When it comes to players of the week in the NFL, what better way to crown them than to look at their fantasy football output for the week? Therefore, that is exactly what we will do with this article as we look back at the top performances from Week 1 across quarterbacks, skill position players, kickers, and individual defensive players (IDP).
Top fantasy player of the week
We actually have a tie this week in terms of using fantasy points to decide the player of the week. Using half-PPR and four-point per passing touchdown scoring, both Patrick Mahomes and Justin Jefferson finished with 34.9 fantasy points.
QB: Patrick Mahomes | 34.9 points
Any doubts that Mahomes could still be a star QB for fantasy managers without Tyreek Hill took a serious dent in Week 1. Facing a playoff team from last year, Mahomes threw for three touchdowns and 223 yards in the first half alone. He capped the performance off with another 137 yards and a further two touchdowns in the second half.
Mahomes’ first-half performance alone would have seen him finish as the QB6 in Week 1, as he took the game away from the Cardinals. Amazingly, the performance somewhat flew under the radar on Sunday, but that really just explains how incredible Mahomes is. The fight between him and Josh Allen for the QB1 in 2022 could be a lot of fun to watch.
Flex: Justin Jefferson | 34.9 points
Entering the 2022 season, Justin Jefferson has had mixed success against the Green Bay Packers. In three of his first four games against them, he was held to a total of 110 yards on 11 receptions. However, this game would go a little more like the Week 11 meeting from last season. In that game, Jefferson turned 10 targets into eight receptions, 169 yards, and two touchdowns.
He would produce an even better performance in Week 1 of this season with 184 yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions. Jefferson demonstrated to everyone why he was the top WR taken in a lot of fantasy drafts. Intriguingly, it was the performance of his main rival for that spot, Cooper Kupp, who he knocked out of the top spot at the WR position in terms of Week 1 fantasy points.
Kicker: Younghoe Koo | 18 points
The Atlanta Falcons offense appears to be set up perfectly for Younghoe Koo to have a lot of fantasy points this year. Marcus Mariota and the offense can move the ball enough to get into opposing territory, but then inconsistency comes back to haunt them.
That sets Koo up perfectly, and he was almost perfect in Week 1. He knocked through both extra-point attempts he had and added four field goals from five attempts. Two of those came from 50 yards or beyond, while the one he missed was a 63-yard potential game-winner that got blocked. Koo has a great chance to be a top-five fantasy kicker this week.
IDP: Minkah Fitzpatrick | 22 points
We round off our players of the week for Week 1 by shining a light on the defense. This week, it is a familiar name to IDP fantasy football players in the form of Minkah Fitzpatrick. The day could not have gone much better for Fitzpatrick as he had 10 solo tackles, four assists, and picked off a Joe Burrow pass that he took to the end zone.
Fitzpatrick narrowly beat out another Steeler in Alex Highsmith. The now main pass rusher for the Steelers after the injury to T.J. Watt had three sacks and a forced fumble during a career day. Highsmith is a valuable waiver wire add this week for fantasy managers looking to mitigate the loss of Watt or looking to bolster their pass-rush options.