Who Should I Start? Courtland Sutton or Brandon Aiyuk

Monday, September 9, 12:32 AM

The good news for Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton in the team's 26-20 Week 1 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on Sunday was that he led the team with 12 targets. However, Sutton could only connect with rookie first-round quarterback Bo Nix four times for just 38 receiving yards in a day in which Nix looked a bit overmatched in his NFL debut against a fired-up defense in a hostile environment. The 28-year-old Sutton is certainly going to have ups and downs in 2024 while working with a rookie signal-caller. It's clear that Nix is going to target Sutton plenty as the WR1 in Denver, but Sutton's fantasy managers couldn't have been thrilled with rookie Devaughn Vele drawing eight targets of his own in his NFL debut. The Pittsburgh Steelers won't pose a much easier matchup in Week 2, where Sutton will set up as a touchdown-dependent WR4/flex.

Tuesday, September 10, 5:04 AM

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk disappointed in Monday night's 32-19 victory over the New York Jets in Santa Clara after spending the preseason seeking an extension and asking to be traded while only participating in team meetings. This led to head coach Kyle Shanahan easing the former Sun Devil into game action and limiting his snaps in Week 1. At times during Monday's matchup, Aiyuk looked less-than-sharp, including dropping a sprawling, but catchable ball in the back corner of the end zone. He finished in a three-way tie with Jauan Jennings and George Kittle for the team target lead with five but only caught two for 28 yards. Time will tell how long it will take for Aiyuk to shake off the rust, but it should be sooner than later that he settles into his usual WR2 value. He'll try to get it going against the Vikings in Minnesota in Week 2.