Fantasy football stats to know for Week 3

Week 2 of the NFL and fantasy football seaosn is just about in the books, and there was a ton to digest Sunday. We had injuries, huge games, rough games, you name it. And while we still have one more game on the schedule, it is never to early to look ahead, which is what we’ll do every Monday here at FTN Fantasy. 

Let’s look at what stands out.

Jonathan Taylor has six carries from inside the 5-yard line

Through two weeks, that is the most in the NFL. That is the good. The bad? Jonathan Taylor has yet to find the end zone, though he has handled 100% of Indianapolis’ carries from that area of the field. I’d expect Taylor to continue to get that work, though it was a bit interesting to see Marlon Mack, who didn’t play a snap in Week 1, log 12 snaps and get a few series toward the end of the game Sunday. The Colts face the Titans this week, a team that allowed two short-yardage touchdowns to Chris Carson in Week 2, while opposing offenses are scoring touchdowns on 75% of red zone trips against Tennessee so far this season. And while the touchdowns haven’t been there for Taylor, the volume has, which means the scores should follow.

Tony Pollard had 16 touches on 21 snaps in Week 2

Dallas’ entire offensive philosophy changed Sunday. In Week 1, the Cowboys abandoned the run against the Buccaneers’ elite run defense. Sunday however, they leaned on the run with Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard. Elliott had a solid fantasy game, but once again, Pollard showed more explosiveness, as Dallas continued to manufacture touches for him. He played 21 snaps to Elliott’s 44 but touched the ball 16 times on those snaps, totaling 109 rushing yards and 31 receiving yards, while scoring a rushing touchdown. Elliott isn’t going to move to the bench or anything, but Pollard clearly deserves more touches going forward, which could move Zeke from top-five running back status to more of a low-end RB1 in fantasy. 

Rondale Moore leads the Cardinals in targets through two weeks

While he still isn’t an every-down player, Rondale Moore continues to make plays and is a perfect fit for this high-flying Cardinals offense. On Sunday, the rookie enjoyed an obvious peak game, hauling in seven of a team-high eight targets for 114 yards and a 77-yard catch-and-run touchdown. Through two weeks, Moore, not DeAndre Hopkins, leads this team in targets, and while that is unlikely to hold true over the course of the season, the rookie’s trajectory is very promising. He is still playing behind A.J. Green and Christian Kirk, but I think he at least passes Kirk within the next few weeks and on a team that runs three and four receivers as much as any in the NFL, there is still plenty of upside with Moore. There should not be a single league where he is on a waiver wire. He gets the Jaguars in Week 3, a unit that has allowed two 100-yard games to receivers to start the season. 

Sony Michel had every Rams running back carry after Darrell Henderson left Sunday’s game 

Darrell Henderson was once again operating as the workhorse running back for the Rams Sunday, dominating the snaps, routes and carries. However, he suffered a rib injury in the fourth quarter and did not return. Sony Michel stepped in as the lead back in Henderson’s absence, with all 10 of his carries coming in the final quarter. We’ll see if Henderson can play in Week 3, but if he can’t, Michel would likely handle the role that Henderson has had to start the season, which is extremely fantasy-friendly, even against the vaunted Tampa Bay run defense.