Welcome to Week 2! Hopefully Week 1 was kind to your fantasy squads…

The opening week of the NFL season featured a 59-37 game, 4 running backs with 30+ point performances, and a WR1 that could be on your waiver wire this week. Just like we expected. In all seriousness, if your team has a monstrous fantasy week, congrats. I’m guessing we’ll get some regression to a general scoring mean in week 2, but that doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate a genuinely fun way to kick-off the 2026 season.

If I could give you one piece of advice: try not to overreact to one week of football. If you had Colston Loveland, Ja’Marr Chase, and Drake London in your lineup, hold the line. Better weeks are ahead. My rest-of-season rankings are live through week 1, and while I adjusted projected rushing and receiving splits to reflect some obvious learnings (i.e., Isaiah Likely seems like he’ll be the guy in New York), I didn’t meaningfully tank anyone for a bad first week, nor did I move Kalif Raymond into the top 10 at wide receiver.

Week 2 should be a lot of fun: we’ve got Bills / Lions on Thursday Night Football (a JUICY 53.5-point O/U), a Seahawks / Cardinals game that could be a lowkey toss-up, and a Giants / Rams MNF game that could be one of the best of the week. If you need any trade advice or bespoke start/sit decisions, my full week 2 rankings, rest-of-season rankings, and trade calculator are available on grankfantasyfootball.com.

P.S. — the below rankings in my newsletter are half-PPR by default. The website will always have my full PPR and standard scoring rankings as well.

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Week 2 Rankings

QB: Bo Nix (QB10) and Justin Herbert (QB11) are bounce back candidates with exciting matchups; remember what I said: don’t overreact to one week of football. Josh Allen proved once again that he’s matchup proof, posting 35.7 points against the Texans. He gets one of the best matchups of the week against a Lions’ secondary that let Tyler Shough throw for 410 yards last week. I wouldn’t sit him anyway, but even with the tough matchup against the Vikings, Caleb Williams (QB3) is another lineup lock. Even though he had a great week 1, I’m a bit lower on Jaxson Dart (QB16) this week. I don’t anticipate the Rams’ defense lays down and dies again like it did in Australia, even if Myles Garrett is going to miss some time. If you need a really deep start, pay attention to whoever starts for the Vikings (Kyler Murray could miss a game with a concussion, opening the door for a Carson Wentz spot start). The Bears secondary looks super vulnerable this year.

RB: I may be more excited about Kenneth Walker (RB4) than any other RB after week 1. He looked incredibly explosive in a 173-yard rushing effort against a Broncos’ frontline that’s supposed to be stingy. He could easily finish as the RB1 this week against the Colts. Bucky Irving (RB15) moves into the top 15 after commanding 7 targets and comfortably outpacing backfield mate Kenny Gainwell; the Browns won’t provide much resistance. I also expect a bounce back game for Omarion Hampton (RB7) who gets the Raiders after posting just 8.3 points against the Arizona Cardinals. Trust the process and put Hampton right back into your lineup for week 2 even after getting burned.

Chuba Hubbard (RB21) is a sneaky good RB2 start after seeing 10 carries to Jonathon Brooks’ 4 in week 1. I also don’t mind throwing Jacory Croskey-Merritt (RB29) into your lineup; JCM easily out-touched Rachaad White in week 1, and the Commanders get what looks like another leaky Cowboys’ defense in week 2. I’m leaving Tony Pollard (RB33) and MarShawn Lloyd (RB35) on the bench. Tony Pollard has a Cam Ward problem, and the Packers’ backfield looks more likely to be a timeshare unless Jacobs comes back.

WR: I’m not downgrading Jaxon Smith-Njigba (WR3) even with Drew Lock under center; JSN is too talented to leave on the bench in any circumstance. Similar story for Justin Jefferson (WR5) and Carson Wentz. Against a Bears’ secondary that just gave up 361 passing yards to Bryce Young, Justin Jefferson is one of my favorite starts this week. Keep an eye out for who’s under center for Drake London (WR11). You’re probably not benching him, but if it’s Cooper Rush again and you’re in a really shallow league…

Both Deebo Samuel (WR16) and Mike Evans (WR17) are great starts against the Dolphins this week. Even though they burned you, DeVonta Smith (WR23) and Jaylen Waddle (WR24) need to go right back into lineups as well. I’m fine with you benching Carnell Tate (WR33) until the Titans prove they can do anything halfway decent on offense, and even though Brian Thomas Jr. (WR37) is likely to suit up, I want one more week with him on the bench before I see what he’s going to be. If you need a really deep start, Romeo Doubs (WR41) should be given grace until A.J. Brown is back from IR. Someone has to catch passes for the Patriots, and I expect Doubs and Mack Hollins (WR34) to be playable.

TE: Brock Bowers has a legitimate chance to suit up this week and goes right back into lineups if he does. Colston Loveland (TE3) can be forgiven for a goose egg performance in week 1, even if you aren’t ready to do so. Isaiah Likely (TE7) becomes an every-week start if you were lucky enough to draft him. Even though Deshaun Watson is under center, I’m not ready to completely write off Harold Fannin Jr. (TE8), but I understand the hesitancy if you have other options. Dalton Kincaid (TE13) and Dallas Goedert (TE14) are borderline TE1/2 plays coming off great week 1 performances as well.

I’m probably leaving Jake Ferguson (TE18) and Chig Okonkwo (TE22) on the bench this week. If you need a deeper start, Mark Andrews (TE15) could be a good play against the Saints, especially if Zay Flowers doesn’t suit up. I also don’t mind T.J. Hockenson (TE17) as someone you could add off waivers if Brock Bowers misses another week.

G-RANK Game of the Week for Fantasy

The week 1 pick of Baltimore / Indianapolis turned out to be a great game. I’ll take another “road less travelled by game” and call out the Las Vegas Raiders at the Los Angeles Chargers. Kirk Cousins was serviceable against Miami, Ashton Jeanty looked great, and I think the Raiders have a chance to be a better football team than we gave them credit for this offseason. On the other side of the field, Mike McDaniel is going to be doing everything he can to prove the Arizona game was a fluke. I think Omarion Hampton and Justin Herbert get back on track for fantasy, and this becomes another game where Ashton Jeanty puts up a week-winning performance for your squad. And if Brock Bowers is back in this one, the game could be closer than the current spread indicates.

G-RANK Weekly Sleeper Pick

I’d like to call it skill, but I had some dumb luck taking Jalen Coker as my week 1 sleeper, seeing him finish as the WR1 on the week. He’s one of my favorite waiver wire adds this week, and I think he’s someone who could easily finish as a top 24 WR this year, even if Tetairoa McMillan stays healthy. Who’s going to step up for the Patriots’ receiving room with A.J. Brown injured? Mack Collins had a 70% snap share in week 1 and saw 5 targets, including some of the most crucial looks toward the end of the game. He’s a player who can be trusted to make the right play when he’s on the field, and I think he could quickly become Drake Maye’s WR1 while Brown recovers. If you need a spot start at WR in a deep league this week, you can probably do worse than taking Hollins against the Steelers.

Thanks for reading this week! G-RANK has you covered for full top 200 rankings (half-PPR, full-PPR, standard) for this week and the rest-of-season. Be sure to also leverage the start / sit tool, trade calculator, and more for decisions specific to your league!