The blade has fallen twice now in your Guillotine League. Two of your leaguemates’ heads lay beside you; their tongues are out, and their eyes have been replaced by a pair of cartoonish Xs. Looking around, you see 15 other competitors, all still flush with cash, looking to empty their wallets as an offering to the almighty blade. You’re smarter than them, though. You’re going to hoard your FAAB and continue to identify low-cost weekly fliers to insert into your starting lineup. It’s still early; your chances of getting chopped in Week 3 are just 6.25%.
You likely lost a high draft pick or two in last week’s carnage. Don’t panic! There are cathedrals everywhere for those with eyes to see. By that, I mean there’s probably some cheap players on your bench or even on waivers that you can plug-and-play in Week 3 to continue to get by. Will they score 25 points? Probably not, but the objective is to not finish last, remember? Here are some players at 80% ownership or lower on guiillotineleagues.com who you can feel good about starting this week. Some of these guys may be on waivers—be sure to check out Charch’s bidding advice this week.
Quarterbacks
Gardner Minshew, vs. Carolina Panthers (57.3% ownership)
Just like in your Survivor Pools, you’re taking anybody that’s playing the Panthers. We knew about Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers, but now that Brock Bowers is already proving he’s the real deal, Minshew has three ways to attack this porous Panthers secondary. Carolina corners and safeties have already ceded four scores, and free safety Jordan Fuller is one of five safeties allowing a perfect passer rating through two weeks. Minshew posted 11 and 13 fantasy points against much tougher defenses, so he should help keep you afloat this week.
Derek Carr, vs. Philadelphia Eagles (71.3% ownership)
Once is a coincidence, twice is a trend, three times is a pattern. We’re getting that third time with Derek Carr this weekend, folks—this looks for real. Carr has eclipsed 20 fantasy points in both games to open the season and now gets an Eagles defense that allowed both Jordan Love and Kirk Cousins to hit that mark. Darius Slay is a shell of himself, allowing a completion percentage of 100% and passer rating of 147 in his coverage. The rest of the secondary has fallen in line, opening the door for big games from Carr and the Saints’ pass catchers. We’re all about floor in Guillotine Leagues, but it’s entirely possible Derek Carr hasn’t hit his weekly ceiling just yet. The only concern here is that Alvin Kamara hogs all the fantasy points for himself—Philadelphia allows 6.4 yards per carry.
Running Backs
Samaje Perine, at Atlanta Falcons (58.0% ownership)
If I had to pick one of Samaje Perine or Carson Steele, I’m going Perine in a Guillotine League. Sure, Steele’s pet crocodile, Crocky-J, has jaws that could resemble a guillotine, but Perine will likely have the pass-catching role in the Kansas City offense, which is unfortunately more important. Dwain McFarland projects 50% attempts, 35% route participation for Steele and 30% attempts, 45% route participation for Perine. In a PPR format where a handful of receptions can save your life, I’m banking on Perine rather than hoping Steele finds his way into the end zone.
Jaleel McLaughlin, at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (78.0% ownership)
Jaleel McLaughlin hasn’t quite gotten going this season, but I’m willing to give him a shot in this matchup. Tampa Bay is allowing nearly 10 receptions per game to opposing backfields through two weeks. Every back who has played a non-insignificant number of snaps has recorded at least 3 receptions. Despite how awful the Broncos have been on offense, they have been in neutral game scripts for the majority of the first two weeks. Tampa Bay is the best offense they’ve faced thus far and could put McLaughlin in a more pass-friendly script. Bo Nix doesn’t appear to be throwing downfield anytime soon, so some checkdowns to McLaughlin could be in order to provide a safe floor.
Wide Receivers
Jordan Whittington, at San Francisco 49ers (12.8% ownership)
Even though they both qualify at less than 80% ownership, I’m skipping right over Demarcus Robinson and Tyler Johnson this week and going with rookie (gasp) Jordan Whittington. Of course, I think Robinson and Johnson are pretty safe plays with Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp missing. However, as the outside receivers, they’ll see time against Charvarius Ward, who’s allowing 1.5 receptions per game on the young season. In the Kupp role, Whittington will run from the slot against Deommodore Lenoir, who’s allowing 4.5 receptions per game. With Kupp hurt in last year’s Week 2 matchup against San Francisco, Van Jefferson and Tutu Atwell combined for 13 targets running primarily from the slot.
Jauan Jennings, vs. Los Angeles Rams (42.4% ownership)
We’ll bounce over to the other sideline of this weekend’s California showdown for another injury replacement at wideout. Jauan Jennings was already getting some serious run as the Niners’ third receiver, nearly matching Brandon Aiyuk’s utilization score through two weeks. Now, with Deebo Samuel set to miss this game and more, Jennings should get plenty of work in arguably the most talent-proof offense in the league. The matchup is sweet, too – cornerback Tre’Davious White clearly isn’t the same player anymore, allowing a passer rating of 153 in his coverage. Free safety Kamren Curl is allowing a perfect 158.3 passer rating on the back end, so there are absolutely holes that Brock Purdy can exploit.
Tight Ends
Hunter Henry, at New York Jets (78.4% ownership)
Hunter Henry’s absurd Week 2 target shares led to an equally absurd output, especially given the state of the tight end hellscape. Jacoby Brissett is keeping this offense credible, and none of the wideouts have emerged as reliable targets. Hunter Henry is a safe play this week, even against what some believe is the league’s best defense. Weakside linebacker Quincy Williams has allowed the most targets and second-most receptions of any linebacker.
Brenton Strange, at Buffalo Bills (0.0% ownership)
You know the tight end hellscape is a strange place when I’m recommending a player with 0% ownership. This obviously only applies if Evan Engram sits, but Brenton Strange posted an eye-opening 8.3 utilization score in Week 2 without Engram. A replication of his 3-65-0 line would frankly be more than you could possibly ask for, but then again, that’s more points than Travis Kelce has posted in both weeks combined.
