2020 LHL Week 2 Rankings
Sept 18, 2020 11:56:32 GMT -5
Seattle Seahawks (Justin), Washington Commanders (John), and 2 more like this
Post by Pittsburgh Steelers (Malachi) on Sept 18, 2020 11:56:32 GMT -5
LHL POWER RANKINGS: Week 1 was FUN, there were some really good, close games and there were some blow outs. I liked the point totals we saw from week 1 and am looking forward to seeing how things go the rest of the season. Week 2 brings an early HUGE matchup with Tampa and New Orleans playing and another big matchup with Arizona vs San Francisco
1. Los Angeles Chargers (1-0) - : My pre-season #1 for our first ever season did not disappoint in week 1! Despite Wentz and Conner combining for 17 total points, the offense still put up a whopping 107.6 points, thanks to Davante Adams going nuclear week 1. The defense and K spot added in 66 points to bring Garrett’s total for the week to 173.6 points and the win over Denver. Week 2 will bring a match-up with the Colts who lost last week and looked a bit disappointing, so things seem set for Garrett to carry the momentum into week 2 and win another week.
2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0) - : At #2, we see polar opposites in the league already on how the teams won their match-ups. The Chargers did it with offense, while the Bucs did it with defense. Thanks to Jerome Baker putting up a 30 spot and DBs Kyle Fuller and Adrian Phillips combining for 30.75, the Bucs had 102.95 of their 188.43 points on the defensive side of the ball. Drew Lock and Kyle Rudolph struggled a bit, but the offense still managed 77.48 points on the week. Things could get hairy for Tampa in week 2 as they go against my #4 team in the league, who also won last week and put up more points than them last season. This will be one of the games of the season if these two do what they are capable of.
3. Minnesota Vikings (1-0) +1 : Thanks to the K being out for the week (ultimately going on IR), the Vikings week 1 match-up was a lot closer than it should have been, they won 168.27-159.22. It was a balanced effort between offense and defense at 94.27 and 74 and no player scored over 20 points. Darius Leonard, Nick Bosa, and Allen Lazard were the standouts for the Vikings in week. With a K signed and a healthy lineup for week 2, the Vikings face off with the Bears who did not have a good week 1, so thanks to the #2 and #4 teams playing each other, could move up to #2 in the power rankings after the week, but to do so will still need to have a strong showing.
4. New Orleans Saints (1-0) +2 : Talk about an impressive week 1 showing to open your account in a new league! The Saints were the only team in the league to eclipse the 200 point mark to open the season. Big Ben looked like his old self, Julio and Will Fuller had big games, and Aaron Jones had a very good week 1 to lead the offense to 106.77 points. Kwon Alexander, LJ Fort, and Akiem Hicks led the way for the defense en route to an 85.85 total for the week. Week 2 presents a large challenge, in way of the Buccaneers. It is a battle of the 2 winners from the division and by my rankings and early season top 5 matchup. Can Mike top 200 points again and set himself up as a title favorite early in the season?
5. Green Bay Packers (0-1) - : TB-NO will be the 2nd top 5 matchup this season, after GB-MIN had that honor in week 1. The Packers had to settle for the loss in week 1, after a tight matchup with Minnesota. Had Sal inserted AP into the lineup over JJ Arcega-Whiteside, things would look very different for him and the Vikings. The offense only managed 63 points, as the aforementioned Arcega-Whiteside put up a 0, beyond that Tyreek Hill at 15.6 points was the high scorer there. The defense did a better job of holding up their end with both Kirksey and Pratt scoring 18 points a piece and the unit getting 78.25 total points. Prater chipped in 17 to keep the Packers close, but settled for a loss. Week 2 will be another test as they face off with the rookie-laden Washington unit, with Miles Sanders back can the Packers turn things around and get to 1-1?
6. Tennessee Titans (1-0) +3 : Thanks to a monster week from the offense, the Titans are 1-0 on the season. They put up 127.16 points as a unit, despite Saquon having a fairly muted performance. Calvin Ridley, Josh Allen, and Mark Andrews put up 83 points between them and only Antonio Gibson had less than 10. 55 points from the defense and K handed the Titans a 182.16 point total in week 1. With the same cast back for week 2 and a matchup against the 0-1 Browns, can this team get the defense to score more and be the next team to top the 200 point mark, or will guys stumble off huge weeks and fall to an early upset?
