Hidden Stat Line: NFL Week 3 Recap

Every second I spend writing an intro is one less second spent watching and researching the games from Week 3. Let's skip the formalities and get right to the point.

Titans 7 Jaguars 20

It's hard to draw any conclusions from this game, because emotion always replaces reason when the greatest rivalry in all of sports takes it's rightful place on the primetime stage. I'm a hero, so I'll try my best anyway. #Duuuval #TitanUp

Titans

• Marcus Mariota clearly didn't read Hidden Stat Line last week when I commented on his frustrating tendency to hold the ball for too long. Tennessee's offensive line certainly played a role in the nine sacks Thursday night, but PFF shows that seven of them occurred more than 2.5 seconds after the snap. If you don't care about the stats, go ahead and take a peep at this highlight reel of all nine sacks — a handful probably could've been avoided.
• Mariota doesn't lack arm strength, athleticism or even accuracy. Instead, he combines lousy pocket presence with hesitance to try difficult passes. NFL Next Gen Stats has a stat called "aggressiveness", which measures the percentage of throws where there's a defender within one yard of the receiver at the time of completion or incompletion. It isn't necessarily bad to have a low rate or a high rate, but it's telling that sack-prone Mariota is 28th of 38 QBs (13.0 percent), after finishing fourth-lowest last season (12.4) and sixth-lowest (13.6) in 2017. He actually landed in the middle of the league back in 2016 (20.0), which also happened to be his best season (26 TDs, 23 sacks, nine INTs). I expect Ryan Tannehill to start games this season.
• Derrick Henry (48 percent snap share) and Dion Lewis (52 percent) handled their usual roles, with the latter getting more work after the Titans were forced into their version of catch-up mode. They were slow to abandon the run, giving Henry carries on three consecutive snaps — and five on a single drive — when they were trailing by 17 points late in the third quarter. They played to lose by less, not to win.
• Adam Humphries handled a season-high 68 percent snap share, just a tad behind Corey Davis (74 percent) and comfortably ahead of A.J. Brown (50 percent) and Tajae Sharpe (49 percent). Humphries led the team with 45 routes run, followed by Davis (41), Brown (32) and Sharpe (24), per PFF. The rookie is still sharing work with Sharpe.
• Delanie Walker played 58 percent of snaps, right in the same range as the previous two weeks. He gets the bulk of his work on pass plays, running 79 routes on Mariota's 118 dropbacks (66.9 percent) through three weeks. Davis (76.3 percent) isn't much higher, while Humphries (66.1 percent) and Brown (55.9 percent) aren't too far off. Sharpe is further down at 42.4 percent, getting nearly half his snaps on run plays.

Jaguars

• Gardner Minshew continues to throw a lot of easy passes, with his 6.3 aDOT seventh-shortest in the league. His 71.8 xCOMP% is second-highest, but he deserves credit for a completion percentage (73.9) that's even higher. PFF's adjusted completion percentage — which accounts for drops, batted passes and throwaways — shows Minshew at No. 8 (81.4 percent) among 35 qualified QBs. He also has PFF's No. 9 overall grade among QBs, and his rate of throwing 20+ yards downfield (11.4 percent of attempts) isn't so low — tied for 22nd.
• Leonard Fournette played every snap on offense and now is tied with Dede Westbrook for the team lead in target share (21 percent). Fournette, of course, had one of the odder rushing performances you'll ever see, jumping from negative-3 rushing yards to 66 on one long play. He's gained yardage on 72.1 percent of his carries, the fourth-lowest rate among players with 20-plus attempts (before the games Sunday and Monday). PFF credits him with eight avoided tackles on 57 touches and 3.3 yards after contact per attempt, placing him 21st of 32 in their elusive rating (46.0).
• Dede Westbrook cost himself a bigger day with two drops, but he did play 80 percent of snaps and ran a route on 32 on Minshew's 33 dropbacks. D.J. Chark (29), Chris Conley (27), Fournette (27) and TE James O'Shaughnessy (25) weren't too far behind.
• O'Shaughnessy played 78 percent of snaps, compared to just 30 percent for Geoff Swaim. The timeshare seems to have ended, but things could get interesting again if rookie Josh Oliver ever recovers from his hamstring injury.
• Chark has been legitimately good, with 15 catches and no drops on 18 targets and a PFF grade above 75 each week. His target share (19 percent) is less encouraging, but he's made a strong case for more looks in the coming weeks. Chark's 40 percent share of team air yards was 13th-largest in the league at the conclusion of Thursday's game, and his 14.2 aDOT was 18th-highest among 66 WRs with double-digit targets.

Ravens 28 Chiefs 33

Ravens

• Lamar Jackson completed just three of his 12 throws 20+ yards downfield (per PFF), including successful desperation heaves on a fourth down and a 3rd-and-long. So, really, he had just one deep completion that wasn't a total prayer. The poor showing dropped him all the way to 16th in PFF's overall QB grades, and his completion percentage (63.0) is nearly identical to his xCOMP% (63.3). His 10.7 aDOT is fifth-highest among QBs.
• Mark Ingram played 60 percent of snaps and handled 20 of 33 RB opportunities (60.6 percent). His numbers for the season? 51 percent of snaps and 53 percent of opportunities. Ingram holds PFF's No. 3 overall grade among RBs, leading the position (20-carry minimum) with 4.3 yards after contact per carry. Only Dalvin Cook, Le'Veon Bell and Alvin Kamara have been credited with more avoided tackles on run plays than Ingram's 13.
• Marquise Brown led all Baltimore skill-position players in snap share (75 percent) and targets (nine), running routes on 42 of Jackson's 50 dropbacks. Brown finished Sunday ranked 14th in target share (25 percent) and eighth in air-yard share (41 percent), i.e., legitimate No. 1 receiver usage. His 466 air yards are third-most behind only Keenan Allen (495) and Mike Evans (478).
• Willie Snead played 71 percent of snaps and ran 37 routes, followed by Seth Roberts (63 percent, 35 routes) and Mark Andrews (53 percent, 35 routes). Nobody else logged more than 16 routes, though blocking tight end Nick Boyle saw five targets (and caught four for 58 yards!) on 10 routes.
• Andrews had his first down game and lost a bunch of targets to Boyle and Hayden Hurst, but Andrews still ranks fifth among TEs in target share (23 percent), eighth in air-yard share (20 percent), sixth in targets (24) and fourth in air yards (224). Given the lack of receiving alternatives in Baltimore, it's not especially fluky for Andrews to be tied with Darren Waller for second place among TEs (10-target min.) at 2.87 yards per route run (per PFF). Not that either player will maintain that Julio Jones-like number, but they might maintain the positional rank (behind only Travis Kelce, 2.99).

