With the start of the NFL season just days away, it’s time for some fantasy football start or sit advice for three key Tennessee Titans players: running back Derrick Henry, quarterback Ryan Tannehill and receiver DeAndre Hopkins.
Tannehill is coming off an injury-plagued year that saw him struggle mightily with a poor group around him. Tennessee’s offensive line was putrid in pass protection, which led to his injury, and his receivers couldn’t get open.
Buy Titans TicketsThe Titans have since made significant changes to their offensive line and added Hopkins, who showed he is still an elite fantasy option at the wide receiver position.
While the rest of Tennessee’s offense was terrible, Henry quietly continued to produce, totaling over 1,500 rushing yards and a career-high 398 receiving yards, en route to finishing as RB4 in PPR formats.
Henry remains a weekly automatic in lineups, but should you start Hopkins and/or Tannehill in Week 1? Keep scrolling to find out.
RB Derrick Henry: Start
New year, same approach: Derrick Henry should be in your lineup every single week, as he’s one of the elite fantasy football options, regardless of position.
But there’s a little extra reason to get excited this week, with Henry facing a Saints defense that finished bottom-10 against the run in 2022. Not to mention, New Orleans has lost some key pieces on the interior.
WR DeAndre Hopkins: Start
It’s hard to fully understand how a perennially elite fantasy producer like Hopkins has been so downgraded to the point where he’s fallen so far in drafts.
Granted, he’s on a new team that likes to run the ball, but believe it or not there have been signs Tennessee might air it out a bit more this year with first-year offensive coordinator, Tim Kelly.
Some would argue that Ryan Tannehill throwing him the football is a minus, but lest they forget Hopkins has been wildly successful with quarterbacks who couldn’t shine Tannehill’s shoes.
Others will point to the fact that he’s 31 years old and on the downside of his career, but exactly where’s the evidence for that?
After all, he still scored like an elite player in 2022, ranking as WR7 during the nine games he played. And, to add to my previous point, he posted that impressive ranking despite not having Kyler Murray for five of those nine games.
And for anyone who mentions injury history, Hopkins played in 15 games or more in eight of 10 seasons.
He has missed 15 games the past two seasons, but only the games missed in 2021 were the result of injury. In 2022, Hopkins was suspended six games and missed the other two because of injury, although reports suggest he simply sat those games out and wasn’t really injured.
Hopkins has looked great in practice and he and Tannehill have developed good chemistry in their first offseason together. He’s also the top option in an offense run by his former offensive coordinator, Tim Kelly, and should see a sizeable target share.
Until we see a drop-off in production, Hopkins, who is particularly good in PPR formats, should be in lineups every week.
QB Ryan Tannehill: Sit
While I trust Tannehill himself and think he’s going to have a good year with a much-improved group around him, I don’t trust the Titans’ revamped offensive line early on in the year.
Of course, the change is welcomed after Tennessee sported arguably the worst unit in the NFL last season, but it might take time for the group to really gel and be at its best, especially in pass protection.
Until we have a better idea of where the offensive line stands, keep Tannehill on the bench.
