Week 2 of the NFL season features two AFC powerhouses in the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers. Fantasy football managers have tough roster decisions to make entering the Thursday Night Football showdown. So let’s dive into whether you should start Chiefs wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster against the Chargers.
Should you start JuJu Smith-Schuster vs. the Chargers?
The Chiefs’ offense came out in Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals and sent a major message to the rest of the NFL. This pass-happy attack devastated a secondary unable to guard their creative designs and pure speed. Before we knew it, the Chiefs were up 37-7.
The encouraging part for Smith-Schuster is the Chiefs continued to throw the ball despite the lead as if Reid was a Madden player wanting to pad their stats. With eight targets, six receptions, and 79 yards on 66% of snaps played, Smith-Schuster was the best receiver of the bunch. He’s clearly WR1 on this unit, with Travis Kelce as the top overall playmaker.
Entering Week 2 against the Chargers, Smith-Schuster is ranked at WR30 and No. 89 overall in our expert PPR fantasy football rankings. With the Chiefs and Chargers playing an extremely important AFC West matchup that could have a direct impact on the divisional race, expect Patrick Mahomes and Reid to rely on their best playmakers. Smith-Schuster is certainly in that category thanks to his versatility and reliability.
Our friends at Underdog Fantasy have projected Smith-Schuster to have 5.5 receptions for 57.5 yards. I think he’ll finish with both totals higher than that. With the Chargers possibly without star cornerback J.C. Jackson, who is listed as questionable, it’s likely they’ll continue to pepper their opponent with quick passes that negate their fierce pass rush.
The Chargers’ defense was below average against receivers in fantasy last season but did improve their pass rush with Khalil Mack. Mack immediately paid dividends as he torched his former Raiders with three sacks. He and Joey Bosa are a phenomenal pairing who can disrupt any offense.
Combatting them with quick passes and designed misdirection is the way to go. Reid will have to avoid falling into the trap of having Mahomes play shotgun with four wide receivers all game. It’s critical to keep this playmaking defense on their toes, or else turnovers and sacks will get the Chiefs off track.
Kansas City ran the ball 27 times against Arizona, but the majority of designed runs came in the fourth quarter. It’s impressive how evenly dispersed the target share remained even with the emphasis so heavily on the passing game. Kelce was targeted nine times, followed by Smith-Schuster with eight, Mecole Hardman at six, and then several others lower.
Count on Kelce and Smith-Schuster to continue to own the top of the food chain. Smith-Schuster is playable as a flex option or WR2 for most fantasy teams, but his red zone upside is still unknown. It’s possible the Chiefs will rely on their scheme or more physically gifted playmakers to punch the ball into the end zone instead of relying on one-on-one matchups.
Even so, Smith-Schuster is a strong play in PPR leagues and is looking like a good value for those who drafted him.