Let’s take a trip back to Week 1 of the 2015 NFL season. The Titans opened the year at Tampa Bay. Rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota made his first start. He threw four touchdowns and no interceptions in a rout of the Buccaneers.
Go back to 2001. Tom Brady threw zero TDs in his first start. He threw zero in his second. He didn’t have a passing touchdown until his third career start.
The point being, things aren’t always what they seem at the outset. One game is just one game. It could be, those who looked good aren’t as good as they looked, and those who looked bad are better than they seem. Or they could be exactly as they appeared.
So maybe Daniel Jones is the next Mariota, which would be a huge disappointment for Giants fans and fantasy owners. Or, he could be a franchise savior and a fantasy monster. How can you tell which?
Jones stood in the face of pressure all day, was sacked five times, yet never lost his composure. He delivered accurate throws, ran when he needed to, had two rushing scores, led a huge comeback, did it on the road, and did it largely without the team’s mercurial running back.
Yeah, if he wasn’t scooped up off your waiver wire last week, go get him. He won’t rack up 30-plus fantasy points every week, but if you’re toiling with Kirk Cousins, Baker Mayfield or Jimmy Garoppolo, or are struggling without Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger or Cam Newton, you can solve your QB dilemma by getting Jones.
He isn’t the only new starter making fantasy waves. Kyle Allen stepped in for Newton and had an incredible game of his own — throwing four TDs with no picks in Carolina’s road win over the Cardinals. Going back to his first start last season in a meaningless Week 17 game at New Orleans, he has six TDs with no picks.
Another temporary sub, Teddy Bridgewater, had a Teddy Bridgewater-type game Sunday — 177 yards, two TDs, no INTs. He might serve the Saints fine as a placeholder until Brees returns, but your fantasy team needs more production. Allen is a better fantasy option.
We were eager to see Steelers backup Mason Rudolph. We were disappointed. He hit on barely half his throws (14-for-27) for a paltry 174 yards with two TDs and one interception. And the eye test results were worse than the numbers. No thanks.
Though Rudolph’s fantasy outlook isn’t as bad as Luke Falk’s. We can say Falk’s first career start wasn’t Nathan Peterman bad. But … Falk scored just 1.9 more fantasy points than you did Sunday. With any luck, Sam Darnold is back in Week 5 after the Jets’ bye and brings others back to fantasy relevance — we miss you, Robby Anderson and Jamison Crowder.
So put Jones at the top of your waiver list. Make Allen the second option. Hopefully you don’t need a third.