Mike Fanelli | September 19th, 2019
I’ll be the first to admit when I’m wrong and last Thursday I was awful with my fantasy takes. My bad, hopefully, I’m better this week. Good news is if you’re a fan of low scoring and tough defense, this game is for you. For the rest of us, it’s the perfect game to waste on a Thursday night. The Tennessee Titans travel to Jacksonville to take on their division rival Jaguars in a battle of run-first offenses.
General Fantasy Preview
As I mentioned, this game will be a defensive heavy, slow-paced kind of contest. With the slower-paced game and short week, there shouldn’t be a lot of fantasy points scored in this game. The Jaguars’ normal starting quarterback Nick Foles is out for this game as he recovers from a broken left clavicle injury he suffered in week one. Even if Foles was able to play, neither team is one to put up 30 plus points very often.
The most obvious start in this game is Titans’ running back Derrick Henry. While many were skeptical about him entering the season, he is averaging 23.1 fantasy points per game so far this season and has scored at least 17 fantasy points in both games. The last two seasons Henry has struggled till the last month of the year but his 2019 season has started off very well. Given his volume to start the season (18.5 touches per game) Henry is the only player in this game that is a “must start”.
Plays
Leonard Fournette, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars
On the short season, Fournette is averaging just four yards per carry and getting an average of 14 carries per game. However, Fournette is off to a good start in the passing game, hauling in eight of his 12 targets for 68 yards. Fournette’s career-high in targets was 48 in 2017 and he is on pace to break that mark by midseason. With Gardner Minshew II under center, defenses will focus on slowing down Fournette, but the Titans might struggle to do that. The Titans gave up 142 yards to the Colts’ running backs last week and at least 20 fantasy points in both games this season. While Fournette isn’t a “must start” for me this week, I think he offers solid RB2 value tonight.
DJ Chark, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
Many, including myself, were all on board the Dede Westbrook hype train but during the first two weeks of the season, Chark has been the Jaguars’ best wide receiver. Chark is the WR6 during the first two weeks of the season, scoring at least 18.5 fantasy points in both games. For some reason, it appears Minshew and Chark have good chemistry between them. While the Titans secondary has good moments, they can also be burned downfield and Chark is averaging 18.3 yards per catch so far this season. Chark is a sneaky good WR2 that has the potential to finish as the WR1 overall this week. If for some reason he is still on your league’s waiver wire, go grab him now.
Both D/STs
As I mentioned earlier this game should be a low scoring defensive fight. Because of that, both D/STs are good options this week. Between the two I prefer the Jaguars. While the Titans D/ST is currently the third-highest scoring in the league, averaging 15.5 fantasy points per game, they got three turnovers and a touchdown verse the Browns in week one, making their average a little inflated. Meanwhile, the Jaguars D/ST are averaging just 0.5 fantasy points per game, that number is a fluke given they scored negative eight fantasy points verse the Chiefs in week one, but that’s no surprise given it’s the Chiefs. I wouldn’t be surprised if this game ends with a total under 35 points with four total turnovers. If you a stream D/STs, see if either of these are still available.
Stay Aways
Corey Davis, WR, Tennessee Titans
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me 100 times, well I’m just gullible. That’s how every Davis owner must feel right now. Despite being listed as the team’s WR1, Davis is currently the WR94 this season. He has scored a total of 6.8 fantasy points. He put up a donut in week one and squeezed out just three catches for 38 yards last week. Rookie A.J. Brown has played better so far this season and he is the WR53. Combine his poor start with his matchup with an angry and motivated Jalen Ramsey on national television, Davis could very easily score zero fantasy points again tonight. Leave him glued to the bottom of your bench.
Dion Lewis, RB, Tennessee Titans
Despite only play 10 fewer snaps than Henry so far this season (66-56), Lewis has scored just 6.7 fantasy points this season. The biggest reason why is Lewis has just 10 touches compared to Henry’s 37. Lewis has 27 total scrimmage yards and the Titans clearly are leaning on Henry as their feature back. The Jaguars aren’t likely to get a big lead at any point during the game, which means the Titans won’t be in a negative game script, limiting Lewis’ upside. Unless Henry gets hurt or there is a major redistribution of touches in the backfield, Lewis belongs on the waiver wire.
Both Quarterbacks
As I mentioned earlier, I like both D/STs this week in part because we have two of the bottom 10 starting quarterbacks playing in this game. I wouldn’t be surprised if both have a two turnover game and neither offers much upside. Both quarterbacks are in the middle of the pack so far this season (Minshew as the QB16, Marcus Mariota as the QB13) in large part due to their legs. The duo has combined for 118 rushing yards so far this season. While the rushing ability is a nice bonus, both defenses will do everything possible to keep the opposing quarterback in the pocket. If either of these quarterbacks is currently on your roster, stop reading and go find a different one on the waiver wire. You can find some possible quarterbacks available in your league here.
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