Week 2 fantasy football start and sit, including Baker Mayfield and Bijan Robinson

Our Week 2 fantasy football start and sit recommendations are now live with the 2024 regular season one week in.

Without a large sample size this season, it’s going to be hard setting great lineups. That’s magnified with a lack of understanding as it relates to how defenses are going to perform in 2024 after just one game.

But we’re here to help. Below, we look at our Week 2 fantasy football start and sit at each position.

Related: Week 1 fantasy football quarterback rankings

Week 2 fantasy football start and sit: Quarterbacks

Start

Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

We recommended starting Mayield last week. There is no reason to change things up after the quarterback threw four touchdown passes against the Washington Commanders last week. He’s now set to go up against a Detroit Lions defense that yielded 317 passing yards to Matthew Stafford last week. You can do the math from there.

Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens

The Las Vegas Raiders held a rusty Justin Herbert in check last week against the Los Angeles Chargers . We’re not expecting the same thing come Sunday versus the reigning NFL MVP. Despite losing to Kansas City in the opener, Jackson went for nearly 400 total yards. That included a whopping 122 on the ground. His dual-threat ability makes Jackson a must start pretty much every week.

Sit

Sam Darnold, Minnesota Vikings

Some might be inclined to start Darnold or pick him up in DFS contests after last week’s performance against the New York Giants. We’re not buying it in any way. Darnold is set to take on his former San Francisco 49ers team on Sunday. They held Aaron Rodgers to 167 yards with a touchdown and an interception in the opener. The 49ers’ defense also yielded 20 passing touchdowns compared to 22 interceptions back in 2023.

Related: Last Minnesota Vikings news and rumors

Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars

The Cleveland Browns’ defense actually performed pretty well against Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys last week. It’s the offense that put up an historically bad performance. This is still an absolutely elite unit after finishing last season as the fourth-best fantasy defense in the league. Lawrence will not go off against the Browns in Week 2.

Related: NFL Week 2 expert picks

Week 2 fantasy football start and sit: Running backs

Start

Jordan Mason, San Francisco 49ers

This former undrafted free agent went for a career-high 147 yards on 28 attempts in Christian McCaffrey’s stead last week. While CMC has indicated he’s likely to play Sunday, we can’t be too sure. His whole status leading up to Week 1 has been a major talking point. In any event, we still expect Mason to get a nice amount of touches even if McCaffrey plays.

Kyren Williams, Los Angeles Rams

We’re doing a 180 as it relates to Williams. We recommended benching him in our fantasy football start and sit piece last week. It turned out being a good recommendation, with Williams going for just 50 yards on 18 attempts against the Detroit Lions. This week, he’s taking on an Arizona Cardinals defense that yielded 130 rushing yards to the Buffalo Bills in the opener.

Sit

Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions

Gibbs took a back seat to David Montgomery against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 1. That will continue to be the case near the goal line moving forward. While we do like the second-year back on a season-long basis, we’re not bullish on him this week. He’s set to take on a Tampa Bay Buccaneers squad that yielded the fourth-fewest fantasy points to running backs last season.

Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons

Another second-year back we’re sitting in Week 2, Robinson went for just 68 yards on the ground against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the opener. He’s now set to take on a Philadelphia Eagles defense that ranked in the top six stopping fantasy running backs last season. Sure, the Packers went for 163 rushing yards last week against Philly. But that’s an exception to the rule.

Related: 2024 NFL defensive rankings

Week 2 fantasy football start and sit: Wide receivers

Start

Zay Flowers, Baltimore Ravens

Flowers caught six passes, but only put up 37 yards against the Kansas City Chiefs. He’s going to continue seeing a ton of targets from Lamar Jackson . It’s just a matter of time before Flowers makes a few big plays. That should be the case against a questionable Las Vegas Raiders defense come Sunday.

Brandon Aiyuk, San Francisco 49ers

While the 49ers’ offense hummed in Monday’s blowout win over the Jets, Aiyuk struggled. After not practicing during the summer, the All-Pro caught just two passes for 28 yards. We’re expecting a rebound performance against what is a questionable Minnesota Vikings secondary come Sunday. Remember, this unit yielded the sixth-most fantasy points to wide receivers in 2023.

Sit

Calvin Ridley, Tennesee Titans

Ridley caught three passes for 50 yards in his Titans debut against the Chicago Bears last week. Don’t expect the same type of production come Sunday. He’s taking on stud New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner. The All-Pro gave up just one catch for 22 yards last week against the 49ers.

Brian Thomas, Jacksonville Jaguars

Some might be inclined to take a chance on this rookie Sunday against the Cleveland Browns. But much like his quarterback, we’re not buying it. Pro Bowler Denzel Ward will be lining up against Thomas most of the time. Most receivers become irrelevant when going against Ward.

Related: 10 fantasy football busts for 2024

Week 2 fantasy football start and sit: Tight ends

Start

Noah Fant, Seattle Seahawks

Fant caught just two passes for 11 yards against the Denver Broncos. We’re expecting a rebound performance as his Seahawks take on the New England Patriots on Sunday. Geno Smith will be targeting the tight end more against a Pats defense that looks to be elite when it comes to covering wide receivers.

Sit

Mike Gesicki, Cincinnati Bengals

Gesicki caught three passes for 18 yards in his Bengals debut last week against New England. Don’t expect much more production on Sunay. He’s taking on a Kansas City Chiefs defense that gave up the fifth-fewest fantasy points to tight ends last season.

More must-reads:

• Washington Commanders HC offers concerning warning for Jayden Daniels fantasy managers
• 2024 NFL defense rankings: Cowboys and Steelers rise after Week 1, Week 2 fantasy D/ST rankings
• Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings 2024: Best, work NFL kickers right now, Week 2 K rankings