7. New England Patriots (0-1) -4 : Despite what appeared to be a solid week, by the power rankings the Patriots were the first team to suffer an upset in the LHL, losing the week to the Bills by a score of 178.94-166.05. Mostert and Lamar Jackson scored half the offensive points in week 1, so if those 2 do that again and guys like Ekeler, Hilton, and Allen Robinson do more week the offense will be in a much stronger spot in week 2. AJ Johnson was the standout performer on the defense, but scoring 63.5 as a unit likely will not cut it, so other guys need to step up in week 2. The matchup in week 2 does not appear to be as threatening as it did in week 1, but I had their week 1 opponent lower than I currently have their week 2 opponent, so who knows at this point, but the Pats need to win and get things on track.
8. Arizona Cardinals (1-0) +2 : Arizona opened his LHL account with a 178.11 performance and 120.11 of that coming from the offense. Josh Jacobs made a statement in week 1 proving he could catch passes from the RB spot, putting up 35.9 points in week 1. Lockett and Kelce put up 17 points each and David Johnson added 19.9 to round out the big performers for the Cards on offense. The defense was down a man with Shawn Williams not playing, so the 50 points is a little misleading, but still not a great total for that side of the ball. Rodney McLoud at 13 points and Jeffrey Simmons at 9 points were the best showings on defense and will hope their teammates step up in week 2. It will be a top 10 matchup for the Cardinals as they get a 49ers team that scored more than them last week, but had to settle for a loss, can the Cardinals do that to them again this week, or suffer their first loss?
9. Los Angeles Rams (1-0) +2 : The Rams were victorious in the closest matchup of week 1 winning by 2.21 points over the 49ers, the final score was 186.08-183.87. A balanced total between offense, 81.08, and defense, 91, was a key factor in the week being a win for the Rams. JuJu with a 24.9 point week led the way for the offense, the rest of the unit had decent to disappointing games, but obviously did enough. Sam Hubbard, Jaylon Smith, Shaq Thompson, Darian Thompson, and Kenneth Murray all scored 12 points or more to lead the defense to the 91 point total and it could have been more had the Rams played any of their other defenders that were on the bench. The Rams go from the top scoring of the other 3 division opponents in week 1 to the team that scored the least in the Seahawks, can the guys that struggled in week 1 put up more points to make this a blowout, or will the other struggle and make it a tight game or loss?
10. San Francisco 49ers (0-1) -2 : It was a disappointing week 1 for the 49ers, on one hand they lost, but on the other they were the highest scoring team that lost and were the 5th highest scoring team in the league. Thanks to big games from Aaron Rodgers and Sammy Watkins, the offense put up 95.12 total points, despite a week where rookie Dobbins and McKinnon outscored Mixon and Mike Evans. Budda Baker, Roquan Smith, and Fred Warner all scored 11+ points with Baker scoring 22.5 pushing the defensive point total to 76.75 as a unit. Any other week this team would have won with this kind of performance, but will head into week 2 against Arizona looking to replicate this performance just ending it with a W instead of an L.
11. Washington Redskins (1-0) +2 : The rookie heavy Washington team would be my surprise team of the first week. They put up 190 points, had the largest margin of victory, and would have topped 200 points if they had played Mike Williams over Joe Reed, but 190 is nothing to sneeze at. Breida and Reed were the only 2 guys on offense to not score over 10 points on the week, but Crowder did his best to cover that by putting up 26 points on the week. The defensive side of the ball was clearly the most impressive part of this team putting up 100 points. It was the rookies CJ Henderson and Patrick Queen putting up 38.8 combined points leading the way and the trio of Lavonte David, Anthony Hitchens, and Kevin Byard adding 46.5 points. Week 2 for Washington has them facing off with the #5 team in my rankings, so it could be a tough week, but if the team does what it did in week 1 that will not be the case and they will be 2-0 after this week.
12. Baltimore Ravens (0-1) -5 : The Ravens were bit by Courtland Sutton not playing in week 1, Christian Kirk putting up 1 point, Rashaan Evans getting ejected quickly on Monday, and Ronnie Harrison putting up a 0. Who knows if those 4 would have gotten the 41 points needed to win the week, but things would have been a lot closer for them, had those guys had normal weeks. Dalvin Cook and TJ Hockenson gave the Ravens something to be happy about with their performances in week 1, putting up 38.4 of the 59 points on offense. Blake Martinez and Myles Jack were the bright spots for the defense putting up 20 and 19.5 points respectively, which was well over half the 68 points the defense managed. If the guys that did not do much of anything can show up for week 2 and the guys that did perform do it again, the Ravens will likely leave week 2 with a 1-1 record, if not the struggles will continue.
