1. JuJu Smith-Schuster, Pittsburgh Steelers
Ownership % – Yahoo 11%, ESPN 5%
I am very excited for this one! Smith-Schuster has been very impressive so far as a rookie who isn’t even 21 years old yet. The Pittsburgh coaches have been highly complimentary of him pretty much since Day 1. The big potential change this week? There are whispers in the bushes that Smith-Schuster could be in line for a bigger role, including taking reps on the outside. This would be a large step for a player that has done a lot of work from the slot this far.
None other than QB Ben Roethlisberger mentioned that WR Martavis Bryant could get a “break” in Kansas City. Bryant has been a fairly large disappointment thus far. His timing hasn’t been quite right and he’s been prone to the same mental errors that plagued him before he got suspended for the season in 2016. So far, Bryant and Smith-Schuster have been splitting reps, capping their fantasy value.
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However, there’s now a three-week trend of the rookie out-snapping the veteran and running more routes. This could be the week Smith-Schuster breaks out considering the Kansas City Chiefs secondary is not very good outside of Marcus Peters. The Chiefs offense is putting on a master class right now and the Steelers will need to score points. I love Smith-Schuster this week.