Chiefs

• Patrick Mahomes' 9.2 aDOT is only 13th-highest among QBs, while his rate of throwing 20+ yards downfield (17.5 percent) is seventh-highest, per PFF. His 20 downfield attempts are tied with Jackson for third-most, behind only Matthew Stafford (22) and Jameis Winston (21). The Chiefs have figured out a hyper-efficient form of offense centered around a perfect balance of very short and very long throws. It helps to have Mahomes, who easily leads the league in completions (13), yards (526!) and touchdowns (seven) on deep passes.
• Darrel Williams (54 percent) played more snaps than LeSean McCoy (38 percent) and Darwin Thompson (7 percent), accounting for 14 of 29 RB opportunities. McCoy didn't have any more touches after his 14-yard TD catch late in the third quarter, allowing Williams to close out the game with a couple of big plays. The situation is fluid with both McCoy (ankle) and Damien Williams (knee) banged up, but it's at least clear that Darrel Williams is ahead of Thompson.
• Demarcus Robinson played more snaps (91 percent) and ran more routes (36) than Mecole Hardman (63 percent, 26), but it was the latter who had the huge play this time. Watkins (96 percent, 37 routes) and Travis Kelce (93 percent, 33 routes) were also full-time players, of course.
• Watkins dropped a pass and nearly lost a fumble, looking shaky for a second straight week. His 9.2 aDOT is shortest of the team's primary pass catcher, behind Robinson (17.6), Hardman (14.2) and Kelce (11.7). That said, Watkins is eighth in the NFL in target share (28 percent), and he's drawn six targets (two catches) 20+ yards downfield (per PFF). Please don't bench him.
• Kansas City leads the NFL with a 73 percent pass-play rate on first and second downs before halftime. No other team is above 68 percent.

Raiders 14 Vikings 34

Raiders

• Derek Carr's 6.3 aDOT is sixth-shortest, and his 73.5 completion percentage is third-highest. It's the same thing we saw last year, so expect his underneath targets to continue piling up stats even if the team gets blown out.
• Josh Jacobs played 42 percent of snaps and handled 12 of 23 RB opportunities. He isn't getting passing downs, and he's on a team that ends up in a lot of passing situations — that's a problem.
• Jalen Richard played 49 percent of snaps, compared to 15 percent for DeAndre Washington. The Raiders used Richard on passing downs (19 routes), while Washington spelled Jacobs for some carries (six).
• J.J. Nelson played 78 percent of snaps and saw five targets; Hunter Renfrow played 56 percent and got four targets. Nelson had a 32-25 advantage in routes
• Darren Waller's huge day left him with the TE lead in target share (30 percent), well ahead of George Kittle (25 percent) and Zach Ertz (24 percent). Even with a 6.0 aDOT, Waller ranks second to only Kelce in air-yard share (26 percent). Ranking sixth at the position in routes (97) and tied for second in yards per route (2.87), Waller is a TE1 in all formats and potentially an elite TE1 in PPR.
• Tyrell Williams leads the team with 221 air yards (33 percent), with his 13.0 aDOT making him the only Raider in double digits. He's the only downfield threat, but disappointing target share (17 percent) could be a problem once the TDs dry up.

Vikings

• Kirk Cousins has 69 dropbacks and 63 pass attempts this season, easily ranking last among QBs that have started all three weeks.
• Minnesota's 66 percent run-play rate on first and second downs before halftime is easily the highest in the league, with the injury-plagued Jets (54 percent) a very distant second.
• Dalvin Cook handled 60 percent of snaps and 58 percent of RB opportunities, bowing out after the third quarter. Per PFF, he's tied for the NFL lead with 15 avoided tackles on rushes, averaging 4.1 yards after contact (fourth-best) with a 111.5 "elusive rating" (fifth-best). This play certainly helped those numbers. And this one didn't hurt, either. I think he might be good?
• Cook ranks fourth on the team with 38 routes, trailing only Adam Thielen (68), Stefon Diggs (61) and Kyle Rudolph (49). Cook isn't as game-script sensitive as most other RBs that lose some snaps. He's taken off the field to stay fresh, not because the Vikings prefer a different player in specific situations.
• Thielen ranks a respectable 15th in target share (25 percent) and actually is third in air-yard share (46 percent); it's just that his slice is coming from the league's smallest passing-game pie.
• Diggs is 19 percent target share and 41 percent air-yard share. The increase in aDOT (16.8) isn't helping fantasy owners, but it does suggest he'll have a couple big games if/when the Vikings fall behind. That said, it's time to bench him in most formats.
• Rudolph has six targets on 49 routes, with 0.41 yards per route placing him 44th among the 45 tight ends that have at least five targets. The Vikings don't throw the ball, and they don't go to Rudolph even when they do. He's not a top-20 TE anymore.

