NFL Week 1 Fantasy Football Game Recap: Miami Dolphins vs. Los Angeles Chargers

• Tyreek Hill: 11 receptions, 215 yards, 2 touchdowns

• Austin Ekeler: 16 carries, 117 yards, 1 touchdown; 4 receptions, 47 receiving yards

Raheem Mostert leads the Dolphins' backfield: Mostert played roughly three-quarters of the Dolphins' offensive snaps.

• Mostert ran the ball 10 times for 37 yards and a touchdown and caught two passes for 13 yards.
• Jeff Wilson Jr. is on injured reserve and will miss at least the next two games, while De’Von Achane was a surprise inactive.
• Achane will hopefully be able to work his way into the 46-man active roster sooner rather than later, but his NFL career has not started well.
• Mostert could score more fantasy points in the next two games if the Dolphins don’t abandon the run game and throw so much.

Durham Smythe plays every offensive snap: The Dolphins tight end was more involved in Miami’s offense than last year.

• Smythe caught three of his seven targets for 44 yards, marking the second-best single-game yardage total of his career. 
• He was the Dolphins' starting tight end last season but was used primarily as a blocker.
• Before today's game, he had only three multi-catch games in his career.
• It is hard to believe that he will continue to be as big a factor once the running backs get more involved, but it’s at least a situation worth monitoring.

Quentin Johnston’s quiet debut: Johnston caught two of his three targets for 9 yards as the Chargers' fourth wide receiver.

• Based on the preseason, Johnston was the clear fourth wide receiver on the depth chart, as Joshua Palmer sat out with the starters in every preseason game.
• In Week 1, 20 of Johnston’s 22 snaps came in 11 personnel, where he took snaps away from Mike Williams and Joshua Palmer.
• Williams missed significant time in the second quarter while he was being evaluated for a head injury, but he returned in the second half — so, Johnston might have played only 10-15 snaps had Williams not missed time.
• The Chargers ran two plays out of 10 personnel, which is something we could see more of going forward.
• The only bright note for Johnston is Palmer was only targeted once, where he caught a 4-yard pass.
• It’s far too early to give up on Johnston’s fantasy value for 2023, but this isn’t an ideal start.

Don’t start Gerald Everett: The Chargers have changed how they are using their tight ends under new offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.

• The Chargers used to have a three-man committee, with Everett almost always playing on passing downs. This year, it’s more of a duo with Gerald Everett and Donald Parham Jr.
• Instead of Everett being the receiving tight end and Parham the blocking tight end, the two are being used interchangeably.
• Everett’s total percentage of snaps is similar to last season, but his 25 run blocks were more than any game last season, while his 25 pass routes were lower than average.
• Part of that was simply the Chargers running the ball a lot, but the percentages also weren’t in Everett’s favor.
• Everett caught two passes for 21 yards, while Parham caught three for 21 yards and a touchdown.
• Because the two tight ends are used interchangeably, it’s possible Parham cuts even further into Everett’s playing time going forward.

Miscellaneous Notes

• The Dolphins wide receiver rotation was exactly as expected. Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill were the starters, with River Cracraft and Erik Ezukanma getting significant playing time when either needed a break. 
• Braxton Berrios didn’t play in 21 or 22 personnel but played 34-of-35 snaps in 11 personnel.
• Austin Ekeler had a clear lead in offensive snaps in the first half, playing 24 of a possible 35 snaps. The main reason the snaps for the backs were so close was the high number of total plays. The snap split is not a concern for his fantasy value.

Table Notes

• Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, including offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.

• Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.

• Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.