Fantasy Football: 5 Things We Learned From Week 1

Well, the Colts Are Awful Without Andrew Luck

The most thorough defeat of the weekend was the Indianapolis Colts losing 46-9 to the Los Angeles Rams. The Colts' defense made the Jared Goff-led Rams look competent, while Indy's offense helped the Rams' defense to a top-scoring fantasy day in Week 1.

With a combination of Scott Tolzien and the recently-acquired Jacoby Brissett at quarterback, no Colts wide receiver or tight end posted more than 57 receiving yards and no running back totaled more than 42 rushing yards. It's safe to say that until Andrew Luck returns, all Colts players -- with maybe the exception of T.Y. Hilton in good matchups -- are to be avoided for fantasy purposes, unless Brissett, who appears likely to start moving forward, is a vast upgrade over Tolzien.

Unfortunately, this means that the early-round pick you would have had to use to draft Hilton probably won't pay dividends early in the 2017 season. Hilton still led the Colts' receivers in targets (seven) and yards (57) versus the Rams, but without adequate quarterback play, you can't expect him to come close to the weekly ceiling he has when Luck is at the controls.

The true value the Colts offer for fantasy right now is the value they give to opposing defenses. The Rams' defense scored 29 fantasy points against the Colts, and that was without superstar Aaron Donald. For as long as Andrew Luck is out (which could be a while), do your best to secure the defenses of the teams the Colts are playing and reap your rewards.