The New Orleans Saints succumbed to a wild comeback in Week 1, losing at the end of the game. On the flip side of the coin, the Cleveland Browns pulled off their own wild comeback, only to lose anyway. Both teams had their hearts broken in the waning minutes of Week 1, meaning both ought to be extra-motivated to perform in Week 2.
Fantasy football start/sit advice, Week 2: Saints vs. Browns
Both teams came out on the wrong side of games that featured big comebacks in Week 1. Which one will get back to the good in Week 2?
Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sport
They play each other at 1 p.m. ET Sunday in Cleveland, and there will be a few fantasy names to keep an eye on:
Saints
Start in every league: Drew Brees, Jimmy Graham, Shayne Graham
Start if you're desperate: Pierre Thomas, Mark Ingram, Khiry Robinson, Marques Colston, Brandin Cooks, Defense/special teams
Bench: Kenny Stills
Not going to spend a lot of time here -- there’s no sense in wondering if you need to start Brees or Graham (or that other Graham, with this offense).
“Desperate” is such a fungible term here. The running backs (Thomas, Ingram and Robinson) are likely to take turns being the big performer all season, although Thomas is the top-ranked one; the other two are the true, desperate, “oh no, my starter was a scratch at noon Sunday” plays, but they aren’t bad ones to fill that role. Meanwhile, Colston and Cooks are right on the edge of starting territory, both ranked around WR30. You don’t have to be very desperate to start either guy. ... The Saints’ defense was disappointing in Week 1, but it’s a unit that came in with good publicity and gets a rough Cleveland offense.
Stills might have been Wally Pipp’ed in Week 1, if he hadn’t already been shuttled aside, by virtue of missing the game with injury. He’s pretty clearly low on the Saints’ list of weapons.
Browns
Start in every league: ...
Start if you're desperate: Terrance West, Andrew Hawkins
Bench: Brian Hoyer, Isaiah Crowell, Miles Austin, Travis Benjamin, Jordan Cameron, Billy Cundiff, Defense/special teams
With Ben Tate out for Week 2, West, who ran for 100 yards on 16 carries in Week 1, will get the bulk of the carries, and ought to do okay with them. ... Hawkins was clearly the team’s primary pass-catching weapon in Week 1, with value even higher in PPR, but he’s not even close to a real fantasy impact player yet.
Even with the team scoring 27 points in Week 1, Hoyer threw for only one touchdown and earned only 13 fantasy points. And they aren’t likely to keep scoring like that. ... Crowell had two scores in the Week 1 game, but they weren’t the sort of plays that inspired long-term confidence. Watch him, don’t play him for now. ... Austin was barely a part of the team’s offense, and while Benjamin did score a touchdown, he didn’t do much else. ... As of this writing, Cameron’s status for Sunday is up in the air, but it seems hard to believe he’ll be anywhere near full strength even if he does play. ... The Browns might not give Cundiff a lot of kicking opportunities against New Orleans. ... And while the Browns’ defense is decent, you’ve got to be hesitant playing any unit against New Orleans.
