Fantasy Football Week 1 Market Share Report: Ty Montgomery Is a Workhorse
Red-Zone Market Shares
1. Mike Gillislee and James White Both Operate in Close
Mike Gillislee got the glory for the New England Patriots in their opener, plunging into the end zone for three short touchdowns. Those are all impactful because of how close they came to the goal line. But James White's usage was worth noting, too.
The Patriots' running backs ran the ball 14 times inside the 20-yard line against the Kansas City Chiefs. Seven of those went to Gillislee, but White was right behind him with six carries. Rex Burkhead had the other tote.
These weren't all from far outside for White, either. He had three of the team's eight carries from inside the 10, as well, with the other five going to Gillislee. It's clear that Gillislee will be the guy once they're inside the five, but until that point, White's going to be a factor.
Even with their struggles Thursday, you know the Patriots are a team that will generate red-zone opportunities. That's even more true this week when they'll be facing the New Orleans Saints on the road. That's going to lead to plenty of appeal for Gillislee, but don't forget about White. He was the guy who led the team in snaps at 53% in the 2017 opener, and for $5,700 on FanDuel, he's a guy we need to at least consider.
2. The Raiders Feed Amari Cooper
It may not have always been pretty, but the long-predicted fate of the Oakland Raiders' offense finally happened Sunday: they started feeding Amari Cooper in the red zone.
Cooped finished his rookie season with just seven red-zone targets before bumping that slightly to 13 last year. He put both of those marks on notice by racking up four red-zone targets in Week 1 alone.
And these weren't your run-of-the-mill looks inside the 20, either. All four of them came on plays that started inside the 10-yard line, and all of them were either inside the end zone or just outside of it. Sure, he caught just one of them, but this is a different gameplan than we saw from the Raiders in previous seasons. It's clear they want to get this guy into the paint.
Over the past two years, the only things that have held Cooper back from being an elite fantasy wideout are injuries and limited red-zone involvement. He's healthy now, and it looks like the latter portion is swinging his direction, too. Cooper had four games with at least 125 receiving yards last year, and when you give him the added bonus of increased touchdown upside, he becomes a guy we want to target early and often.
3. Dez Bryant Will Thrive... Eventually
Dez Bryant's situation is similar to that of Corey Davis in the previous discussion. His upcoming schedule is brutal, but once things clear up there, he could go bonkers.
Even while facing the stout coverage of Janoris Jenkins Saturday, Bryant still tied for the team lead in targets with nine. He had half of Dak Prescott's four attempts at least 16 yards downfield, and he had three red-zone targets. The production wasn't there as Bryant finished with 2 receptions for 43 yards, but you don't expect it to be against a stout defense like that of the New York Giants.
The Dallas Cowboys' next two games are both against teams with elite corners in the Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals, and Trumaine Johnson lurks in Week 4. All of this could combine to bring Bryant's price down -- both in season-long and DFS -- allowing us to buy low later on.
If Bryant continues to get the usage he saw Sunday night when facing lesser competition, high-upside games will come. The production in the opener was certainly disappointing, but you have to love the usage for Bryant if you're looking toward the future.