Broncos 16 Packers 27

Broncos

• Joe Flacco's 5.7 aDOT is fourth-shortest in the league. He's in the same spot as Derek Carr — a game-manager QB on a team that isn't nearly good enough to afford that luxury. Are the Raiders and Broncos even trying to win? It seems like they just want to stay close enough for back-door covers.
• Phillip Lindsay lit up the box score, but his snap share (56 percent) was right in the usual range, slightly ahead of Royce Freeman (49 percent).
• Courtland Sutton played 89 percent of snaps and ran a team-high 33 routes, ahead of Emmanuel Sanders (79 percent, 29 routes), DaeSean Hamilton (58 percent, 23 routes) and Noah Fant (63 percent, 22 routes).
• Each of those four players plus the two running backs has accounted for 10-22 percent of the targets, but Sutton at least has a dominant share of the air yards (247, 43 percent), with his 11.5 aDOT making him the only player on the team in double digits. Don't be surprised if he outscores Sanders from here on out, especially in non-PPR leagues. Both players have been on the field for nearly every pass play — 117 of Flacco's 123 dropbacks for Sutton, 113 for Sanders.
• Sanders has enjoyed a clear a edge in one area, drawing five of the team's eight targets inside the 10-yard line. Only Larry Fitzgerald has seen more inside-the-5 targets this year. Of course, it's a small sample.
• Fant hasn't done much with the work, but he quietly ranks seventh among TEs with 85 routes (69.1 percent of Flacco's dropbacks).

Packers

• Speaking of game managers, Aaron Rodgers ranks 23rd in dropbacks (102) and t-19th in pass attempts (94), per PFF. Part of that is playing with leads late in games, but the Packers also have the 11th-highest run rate (45) on first and second downs in the first half. I know it's been working so far, but there's no way that can be optimal long term with Rodgers under center.
• Aaron Jones hit paydirt twice, but his 39 percent snap share lagged well behind Jamaal Williams' 61 percent. This was a major surprise after Jones had 23 carries and six targets — 69 percent of RB opportunities — the previous week against Minnesota. Both running backs were active throughout the game, and Jones at least had a 10-8 edge in carries before the final drive.
• Marquez Valdes-Scantling turned his 88 percent snap share into a 6-99-1 receiving line, running a route on 27 of Rodgers' 29 dropbacks. Davante Adams also ran 27 routes, with Williams (18), Geronimo Allison (16) and Jimmy Graham (12) far behind. There aren't many leagues where Graham or Allison should be owned. Adams, MVS and the RBs are the core of this passing game.
• Offseason acquisitions Za'Darius Smith and Preston Smith are tied for fourth in the league with seven QB hits apiece, combining for 7.5 sacks. The Packers have allowed just 5.0 yards per play (seventh-best), leading the league with eight takeaways and tied for third with 12 sacks. Of course, they've faced the Bears, Vikings and Broncos, so Week 4 (vs. PHI) and Week 5 (at DAL) may look quite different.

Falcons 24 Colts 27

Falcons

• Devonta Freeman's 90 percent snap share was a product of necessity, with the Falcons losing both Ito Smith and Kenjon Barner to concussions. Freeman isn't likely to see that many snaps again this season, but he should get a bump from his usual workload if Qadree Ollison is the only depth option Week 4 against Tennessee.
• Even after a solid game, Freeman ranks 27th of 42 in PFF's elusive rating, with six avoided tackles and an average of 2.9 yards after contact (22nd) on 44 touches. He's drawn just 12 targets on 74 routes, with 0.82 yards per route representing a sizable drop from his marks in 2017 (1.21) and 2016 (1.59). The Falcons have PFF's fifth-worst grade for run blocking, and Freeman isn't commanding targets or showing much ability to create yards on his own. He did at least look like his old self on this 24-yard run in Sunday's loss.
• Roles at WR and TE have been stable, with Mohamed Sanu actually leading the team in routes (118), followed by Julio Jones (111), Austin Hooper (102) and Calvin Ridley (101). Each of the four has drawn at least 17 targets, and none lands in the top 15 for target share or air-yard share.
• Jones hasn't required his usual dominance of the opportunities, making up for 24 percent target share and 35 percent air-yard share with four touchdowns. Last year, he was at 28 percent and 45 percent, respectively. In 2017, it was 28 percent and 44 percent. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and say the numbers are close enough to not really matter, but there's a reasonable enough argument for selling high.
• Of course, Jones doesn't need to dominate the targets in his usual fashion when the Falcons are sixth in the league in pass-play rate (70 percent), including eighth-highest (62 percent) on first and second downs before halftime.
• Hooper's target share is up from 14 percent last year to 18 percent this year, but his 5.5 aDOT is low even by TE standards, ranking sixth-lowest among 25 players at the position with double-digit targets. The usage allows for a high catch rate and keeps him useful in PPR formats; just don't expect a lot of blow-up games the rest of the way. There's also a good chance his target share starts to dip back toward that 2018 rate.

