaneers. It's an intriguing matchup on paper, but nothing is guaranteed in this game of chasing numbers.
Other examples of early booms and busts include:
Richardson struggles again, Colts turn to Taylor
Jonathan Taylor was a supporting player in the Week 2 loss to Green Bay, but the Colts played it right on Sunday, as Taylor carried the offense 23 times for 110 yards and two touchdowns on a day when Anthony Richardson struggled (two interceptions, just 24 rushing yards). The Colts threw just 20 passes and all of their wide receivers were fantasy disappointments, with no player receiving more than five targets.
Darnold continues his redemption story
Earlier this year, we expected Sam Darnold to play well and be happy to have Justin Jefferson on the roster. But Darnold looks like a fantasy star all by himself. Darnold threw four touchdowns and had no turnovers, and the Vikings thumped the Texans. Jefferson (6-81-1) had the best game, but Aaron Jones, Jalen Naylor and Johnny Mundt also caught scoring passes.
Stroud remains silent in defeat
On the other side, CJ Stroud had 6.9 YPA, but Houston's offense was hampered by sacks (4) and interceptions (2). And Minnesota DC Brian Flores knows what he's doing. At least Houston's passing game revolved around its stars, with Nico Collins, Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell combining for 28 targets, 19 catches and 242 yards. Cam Akers was barely a running back streamer, but he did grab some deodorant on a short touchdown catch.
Willis gets his revenge
Coaching matters. Minnesota's Kevin O'Connell is doing a great job mentoring Darnold. And what about Matt LaFleur's two weeks of mentoring Malik Willis? The Packers easily beat Tennessee, and Willis was sharp against his former team, completing 13 of 19 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown (10.6 yards per attempt) and rushing for 73 yards and a score.
Willis only joined the Packers just before the season began, which is a miracle.
Hopkins is the Titans' lone bright spot
Tony Pollard was shut down by the Green Bay defense (29 total yards), DeAndre Hopkins finally had a good season (6-73-1), and Will Revis continued to make mistakes, throwing two interceptions and getting sacked eight times.
Speed Round
• Amari Cooper got off to rough starts in both games due to a combination of his own drops and mistakes by Deshaun Watson. Things improved somewhat in Week 3, when Cooper scored two touchdowns while Watson again played poorly.
Cooper’s coaches are dying to see what someone else can do with this offense (indeed, off-the-couch Joe Flacco was last year’s hero), but Watson’s contract and huge acquisition cost (nothing to be proud of for one of the NFL’s “Moneyball” franchises) stand in the way. Watson shouldn’t be benched, but that’s how Cleveland seems to feel.
• Every time I watch tape of Tampa Bay, Bucky Irving makes a big play and Rachel White runs in the mud, there's even more motivation to give Irving a bigger role, especially now that Tampa Bay has finally lost. Winning teams are less likely to be so keen to make personnel changes, even if they're fundamentally wrong.
• There's not much to see in Denver's backfield, with three runners sharing the load, let alone a mobile quarterback in Bo Nix. But at least Nix has shown improvement after barely making it in his first two starts, and it would be nice to see Courtland Sutton continue to emerge.
• Most teams struggle when they have to start a backup quarterback, but Miami was at its worst when Skylar Thompson (later Tim Boyle) was playing for Seattle. The Dolphins were so desperate that Seattle's fantasy luck plummeted as a result. Once the Seahawks jumped out to a 17-3 first-quarter lead, the hosts were essentially able to run a conservative offense for the rest of the game.
With Tua Tagovailoa out indefinitely, Miami has some calls to make this week. Ryan Tannehill could be an option. Maybe he's even a trade possibility worth considering.
• If D'Andre Swift couldn't do it against the Colts, when will he be able to do it? Chicago's offensive line didn't help Swift, but maybe Roshon Johnson fits the Bears' current scheme better. Johnson was certainly the better player in Week 3.
• Malik Neighbors dominated Washington's secondary last week, but anyone can do that against Washington; running wild against a strong Cleveland defense is a whole other story. Many awards went to Marvin Harrison Jr., but Neighbors was probably the first wide receiver to be selected from this (arguably) historic class.
• The Steelers, at least in the real world, have been coaching Justin Fields. Fields' fantasy value has diminished, but all this team wants is a quarterback who can protect the ball and avoid getting sacked. Fields has been dropped 99 times in Chicago's past 28 games, and won all of them while being sacked just twice in each of the first three weeks. Pittsburgh doesn't need to fix what isn't broken. Russell Wilson should remain on the bench indefinitely.
• For the second straight week, the Lions didn't deliver the pinball game we expected, but that may be more of a trend than a coincidence. After all, Detroit has two dynamic running backs and the best offensive line in the league.
The flow of the game last week forced Jared Goff to throw 55 passes, but the wins over the Rams and Cardinals (he threw 28 and 23, respectively) were emblematic of the type of football Dan Campbell prefers. Detroit swept Los Angeles in the season opener, and the Cardinals had no way to counter their potent running game.
• Ruthie Rice's performance late last season was like a genie out of a bottle. After a 12-110-1 blast on Sunday, he's on pace to go 136-1689-11 this season. That's an unrealistic projection for most receivers, but when evaluating Kansas City's passing game, you have to acknowledge that Rice is the main dish right now and the others are just appetizers.
• Obviously the Panthers gave Bryce Young a vote of confidence on Sunday morning. What else can you say? And Andy Dalton played cleanly for three hours in a surefire win over the Raiders, along with Diontaie Johnson, Chuba Hubbard and even Adam Thielen (before his unfortunate injury).
Dave Canales has an obligation to the locker room. When one player is better than the clear starter, the right player needs to be the starter. Sure, at some point the Panthers will have to throw Young back into the fire for observational purposes. But as long as Dalton is healthy and his play is competent to better, Carolina needs to respect the roster and use the best player.
• Lamar Jackson only attempted 17 dropbacks, so there weren't many routes available to him, but it's concerning that Mark Andrews only did it six times. Isaiah Likely did it a modest 11 times, with both players being targeted once each.
Obviously the Ravens dominated Dallas and there was no reason to go away from that, but it's never a surprise to see a big-name receiver (Zay Flowers joins the group) have a quiet game for the Ravens. Baltimore is always one of the main contenders in the AFC, but it's still a knuckleball attack.
• I still haven't gotten over the Rams' emotional comeback win over the Niners. Sean McVay worked hard to coach without half his usual offensive line. And Joan Jennings was so good. Imagine having a talent like Jennings and then being unable to use it because of injuries. I felt like I was watching Terrell Owens in his prime for three hours. The NFL is full of super-talented players waiting for their chance to shine.
