Week 2 Fantasy Picks: Start 'Em, Sit 'Em for Falcons vs Rams

Two teams aiming to bounce back from crushing losses meet head-to-head in Week 2 as the Los Angeles Rams host the Atlanta Falcons. FanDuel Sportsbook's NFL odds list the Rams as 10.5-point home favorites in a game that is full of stars on both sides of the football.

If you need some help with your fantasy lineups, here's our start 'em, sit 'em advice for this Week 2 NFC showdown.

Drake London Fantasy

Start Drake London, WR, Atlanta Falcons: The Falcons almost took down the New Orleans Saints in Week 1 thanks to 201 rushing yards. It's going to be much harder to run the football against a Rams defense that posted the fifth-best rush defense DVOA rating in 2021, though. Atlanta will have to pass the ball more often, which gives rookie wideout Drake London a ton of upside. London hauled in 5 of his 7 targets on Sunday for 74 yards and played in 72% of the Falcons' offensive snaps. He has a chance to score in Week 2 as well after the Rams gave up a pair of touchdowns to opposing WRs in Week 1.

Darrell Henderson Fantasy

Start Darrell Henderson, RB, Los Angeles Rams: Cam Akers was expected to be the lead running back in LA this season, but it certainly looked like Darrell Henderson's job to lose in Week 1. Henderson saw 18 touches and played in 82% of the offensive snaps against the Buffalo Bills despite the Rams trailing for most of the contest. The game script in Week 2 should be more favorable for Henderson, as Los Angeles is expected to go up early and lean on the ground game more. Henderson's ability to catch the football also raises his PPR ceiling against a Falcons defense that gave up the ninth-most receptions to opposing RBs in 2021 (92).

Marcus Mariota Fantasy

Sit Marcus Mariota, QB, Atlanta Falcons: Just because the Falcons may be playing from behind for most of this game does not mean that quarterback Marcus Mariota is worth a start in fantasy football. Mariota's upside comes from his rushing capabilities, which proved true in Week 1 as he ran for 72 yards and a touchdown on 12 attempts. The Rams are going to game plan for that after letting Josh Allen run loose in their season-opening loss. If Mariota is contained to the pocket, he is going to have a tough time against a defense that gave up the second-fewest passing touchdowns in the NFL last year (17).

Tyler Higbee Fantasy

Sit Tyler Higbee, TE, Los Angeles Rams: Tyler Higbee saw a surprising 11 targets against Buffalo, but he only managed to covert them into five catches for 39 yards. He also figures to spend more time blocking this week if the Rams go up early and start running the ball. The Falcons have the defensive personnel to lock Higbee down, too. Atlanta allowed the ninth-fewest receptions to opposing TEs in 2021 (70) and gave up just 3 receptions to the position in Week 1. Higbee should stay on your bench for now.

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Larry Rupp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Larry Rupp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username phillyfan424. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.