The Atlanta Falcons only had one player who made his fantasy football managers happy in Week 1: Bijan Robinson.
Anyone relying on Drake London or Kyle Pitts was certainly bummed out by their performances.
London made two catches for 29 yards and had one run for six yards.
Pitts was targeted once and didn’t catch the underthrown pass from Cooper Rush, so the big tight end ended up with exactly zero fantasy points.
That creates some tough decisions in Week 2, because both London and Pitts were drafted to be fantasy football starters. Can you start them coming off rough games?
Adding to the equation is the opponent: Atlanta is taking on the Carolina Panthers, who just gave up a whopping 59 points to the Chicago Bears.
None of the QBs currently battling through chaos in Atlanta is Caleb Williams, but still — the Falcons should be able to move the ball with some success.
Should I Start Drake London in Fantasy?
Yes, London should remain in fantasy football starting lineups in Week 2.
He was almost certainly drafted as a WR2, if not a WR1, and there weren’t enough obvious breakout stars in the opening week of the season to swap him out.
Could you take a risk and sit him for the Panthers’ Jalen Coker? Sure, but that’s also chasing Coker’s points and could backfire.
The Falcons are talking about a more balanced offensive approach in Week 2, which if carried out should get London more than the four targets he had a week ago.
Carolina also had some serious cornerback struggles in the opener, and while Jaycee Horn is a quality player, Falcons offensive coordinator Tommy Rees can scheme up ways to get London good matchups.
If Cooper Rush starts at quarterback again, he should look more comfortable in Atlanta’s system than he did a week ago. And if it’s Michael Penix Jr., he loves throwing to London.
There’s risk in starting London, but odds are there isn’t a clearcut better option on your bench.
Should I Start Kyle Pitts in Fantasy?
Pitts feels like he comes with more risk, but he also was a yard or two of a better throw away from a 60-yard TD in Week 1. Rush just underthrew it.
He’s also a prominent enough offensive player that it feels like his Week 1 goose egg will actually be inspirational to the Falcons plans.
Teams do really take stock of things like that and want to make it right for their best players. The Falcons won’t want to leave Pitts hanging out to dry too long into Week 2.
There’s a decent chance they try to involve him early and often. He’s still a solid touchdown threat, and he’s more capable of big plays than most TEs.
Pitts is a lower-end TE1 this week, but there isn’t a surefire replacement option out there, and since you can’t afford to drop him at this point, it’s not worth the trouble it would take to create a roster space to play someone else.
More Falcons
Bijan Robinson is an automatic start.
Whoever plays QB isn’t start-worthy unless you play in a massive 32-team fantasy league.
And the Falcons’ WRs past London haven’t shown enough to trust any of them.
You can read more at this link about who to play in fantasy from the Panthers in this game.
Fantasy Football Start-Sit Week 2: Drake London, Kyle Pitts of Falcons