Fantasy Football: 8 Players With Tough Early-Season Schedules
Leonard Fournette, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars
| Week | Opponent | Projected Defensive Rush NEP Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texans | 7 |
| 2 | Titans | 14 |
| 3 | Ravens | 2 |
| 4 | Jets | 4 |
Leonard Fournette is about to eat. If Blake Bortles keeps chucking up five interceptions during team practices with regularity, head coach Doug Marrone's tongue-in-cheek comments about him throwing the ball zero times per game could become real life.
Okay, not really, but Fournette was brought in as a top-five draft pick to change the look of the offense from a gunslinging, reckless unit to a more methodical, ball-control focused offense. The problem is, Fournette's inaugural season is set to start off against some really tough run-stopping units.
Each of the first four teams Fournette squares up against sport top-half run defenses, and three -- the Texans, Baltimore Ravens, and New York Jets -- boast top-seven run defenses.
This shouldn't necessarily stop you from drafting or even starting Fournette during those weeks. With the exception of the Titans, none of the teams the Jaguars face in Week 1 through Week 4 figure to have prolific offenses. And with the Jaguars' much-improved defense, the offense should get plenty of chances to get back on the field. So the volume for Fournette should still be there.
Just don't expect any mind-blowing breakout games in the first quarter of the season.