Colts

• Jacoby Brissett's 5.6 aDOT is second-lowest in the league, with his 71.7 completion percentage just a tick above his 70.5 xCOMP%. He's thrown 20+ yards downfield on just 8.7 percent of pass attempts, the fifth-lowest rate in the league, per PFF. He did throw deep four times (including two completions) against Atlanta, compared to four times combined (with one completion) the first two weeks of the season. Brissett has successfully done what's been asked of him, with Sunday perhaps giving us a hint that he's been deemed ready for more responsibility.
• Marlon Mack played 62 percent of snaps and handled 19 of 28 RB opportunities (67.9 percent). He got more snaps on pass plays than Nyheim Hines, and now ranks second on the team (not a huge feat) with 57 routes run this season. Jordan Wilkins was just used to give Mack a breather, taking three carries for negative-two yards on 10 snaps.
• The WR and TE rotations remain a mess behind T.Y. Hilton, who left Sunday's game early after aggravating his quad injury. Jack Doyle led the teams skill players with 69 percent of snaps, running 22 routes on Brissett's 39 dropbacks. Deon Cain led the way with 27 routes, while nobody else besides Hilton or Doyle topped 20. I guess Cain is the one to take a shot on if Hilton misses time, but there's not much reason to feel good about it. Eric Ebron is second on the team in both targets (11) and air yards (84) — inconsequential numbers, both.

Dolphins 6 Cowboys 31

Dolphins

• The Dolphins actually moved the ball in the first half, putting together drives of 46, 72, 49 and 45 yards. They kicked two short field goals, missed a longer field goal and lost a fumble in the red zone. The second half was more along the lines of what we expected — 30 plays for 65 yards, never coming any closer than the Cowboys' 38-yard line.
• Josh Rosen's 10.9 aDOT is fourth-highest in the league this year, but he wasn't so aggressive with downfield throws in his first start, completing just two of 12 passes that travelled 10+ yards beyond the L.O.S., per PFF. He was also ineffective on short throws, producing 5.9 YPA. Rosen dealt with three drops and two batted passes, but even so, a 46.1 completion percentage is ugly.
• Kenyan Drake took a season-high 64 percent snap share, accounting for 18 of the 29 RB opportunities (62 percent). He lost a fumble and dropped a pass, but Kallen Ballage (27 yards on nine touches) wasn't any better.
• Preston Williams and DeVante Parker both played 96 percent of snaps on offense, while Jakeem Grant (64 percent) was the clear No. 3 ahead of Allen Hurns (7 percent). Albert Wilson (hip/calf) missed another game.
• Parker's six catches on 20 targets is an ugly number, but it at least holds up a bit better once his league-high 21.6 aDOT is accounted for (plus, he had this lovely one-handed catch). Williams' 12.9 aDOT is a more typical mark for an outside receiver, and he leads the team in target share (21 percent). The undrafted rookie could be useful in deeper redraft formats and should be owned in most/all dynasty leagues.
• Mike Gesicki (42 percent snaps) shared playing time with Durham Smythe (56 percent) and Nick O'Leary (39 percent) at tight end. Gesicki easily led the TE group with 24 routes, but he was far behind Williams (46) and Parker (44).

Cowboys

• Dak Prescott got it done for fantasy owners with the help of a rushing TD, but his 59.4 completion percentage and 7.7 YPA fall shy of expectations given the level of competition. He completed just six of 16 passes 10+ yards downfield, after going 15-for-17 the prior two weeks, per PFF. Michael Gallup's absence didn't inspire caution, but it may have impacted Prescott's efficiency.
• Prescott has been sacked just twice this year, and his overall PFF grade (90.4) is still third-best at the position. His 9.7 aDOT is seventh-highest, up from 7.6 last year, 8.4 in 2017 and 8.7 in 2016. Kellen Moore seems to have halted the trend toward shorter throws.
• Ezekiel Elliott handled 67 percent of snaps and 58 percent of RB opportunities, with Tony Pollard drawing a carry or target on 16 of his 23 snaps. The rookie now has 34 touches on 61 snaps, but we do need to mention that Elliott had a 19-7 advantage in carries before the final drive of Sunday's comfortable win. Pollard's continued involvement may push Elliott from high-end RB1 to mid-range RB1.
• Devin Smith got more snaps (92 percent) than Amari Cooper (85 percent) and Randall Cobb (74 percent), with each of the three landing between 28 and 32 routes on Prescott's 34 dropbacks. Elliott finished fourth with 23 routes, followed by Jason Witten (20 routes, 51 percent snap share) and then Blake Jarwin (13 routes, 49 percent of snaps). The split between Witten and Jarwin was closer than in Week 2.

Bengals 17 Bills 21

Bengals

• Joe Mixon played 57 percent of snaps and saw 17 of the 22 RB opportunities (77.2 percent), but Giovani Bernad handled most passing downs, finishing with a 15-13 advantage in routes.
• John Ross and Tyler Boyd had 38 routes apiece on Andy Dalton's 38 dropbacks, with Auden Tate (33) not too far behind. Tate played 89 percent of snaps, while former No. 3 receiver Damion Willis was banished to four plays on special teams (and none on offense).
• Ross dropped another pass, giving him a league-high five on the year (no other player has more than three, per PFF). He still leads the team with a 35 percent air-yard share, but Boyd's 26 percent target share is 13th-largest in the league and well ahead of Ross's 20 percent.
• Tyler Eifert finally got more snaps (48 percent) than C.J. Uzomah (46 percent), holding a 23-8 advantage in routes. Eifert is at least moving in the right direction, but he's still a timeshare tight end in an offense that rarely uses two-TE sets.
• Despite making a bit more effort to run the ball, Buffalo finished Sunday with the third-highest pass-play rate (73 percent), including the second-highest (68 percent) on first and second downs before halftime. Philosophically, Zac Taylor is challenging Andy Reid and Kliff Kingsbury for the pass-heavy throne (it's definitely a real thing; just trust me here).