13. Indianapolis Colts (0-1) -1 : The Colts had a rough week 1, partly self inflicted wounds with a DP spot left unfilled and a couple guys on the bench that put up points, but also had Golden Tate in his lineup, and he ultimately did not play on Monday night. Looking at the positives for the week, Matt Ryan looked solid, CMC was his normal self in the new look Panther offense, Terry McLaurin did a solid job, and Hunter Henry looked more like the TE the Chargers were hoping for when they drafted him. The rest of the offense will need to pick it up. On defense, Bobby Wagner, Vonn Bell, and Jon Bostic did their jobs, but the other defenders had muted performances. They scored more in week 1 than their week 2 opponent, the Browns, did despite only having 14 guys playing. In week 2 if they manage to field a full lineup, they should be set up nicely to rebound and pick up win #1
14. Miami Dolphins (1-0) +3 : Miami picked up a solid week 1 win over the Jags by a final of 153.52-120.03. On offense every guy was around or over the 10 point mark, except for Ebron who was down at 2 points, so it was a consistent mark for the team and gave the offense 78.27 points total. Jared Goff led the way with 18 points on offense and looked a little more comfortable than he did last year. On defense, Benardrick McKinney, Kyle Van Noy, and Anthony Harris all had solid weeks scoring 11 to 12 points. The defense as a unit scored 63.25 points. The week 2 matchup for Miami will definitely be a stiffer challenge than it was in week 1, they have to face off with the Bills who made a huge statement in week 1. Will the Dolphins be able to knock them off and be the team in the division that goes 2-0 through 2 weeks?
15. Atlanta Falcons (0-1) -1 : The Falcons were another team that put up a lot of points, but had to settle for a loss because their opponent had one of the top week few scores in the league. Settling for a 188.43-182.43 loss to the Bucs. 98 points from the offense is a strong showing, but looking at it further, a quiet game from Brees and Austin Hooper likely contributed to the loss. Robby Anderson, John Brown, and Hollywood Brown all did their part to try and get the Falcons the win, but it was obviously not enough. A balanced score sheet on defense where only 1 player scored less than 6.5 points is a solid showing. The unit as a whole was just missing that big game to push them over the top. The Falcon’s won’t have to face a top 5 team this week, but they do face the Giants who in week 1 threw up 176 points, so they will likely need to repeat that feat this week to move to 1-1.
16. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-0) +3 : The Steelers opened their LHL account, how the NFL Steelers normally do, by beating the Browns. With a final of 161.74-137.45 and it could have been more had they played MVS over either Cooks or Pittman and Bentley over Cashman or Willie Gay. So it was a solid showing for the Steelers, led on offense by Thielen and Goedert. 98 points total from the offense despite Chubb, Cooks, and Pittman scoring 13 combined points is a good sign for these Steelers. With a couple guys only managing 1.5 points each, the defense was only able to put up 61 points as a unit. Trey Flowers, Devin Bush, and Quandre Diggs were the only guys to score north of 10 points on the week, that will need to improve in week 2. Week 2 might be a little more of a challenge with the Ravens being the opponent, but if both units can fix the gaps they had in week 1, the Steelers could be looking at 2-0 after this week.
17. Las Vegas Raiders (1-0) +3 : As surprised as I was with Washington, the Raiders were probably the biggest surprise for me in week 1. I did not think they had the offensive pieces to be competitive, mainly at RB and depth as a whole. Week 1 is setting things up for the Raiders to prove me wrong. Russell Wilson and Malcolm Brown combined for 54 points and Robert Woods and Anthony Miller added another 35.5 points to help lead the offense to a 112.76 point week. The defensive unit underachieved a little given the names on that side of the ball only putting up 55 points for the week. They had 4 guys score 9 points each with another at 7 points and the last 3 combined for 11 points. Week 2, they see the Broncos, who they would have beat in week 1. Both teams still seem to have to get things sorted at RB, but this should be a good battle this week if they both make adjustments to their lineups for week 2, can the Raiders continue to prove me wrong, or drop their first loss in the league?
18. Buffalo Bills (1-0) +4 : The Bills possibly pulled off the biggest upset we will see all season, but if he keeps winning this season, it will be nothing more than me getting a pre-season ranking spot wrong, so time will tell which it was. A huge performance from Nyheim Hines led the way for the Bills, with Fant, Corey Davis, and Kenyan Drake throwing up strong performances to lead the offense to a 111.19 point total on the week. The defense managed 59.75 points despite their DL spots combining for 1.5 points. Devin White, Terrell Edmunds, and Brandon Jones combined for 43 of the points put up, so if the rest of the unit can do more in week 2, the Bills will be in a solid spot moving forward. Speaking of week 2, the Bills matchup with the Dolphins and if they replicate week 1 they will be perfectly fine going against the Dolphins.
