How Best to Cash in on Bears at Buccaneers

It was one week, as the Bears reminded all of us after their Week 1 embarrassing loss to Green Bay.

Justin Fields somehow trumped all of the post-defeat discussion with his own analysis of his play, and it should be of great interest to fantasy football owners who have him on their roster.

"I felt like I was a little bit too conservative at times during the game," Fields said. "Definitely with guys like DJ (Moore) and Chase (Claypool) on the outside, if we do have one-on-one on the outside, potentially throwing it up and seeing what happens.

"With them, they’re great playmakers and they can most likely come up with a 50-50 ball. Definitely want to give them more chances deep down the field."

Is it bombs away for Fields this week? They are playing Tampa Bay and any team that thinks it's going to stand back in the pocket and throw downfield will find five or six or even seven Buccaneers coming at their quarterback on a blitz.

Then again, a quarterback who can move and sees the blitz coming can come up with big plays downfield or with his legs.

It's going to make for an intriguing matchup and could mean big yards and fantasy points for the Bears quarterback even if Tampa Bay was able to hold the vaunted Vikings passing attack to 169 team passing yards last week.

Here's who to start and sit from the Bears and Tampa Bay game in Week 2.

Start 'Em

1. Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin

He's more likely to be over the middle and in the zone areas where Kyler Gordon had played, so he'll be going against a practice squad player, Greg Stroman, at nickel cornerback. Godwin's last game against the Bears was eight catches and 111 yards with a TD. At 6-1, 208, he's going to have a size edge on 6-foot, 182-pound Stroman and will be running plenty of slants or skinny posts to get him the ball before the linebackers can get over and after Stroman is initially beaten out of the blocks.

2. Bears QB Justin Fields

He looked like someone who decided last week he had to do it all on his own after the team fell behind, and this doesn't work for wins. However, a rout like last week's doesn't necessarily mean a decline for fantasy ball as there are always garbage time points and yards. If Fields had been diminished greatly, he wouldn't be ranked the eighth best QB choice for this week by SI's Michael Fabiano . Some big plays and plenty of catch-up points for fantasy owners could be anticipated.

3. Buccaneers WR Mike Evans

He's likely to end up with Jaylon Johnson on him a number of times and it could reduce his impact but at 6-foot-5, 231, he has a very big size edge on the veteran Bears cornerback and at some point this comes into play. As an experienced player, Evans has faced the Bears seven times and made 35 catches for 443 yards and six TDs. He averages 12.7 yards a catch. In his last four games with them he had 24 rerceptions. The only time he faced them in a base like they now run, out of the 4-3, was in 2014 when Mel Tucker was defensive coordinator and he caught a TD pass as a rookie with three receptions for 47 yards. Baker Mayfield will find him with coverage lighter than expected.

4. Bears WR DJ Moore

He has owned the Buccaneers in the past while with Carolina. Being held to two targets and two catches last week makes him a candidate for bouncing back against a team more likely to leave him without double coverage due to all the blitzing they do. Moore has owned the Tampa Bay defensive scheme with Todd Bowles as coach and if the Bears have done their homework they will realize what has worked for him. He has 53 of his 58 catches against them in eight games since Bowles was coach or defensive coordinator for 706 of his 766 yards. All three of his TD catches against Tampa Bay came against the scheme Bowles uses.

5. Bears TE Cole Kmet

Expect the Bears to go to more two-tight end formations this week, first because the back injury to Robert Tonyan Jr. apparently has healed enough he's no longer on the injury report, and also because they didn't use many last week and it was something they had anticipated doing more this year. Another reason is the tight end can be an extra blocker for passes against the myriad of Tampa blitzes or a target on screens against them. A way to really hurt a blitzing team is with extra blockers who make the blitz less likely to succeed, and on running downs an extra tight end can create a bigger hole for the back to get free on a breakaway if the blitz is on.

Sit 'Em

1. Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield

He hasn't exactly been tearing up the league while shuffling between Carolina, the Rams and now Tampa. However, in his last six starts and eight games going back to a Week 9 relief stint for the Panthers against Cincinnati, he has completed 63.89% with eight TDs, four interceptions for a passer rating of 86.5. He can do enough not to get the Buccaneers beat and let the defense work its magic like last week.

2. RB Rashaad White

Held to 3.6 yards per carry in his career so far, and with just one rushing TD for his 18 games, White doesn't appear capable of being the running threat to pile up big yards in a win. However, the 6-foot-2, 210-pounder is a bigger back capable of taking advantage of gaping holes in the Bears defensive front if they play the way they did at times against Green Bay. Being a player with so little past proof of value, White needs to do more before he can be considered someone to use in fantasy lineups.

3. RB Khalil Herbert

Already there is talk about Roschon Johnson playing a bigger role, especially because Tampa Bay blitzes and Johnson is regarded as a strong pass blocker. Also, with the Buccaneers blitzing then a back like Johnson is one who can run through an initial tackle and then have a breakaway with fewer defenders left downfield. Also, the loss of guard Nate Davis for this game can be a blow to their running attack as he is one of their better run blockers.

4. RB Roschon Johnson

He could get more playing time if they're behind early again. Also, his blocking and receiving make him a help against the Bucs' blitzes. However, his inexperience can also be a problem against an NFL team that really knows how to blitz. Too much risk is involved here yet before counting on him for fantasy points.

5. RB D'Onta Foreman

If Foreman's first game against Tampa Bay last year was an indication, he'd be a lock to produce big-time numbers. He came on in relief of Chuba Hubbard and plowed ahead for 118 yards on 15 carries, includnig a 60-yard run. He also caught two passes for 27 yards, which is definitely out of character. However, the second game went much differently as he ran for 35 yards in a start. Considering he had only nine carries last week, this can't be an option.

6. TE Cade Otton

He made only two catches for 19 yards last week against Minnesota when they really needed some receptions from someone other than Godwin and Evans, but they could have used more. And now he's going against a Bears linebacker crew which hadn't played before together and now has. Unless the Buccaneers are attacking the slot cornerback position, the middle of the field might not be a good place for them. Mayfield can be errant at times, leading to deflections and the Bears will be waiting at their landmarks in the zone for those.

Defense

The Buccaneers team defense would be a strong play after what they did to Minnesota last week, and because they're up against a team and quarterback as unproven in the passing game as the Bears and Justin Fields.

In IDP leagues, Antoine Winfield or Shaq Barrett would be good options for points. Winfield has an interception and forced fumble already from the first game and will be around the ball. Fields hasn't exactly been an accurate passer and the Buccaneers safety could be the beneficiary of some wildness. Barrett had the quarterback hits last week and is getting pressure for sacks despite coming off an Achilles tear. Anyone desperate for sacks can always look to Yannick Ngakoue. He always seems to manage a sack even in games where he doesn't do a lot more.

The Betting Window

The Line: Tampa Bay by 2 1/2 (over/under 41).

BearDigest Record to Date: 0-1 straight up, 0-1 vs. the spread, 0-1 over/under.

BearDigest Pick: Tampa Bay 24, Bears 16

Top BearDigest Weekend Plays

Tampa Bay vs. BEARS -2 1/2

Seattle +4 1/2 at Detroit

N.Y. Giants -4 at Arizona

New Orleans -3 at Carolina

Miami at New England over 46 1/2

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