It feels like we had to wait forever for Week 1 of the NFL season to get here. Now, here we are prepping for Week 2. There are some very enticing matchups this week, and we are here to help you out with deciding on which direction you should go. It is easier to root for players to go Higher than their projections. So let’s look at five Highers in this Sunday’s slate.
Jahmyr Gibbs HIGHER Than 24.5 Receiving Yards
Jahmyr Gibbs
Detroit Lions • RB • #0
Detroit’s offense could not handle Green Bay’s defense last week. David Montgomery led the rushing game for them, with 25 yards. However, Detroit continued to feed Gibbs in the passing game. He managed to collect 31 yards on 10 receptions. That average may not look good, but luckily, total yards does not care about average.
Detroit is coming into Week 2 with a chip on their shoulder. They are going up against their former Offensive Coordinator in Ben Johnson, and the Chicago Bears. Last week, the Bears gave up 51 receiving yards to Minnesota’s Running Backs. Gibbs has gone Higher than this line in his last seven games, dating back to last season. There is no reason to believe it ends this week.
Kayshon Boutte HIGHER Than 2.5 Receptions
Kayshon Boutte
New England Patriots • WR • #9
Boutte is getting some action in New England. Coming off an eight-target and six-reception game in Week 1, he might become the favorite target for Drake Maye. He had a 17.7% target share in the season opener. Having a wide receiver you know you can go to is only beneficial for a young quarterback.
This relationship between Boutte and Maye did not start this past week. From Weeks 10-18, there were only two games in which he had fewer than three receptions. New England will be going up against a Miami defense that looked absolutely foolish last week. Since last season, the team’s leading receiver has had at least three receptions against Miami, except for Week 4 of last season. It might be the season of Boutte!
J.K. Dobbins HIGHER Than 49.5 Rushing Yards
J.K. Dobbins
Denver Broncos • RB • #27
Dobbins is on his third team in as many years. That does not mean he is slowing down. In Week 1, against Tennessee, he may have only had 53% of the snap share count, but he still managed to take 16 of 21 rushing attempts. He will still be the go-to guy going into Week 2.
Dobbins is going up against a Colts defense that had no issue stopping Miami. They did, however, still allow De’Von Achane to rush for 55 yards on only seven attempts. While Dobbins may not be Achane, he gets the job done. In his last eight matchups, he surpassed 49.5 rushing yards seven times. The only time he hit the lower in that span was in Week 12 when he suffered a left knee sprain. We love consistency when aiming Higher.
Christian McCaffrey HIGHER Than 119.5 Rushing+Receiving Yards
Christian McCaffrey
San Francisco 49ers • RB • #23
This one might get some eyebrow raises. Higher than 119.5 rushing+receiving yards sounds insane. If we were talking about anyone besides CMC, there might be some second-guessing. When healthy, every game has the potential of being a non-stop highlight reel. He is coming off a 142-yard total yard game against Seattle.
McCaffrey will be going up against a New Orleans defense that had trouble stopping Arizona’s run, allowing 146 total rushing yards. Going into Week 2, San Francisco will be without George Kittle and Brock Purdy. They are also unlikely to have Jauan Jennings as well. Mac Jones will be getting his first start at Quarterback for San Francisco. Look for him to rely heavily on CMC.
Breece Hall HIGHER Than 58.5 Rushing Yards
Breece Hall
New York Jets • RB • #20
The Jets let everyone know that they will be a run-heavy offense. They kept that promise in Week 1. Hall had 107 rushing yards against a very good Pittsburgh defense. Many were worried that the acquisition of Justin Fields would eat into Hall’s chances. While technically that might be correct, since Fields did rush 12 times, Hall was still very heavily used in the run game.
Hall is going up against a Buffalo defense that was just absolutely destroyed by Derek Henry. Hall saw a 70.3% rushing attempts amongst running backs in Week 1. If Aaron Glenn keeps his promise, Hall should continue to see a heavy workload. He should be able to go much Higher than his current projections show.