19. Seattle Seahawks (0-1) -4 : Seattle put up a decent point total in week 1, but fell short due to Arizona having a bigger week than he did. His big 4 contributors of Brady, Zeke, Diggs, and DK all produced like people would expect them to, but the trio of Knox, Hardman, and Kerryon combined for a measly 7.6 points combined, keeping the offense to 91.47 points. The defense put up 65 points, thanks in large part to 20 from Johnathan Abram and 16 from Nathan Gerry. Justin Reid and Kenny Young were the only other 2 to put up more than 4.5 points on the day. Having both Edmunds and Vander Esch (out for maybe the season) go down in the same week is not a good sign for the Seahawks. Week 2 sees them square off with a team that put up 186 points in week 1, so the Seahawks look to be in some trouble and in danger of going 0-2 unless some guys have some big performances this week.
20. Denver Broncos (0-1) -4 : Denver had to face off with the pre-season #1 and it went about as expected. The Broncos dropped the week by a final of 173.6-154.7, Kyler Murray with 25, Greg Olsen with 12.4, and Julian Edelman with 13 were the key performers on offense, but the unit was only able to manage 83.2 total points. On the flip side Eric Kendricks and Mike Hughes were the only 2 players over 10 points on the defense, combining for 27 points. The rest of the D put up 35.5 points between the other 6 members, which results in 62.5 points from the defense on the week, which isn’t a bad total, but going against the Chargers, they will need more next time around. Week 2 will be an interesting one as they face off with the Raiders, can the Broncos bounce back after a rough week 1, or fall to the Raiders and go to 0-2?
21. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1) -3 : In week 1, Jacksonville put up the lowest point total in the league, only managing 120 points. 58 points by the offense is not a recipe for a lot of success, a combined 7.4 points from the TE and 2 flex spots also makes things difficult on anyone. Despite 3 TD passes Mahomes only put up 18.33 points on the week, which isn’t likely to continue to be that low. RoJo, Adam Humphries, and James Washington putting up 10 points a piece was a nice thing to see for the Jags though. Getting 50.5 points from the defense paired with what the offense did is also a bit concerning. Schobert, Anthony Walker, and Tre Boston put up a combined 35 points which is workable, so it will be on the other 5 spots moving forward to put more points up. If both those trends continue though, the Jags might be staring the #1 pick in the face this off-season. Things do not get any better in week 2 for the Jags, they get a Pats team coming off a bad loss who will be looking to get things back on track in week 2, so the Jags better hope things can get fixed in week or face a long season ahead.
22. Cleveland Browns (0-1) -1 : The Browns had a rough week 1, they scored the 3rd lowest amount of points in the league with a total of 137.45. On offense, we saw the revival of Cam’s career with a 24 point week, then we saw Nuk ball out in his Cardinals debut putting up 29.1 points. The rest of the offense did not help them out, scoring 31.2 points combined. With a total of 44 points, the defense might have put up the least amount on that side of the ball in the league (I would need to go through the teams again). The only bright spot on the defense was Gilmore following up his DPOY award with a 17 point week 1, accounting for almost half the points the defense put up. With the Titans being the week 2 opponent for the Browns, it is safe to say the Browns need to hope they get things figured out this week and can knock the Titans off or will be in an 0-2 rather quickly.
23. Chicago Bears (0-1) - : The Bears managed to only put up more points than 1 other team in the league in week 1. Scoring a total of 136.97 points on the week. On offense, the team managed 42.27 total with no player topping 9.3 points, including a 0 for Tajae Sharpe. It was not a performance to write home about. Defense, on the other hand, put up points to hold up their end of the deal, scoring 79.7 points. Bradley McDougald, rookie Chase Young, and Nick Vigil combined for 38.7 points and no player scored less than 7 points. If the Bears can figure the offense out, while keeping the defense at this level, the team can quickly climb up the standings in the league. This week though, they face off with a high scoring Vikings team and will very likely result in the Bears being 0-2, but you never know and it is still 2020.
24. New York Giants (0-1) - : The Giants were another team that surprised me in week 1, but their week did not result in them snagging a win because they went up against the only team to top 200 points. Despite scoring 176.07 points, the Giants scored the lowest points of the 4 teams in his division. The duo of Alvin Kamara and Darius Slayton combined for a total of 53.9 total points, then Daniel Jones and Willie Snead put together 33.97 points between them to help the offense get to a 97.57 final total. Jamal Adams made a splash in his Seahawks debut netting 21.75 points, then the trio of Chris Jones, Tyrann Mathieu, and Leonard Williams combined for 33.25 points en route to the defense getting 67 points, but it could have been higher had 2 of his guys not gotten 0s on the week. It was an impressive week and the Giants will try to carry that into week 2 in their matchup with the Falcons and snag their first win of the season.
