Carolina Panthers

Fantasy Football Week 1: Panthers at Broncos Reactions

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

foxsports

In a thriller, the Denver Broncos pulled out a 21-20 victory over the Carolina Panthers. However, in fantasy football we’ve got other things to worry about

Does Graham Gano missing a 50-yard field goal to win the game matter? Well, if you started Gano or were playing against him in fantasy football, it does. The fact the Broncos moved to 1-0 and the Panthers dropped to 0-1 as a result doesn’t make a difference, though.

Did the zebras miss some egregious head shots on Cam Newton? Maybe. Maybe not. Yet, we are not here to focus on that. We are all about the players, their numbers and they affected your fantasy football team.

Here’s a look at the good, the bad, and the in-between from Panthers at Broncos:

The Good

C.J. Anderson, RB – Broncos (24 touches, 139 yards, 2 TDs): If you started Anderson you’re waking up pretty happy about your situation. He was the most productive fantasy player on the Broncos and in the entire game. Shockingly, I noticed plenty of people on Twitter who were upset they left Anderson on their bench. I’m just confused why people decided to bench him this week.

I know hindsight is always 20/20 and I’m not here to harp on your mistakes because I’ve made plenty (we’ll get to that in a little). Yet, Anderson was most commonly drafted in the third round so why would people bench a guy drafted that early in Week 1? Don’t tell me it was the “matchup” because in Super Bowl 50, Anderson had 27 touches, 100 yards and 1 TD agains the Panthers.

If you did bench him, it’s over and done with. But let me tell you why you should never make that mistake again.

In 2008, Steve Slaton (remember him?) had 1,659 total yards and 10 touchdowns Between 2010-2012, Arian Foster averaged 1,901 total yards and 16 touchdowns per season. In 2014, Ravens Justin Forsett had 1,529 total yards and eight touchdowns.

All of this was done under Denver’s current head coach Gary Kubiak. If you draft a RB high in Kubiak’s offense, you don’t bench him. Got it? Good. Now let’s move on.

Cam Newton, QB – Panthers (18/33, 194 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 54 rushing yards, 1 TD): I’m going to get right to it: I kind of told you to bench Newton. By “kind of” I mean I suggested you bench him if you had a QB2 such as Derek Carr, Matthew Stafford, Tyrod Taylor or Kirk Cousins. Some, most or even all of those guys could still outscore Newton, but I’m not feeling optimistic about it.

In Newton’s toughest matchup of the year on paper, he played well. As usual, the damage he did on his feet made the difference. Newton appeared to hurt his leg during the game and may have even suffered a concussion later on. With 10 days to rest up before his next game, he should be okay. Other than his bye week, Newton is an every weekly starter.

Kelvin Benjamin, WR – Panthers (6 receptions, 91 yards, 1 TD): So…I may have told you to bench Benjamin as well. This one I’m not going to apologize for or even feel bad about. Benjamin was coming off a torn ACL, playing against the best secondary in the NFL in a game where his head coach said he’d be on a snap count.

What was I supposed to think?

Benjamin looked as solid as he did in 2014. Better yet, he looked healthy. He took a tough hit behind his knees on a first-down catch in the first half and was barley phased by it. Newton looked his way again and again. Benjamin was being treated as a WR2/3 and FLEX option at his fifth-round ADP. After this game, it appears as if he’s a solid WR2.

Greg Olsen, TE – Panthers (7 receptions, 73 yards): If you thought Kelvin Benjamin’s return would hurt Olsen, you’d be wrong. With Benjamin on the field in 2014, Olsen went over 1,000 yards and had six touchdowns. Even before this game you should have expected about the same but after it, you should have little doubt.

The Ehhh…

Virgil Green, TE – Broncos (4 receptions, 28 yards): Green was oh so close of having a good game. Just when it looked like Green had an easy TD reception in the back of the endzone, Panthers lineman Kony Ealy swatted the pass down. Green is a TE2 who produced TE2 numbers. He will be at best, third in the pecking order in targets behind Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders. As the kids say, “it is what it is”.

Broncos WRs Demaryius Thomas (4 receptions, 48 yards) & Emmanuel Sanders (5 receptions, 49 yards): The thought was, even though Trevor Siemian wasn’t expected to be a good QB, he would still be as competent as a broken-down Peyton Manning. Well, that might not be the case.

Thomas only had two games in 2015 under five receptions. He had just four receptions in Week 1. Thomas only had one game under 50 yards receiving in 2015. He had 48 yards in Week 1. Sanders owners honestly shouldn’t feel bad about this one. He had more targets, receptions and receiving yards than Thomas. He was also drafted on average, about four rounds later than him.

With all of this to consider, there’s no need to panic about either of these guys.. They are both good/great NFL receivers who possess big play abilities. There are bigger days ahead for each of them but at the same time, their floors on a week-to-week basis are lower than last year’s.

Jonathan Stewart, RB – Panthers (15 carries, 64 yards): Stewart didn’t hurt owners yesterday but he also didn’t help them either. He actually ran pretty well in this game. Despite playing against Denver’s stingy defense, he ran hard and was constantly fighting for extra yardage. Stewart’s upside will always be limited because Newton will vulture rushing touchdowns near the endzone. Don’t forget, Mike Tolbert is capable of stealing a few as well. If this upsets you, that’s your fault because this was common knowledge well before your draft.

The Bad

Panthers WR, Devin Funchess (1 reception, 9 yards): Uh-oh. Even though it was only one game, things became abundantly clear with the Panthers offense. Kelvin Benjamin and Greg Olsen are going to be heavily targeted. After that, it’s scraps. You might consider this an overreaction but I don’t believe it is. Unless Benjamin goes down with an injury, Funchess appears to have lost all of his luster after one week.