Who Should I Start? Terry McLaurin or Michael Pittman Jr.

Wednesday, September 10, 4:01 PM

Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin was slow out of the gate in Week 1 against the Giants, catching two of his four targets for 27 yards. A slow start to the season could have been somewhat expected for McLaurin after limited practice time amidst his contract negotiations. The talk of a slow start could have been mitigated if he and Jayden Daniels were able to connect on a deep shot where McLaurin had his man beat badly on a double move. With the new acquisition, Deebo Samuel Sr. making his team debut, play caller Kliff Kingsbury made an emphasis to get Samuel involved, and he has established a good connection with Daniels after McLaurin missed a lot of time in training camp. A positive, at least for McLaurin, is that he did not face any restrictions regarding his snap count and routes. The star receiver started slow last season as he built rapport with Daniels, and should be expected to bounce back against an exploitable Green Bay secondary. McLaurin has faced the Packers three times in his career and has put up strong numbers, catching 16 of 27 targets for 252 yards and three touchdowns. He should be viewed as a mid-range WR2 with upside in a projected high-scoring Week 2 matchup against the Packers.

Monday, September 15, 8:39 PM

Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. turned in a modest outing in his team's 29-28 win over the Denver Broncos in Week 2. After an encouraging Week 1 that saw him catch six balls for 80 yards and a touchdown, Pittman caught four of his five targets for just 40 yards against the Broncos. Of course, Pittman had to contend with lockdown corner Patrick Surtain II for much of the afternoon, which may have led Daniel Jones to look elsewhere when he dropped back to pass. With a Week 3 road matchup against the Tennessee Titans, Pittman is likely to operate as a decent WR4 with upside moving forward.