1. Los Angeles Chargers (1-0) - : My pre-season #1 for our first ever season did not disappoint in week 1! Despite Wentz and Conner combining for 17 total points, the offense still put up a whopping 107.6 points, thanks to Davante Adams going nuclear week 1. The defense and K spot added in 66 points to bring Garrett’s total for the week to 173.6 points and the win over Denver. Week 2 will bring a match-up with the Colts who lost last week and looked a bit disappointing, so things seem set for Garrett to carry the momentum into week 2 and win another week.
2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0) - : At #2, we see polar opposites in the league already on how the teams won their match-ups. The Chargers did it with offense, while the Bucs did it with defense. Thanks to Jerome Baker putting up a 30 spot and DBs Kyle Fuller and Adrian Phillips combining for 30.75, the Bucs had 102.95 of their 188.43 points on the defensive side of the ball. Drew Lock and Kyle Rudolph struggled a bit, but the offense still managed 77.48 points on the week. Things could get hairy for Tampa in week 2 as they go against my #4 team in the league, who also won last week and put up more points than them last season. This will be one of the games of the season if these two do what they are capable of.
3. Minnesota Vikings (1-0) +1 : Thanks to the K being out for the week (ultimately going on IR), the Vikings week 1 match-up was a lot closer than it should have been, they won 168.27-159.22. It was a balanced effort between offense and defense at 94.27 and 74 and no player scored over 20 points. Darius Leonard, Nick Bosa, and Allen Lazard were the standouts for the Vikings in week. With a K signed and a healthy lineup for week 2, the Vikings face off with the Bears who did not have a good week 1, so thanks to the #2 and #4 teams playing each other, could move up to #2 in the power rankings after the week, but to do so will still need to have a strong showing.
4. New Orleans Saints (1-0) +2 : Talk about an impressive week 1 showing to open your account in a new league! The Saints were the only team in the league to eclipse the 200 point mark to open the season. Big Ben looked like his old self, Julio and Will Fuller had big games, and Aaron Jones had a very good week 1 to lead the offense to 106.77 points. Kwon Alexander, LJ Fort, and Akiem Hicks led the way for the defense en route to an 85.85 total for the week. Week 2 presents a large challenge, in way of the Buccaneers. It is a battle of the 2 winners from the division and by my rankings and early season top 5 matchup. Can Mike top 200 points again and set himself up as a title favorite early in the season?
5. Green Bay Packers (0-1) - : TB-NO will be the 2nd top 5 matchup this season, after GB-MIN had that honor in week 1. The Packers had to settle for the loss in week 1, after a tight matchup with Minnesota. Had Sal inserted AP into the lineup over JJ Arcega-Whiteside, things would look very different for him and the Vikings. The offense only managed 63 points, as the aforementioned Arcega-Whiteside put up a 0, beyond that Tyreek Hill at 15.6 points was the high scorer there. The defense did a better job of holding up their end with both Kirksey and Pratt scoring 18 points a piece and the unit getting 78.25 total points. Prater chipped in 17 to keep the Packers close, but settled for a loss. Week 2 will be another test as they face off with the rookie-laden Washington unit, with Miles Sanders back can the Packers turn things around and get to 1-1?
6. Tennessee Titans (1-0) +3 : Thanks to a monster week from the offense, the Titans are 1-0 on the season. They put up 127.16 points as a unit, despite Saquon having a fairly muted performance. Calvin Ridley, Josh Allen, and Mark Andrews put up 83 points between them and only Antonio Gibson had less than 10. 55 points from the defense and K handed the Titans a 182.16 point total in week 1. With the same cast back for week 2 and a matchup against the 0-1 Browns, can this team get the defense to score more and be the next team to top the 200 point mark, or will guys stumble off huge weeks and fall to an early upset?
7. New England Patriots (0-1) -4 : Despite what appeared to be a solid week, by the power rankings the Patriots were the first team to suffer an upset in the LHL, losing the week to the Bills by a score of 178.94-166.05. Mostert and Lamar Jackson scored half the offensive points in week 1, so if those 2 do that again and guys like Ekeler, Hilton, and Allen Robinson do more week the offense will be in a much stronger spot in week 2. AJ Johnson was the standout performer on the defense, but scoring 63.5 as a unit likely will not cut it, so other guys need to step up in week 2. The matchup in week 2 does not appear to be as threatening as it did in week 1, but I had their week 1 opponent lower than I currently have their week 2 opponent, so who knows at this point, but the Pats need to win and get things on track.
