Injuries, injuries, injuries. That was one of the big storylines from Week 2 of the NFL season with numerous players exiting early due to some kind of ailment. While the injury bug took its toll on my Top Plays from last week it did the same to many other experts also leaving me with another solid week and an 8th place ranking in the Overall Standings.
Week 3 features a lot of interesting matchup of pretty evenly matched teams. Even some of the team favored by a touchdown or more don’t seem like locks. I have a feeling we will see a lot of close games this week. As always, I have done the analysis of each team’s play tendencies and matchup to find some players that should have increased opportunities this week to exceed their typical level of production.
So let’s get right to the numbers and analysis for Week 3!
Houston Texans @ New England Patriots
| Projected | Plays | Pass | Pass% | Pass Yards | Pass TD | Run | Run% | Rush Yards | Rush TD | Score |
| Houston Texans | 67 | 37 | 55.2% | 241 | 1.6 | 30 | 44.8% | 119 | 0.6 | 20.2 |
| New England Patriots | 65 | 35 | 53.8% | 210 | 1.4 | 30 | 41.5% | 112 | 0.9 | 21.0 |
The Texans might run fewer plays this week as the Patriots try to take the air out of the ball with a rookie QB under center. The decrease in total plays will limit the passing game with a slight decrease in passing yardage and their opportunity for two touchdown passes. The running game, however, will be slightly more productive with a slight increase in rushing yards and a significantly increased opportunity for a rushing score. The Texans have passed over 63% of the time in the red zone this season.
Look for the Patriots to lean on their running game a little more this week with rookie QB Jacoby Brissett under center. As a result, the ground attack will see a slight increase in rushing yards with their typical opportunity for a rushing touchdown. The passing game will have a significant decrease in both passing yardage and their opportunity for any more than one touchdown pass. The Patriots have run the ball 60% of the time in the red zone this season.
Increased Opportunities:
- Lamar Miller (+)
