The Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Chargers faced off on Thursday Night Football to kick off week two. Besides being aired only on Amazon Prime, it was an entertaining game from start to finish. With the Chiefs’ escaping with a 27-24 win, they improve to 2-0 and show Tyreek Hill isn’t needed. The Chargers fall to 1-1, but Justin Herbert needs to be recognized despite the loss.
Please no man.
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) September 16, 2022
Don’t take Justin Herbert from us pic.twitter.com/GMcyYG7Zpo
He stayed in the game and did this:
This throw by Justin Herbert makes no sense if you're watching this game and know what's going on right now. pic.twitter.com/7x8PMRYKxb
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) September 16, 2022
Prayers to Herbert that he gets healthy soon. The Chargers need him if they want to still compete in the AFC West. Here are the fantasy studs and duds from this game.
Fantasy Football STUDS
Mike Williams: 14.4 Proj. fPts (fantasy points, and all according to ESPN Fantasy)
With Keenan Allen out against Kansas City, it was clear Williams was going to be the number one target for Herbert. A week one performance of only two catches for ten yards was not the reason for optimism heading to this matchup despite the circumstances.
Well, as they always say: when you’re at the bottom, the only way to go is up. That is what Williams probably said to himself before this game because Kansas City could not shut him down.
No Keenan Allen… Mike Williams Said No Sweat… 8 catches for 113 and this ONE HANDED TD CATCH ???????? #MikeWilliams #TNFonPrime pic.twitter.com/XRvLcJZBWV
— Jones'NForSports (@JNforsports) September 16, 2022
The former Clemson product finished with eight catches for 113 yards, one of them being that amazing touchdown catch. Way to surpass your projection and then some, Mikey. Williams finished with 25.3 PPR fantasy points.
Justin Watson: Projected 1.9 fPts
A former Buccaneer, no one expected Watson to make any noise against the Chargers. Especially when Juju-Smith Schuster, Mecole Hardman, Travis Kelce, and others exist to catch passes from Patrick Mahomes.
But, when you get open, Mahomes will find you.
J. WATSIX !!!
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) September 16, 2022
????: #LACvsKC on @NFLonPrime pic.twitter.com/Xhr1p9ul8A
We shouldn’t expect him to be a key piece of this offense in the future. After all, he only had two catches in total. But, without Hill, the Kansas City Chiefs are going to spread the ball around in this offense. Like Mahomes said, it’s going to be a different person every week that will show out. It’s safe to say Watson was the winner this week.
He did acquire a shoulder injury, so that is worth monitoring. But, for the 0.1% of those who rostered him: congrats to you for reading the future. The wide receiver finished way above his projection with 13.0 PPR points.
Gerald Everett: Projected 7.9 fPTS
Everett kicked off his career as a Charger with three catches, 54 yards, and a touchdown in week one. With Keenan Allen out, he was likely going to be a key cog in this offense for a second straight week.
Gerald Everett v the Chiefs:
— Matthew Seward (@Matt2Frosty) September 16, 2022
6 catches
71 yards
22% target share
Inspiring usage for a TE in a high powered offense ????
pic.twitter.com/FX10oZSUY9
I’m going to say it: he is going to finish this season as a top 10 fantasy tight end. He was second in receiving yards with 71. He didn’t catch a touchdown. But, fantasy owners will be satisfied with 13.1 PPR points.
For the record, I love how skill players can wear single-digit numbers now. Everett looks good in number seven.
Fantasy Football DUDS
Juju Smith-Schuster: projected 13.4 fPTS
After a promising performance against the Cardinals, the former USC wide receiver fell off against the Chargers. Maybe it was because he was shadowed by J.C Jackson or from making TikToks pregame.
Regardless, fantasy owners may need to trade Smith-Schuster sooner rather than later. Three catches for ten yards against Los Angeles is not promising. He did not play like a number one receiver on Thursday.
Yes, Mahomes is going to spread the ball around. But, with that said, those who drafted any of the top three Chief wide receivers on the depth chart may be sweating just a bit. Especially when Justin Watson outscored every other pass catcher on the team.
Juju finished with only 4.0 PPR fantasy points. He’ll hope to bounce back against the Colts in ten days.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling: projected 11.2 fPTS
Let’s not waste time with this one. He was brought in to replace the production of Tyreek Hill. In week one, he had an average performance that saw him catch four balls for 44 yards. But, he was held to only two catches for 13 yards against the Chargers.
Underwhelming. A waste of a free agent signing. Just a few words to describe the signing of a former Green Bay Packer. He finished with only 3.3 PPR fantasy points.
A Stud/Dud (StuDud?)
Austin Ekeler: projected 18.8 fPTS
Looking at Ekeler’s performance of 18.4 PPR points against Kansas City, you would think that Ekeler had a pretty good night. But his rushing numbers continue to be underwhelming.
He had fourteen carries for 39 yards, which marks a second straight performance under forty rushing yards. His numbers on the receiving end continue to make him fantasy-relevant, acquiring nine catches for 55 yards.
The Chargers stuck with the game of plan with splitting carries between Ekeler, Joshua Kelley, and Sony Michel. For fantasy football owners, this is a complete nightmare. Ekeler does not seem like the RB1 we expected to draft in the first round.
Regardless, he put up a solid performance from a PPR perspective. We hope the idea of splitting carries won’t continue, because many did not sign up for Ekeler to be average.
Thank you for reading! If you want more fantasy football Studs and Duds, make sure to visit Belly Up Sports every week and follow me on Twitter! Thank you for your continuing support, and be on the lookout for more quality content! Also, check out my podcast here!