Bills

• Frank Gore played 63 percent of snaps, compared to 37 percent for T.J. Yeldon. The 35-year-old got 59 percent of the RB opportunities, which was actually less than what he saw the previous week when Devin Singletary (hamstring) was playing.
• Dawson Knox played 56 percent of snaps and led the Buffalo tight ends with 20 routes, while Tommy Sweeney ran just nine routes on a 29 percent snap share, and blocker Lee Smith ran four rotes on 50 percent.
• Knox had a couple highlights en route to a 3-67-1 receiving line, but the 20 routes still put him behind wide receivers John Brown (38), Cole Beasley (30) and even Gore (21) and Zay Jones (21). It'll be interesting to see if Knox's big game impacts how the team uses Tyler Kroft (ankle) once he's ready. Regardless, I'm not feeling any desire to roster a Bills tight end.

Jets 14 Patriots 30

Jets

• Le'Veon Bell and Robby Anderson both played 100 percent of snaps, followed by Ryan Griffin (92 percent) and Jamison Crowder (90 percent). The Jets only used Braxton Berrios for 59 percent of snaps, making "significant" use of their reserve tight ends for the first time this season — 22 percent for Trevon Wesco, 20 percent for Daniel Brown.
• Crowder is sixth in the league with 30 percent target share, which means he's getting 30 percent of something that's worth nothing.
• Bell's 24 percent share leads all RBs, as do his raw totals of 23 targets and 20 catches. His 95 routes are third-most, and his 121 receiving yards are fifth-most. He's 10th of 42 in PFF's elusive rating, leading the NFL with 24 avoided tackles, albeit on a league-high 76 touches. His average of 2.8 yards after contact per carry is much lower down the list at 25th of 42.
• Luke Falk took five sacks and had four completions that gained double-digit yards. Fun, right?

Patriots

• Phillip Dorsett (92 percent) and Josh Gordon (88 percent) took on full-time roles in a post-AB world. Isolating Weeks 1 and 3, it's Gordon who leads the team in routes (77) and receiving yards (156), though his 14 targets are far behind Julian Edelman's 20. Dorsett has 12 targets on 72 routes, and Rex Burkhead has 14 on 57. Tom Brady had 79 dropbacks in those two games, so Dorsett and Gordon weren't missing many opportunities, nor was Edelman before his chest injury Sunday.
• Rex Burkhead played 74 percent of snaps against the Jets, handling his usual role as well as that of James White, who missed the game for the birth of his child.
• Sony Michel was all the way down to 22 percent of snaps, and he's now sitting at 2.4 YPC on the year. He ranks dead last (20-carry min.) in PFF's elusive rating, with one avoided tackle on 45 touches and a league-worst mark of 1.7 yards after contact per carry.
• Michel produced 4.5 YPC last season despite ranking 36th of 47 (100-carry min.) in elusive rating and 38th in YAC average (2.6). He doesn't need a ton of jukes or broken tackles to successfully fill his role, but none at all is a real problem — one that draws added attention when he's averaging 2.4 YPC. Burkhead is at 4.7 YPC in the same offense, and third-round rookie Damien Harris is waiting in the wings.
• Now that fullback James Develin (neck) is on injured reserve, Michel needs to figure out running without a lead blocker — a skill that should be a given in the modern NFL. Develin's absence also encourages increased use of 11 personnel, which works out well for Dorsett and James White.
• To that effect, NESN's Zack Cox reports the Patriots had either three or four wide receivers on the field for 71 of 75 plays Sunday against the Jets. They averaged 3.06 WRs per snap, venturing above and beyond Sean McVay territory (but not quite into Kliff Kingsbury range). Between the loss of Develin and the loss of Antonio Brown, things are looking rosy for all the remaining New England pass catchers.

Lions 27 Eagles 24

Lions

• Kerryon Johnson played a season-high 75 percent of snaps in the first game without C.J. Anderson, while Ty Johnson saw just 20 percent and J.D. McKissic got 9 percent. Kerryon handled 21 of 27 RB opportunities (78 percent), and he finished fifth on the team with 17 routes (on 33 dropbacks for Matthew Stafford).
• Marvin Jones led the team with 32 routes and nine targets, followed by Kenny Golladay (28 and 8), T.J. Hockenson (18, 4) and Danny Amendola (18, 5).
• Jesse James only ran eight routes, but he played nearly as many snaps (55 percent) as Hockenson (66 percent). The rookie ranks third on the team with 77 routes, but he's far behind Jones and Golladay (109 apiece) and barely ahead of Amendola (74).
• Golladay still leads the team in target share (25 percent) and air-yard share (33 percent), but Jones has been far more efficient with 10.5 YPT (compared to 6.5 for Kenny G).
• Golladay and Marquise Brown are tied for the league lead with 10 targets beyond 20 yards downfield, per PFF. Golladay has caught just two of those, after bringing in nine of 24 (37.5 percent) last season. He's due for some positive regression in that sense, but his current mark of 9.0 targets per game could be hard to maintain (keep reading).
• Stafford's 11.1 aDOT is third-highest in the league, and each of his key targets has an aDOT between 9.0 (Amendola) and 14.4 (Jones).
• Detroit has the fourth-lowest pass rate (50 percent) on first and second downs before halftime, and the eighth-lowest pass rate (56 percent) overall. Stafford's stat line is surviving thanks to solid efficiency and a high-snap-volume game Week 1 at Arizona, but Darrell Bevell has been true to his run-heavy reputation.

