Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 2: Smart Matchup Plays, Sleepers and More

It's time to head into Week 2 of the 2022 NFL season, and for fantasy football managers, your year began one of two ways. Either you're feeling great about your team after getting off to a 1-0 start, or you lost and dropped to 0-1, perhaps with some concerns regarding your roster.

But it's always important to remember that fantasy football, like its real-life counterpart, has a long season. No matter how poorly you start, there's almost always enough time to dig yourself out of a hole and guide your team to the fantasy playoffs.

In order to do that, managers must continue to make the right lineup decisions. And now that we have a week's worth of data to analyze, it may be easier to do that for Week 2.

Before this week's slate gets started with a Thursday night AFC West matchup between the Los Angeles Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs, here's some start/sit fantasy advice to take into consideration for Week 2.

The Jets indicated that Michael Carter would remain their starting running back heading into the 2022 regular season, even though rookie Breece Hall (a second-round pick in the 2022 NFL draft) was generating a lot of hype. It turns out that was New York's plan, and fantasy football managers were sleeping on Carter.

In the Jets' Week 1 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, Carter led the team in rushing with 10 carries for 60 yards, and he also had seven catches for 40 yards. The latter isn't surprising. When backup quarterbacks played last year, they frequently got Carter involved in the passing game. And with Joe Flacco leading the offense Sunday, he targeted Carter nine times.

Considering Carter recorded 100 total yards against a solid Baltimore defense, he may fare even better against the Cleveland Browns in Week 2. And with Zach Wilson still recovering from knee surgery, Flacco will again be at QB, which bodes well for Carter's receiving numbers.

For as long as Hall remains New York's No. 2 RB, Carter is worthy of starting consideration.

Fantasy managers may be tempted to start Dontrell Hilliard following his Week 1 performance. In the Titans' loss to the New York Giants, the running back was one of Tennessee's top receivers, finishing with three catches for 61 yards and two touchdowns.

But Hilliard isn't likely to repeat that type of fantasy performance in Week 2, when the Titans go on the road to take on the Buffalo Bills. That's a difficult matchup, and Tennessee will likely lean heavily on star running back Derrick Henry to carry the offensive load.

Another sign that Hilliard may not be a consistently strong performer? He had only five touches on Sunday, as he also had two carries for eight yards in addition to his trio of receptions.

When some of Tennessee's young receivers start to get more comfortable, Hilliard may get targeted even less in the passing game. So his two-touchdown showing doesn't seem likely to make him a breakout fantasy performer moving forward.

The Jaguars signed Christian Kirk to be their No. 1 wide receiver over the offseason, so his Week 1 performance shouldn't have been surprising. Yet, there were plenty of fantasy managers sleeping on the 25-year-old entering the season.

In Jacksonville's Week 1 loss to the Washington Commanders, Kirk had six catches for 117 yards. He was also targeted 12 times, as he was clearly quarterback Trevor Lawrence's No. 1 option in the passing game.

That shouldn't change moving forward, as Kirk is the most talented playmaker among an improved Jags receiving corps. Expect to see him get the ball plenty again in Week 2, when Jacksonville plays its home opener against the Indianapolis Colts.

If Kirk isn't rostered in your league, add him from the waiver wire. Then, he'll likely be one of your better starting options, unless you already have a stacked receiving corps.

Will Devin Duvernay be the Ravens' clear No. 2 wide receiver throughout the season? Or did he capitalize on the team's favorable matchup against the Jets in Week 1? That isn't yet clear, and while Duvernay should be added to rosters, fantasy managers may not want to rely on him too much quite yet.

On Sunday, Duvernay had four catches for 54 yards and two touchdowns in Baltimore's win over New York. But Rashod Bateman and Mark Andrews will still be receiving more attention from quarterback Lamar Jackson, and Duvernay may not get into the end zone as frequently moving forward.

Maybe Duvernay is in store for a breakout sophomore NFL season. But the Ravens have a bit of a challenging matchup against the Dolphins in Week 2. So Duvernay may not be quite as much of a factor.

If Duvernay plays well again, then it will be easier to justify starting him in future weeks. But for now, let's see how he builds off that Week 1 performance.