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The New England Patriots have been a dominant fantasy football force for the past, who knows how many years, let’s just say quite a few. The team starts off the NFL season 2-0, but not by much as they could just as easily be 0-2. It may be early in the season, but for now, it’s time to look the other way on any Patriots fantasy players.
Losing many of his weapons in the passing game, quarterback Tom Brady has disappointed his fantasy owners thus far. Brady was most likely one of the last quarterbacks drafted in your league in the early rounds as many were unsure about what his production would be like this season. After two weeks, the verdict is not good. Brady has 48 completions on 91 attempts for a total of 473 yards with only three touchdowns. Those are not even close to the type of numbers fantasy owners were expecting from Brady. He went up against a Buffalo Bills and New York Jets defense where he should have excelled, but Brady and the Patriots barely squeaked out wins and struggled to get anything on offense going, putting up a combined 36 points.
Running back Stevan Ridley was a hot commodity in the fantasy draft and like Brady, most fantasy owners were expecting great things from the back. In Week 1, Ridley was benched after fumbling and Shane Vereen took over the job, only to get injured. Alright, so maybe now that Ridley has no competition at the starting role, he will have a monster game. Not the case at all. Ridley carried the ball 16 times for only 40 yards and still hasn’t caught a pass out of the backfield. He’s hurting your team in standard leagues as well as in PPR leagues and has yet to find the end zone. The starting job is his, but he hasn’t done anything worthwhile with it.
With no threats at the receiving position, the door appeared open for Danny Amendola and Kenbrell Thompkins to succeed. After a solid first week from Amendola, he wound up injured and his Week 3 outlook is not good. Until he gets back into the lineup and Brady starts to play the game like we know he can, Amendola can’t help your fantasy team.
With the possible absence of Amendola, Thompkins should excel right? What did Thompkins do last week against the Jets without Amendola? Well, he wound up only catching two passes for 47 yards and hasn’t found the end zone this season as well. Again, until Brady’s play rises, Thompkins is better off left on the bench.
After struggling against both the Bills and Jets, there’s no favorable matchup for the Patriots. They could lose in any week and you’re only going to be kicking yourself for continually starting anyone on the team. There are multiple more favorable options to put into your starting lineup than any of the Patriots players. Until the team starts to get on the right track, stay away from starting any Patriot players.
Tristen Challe is a Fantasy Writer for Rantsports. Follow him on Twitter @TristenChalle or on Google
