Bandwagon Riding - Week 1

As is always the case, week one of the NFL regular season was filled with players who surprised the experts by how well  they played to start the campaign.

So how should you respond to these surprising performances? Should you jump on the bandwagon or allow the opportunity to pick up these players pass you by.

Our fantasy coaches, Trip Smith and Bryce Johnson, share their thoughts below.

Baltimore TE Isaiah Likely

I’m all in on the Isaiah Likely bandwagon. If you don’t have one of the elite studs at the tight end position, you should definitely target Likely if he is currently on waivers in your league. There is no doubt that Mark Andrews is still a great player for the Ravens at tight end, but Likely appears to be one of the top three options for Baltimore in the passing game, which means he should get plenty of opportunities to continue to produce. I think he will end up being a top 12 tight end in fantasy by the end of the season. 

New Orleans QB Derek Carr

Don’t buy the hype surrounding Carr. He may have had a nice performance in week one, but a lot of that was due to the fact that he was facing a historically bad team in the Panthers. The Saints are still one of the worst teams in the league, so Carr will not be able to maintain this level of production. 

Tampa Bay QB Baker Mayfield

Mayfield probably isn’t a guy that you want to be your entrenched QB1, but he certainly is worthy of being on your bench and maybe picking up an occasional spot start. He is a gunslinger, so he is going to have some big weeks where he puts up huge numbers. Of course, that also means he is likely to have some games where he throws multiple interceptions and provides very little in terms of fantasy value. Overall, Tampa Bay has decent weapons in the passing game, so Mayfield should have more good performances than bad.

Los Angeles Rams WR Demarcus Robinson

Granted, Robinson didn’t really have a surprising performance in week one (four receptions for 42 yards), but I am still jumping on his bandwagon. Robinson played well down the stretch last season when he had more of an opportunity for playing time due to injury. With Puka Nacua being out an undisclosed amount of time with injury, look for Robinson to be the guy who benefits most in the Rams offense. Tyler Johnson had a nice week as well, but Sean McVay seems to really like Robinson, so I think he will ultimately benefit more from the hole left by Nacua.