Week 1 Reactions: Kellen Brings More

• Baker Mayfield (285 yards, one touchdown, three interceptions) looked better than his numbers imply, but even against a good Tennessee defense it's concerning that he saw as much pressure as he did. Mayfield was sacked five times and was hit several other times, though at least he showed a good connection with Odell Beckham, who looked excellent despite a modest seven catches for 71 yards on 11 targets. Nick Chubb looked as imposing as ever, though Dontrell Hilliard stealing a four-yard touchdown carry was a source of frustration for his owners.

• Marcus Mariota played well, throwing for 248 yards and three touchdowns on just 24 attempts, but he still only slightly exceeded Derrick Henry's carry count of 19. Henry single-handedly propelled a great deal of Mariota's production, moreover, doing the vast majority of his 75-yard touchdown reception after the catch and through his own creativity. A.J. Brown also helped Mariota by turning four targets into three catches for 100 yards. Brown's emergence is horrible news for Corey Davis and Adam Humphries, though Delanie Walker still caught five of six passes for 55 yards and two scores.

• Lamar Jackson completed 17-of-20 passes for 324 yards and five touchdowns against Miami, giving his passing efficiency an improbably high grade as he heads into Week 2. I'm a huge Jackson fan, but we should keep in mind that it's difficult to overstate how bad Miami is. Robert Griffin completed all six of his own passes in the game for 55 yards and a touchdown. Still, Jackson demonstrated Sunday that he has passing efficiency to spare going into his tougher matchups, and it sure seems like he has a lot of help between the rookie first-round pick Marquise Brown (four catches for 147 yards and two touchdowns on five targets) and tight end Mark Andrews (eight catches for 108 yards and a touchdown on eight targets).

• Mark Ingram torched Miami with ease, taking 14 carries for 107 yards and two touchdowns while Gus Edwards and Justice Hill combined for 83 yards on 24 carries.

• Kirk Cousins and Adam Thielen would have likely posted big numbers against Atlanta if the Falcons had at all forced the issue, but it was almost a one-quarter game for those two as the Vikings controlled the game from start to finish. Dalvin Cook stayed busy for most of it anyway, taking 21 carries for 111 yards and two touchdowns while catching his two targets for nine yards.

• Matt Ryan badly struggled for most of the Vikings game, but he got substantial garbage time production in the fourth quarter, including touchdowns to Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley. Devonta Freeman wasn't as lucky, finishing with 19 yards on eight carries.

• Sam Darnold couldn't move the ball at all against a tough Bills defense, taking four sacks while completing 28-of-41 passes for just 175 yards and a touchdown. Jamison Crowder was a steady but unimposing target with 14 catches for 99 yards, while Robby Anderson (calf) only caught three of seven targets for 23 yards.

• Josh Allen wasn't exactly good, but he was able to lead a comeback victory for Buffalo as he completed 24-of-37 passes for 254 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions while taking 10 carries for 38 yards and a touchdown. Allen worked great with John Brown, whose 10 targets went for seven receptions for 123 yards and a touchdown. Devin Singletary should get more carries after producing 70 yards on four attempts, while Frank Gore should get fewer after turning 11 carries into 20 yards. T.J. Yeldon deserves more work after not seeing a single touch in this game.

• Case Keenum apparently works great with Jay Gruden, or maybe the Philadelphia pass defense is merely bad after allowing 380 yards and three touchdowns through the air. Rookie third-round pick Terry McLaurin was devastating, turning seven targets into five receptions for 125 yards and a touchdown. Derrius Guice badly struggled with 18 yards on 10 carries, however.

• After a sluggish start, Carson Wentz got hot for 313 yards and three touchdowns by the game's conclusion, landing eight passes to DeSean Jackson for 154 yards and two touchdowns. Miles Sanders functioned as the lead ballcarrier with 25 yards on 11 carries, but maybe he should see fewer given that Darren Sproles ran for 47 yards on nine attempts and Jordan Howard ran for 44 on six.

