By The Hudsonian, Joshua Hudson
So, um, yeah. That wasn’t exactly the “showdown” I was expecting. That was more like a “beat down.”
The Texans went into Foxborough as favorites, only to come out as big time losers. They lost to a 3rd-string rookie quarterback 27-0. I mention this for the mere fact that many of us were likely starting Texans running back Lamar Miller and wide receivers DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller. (I may have hyped up the latter in my Confidence Plays. I’m human people.) And what did they give us? 14.7, 9.6 and 6.1 points, respectively. Ugh.
The Texans just couldn’t get anything going. Actually, truth be told, neither team really could. Both offenses were rather stagnant. Texans QB Brock Osweiler was under pressure all game and when he had time to throw, most of his throws were off target, while others were dropped (I’m looking at you Will Fuller). Miller had no lanes to run through and Hopkins was shadowed most of the night by Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler. Patriots head coach drew up a great defensive game plan.
And the New England side, rookie signal-caller Jacoby Brissett did his best work on the ground, rushing  for 48 yards and touchdown while only throwing for 103 yards. They kept the game plan simple with a lot of dump offs, zone read runs and options. WR Julian Edelman led Patriots pass catchers with 4 catches for 38 yards and chipping in with another 12 rushing. Tight end Rob Gronkowski was active for this game, but hopefully you didn’t start him, as he registered zero catches for zero yards.
What the Patriots did get was a great game out of RB LeGarrette Blount. He paced both teams with 24.5 fantasy points (24 carries for 105 yards and 2 TDs). With a rookie under center, it’s usually a good bet to lean on the ground game. And that’s exactly what the Patriots did.
I do want to take the time to mention Patriots RB James White. He hasn’t been much of a factor in the passing game as many of us thought he might be with the absence of Dion Lewis. If you’re in a 10-team league, I think it’s safe to drop him if you have issues with depth. Now, keep in mind, I do think his value spikes with the retur
n of Brady, which does happen in Week 5. Will it be immediate? I don’t know. But with the rash of injuries at the position, it’s hard to tell people to keep someone who’s yet to provide production in favor of someone on waivers who possibly could.
Scoring Leaders
RB LeGarrette Blount – 24.5
Patriots D/ST – 22
QB Jacoby Brissett – 14.9
RB Lamar Miller – 14.7
WR DeAndre Hopkins – 9.6
WR Julian Edelman – 9.2
QB Brock Osweiler – 7.3
WR Will Fuller  – 6.1
WR Danny Amendola – 4.3
TE Martellus Bennett – 3.6
Texans D/ST – 3
RB James White – 2.4
TE Rob Gronkowski – 0