Eagles

• Miles Sanders, Jordan Howard and Darren Sproles each landed between 33 and 36 percent of snaps. The rookie had 4.1 YPC along with gains of 40 and 33 yards on passes, but he also fumbled twice, losing one. Sanders wasn't permanently benched after the mistakes, though it took a while before he got another touch. Sanders and Howard have combined to avoid just seven tackles on 67 touches this season, both landing in the bottom 10 for PFF's elusive rating. The Eagles haven't had a 20-yard carry this season.
• Carson Wentz's 9.7 aDOT is eighth-highest in the league, landing much closer to his mark from 2017 (9.9) than his number from last year (7.8). He completed two of six deep passes for 73 yards in Sunday's loss, also going 5-of-7 for 86 yards on throws in the 10-to-19-yard range, per PFF. In addition to lost fumbles from Sanders and Nelson Agholor, the 26-year-old quarterback dealt with five drops and two batted passes. His completion percentage (52.8) from Sunday's game doesn't tell the real story.
• Agholor scored two touchdowns and didn't drop any passes while playing 99 percent of snaps on offense, but between the lost fumble and a mark of 4.2 YPT, he wasn't exactly an asset. He at least fared better than Mack Hollins, who also played 99 percent of snaps and dropped two passes in the process. Hollins did finish with a 4-62-0 line on seven targets, while J.J. Arcega-Whiteside went 1-10-0 on three passes, playing 72 percent of snaps.
• Zach Ertz played every snap for a second straight week, while Dallas Goedert played just 12 percent, suggesting his calf injury was still an issue. Ertz is tied with Evan Engram for the TE lead at 30 targets, so better fantasy days should be ahead, especially if Alshon Jeffery (calf) misses another game Thursday in Green Bay.

Giants 32 Buccaneers 31

Giants

• Daniel Jones took five sacks and lost a fumble, but he made up for it by completing 14 of 19 passes for 243 yard and a touchdown when he was under pressure, per PFF. He actually struggled when he didn't face pressure, going just 9-of-17 for 93 yards and a score. The Giants had a ton of success on short passes, but Jones wasn't just dinking and dunking — his 9.4 aDOT after one game is 10th-highest in the league. (Eli Manning's 7.1 aDOT is ninth-lowest.)
• Wayne Gallman played 63 percent of snaps, filling in for an injured Saquon Barkley (ankle, 37 percent). Elijhaa Penny played three snaps on offense and 21 on special teams, with his role unchanged after Barkley went done. I'm not saying it will look the same moving forward, but there's no reason to doubt that Gallman will take over as the clear lead back.
• Danny Dimes breathed some life into Sterling Shepard, who played 95 percent of snaps and led the team with nine targets. Shepard forced three missed tackles and averaged 6.3 yards after the catch on his seven receptions, with five of his nine targets coming 10+ yards downfield. He played 71.2 percent of his snaps in the slot, accounting for 86 percent of his routes, all seven catches and eight of the nine targets.
• Evan Engram played 88 percent of snaps and ran 37 routes on Jones' 45 dropbacks. The tight end mostly built his stat line on a 75-yard, catch-and-run touchdown, though he finished second on the team in both targets (eight) and catches (six). Engram topped 20 mph on two separate catches, joining Darren Waller as the only tight ends to reach that speed with the ball in their hands this season. Engram's 4.5 aDOT in the contest was a bit lower than his overall 2019 mark (5.5).
• Bennie Fowler finished third among Giants pass catchers with a 60 percent snap share and 26 routes, followed by rookie Darius Slayton (45 percent, 24 routes) and Russell Shepard (40 percent, 18 routes). Slayton made his case for more work, with a 46-yard gain on a deep pass over the middle atoning for an early drop.

Buccaneers

• Peyton Barber, Ronald Jones and Dare Ogunbowale each landed between 25 and 36 percent of snaps, after Barber saw 67 percent (and 23 carries) the previous week. Jones is making a nice case for more playing time, with 5.3 YPC and 59 yards from two targets. He accounted for eight of the Bucs' 11 carries in the fourth quarter, including six consecutive snaps (37 yards) at one point. The impressive streak ended on a 3rd-and-2 when Barber subbed in and got stuffed.
• Mike Evans caught three of five deep targets en route to an 8-190-3 stat line, but he still doesn't do much after the catch, averaging 3.3 YAC for the season (nitpicking, I know). He now sits 11th in target share (28 percent) and sixth in air-yard share (46 percent), while Chris Godwin is at 21.5 percent and 22 percent, respectively. Evans' 17.8 aDOT is fifth-highest among players with double-digit targets.
• Signs of life from O.J. Howard, who "exploded" for 3-66-0 on four targets and finished fourth on the team with 28 routes (on Jameis Winston's 43 dropbacks). The rate of 0.65 routes per dropback isn't quite what we usually expect from starting tight ends in fantasy, but it is an upgrade from Howard's mark of 0.59 over the first two weeks. He still lost some snaps to Cameron Brate on pass plays, but the Bucs only used Howard as a blocker twice, and he didn't have any fumbles, drops or penalties. He's now longer the lowest-graded TE at PFF this year, bumping up to 60th of 64 after Sunday.

Panthers 38 Cardinals 20

Panthers

• Kyle Allen's 9.2 aDOT was 13th-highest of Week 3, and his 73.1 completion percentage was sixth-best. His seven incompletions included two drops and a throwaway, and he completed 11 of 13 passes in the 10-to-19-yard range. He attempted just one pass (an incompletion) 20+ yards downfield. His pass chart from NFL Next Gen Stats is rather impressive.
• Christian McCaffrey only played 92 percent of snaps, yielding to Reggie Bonnafon after Carolina took an 18-point lead late in the fourth quarter.
• Greg Olsen (79 percent), Curtis Samuel (76 percent) and D.J. Moore (73 percent) all played a few less snaps than usual, but Samuel ran a route on 27 of Allen's 29 dropbacks, with Olsen and Moore (24 apiece) not far behind. Olsen was the big winner of the day, torching an Arizona defense that somehow has already given up 348 yards and five touchdowns to tight ends.