• Perhaps his foot is still bothering him, but Cam Newton needs to do better than 239 yards and an interception on 38 attempts. He did nothing as a runner, so he might not offer much against a competent defense right now. Christian McCaffrey didn't suffer any for Newton's struggles, going over 200 yards from scrimmage and scoring twice.

• Despite Newton's struggles, Jared Goff was worse by throwing for just 186 yards, one touchdown, and one interception on 39 attempts. The ground game carried the Rams, as Todd Gurley got loose for 97 yards on 14 carries. It was generally a disturbing game for Gurley owners, however, as Malcolm Brown vultured two touchdowns and even had more carries than Gurley at one point.

• Nick Foles' broken collarbone is a bitter turn for Jacksonville, though undrafted rookie Gardner Minshew was implausibly effective by completing 22-of-25 passes for 275 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. Perhaps the Jaguars have something in him. They certainly have some interesting speed threats at receiver, where both D.J. Chark (146 yards and one touchdown) and Chris Conley (97 yards and one touchdown) overshadowed Dede Westbrook (30 yards and one touchdown). The game was a missed opportunity for Leonard Fournette, who ran well from scrimmage but lost a fumble and got marginalized in a catch-up script.

• Patrick Mahomes is infallible, and Sammy Watkins is very talented despite the injuries he's dealt with throughout his career. With Tyreek Hill week-to-week with a shoulder injury, the Chiefs really need Watkins to stay hot. They also need more from the duo of Demarcus Robinson and Mecole Hardman, who saw three targets for zero yards.

• The Chiefs backfield isn't any easier to read after this week, as both Damien Williams and LeSean McCoy made their own convincing cases for substantial roles. McCoy vastly outproduced Williams on the ground, turning 10 carries into 81 yards, while Williams struggled to just 26 yards on 13 carries. But Williams did get a short-yardage touchdown in his sample, and he was automatic through the air, securing all six of his targets for 39 yards. Williams will have better days as a runner, but it's a good sign that he seems incapable of failing as a receiving threat in this offense. Williams has now caught of his 39 of his 44 targets as a Chief.

• Philip Rivers posted brilliant numbers despite facing considerable pressure, withstanding four sacks while completing 25-of-34 passes for 333 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. Austin Ekeler's excellent play certainly helped, as the running back turned seven targets into six catches for 96 yards and two touchdowns. Keenan Allen was automatic as he often is, making eight catches for 123 yards and a touchdown on 10 targets. Unfortunately, Mike Williams left with a knee injury after catching two of three targets for 29 yards.

• Jacoby Brissett (21-of-27 for 190 yards and two touchdowns) held his own in a tough road assignment against the Chargers, though the exceptional play of T.Y. Hilton (eight catches for 87 yards and two touchdowns on nine targets) perhaps deserves most of the credit. Marlon Mack was superb in the overtime loss, taking 25 carries for 174 yards and a touchdown, though he saw no targets.

• It's disturbing for Tyler Lockett owners that he saw only two targets – one caught for a 44-yard touchdown – in a game where DK Metcalf (six) and Chris Carson (seven) saw more. Lockett saw as many targets as Will Dissly and Nick Vannett. Metcalf impressed by catching four of his targets for 89 yards.

• Maybe Brian Schottenheimer and Pete Carroll are incapable of getting the hint, but you'd hope a game in which Andy Dalton threw for 418 yards and two touchdowns in Seattle – a game where Cincinnati covered and nearly pulled off the huge upset – might get the Seattle coaches to reconsider their decision to keep the ball away from Russell Wilson as much as possible. But Wilson, one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history, instead threw 20 passes in a game that the Seahawks nearly lost to Dalton.

• Dalton's fortunes are in any case looking upward, because coach Zac Taylor called for a very pass-heavy approach Sunday and the results were very good. A couple of Dalton's throws were lucky, but if John Ross can stay on the field the Bengals could have one of the best top-three wideout rotations whenever A.J. Green (ankle) returns. Ross had by far the best game of his career, turning 12 targets into seven receptions for 158 yards and two touchdowns. Joe Mixon (ankle) left the game after six carries for 10 yards.

