Puka Nacua lives up to the hype — and much more

A big first half (423 combined yards and 34 points) became more of a defensive battle afterward, when the 49ers dialed up the blitz. Brock Purdy had three glaring downfield misses (Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk were the targets) in what was probably the worst game of his young NFL career (and the first in which he didn’t throw two TDs). Purdy ran in a score on the last play of the first half; who is this new Kyle Shanahan, who also uncharacteristically went for it on an early fourth down last week? Let’s hope it continues.

Purdy dealt with the highest-pressure rate in the league in Week 1, but SF held Aaron Donald off the stat sheet Sunday. Nonetheless, not bad for a “down” game by Purdy, whose fantasy day would’ve looked much better had they not ruled this TD to Samuel a “run:”

Puka Nacua shook off sore ribs/oblique and continued his historic start, recording the most catches (15) in a game (and through two games) ever by a rookie. He’s the first player to have 10+ catches and 100+ yards during their first two contests. Nacua saw a whopping 20 targets (and two carries) and should be treated as a top-12 fantasy WR as long as Cooper Kupp is sidelined. Nacua would fall to a WR3 at worst should Kupp return fully healthy (I’m skeptical), as he’s far more of a “hold” than someone to trade high in fantasy. Nacua’s college performance backs up the big start, and Matthew Stafford continues to look terrific.

Like the Seahawks last season, the Rams might be this year’s surprise offense that was left for dead (realize they faced a 49ers defense that allowed the lowest EPA/play last season), especially if Kupp somehow returns full strength. Tutu Atwell can play too! He’s a fantasy WR3 (with upside for more) with Kupp out in the right matchups.

Van Jefferson, meanwhile, had a bad fourth-quarter drop — just like you can drop him off your fantasy team.

Kyren Williams also deserves a significant fantasy upgrade after Cam Akers was a healthy inactive…

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Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2023-09-18 04:36:52

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