If you’re reading this, there’s a strong chance that a player on your team suffered an injury during week 2. If you’re a 49ers fan, I’ll be praying for you…haha kidding…sort of. But really, week 2 was filled with injuries to top players across the league. For the sake of this article, I’m leaving out the obvious players with significant injuries who aren’t returning in 2020. Here is a look at week 3 roster drops.
Week 3 roster drops
QB Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings
Cousins looked terrible against the Indianapolis Colts. He threw three interceptions while only completing 11 of 26 pass attempts. In week 1, Cousins scored 22.76 points, but most of those were salvaged in garbage time. The Vikings offense still looks to be centered around Dalvin Cook and the running game.
However, the loss of Stefon Diggs has seemed to significantly hinder the deep passing game. Other than Adam Thielen, the Vikings don’t have any true threats in the receiving core right now. With the next three games coming against the Titans, Texans and Seahawks, Cousins fantasy numbers will likely remain low.
RB Peyton Barber, Washington Football Team
Peyton Barber is another week 1 wonder that looks to have quickly faded. He was a top waiver wire add heading into week 2 but only managed to get one carry for one yard in the second game of the season. Antonio Gibson and J.D. McKissic have both overtaken Barber on the depth chart.
Gibson, a freak athlete and former college receiver, will be used in the pass catching role, while McKissic has gained momentum every week since training camp. Barber was thought to be the top option with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before Ronald Jones II supplanted him. His ineffectiveness and lack of consistency has caused him to be faded in a lot of leagues, especially PPR.
Las Vegas Raiders Receivers
If there was ever such thing as a wide receiver committee this would be it. There is no clear cut WR1 or WR2 on this team. It was thought that Hunter Renfrow and Bryan Edwards would be the alpha dogs, but they have not produced so far. The Raiders don’t have a single receiver in the top 50 in fantasy points for receivers!
Yes, they are 2-0 and Derek Carr looks like the 2016 version. On the flipside, it’s a crap shoot trying to figure out which receiver will establish themselves as the WR1 in this offense. The Las Vegas Raiders are relatively balanced this year as well which has led to their success. Running the ball behind Josh Jacobs and Jalen Richard has been key to their early season victories.
TE Rob Gronkowski, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
I heard all the noise from critics and fantasy football experts about how Gronk would be trash this year. In my mind, I kind of felt the same, but was still holding on to a little bit of hope because I’ve always liked him as a player and a person. The one thing I thought would go in his favor was the chemistry he’s had with long time teammate Tom Brady.
So far though, it looks as if Gronkowski is/was just a decoy. In week 2, he was targeted once and failed to catch a pass. The Bucs have struggled to put all the new pieces together and it’s understandable with no pre-season. The fact that Gronk took a year off doesn’t help his case as he doesn’t look in “game shape” just yet. Given the number of other tight ends putting up points, there is no reason to keep him on your roster.
Honorable Mention: WR Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons
For the record, I’m not saying drop Julio. But if you can trade him right now, do it. The emergence of Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage has affected the long time Falcon. I would be looking to get rid of him immediately to maximize the value you get in return. Could he recover? Absolutely. I just don’t think Julio is the same Julio we are used to. It’s crazy to think, but Calvin Ridley looks like THE man in Atlanta right now.
Ridley and Gage are both in the top 10 in targets right now while Jones only managed to get four in week 2, despite having 12 in week 1. Throw in Hayden Hurst and Todd Gurley, who should both get looks, and it’s hard to see Julio being the top five WR we predicted before the season started.