Cardinals

• Kyler Murray had his first ugly day in the NFL, finishing with 4.0 YPA, eight sacks and two interceptions. The Cardinals' blocking obviously remains a problem, but Murray wasn't brought down within 2.5 seconds of the snap on any of his eight sacks, i.e., he could've avoided a few of them. PFF "charged" him with four of the sacks, while left tackle D.J. Humphries was blamed for two.
• David Johnson played 87 percent of snaps and found the end zone, but he's now sitting at 3.7 YPC and 4.9 YPT. The Cardinals have PFF's third-worst grade for run blocking, and Johnson has forced just four missed tackles on 49 touches, ranking 40th of 42 in PFF's elusive rating and 39th in yards after contact per carry (2.1). Back in 2016, he was 14th of 42 (100-carry min.) in elusive rating, averaging 2.5 YAC per carry.
• Larry Fitzgerald, Christian Kirk and Damiere Byrd each played at least 92 percent of snaps, with KeeSean Johnson (48 percent) working ahead of since-released Michael Crabtree (17 percent) in the No. 4 role. Tight ends Charles Clay and Maxx Williams combined for just 50 percent.
• Fitzgerald leads the NFL with six targets inside the 10-yard line, accounting for 60 percent of the team total.
• The Cardinals continue to use four-wide formations about half the time, and their 73 percent pass-play rate is second-highest. Their 65 percent rate on first and second downs before halftime is third-highest, trailing KC (73 percent) and Cincinnati (68 percent).

Texans 27 Chargers 20

Texans

• Carlos Hyde played 52 percent of snaps and saw two-thirds (10, all carries) of Houston's RB opportunities. Duke Johnson played 48 percent, with two carries and three targets. Hyde handled the lone goal-line opportunity, converting it for a score. He has two of the team's three carries from inside the 5-yard line this season, with Deshaun Watson accounting for the other.
• Will Fuller and DeAndre Hopkins ran 40 routes apiece, landing far ahead of the rest of the pack despite modest stat lines for both. Kenny Stills (25) led the others, followed by Johnson (23), Jordan Akins (22) and Darren Fells (21).
• The big games for the tight ends occurred in a timeshare, with Fells logging 65 percent of snaps and Akins taking 45 percent. The Texans heavily favor three-wide formations, with Keke Coutee also mixing in for 28 percent of snaps (53 percent for Stills). It will be hard for a third player to establish decent fantasy value when everyone besides Hopkins and Fuller is rotating.
• The Texans are 18th in pass-play rate (56 percent) on first and second downs before halftime. That may sound low for a team with Hopkins and Watson, but it's progress compared to last season, when they were fifth-lowest at 48 percent.

Chargers

• Surprise, surprise. Keenan Allen still leads the league in target share (36.5) and air yards (496), though his air-yard share (46 percent) is "only" fifth-highest.
• Austin Ekeler's 17.4 percent target share is seventh-highest among RBs. He played 65 percent of snaps in Sunday's loss, down from 75 and 74 percent the previous two weeks.
• Mike Williams jumped up to 93 percent of snaps, after disappointing with 65 and 62 percent the first two weeks of the season. The lack of playing time before may have just been about his knee injury. Despite the 3-45-0 receiving line on seven targets, Williams seems to be heading in the right direction for fantasy owners.

Saints 33 Seahawks 27

Saints

• Alvin Kamara played a career-high 88 percent of snaps, getting a carry or target on 26 of the Saints' 50 plays on offense.
• Teddy Bridgewater's 3.3 aDOT was the lowest of Week 3, and he didn't attempt a single pass 20+ yards downfield.
• Ted Ginn landed in his usual range at 67 percent of snaps, with Austin Carr (47 percent) and backup tight end Josh Hill (59 percent) seeing extra playing time in the absence of Tre'Quan Smith (ankle).
• Jared Cook played 76 percent of snaps, running a route on 22 of Bridgewater's 29 dropbacks. Michael Thomas ran a route on each of the 29, followed by Ginn (24) and Kamara (24).

Seahawks

• C.J. Prosise (55 percent snaps) saw more playing time than Chris Carson (45 percent), who lost his third fumble of the season. Granted, the snap allotment mostly was a product of the Seahawks playing from behind. Carson took 12 carries in the first half, and he wasn't benched after the fumble. It'll be interesting to see how that works out once Rashaad Penny returns from a hamstring injury.
• Russell Wilson threw 50 passes for the first time in his pro career. His last game with even 40 attempts was back in Nov. 2017. Wilson got some nice work from his pass catchers — 32 receptions and zero drops, albeit with a modest average of 3.1 YAC per reception.
• Tyler Lockett did everything, including three catches for 96 yards on four targets 20+ yards downfield. He finished Sunday ranked 12th in target share (28 percent) and 20th in air-yard share (34 percent).
• DK Metcalf actually ranks 16th in air-yard share (36 percent), with his 17.9 aDOT placing fourth among players with double-digit targets. His 19 percent target share is less imposing, but he's at least a clear No. 2 in the Seattle passing game, drawing six or seven targets each week.
• Will Dissly is the one guy who might push Metcalf for that No. 2 status, with the tight end enjoying another big game on a modest snap share (55 percent). Dissly ran just 23 routes on Wilson's 54 dropbacks, landing behind Lockett (54), Metcalf (47), Jaron Brown (40), and Prosise (34). It's hard for a tight end to maintain fantasy value if he's missing out on more than half the opportunities, but Dissly should see more time on the field soon enough (I hope).