8. Arizona Cardinals (1-0) +2 : Arizona opened his LHL account with a 178.11 performance and 120.11 of that coming from the offense. Josh Jacobs made a statement in week 1 proving he could catch passes from the RB spot, putting up 35.9 points in week 1. Lockett and Kelce put up 17 points each and David Johnson added 19.9 to round out the big performers for the Cards on offense. The defense was down a man with Shawn Williams not playing, so the 50 points is a little misleading, but still not a great total for that side of the ball. Rodney McLoud at 13 points and Jeffrey Simmons at 9 points were the best showings on defense and will hope their teammates step up in week 2. It will be a top 10 matchup for the Cardinals as they get a 49ers team that scored more than them last week, but had to settle for a loss, can the Cardinals do that to them again this week, or suffer their first loss?
9. Los Angeles Rams (1-0) +2 : The Rams were victorious in the closest matchup of week 1 winning by 2.21 points over the 49ers, the final score was 186.08-183.87. A balanced total between offense, 81.08, and defense, 91, was a key factor in the week being a win for the Rams. JuJu with a 24.9 point week led the way for the offense, the rest of the unit had decent to disappointing games, but obviously did enough. Sam Hubbard, Jaylon Smith, Shaq Thompson, Darian Thompson, and Kenneth Murray all scored 12 points or more to lead the defense to the 91 point total and it could have been more had the Rams played any of their other defenders that were on the bench. The Rams go from the top scoring of the other 3 division opponents in week 1 to the team that scored the least in the Seahawks, can the guys that struggled in week 1 put up more points to make this a blowout, or will the other struggle and make it a tight game or loss?
10. San Francisco 49ers (0-1) -2 : It was a disappointing week 1 for the 49ers, on one hand they lost, but on the other they were the highest scoring team that lost and were the 5th highest scoring team in the league. Thanks to big games from Aaron Rodgers and Sammy Watkins, the offense put up 95.12 total points, despite a week where rookie Dobbins and McKinnon outscored Mixon and Mike Evans. Budda Baker, Roquan Smith, and Fred Warner all scored 11+ points with Baker scoring 22.5 pushing the defensive point total to 76.75 as a unit. Any other week this team would have won with this kind of performance, but will head into week 2 against Arizona looking to replicate this performance just ending it with a W instead of an L.
11. Washington Redskins (1-0) +2 : The rookie heavy Washington team would be my surprise team of the first week. They put up 190 points, had the largest margin of victory, and would have topped 200 points if they had played Mike Williams over Joe Reed, but 190 is nothing to sneeze at. Breida and Reed were the only 2 guys on offense to not score over 10 points on the week, but Crowder did his best to cover that by putting up 26 points on the week. The defensive side of the ball was clearly the most impressive part of this team putting up 100 points. It was the rookies CJ Henderson and Patrick Queen putting up 38.8 combined points leading the way and the trio of Lavonte David, Anthony Hitchens, and Kevin Byard adding 46.5 points. Week 2 for Washington has them facing off with the #5 team in my rankings, so it could be a tough week, but if the team does what it did in week 1 that will not be the case and they will be 2-0 after this week.
12. Baltimore Ravens (0-1) -5 : The Ravens were bit by Courtland Sutton not playing in week 1, Christian Kirk putting up 1 point, Rashaan Evans getting ejected quickly on Monday, and Ronnie Harrison putting up a 0. Who knows if those 4 would have gotten the 41 points needed to win the week, but things would have been a lot closer for them, had those guys had normal weeks. Dalvin Cook and TJ Hockenson gave the Ravens something to be happy about with their performances in week 1, putting up 38.4 of the 59 points on offense. Blake Martinez and Myles Jack were the bright spots for the defense putting up 20 and 19.5 points respectively, which was well over half the 68 points the defense managed. If the guys that did not do much of anything can show up for week 2 and the guys that did perform do it again, the Ravens will likely leave week 2 with a 1-1 record, if not the struggles will continue.
