Will Fuller always has a chance to make a big play. Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images
The second week is in the books, and I have more sleeper plays for Week 3. Let’s take a peek at how I did last week, and then look ahead to this week’s slate of games. My criteria for a good game is around 100 total yards and/or a TD. Last week was decent considering I’m not picking studs. Here’s how I did in Week 2.
James White (NE): Right, 83 yards with 7 catches in a PPR
James Conner (PIT): Right
Lamar Miller (HOU): Wrong, they got behind early
Dion Lewis (TEN): Wrong
TJ Yeldon (JAX): Wrong
JuJu Smith-Schuster (PIT): Right (Wow)
Cooper Kupp (LA): Wrong, but 12 ppr points didn’t kill you
Mike Williams (LA): Right, thankfully he scored
Brandon Marshall (SEA): Wrong, thought he would get a revenge TD
Eric Ebron (IND): Right
Jack Doyle (IND): Wrong
Jordan Reed (WAS): Wrong, though he's a decent play again this week.
Not a great week going 5-7, but these are sleeper plays. We’ll try and do better this week. I have included some REALLY deep plays, OJ Howard for example, so a lot of these guys should only be used if you're really hurting due to injuries, or you're looking for a good value play in DFS.
Week 3
RB
Jordan Howard (CHI): You’re probably starting him every week, but he has a really nice matchup, so fire him up. Arizona gives up the most fantasy points to RBs this year.
James Conner (PIT): You can’t sit him, and this will probably be the last time he appears in this article. He’s in must-start territory, but I included him because his matchup is terrific. The Bucs give up over 38 FPTS/G to RBs.
Latavius Murray (MIN): With Dalvin Cook out for this week's game, Murray is a nice start. He’s playing the Bills, enough said.
Matt Breda (SF): The Chiefs are a Top 5 matchup for RBs and have already given up 21 receptions to the RB position. Alfred Morris is not much of a receiver.
WR
Keelan Cole (JAX): It’s always dangerous starting a Jags receiver, but he’s a decent play this week. The Titans are giving up over 52 FPTS/G to the receiver position. If you have the stones, and are thin at WR, his matchup suggests he could come through.
Chris Godwin and DeSean Jackson (TB): Hopefully, Ryan Fitzpatrick has a little more magic left in him. The Steelers are giving up a ton of production to WRs. Joe Haden’s return could be an issue, and I don't advise starting both of these guys on the same team.
Will Fuller (HOU): When Fuller plays with Watson usually good things happen. The Giants are pretty decent against receivers by the numbers, but if you need some upside, give Fuller a shot.
Nelson Agholor (PHI): Carson Wentz is coming back, and who else is he going to throw to besides Zach Ertz?
TE
Eric Ebron (IND): Jack Doyle is now officially out for this week's game against the Eagles. Ebron should get an uptick in targets, so he's worth starting this week for sure.
Jesse James (PIT): He’s hard to trust, but his matchup is fantastic. The Bucs are giving up over 20 FPTS/G to TEs. If you're desperate, he's a decent option.
George Kittle (SF): He let us down last week, but we’ll give him another shot. The Chiefs are giving up the 3rd most points to the position.
OJ Howard (TB): He’s a long shot, but the matchup is really good. This is only if you’re stuck and need a TE.
QB
Jimmy Garoppolo (SF): I think Jimmy is worth a shot this week and is a Top 10 option. This should be a shootout with the Chiefs.
Matt Ryan (ATL): Don’t count on him getting two rushing TDs again this week, but he should put up some points against the Saints.
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.