Steelers 20 49ers 24

Steelers

• Mason Rudolph received the lowest PFF grade of any starting quarterback from Sunday's games. His 6.5 aDOT was ninth-lowest, yet he completed just 51.9 percent of his passes. The stat line would've been really ugly without JuJu Smith-Schuster's 76-yard touchdown on a short pass.
• James Conner played a season-high 68 percent of snaps, but Jaylen Samuels (26 percent) and even Benny Snell (6 percent) also got involved. Conner's lost fumble came late in the fourth quarter.
• James Washington played 92 percent of snaps (32 routes on Rudolph's 33 dropbacks), and Diontae Johnson played 79 percent (25 routes). Donte Moncrief was inactive, while Ryan Switzer strictly played special teams.
• Washington finished fourth on the team with four targets, but only one (an incompletion) came 20+ yards downfield. Johnson accounted for Rudolph's two other deep throws, including a go-ahead, 39-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.
• Xavier Grimble ran 21 routes on a 72 percent snap share, handling a three-down role after Vance McDonald left with a shoulder injury.

49ers

• Despite throwing two interceptions, Jimmy Garoppolo received PFF's fourth-best grade among starting QBs in Week 3. Consider me skeptical. One interception came on a dropped screen pass, but the other was a stupid throw, and it's hard/impossible for us to know if Garoppolo was to blame for a botched shotgun snap that hit wide receiver Richie James. Whatever the case, the 49ers have been sloppy on offense in two of their three games, with chunk gains negated by penalties and turnovers.
• Matt Breida played 41 percent of snaps, followed by Raheem Mostert (30 percent) and Jeff Wilson (27 percent). Each of the three mostly was effective in his role, but Breida had the dropped-pass-turned-INT and Mostert lost a fumble. Wilson scored two more short TDs; he's tied with Mark Ingram and Phillip Lindsay for the league lead in carries inside the 5-yard line (five).
• George Kittle played every snap on offense, up from 67 percent the previous week and 91 percent in Week 1. He led the team in targets (eight), catches (six), receiving yards (57) and routes (23), but he also lost 10 snaps (really, Kyle?) to pass blocking. Kittle's 20 snaps as a pass blocker this season are fifth-most in the league among tight ends, while his 65 routes are 19th-most. Part of that is the team run/pass split, and he does at least rank fifth at the position with 2.54 yards per route.
• Marquise Goodwin played 67 percent of snaps, ahead of Deebo Samuel (52 percent), Dante Pettis (42 percent), Richie James (35 percent) and Kendrick Bourne (28 percent). The deep rotation continues, with each player landing below 20 percent target share so far. Pettis led the group with five targets (and a game-winning TD) in Week 3.
• San Francisco has the second-highest run-play rate (57 percent), but only the 13th-highest (44 percent) on first and second downs before halftime. There's still hope for the team's pass catchers, as the numbers to date have been distorted by a pair of easy wins.

Rams 20 Browns 13

Rams

• Todd Gurley played 74 percent of snaps, compared to 26 percent for Malcolm Brown (Darrell Henderson didn't play).
• Gurley and Jared Goff are taking a lot of blame, but it doesn't help to have PFF's second-worst team grade for run blocking and third-worst for pass blocking. The Rams had three different linemen, including LT Andrew Whitworth, charged with four QB pressures apiece in Sunday's win.
• With Tyler Higbee (lung) absent, Gerald Everett played 88 percent of snaps, compared to just 26 percent for No. 4 receiver Josh Reynolds. Everett was nearly invisible, and he's now sitting at just 0.67 yards per route this season, waaaay behind Cooper Kupp (2.58), Brandin Cooks (2.16) and even Robert Woods (1.36).
• Kupp finished the night ranked fifth in the league in target share (30 percent), leaving Woods (22 percent) and Cooks (20 percent) in the dust, though the latter also had his first big game of 2019. Cooks is still the downfield threat, with his 39 percent share of air yards ranking 13th in the NFL.

Browns

• Nick Chubb played 97 percent of snaps, consistently staying on the field for passing downs for the first time this year.  Similar usage in the future likely would lock him in as a high-end RB1.
• Demetrius Harris played 90 percent of snaps in the first game without David Njoku (wrist). Harris only saw two targets, and 27 routes put him behind Odell Beckham (39), Jarvis Landry (38), Chubb (33) and Damion Ratley (33).
• Baker Mayfield's 9.3 aDOT is 11th-highest in the league, nearly identical to his 9.1 mark from last season. He's been a disaster on passes without play-action, completing 52.9 percent for 6.7 YPA, with one touchdown (the long one to Beckham) and four interceptions. He's completed 70.8 percent for 10.0 YPA off play-fakes, but those account for just 23.1 percent of his dropbacks (21st-most of 33 qualified QBs). He was good with or without the fake last year, so this may just be a sample issue. A bigger problem? He's completed just five of 14 passes 20+ yards downfield, with an adjusted completion percentage (35.7) that places 24th among 34 QBs. Last year, he was at 51.4, the third-best mark in the league. PFF currently has Mayfield as the No. 15 QB (out of 38 qualifiers) in terms of overall grade — and that seems generous.

Bears 31 Redskins 15

Bears

• David Montgomery played 67 percent of snaps, leaving Tarik Cohen (48 percent) and especially Mike Davis (2 percent) in the dust.
• Anthony Miller played 52 percent of snaps, with Cohen spending most of his time (but not all) in the backfield for a second straight week. Miller had one catch and one drop on three targets
• Trey Burton returned to his usual role with 61 percent of snaps.
• 122 of the Bears' 231 receiving yards came after the catch.
• Mitchell Trubisky's 7.1 aDOT is 10th-shortest in the league this season.

Redskins

• Case Keenum's 6.8 aDOT is eighth-shortest this year.
• Chris Thompson played 51 percent of snaps, compared to 48 percent for Adrian Peterson. I'm surprised the split wasn't wider given that Washington played from behind all night.
• Terry McLaurin overcame two drops to post a 6-70-1 receiving line, but most of his damage came in the second half when the game was all but over.