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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Alex Sutton

Top fantasy football picks for Cardinals-Chiefs in Week 1

The NFL season is officially underway following Thursday’s blowout win by the Buffalo Bills over the defending world champion Los Angeles Rams

One of the premier matchups for Sunday’s slate of games is the Kansas City Chiefs and the Arizona Cardinals, as it is the No. 1 game on CBS with Jim Nantz and Tony Romo.

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It is expected by many to be a high-scoring game, making it a good game to make fantasy football picks.

With that in mind, which Cardinals players should you target to start in your fantasy football league to kick off the season? Read on.

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WR Hollywood Brown

(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Marquise “Hollywood” Brown is the lone star player added to the Cardinals roster this offseason.

While the team primarily looked to keep their core intact, adding Brown was crucial with the suspension of DeAndre Hopkins.

Brown will likely see loads of targets in this game as it is expected to be a shootout. The Chiefs cornerback room, while serviceable, doesn’t have the speed to keep up with Hollywood.

Look for a few deep shots dialed up for Brown, which of course have the potential to lead to loads of points. Last season, Hollywood posted six catches for 113 yards and a touchdown against the Chiefs.

 

TE Zach Ertz

(AP Photo/Darryl Webb)

While the Hollywood Brown pick is more of an obvious one, Zach Ertz may be on quite a few benches at this point in the season. He shouldn’t be.

Ertz is projected to play in spite of a calf injury that limited him the past few weeks. The Cardinals do have other options at tight end, including Maxx Williams and Trey McBride, but Ertz is the clear No. 1.

Last season, Ertz had 56 receptions with the Cardinals and didn’t join the team until October. He immediately developed a rapport with Kyler Murray.

Given the Cards’ injuries at the wide receiver position, look for Ertz to receive plenty of targets.

WR A.J. Green

 (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Green had an under-the-radar season last year. While it was unfortunately overshadowed by a game-losing mistake against the Packers on TNF, he did have over 800 receiving yards and his 15.7-yard per-catch average was the highest in his career since his rookie season.

The former Bengals superstar was excellent in one-on-one contested catches last year. Look for Kyler Murray to target him a few times in the endzone, particularly against the blitz-happy Chiefs defense.

If you’re in a league with more than ten people, Green might be a viable option with touchdown potential.

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