Welcome to our Friday vibes! We do a lot of Very Serious Fantasy Football Content™ here at Optimus Fantasy. We’re here to help you win in fantasy football, of course. We still do that in this piece, but we were all football fans first and foremost before we joined the fantasy football industry. So, what are we looking forward to this weekend? What storylines are we following in Week 2? Where are our heads about our favorite teams? What are we looking forward to in fantasy this weekend?

We’ll explore those burning questions and more in this column all season. From the Optimus staff to you, here are our Friday Vibes!

Friday Vibes: NFL Week 2 Storylines and 2025 Fantasy Football Outlook

Evan Sather:

I have zero faith in the Cleveland Browns’ offense being as productive against the Baltimore Ravens as they were last week against the Cincinnati Bengals. Running the football proved to be more difficult than it was worth for the Browns, so they let Joe Flacco throw the ball 45 times for 290 yards and one touchdown. In what world should we realistically expect similar production from a 41-year-old Joe Flacco with terrible pass catchers for the rest of this season? Yes, I realize everybody’s excited about Harold Fannin because he’s getting to line up in the slot and he earned nine targets. When better defenses start covering him more effectively, then what are you going to do? Cry about your low fantasy production from him? Don’t count on anybody from the Browns’ offense to be consistently useful for the rest of the fantasy season. It’s going to be tough for this team in several games.

Nate Polvogt:

I want more Justin Fields. As a known Fields stan, last week was more than I could have hoped for. He was efficient in the passing game, electric in the run game, and played mistake-free, minus taking one sack. And this wasn’t against a weak defense. This was against a Pittsburgh Mike Tomlin defense. Week 2 has the Fields and the Jets hosting the Buffalo Bills in what could end up being a shootout. The Buffalo defense couldn’t contain Lamar Jackson or Derrick Henry on Monday night – until the 4th quarter, of course – and I expect them to have similar problems with the combo of Fields and Breece Hall. Is this the week Fields and Hall establish themselves as an elite backfield pairing? I’d certainly love to see it. 

Lou Brunson:

Is…is Miami broken? That’s my big question going into the weekend. De’Von Achane, Tyreek Hill, and Jaylen Waddle were key components of many fantasy managers’ plans heading into the season. Considering the pathetic effort and the Zach Wilson appearance we saw in Week 1, I think it’s a reasonable question to ask. New England’s defense wasn’t good at all in Week 1, so there’s no reason to think they’ll be the reason Miami’s offense fails again, if they do, in Week 2. Granted, that could change if Christian Gonzalez can suit up for the game. Meanwhile, the trade rumors are already swirling around Tyreek Hill. Man, I love football!

Carly Manger:

Bryan Rockwood:

The Chicago Bears got us again. The back-to-back offseason champs came out in Week 1 looking really impressive. Caleb Williams looked sharp, the offensive line looked to be holding up against a tenacious Minnesota defense, and the Chicago defense was making JJ McCarthy’s life miserable. Things were looking up for new HC Ben Johnson and company. Of course, up until they fumbled away the game. 

I don’t get overly excited when a team with an abundance of talent fails to capitalize on a strong start. Caleb Williams and company need to show us some vast improvements against a good Detroit Lions squad. If we see more overthrows, miscues, and coaching gauffaws, I may be out on the Bears entirely until further notice. 

Mike Vadala:

By this Sunday, it will have been ten days since we saw the Eagles and Cowboys’ season opener. I’m curious to see how Dallas performs this week against the Giants. From my eye test, Dak Prescott looked very sharp on his passes in week one, and Lamb was good old Lamb, getting open with ease. Much will be made of his dropped passes.

I’m looking forward to finding out if we could see this offense get right, even facing an underrated front seven this week.