13. Indianapolis Colts (0-1) -1 : The Colts had a rough week 1, partly self inflicted wounds with a DP spot left unfilled and a couple guys on the bench that put up points, but also had Golden Tate in his lineup, and he ultimately did not play on Monday night. Looking at the positives for the week, Matt Ryan looked solid, CMC was his normal self in the new look Panther offense, Terry McLaurin did a solid job, and Hunter Henry looked more like the TE the Chargers were hoping for when they drafted him. The rest of the offense will need to pick it up. On defense, Bobby Wagner, Vonn Bell, and Jon Bostic did their jobs, but the other defenders had muted performances. They scored more in week 1 than their week 2 opponent, the Browns, did despite only having 14 guys playing. In week 2 if they manage to field a full lineup, they should be set up nicely to rebound and pick up win #1
14. Miami Dolphins (1-0) +3 : Miami picked up a solid week 1 win over the Jags by a final of 153.52-120.03. On offense every guy was around or over the 10 point mark, except for Ebron who was down at 2 points, so it was a consistent mark for the team and gave the offense 78.27 points total. Jared Goff led the way with 18 points on offense and looked a little more comfortable than he did last year. On defense, Benardrick McKinney, Kyle Van Noy, and Anthony Harris all had solid weeks scoring 11 to 12 points. The defense as a unit scored 63.25 points. The week 2 matchup for Miami will definitely be a stiffer challenge than it was in week 1, they have to face off with the Bills who made a huge statement in week 1. Will the Dolphins be able to knock them off and be the team in the division that goes 2-0 through 2 weeks?
15. Atlanta Falcons (0-1) -1 : The Falcons were another team that put up a lot of points, but had to settle for a loss because their opponent had one of the top week few scores in the league. Settling for a 188.43-182.43 loss to the Bucs. 98 points from the offense is a strong showing, but looking at it further, a quiet game from Brees and Austin Hooper likely contributed to the loss. Robby Anderson, John Brown, and Hollywood Brown all did their part to try and get the Falcons the win, but it was obviously not enough. A balanced score sheet on defense where only 1 player scored less than 6.5 points is a solid showing. The unit as a whole was just missing that big game to push them over the top. The Falcon’s won’t have to face a top 5 team this week, but they do face the Giants who in week 1 threw up 176 points, so they will likely need to repeat that feat this week to move to 1-1.
16. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-0) +3 : The Steelers opened their LHL account, how the NFL Steelers normally do, by beating the Browns. With a final of 161.74-137.45 and it could have been more had they played MVS over either Cooks or Pittman and Bentley over Cashman or Willie Gay. So it was a solid showing for the Steelers, led on offense by Thielen and Goedert. 98 points total from the offense despite Chubb, Cooks, and Pittman scoring 13 combined points is a good sign for these Steelers. With a couple guys only managing 1.5 points each, the defense was only able to put up 61 points as a unit. Trey Flowers, Devin Bush, and Quandre Diggs were the only guys to score north of 10 points on the week, that will need to improve in week 2. Week 2 might be a little more of a challenge with the Ravens being the opponent, but if both units can fix the gaps they had in week 1, the Steelers could be looking at 2-0 after this week.
17. Las Vegas Raiders (1-0) +3 : As surprised as I was with Washington, the Raiders were probably the biggest surprise for me in week 1. I did not think they had the offensive pieces to be competitive, mainly at RB and depth as a whole. Week 1 is setting things up for the Raiders to prove me wrong. Russell Wilson and Malcolm Brown combined for 54 points and Robert Woods and Anthony Miller added another 35.5 points to help lead the offense to a 112.76 point week. The defensive unit underachieved a little given the names on that side of the ball only putting up 55 points for the week. They had 4 guys score 9 points each with another at 7 points and the last 3 combined for 11 points. Week 2, they see the Broncos, who they would have beat in week 1. Both teams still seem to have to get things sorted at RB, but this should be a good battle this week if they both make adjustments to their lineups for week 2, can the Raiders continue to prove me wrong, or drop their first loss in the league?
18. Buffalo Bills (1-0) +4 : The Bills possibly pulled off the biggest upset we will see all season, but if he keeps winning this season, it will be nothing more than me getting a pre-season ranking spot wrong, so time will tell which it was. A huge performance from Nyheim Hines led the way for the Bills, with Fant, Corey Davis, and Kenyan Drake throwing up strong performances to lead the offense to a 111.19 point total on the week. The defense managed 59.75 points despite their DL spots combining for 1.5 points. Devin White, Terrell Edmunds, and Brandon Jones combined for 43 of the points put up, so if the rest of the unit can do more in week 2, the Bills will be in a solid spot moving forward. Speaking of week 2, the Bills matchup with the Dolphins and if they replicate week 1 they will be perfectly fine going against the Dolphins.
