3 top fantasy football storylines from season opener

The Buffalo Bills took down the defending champion Los Angeles Rams with ease on Thursday night. But what were the top fantasy football storylines?

It’s early in the season, but fantasy football owners are ones to jump to conclusions.

Thursday night served as the first season-opening loss of the Sean McVay era for the Rams. Los Angeles must go back to the drawing board, watch the tape and learn from this surprising result.

As for the Bills, a 31-10 victory will only add to the Super Bowl hype surrounding this team. Josh Allen looked even better than last season, as advertised, and the new-look defense with former Ram Von Miller applied pressure on Matthew Stafford all night long.

If this is a preview of what’s to come for Buffalo — look out.

Fantasy Football: Josh Allen as advertised

Allen was ranked as the No. 1 quarterback in most fantasy leagues this offseason, and he did not disappoint. Per ESPN PPR, Allen put up over 30 points as the highest-scoring player from this game.

Sean McDermott and Co. threw the ball over 30 times, with Allen nearly topping 300 yards through the air. His three touchdowns through the air and one on the ground showed once again why he was so high on fantasy radars in most drafts this year — Allen’s multi-faceted, dual-threat approach makes him the best quarterback in fantasy football this year, and it’s not all that close.

Fantasy Football: Will Cooper Kupp get any help?

It’s early, but Kupp was about the only weapon Matthew Stafford could rely on against Buffalo.

Kupp proved that his elite 2021 numbers were not a fluke, as he caught 13 passes for 128 yards and a touchdown — good for over 30 points in most ESPN PPR leagues. Kupp was selected in the first round of most drafts, and for good reason. But without a foundation around him, or a solid No. 2 threat, he’ll receive even more attention as the season goes along.

Maybe the Rams should give OBJ another call.

Fantasy Football: Where art thou, Cam Akers?

I’m not going to sit here and pretend I know what McVay’s plans for the Rams backfield are, but…shouldn’t Akers factor in somewhere?

Going into the season, most prognosticators figured Akers to be the top runner in the Los Angeles backfield. On Thursday, he had three carries for zero yards, and didn’t score a single fantasy point.

Fantasy owners were not pleased, and for good reason. Perhaps we misjudged the running back conundrum in LA all along.