• Dak Prescott looks poised be a top fantasy quarterback this year, playing great against the Giants in a Dallas offense that's noticeably more clever with Kellen Moore in charge at offensive coordinator. Prescott was fully in control all game, completing 25-of-32 passes for 405 yards and four touchdowns. His play was so good that Jerry Jones might already regret giving that contract extension to Ezekiel Elliott, who looked reasonably good running for 53 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries. Prescott's play in any case bodes very well for all of Amari Cooper (six catches for 106 yards and a touchdown on nine targets), Michael Gallup (seven catches for 158 yards on seven targets), and Randall Cobb (four catches for 69 yards and a touchdown on five targets).

• If you can believe it, Eli Manning is still bad. He still provided enough yardage volume (306 yards on 44 attempts) to propel a big game for Evan Engram (11 catches for 116 yards and a touchdown on 14 targets), but Saquon Barkley was underused with just four catches for 19 yards on six targets and 11 carries otherwise. Barkley pretty much looked amazing all game, and he'll almost certainly get fed next week.

• The game somehow ended in a tie, but it looked for most of the contest like the Lions would smother the Cardinals before Arizona , down 24-6 in the fourth quarter, went on a 21-3 run to force overtime and a 27-27 finish. The Arizona offense looked utterly hopeless for most of the game, with Kyler Murray opening 10-of-27 for 76 yards, an interception and four sacks before somehow finishing 29-of-54 for 308 yards and two touchdowns. Coach Kliff Kingsbury shouldn't get praise for this as much as Detroit coach Matt Patricia should perhaps receive blame. If nothing else, the Cardinals should have at least got Murray involved as a runner to try to shake up the Detroit defense. Three carries to 54 pass attempts is a dreadful look for Murray's fantasy upside. At least David Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald, Christian Kirk, and KeeSean Johnson showed promise in various ways.

• Danny Amendola's 47-yard touchdown occurred on busted coverage, so it's probably best to not get used to the big-play production he showed with seven catches for 104 yards and a touchdown, though his team-leading 13 targets may be cause for enduring optimism, and arguably a bad sign for Marvin Jones (four targets). It might not be easy to get T.J. Hockenson nine targets per game, but his talent is fully convincing, and a game like this could make Detroit curious about scaling back whatever volume of Jesse James snaps they previously planned on.

• Jameis Winston was a disaster, to the point that the fantasy prospects of all of Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and O.J. Howard merit substantial concern. Winston completed 20-of-36 for 194 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions – two returned for touchdowns – in what was supposed to be one of the more favorable matchups of the slate. It seems unlikely that Bruce Arians of all people would lead Winston to regress from his former self, which usually offered volume despite the endless ill-timed errors, but today we only got the errors. Perhaps the 49ers defense is good, or perhaps Winston got his worst play out of his system, but it also might be a broader issue with Winston or the offense generally. We just might get a Blaine Gabbert Show this year.

• Dare Ogunbowale did a good job as the pass-catching running back, snagging four of five targets for 33 yards, but he didn't see a carry. Ronald Jones, meanwhile, caught his only target for 18 yards while leading the team with 75 rushing yards on 13 carries. Peyton Barber plodded his way to 33 yards on eight carries. Nothing is assured here, but there's no ambiguity about the fact that Jones is the most talented player of the three, and he meaningfully outplayed Barber as a runner in this one.

• For as bad as Winston was in the game, Jimmy Garoppolo invited a similar level of concern with his struggles against Tampa Bay, whose defense is probably worse on paper than San Francisco's. Garoppolo's 18-of-27 passes for 166 yards, one touchdown, and one interception was less than acceptable for the setting, the effort defined by an inability to hit his receivers as Dante Pettis, Marquise Goodwin, Deebo Samuel, and Kendrick Bourne turned 10 targets into six catches for 40 yards.

• Tevin Coleman might miss further time with an ankle injury that knocked him out of this game after six carries for 23 yards. Matt Breida struggled for room, turning 15 carries into just 37 yards, while Raheem Mostert was more effective with nine carries for 40 yards.