Josh Downs set to return this week 🐴

Remember this offseason when we were talking about Nico Collins being the clear No. 1 in Houston, even after the Stefon Diggs trade? Not only is Collins a great fantasy receiver – he’s an excellent receiver in real life, too. Top-5, anyone?

• Texans RBs Joe Mixon, Dameon Pierce both miss practice Wednesday with ankle injuries

  • Mixon’s domination of the touches in the Texans backfield was interrupted in Week 2 when an ankle injury forced him to miss part of the game Sunday night. He totaled just 14 opportunities after earning 33 the week before, and he was listed as a non-participant at practice yesterday along with presumed backup Dameon Pierce. HC DeMeco Ryans said that the team is ‘still holding out hope’ that Mixon is able to play this week against the Vikings, but with him missing practice and a long season yet to play, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Mixon miss this week’s game as he recovers. Pierce is also unlikely to play, leaving RBs Cam Akers and Dare Ogunbowale to shoulder the load in their absences. Akers was a late addition to the Texans roster ahead of 2024, and he played admirably in limited preseason action. He took a handful of snaps at the end of Houston’s game in Week 2 and fumbled, which wasn’t a good look – but with Ogunbowale profiling as more of a pass catching back, Akers stands to assume the early down and short yardage role should it be vacated this week by Mixon. There’s still an off chance that Mixon ends up playing, but fantasy managers should be prepared with a backup plan should be be ruled out in the coming days.

• Colts WR Josh Downs expects to make his return to action in Week 3 vs Bears after missing first two games with ankle injury

  • The former UNC slot man is slated to draw his first start of the 2024 season and further complicates an already crowded Colts WR room. WR Alec Pierce has been the most productive pass catcher for Anthony Richardson to this point, while dynamic rookie Adonai Mitchell has made minimal contributions while playing a limited number of snaps to begin his career. The good news for Downs: he was Richardson’s go-to-guy for most, if not all, of training camp before he left with the ankle injury that’s kept him sidelined to this point. Downs profiles as the most prolific slot receiver Indy has on the roster at the moment, with Pittman and Pierce expected to maintain their roles on the perimeter and be relatively unaffected by the addition of Downs to the mix. Unfortunately, Adonai Mitchell stands to most strongly feel the effects of Downs’ presence in the offense. His role in the offense moving forward will be hard to predict, and there’s a chance that if Downs can hit the ground running and look like the productive receiver he was in 2023, Mitchell very well may find himself on the waiver wire even in deep leagues. Downs profiles as a WR4 play this week and will likely see his value increase as he gradually works his way back to 100%.

• Dolphins RB Raheem Mostert (chest) officially returned to practice Wednesday after missing Week 2

  • Had the Dolphins’ Thursday night tilt been this past Sunday and not just four days after their Week 1 game agains the Jaguars, Mostert very well may not have missed any time with the chest injury that ultimately caused him to be out for Week 2. However, fantasy managers hoping to have him in their lineup in Week 3 should be encouraged by his participation in practice yesterday, and barring any setbacks, Mostert appears primed to return to action in Week 3 against the Seahawks. Without Mostert in the lineup, RB De’Von Achane monopolized touches out of the backfield to the tune of 29 total opportunities, which he turned into an exceptional 165 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown. With Mostert back, Achane’s overall workload takes a slight hit – however, his role as the 1A in Miami’s backfield should be unchallenged, especially with backup QB Skylar Thompson under center. The Dolphins’ offense won’t be anywhere near as dynamic with him under center as it usually is with Tua at the controls, so fantasy managers should temper expectations in Thompson’s first start of 2024. However, Mostert offers flex appeal and could find himself in more rosters than normal with injuries piling up to open the new season.

Without Isiah Pacheco for the next 6-8 weeks – and maybe longer – with a fractured Josh Allen at 1, not worried at all about the dud performance from last week. There was no reason for Josh Allen to really even be playing in that game by the middle of the second quarter, but in a competitive game (like we saw in Week 1), he’s lights out for fantasy.

Lamar Jackson has Dallas on deck this week, and the Cowboys just got steamrolled by the Saints at their place last Sunday. For all the home field advantage talk there is about the Cowboys, they’ve allowed almost 32 points per game to opponents in their last five games at home. Lamar is still that guy and has been doing it all for Baltimore

Kyler Murray and Jalen Hurts check in at 3 and 4 this week, and it’s the matchup against the Lions and A.J. Brown likely being out that gives Murray the edge in my book. The Lions and Cardinals game also just happens to have the highest over/under this week, and if Arizona can make Marvin Harrison a real part of the gameplan like they did last week, Murray might be sticking around in my top-5 the rest of the year.

Joe Burrow has the dream matchup this week against the Commanders, so he’s my QB5. Washington made Daniel Jones a capable fantasy starter, which tells you everything you need to know – he had 18 points last week. This is a great spot for Burrow and Ja’Marr to heat up, with the Bengals also having the highest implied total this week of any team at 28 points. Things started to click a little bit for the offense overall last week, too, so this game could be the spark Cincy needs to wake up from their annual early-season slump.

Patrick Mahomes is my QB6 this week, and we might see his numbers bump up moving forward with Isiah Pacheco out for the foreseeable future. He’ll be asked to do more in the passing game to make up for that loss – which is significant by the way – but this is Patrick Mahomes we’re talking about. He’s been a floor play and a better real life starter than fantasy starter through two weeks, but I like his odds to start hitting that upside again against the Falcons.

I have Jayden Daniels at 7 ahead of C.J. Stroud at 8 – his rushing upside is just much more intriguing than what we’ve seen from Stroud in the first two weeks. I wouldn’t normally be acknowledging the Vikings defense as a touch matchup, but they shut down the 49ers offense last week – which I wasn’t expecting at all. Granted, they were missing CMC, but the Texans could be without both of their top 2 RBs on the depth chart with Joe Mixon dealing with an ankle injury. Minnesota has held opposing QBs to the third-fewest fantasy points per game so far this season.

Rounding out my top-10 are Anthony Richardson and Derek Carr. Yes, that’s right – Derek Carr is a top-10 quarterback this week, and it all comes down to his matchup. The Eagles are allowing the 9th-most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season, and Derek Carr is tied for the league lead with Baker Mayfield for total QB touchdowns with six. The Saints offense is on one right now (thanks Klint Kubiak), and it’s time to hop onto the Derek Carr train and see how far it goes until the wheels fall off.