19. Seattle Seahawks (0-1) -4 : Seattle put up a decent point total in week 1, but fell short due to Arizona having a bigger week than he did. His big 4 contributors of Brady, Zeke, Diggs, and DK all produced like people would expect them to, but the trio of Knox, Hardman, and Kerryon combined for a measly 7.6 points combined, keeping the offense to 91.47 points. The defense put up 65 points, thanks in large part to 20 from Johnathan Abram and 16 from Nathan Gerry. Justin Reid and Kenny Young were the only other 2 to put up more than 4.5 points on the day. Having both Edmunds and Vander Esch (out for maybe the season) go down in the same week is not a good sign for the Seahawks. Week 2 sees them square off with a team that put up 186 points in week 1, so the Seahawks look to be in some trouble and in danger of going 0-2 unless some guys have some big performances this week.
20. Denver Broncos (0-1) -4 : Denver had to face off with the pre-season #1 and it went about as expected. The Broncos dropped the week by a final of 173.6-154.7, Kyler Murray with 25, Greg Olsen with 12.4, and Julian Edelman with 13 were the key performers on offense, but the unit was only able to manage 83.2 total points. On the flip side Eric Kendricks and Mike Hughes were the only 2 players over 10 points on the defense, combining for 27 points. The rest of the D put up 35.5 points between the other 6 members, which results in 62.5 points from the defense on the week, which isn’t a bad total, but going against the Chargers, they will need more next time around. Week 2 will be an interesting one as they face off with the Raiders, can the Broncos bounce back after a rough week 1, or fall to the Raiders and go to 0-2?
21. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1) -3 : In week 1, Jacksonville put up the lowest point total in the league, only managing 120 points. 58 points by the offense is not a recipe for a lot of success, a combined 7.4 points from the TE and 2 flex spots also makes things difficult on anyone. Despite 3 TD passes Mahomes only put up 18.33 points on the week, which isn’t likely to continue to be that low. RoJo, Adam Humphries, and James Washington putting up 10 points a piece was a nice thing to see for the Jags though. Getting 50.5 points from the defense paired with what the offense did is also a bit concerning. Schobert, Anthony Walker, and Tre Boston put up a combined 35 points which is workable, so it will be on the other 5 spots moving forward to put more points up. If both those trends continue though, the Jags might be staring the #1 pick in the face this off-season. Things do not get any better in week 2 for the Jags, they get a Pats team coming off a bad loss who will be looking to get things back on track in week 2, so the Jags better hope things can get fixed in week or face a long season ahead.
22. Cleveland Browns (0-1) -1 : The Browns had a rough week 1, they scored the 3rd lowest amount of points in the league with a total of 137.45. On offense, we saw the revival of Cam’s career with a 24 point week, then we saw Nuk ball out in his Cardinals debut putting up 29.1 points. The rest of the offense did not help them out, scoring 31.2 points combined. With a total of 44 points, the defense might have put up the least amount on that side of the ball in the league (I would need to go through the teams again). The only bright spot on the defense was Gilmore following up his DPOY award with a 17 point week 1, accounting for almost half the points the defense put up. With the Titans being the week 2 opponent for the Browns, it is safe to say the Browns need to hope they get things figured out this week and can knock the Titans off or will be in an 0-2 rather quickly.
23. Chicago Bears (0-1) - : The Bears managed to only put up more points than 1 other team in the league in week 1. Scoring a total of 136.97 points on the week. On offense, the team managed 42.27 total with no player topping 9.3 points, including a 0 for Tajae Sharpe. It was not a performance to write home about. Defense, on the other hand, put up points to hold up their end of the deal, scoring 79.7 points. Bradley McDougald, rookie Chase Young, and Nick Vigil combined for 38.7 points and no player scored less than 7 points. If the Bears can figure the offense out, while keeping the defense at this level, the team can quickly climb up the standings in the league. This week though, they face off with a high scoring Vikings team and will very likely result in the Bears being 0-2, but you never know and it is still 2020.
24. New York Giants (0-1) - : The Giants were another team that surprised me in week 1, but their week did not result in them snagging a win because they went up against the only team to top 200 points. Despite scoring 176.07 points, the Giants scored the lowest points of the 4 teams in his division. The duo of Alvin Kamara and Darius Slayton combined for a total of 53.9 total points, then Daniel Jones and Willie Snead put together 33.97 points between them to help the offense get to a 97.57 final total. Jamal Adams made a splash in his Seahawks debut netting 21.75 points, then the trio of Chris Jones, Tyrann Mathieu, and Leonard Williams combined for 33.25 points en route to the defense getting 67 points, but it could have been higher had 2 of his guys not gotten 0s on the week. It was an impressive week and the Giants will try to carry that into week 2 in their matchup with the Falcons and snag their first win of the season.
