These are 50 facts you need to know before Week 1. And what you do with them is up to you.
1. Since 2014, Matthew Stafford is averaging 3.1 more fantasy points per game at home than he is on the road (18.7 to 15.6).
2. The Lions have not had a 100-yard rusher in 68 straight games.
3. Last season, the Jets allowed the third-most QB points.
3a. Only the Giants allowed more passing touchdowns.
3b. Stafford is at home this week against the Jets.
In the past four seasons, Matthew Stafford has simply been more productive in the friendly confines of Ford Field. AP Photo/Mark LoMoglio
4. Since 2015, Tyrod Taylor leads qualified QBs (at least 650 pass attempts during that stretch) in percentage of TD passes that have come on deep throws (51 percent).
5. Last season, the Steelers allowed the sixth-most deep passing yards.
5a. They ranked below league average in deep completion percentage, deep touchdowns allowed and deep TD/INT rate.
6. Last season, Browns QB DeShone Kizer, with much less talent around him than the team has now, posted a top-10 finish in both meetings with the Steelers (QB9 and QB3, to be exact).
6a. Tyrod Taylor is a lot better than Kizer was last year.
7. No team allowed more deep completions last season than the Indianapolis Colts.
8. Their expected starting secondary this season is less experienced and, at least on paper, not as talented as last year's secondary.
8a. ... which gave up the 28th-most passing yards in the NFL.
9. The last time Andy Dalton faced the Colts, he finished as the third-best QB in fantasy that week.
10. He's available in 82 percent of leagues.
11. Last season, opponents completed 68.1 percent of passes versus Oakland last season, the second-highest rate in the NFL.
12. The Raiders allowed a league-high 4.8 TD/INT rate last season.
13. They allowed the 26th-most passing yards per game last season.
14. That was with Khalil Mack putting pressure on the QB.
14a. Mack, ahem, no longer plays for the Raiders.
15. Last season, no quarterback threw more touchdown passes on the road than Jared Goff.
16. In Week 1 of 2015, Russell Wilson was QB15, with 15.1 points.
17. In Week 1 of 2016, Wilson was QB24, with 11.9 points.
18. In Week 1 of 2017, Wilson was QB24, with 8.3 points.
19. This week, Wilson is on the road against a Denver defense that allowed the fourth-fewest passing yards in the NFL last season.
20. In Week 1 of 2015, Kirk Cousins was QB31, with 7.7 points.
21. In Week 1 of 2016, Cousins was QB28, with 10 points.
22. In Week 1 of 2017, Kirk Cousins was QB20, with 10.6 points.
23. Last season, the Vikings ran the ball at the second-highest rate in the NFL.
24. The Vikings are a 6.5-point favorite against the 49ers at most Vegas books.
25. Last season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers allowed a league-high 5.98 yards per play.
26. Alvin Kamara averaged 1.59 fantasy points per touch last season, best in the league.
27. In two games against the Bucs last season, Kamara had 280 total yards and three touchdowns.
28. He did that on just 16 and 15 touches, respectively.
28a. ... with Mark Ingram playing in both games.
28b. Ingram is suspended for the game on Sunday.
Alvin Kamara should enjoy a steady workload, which could lead to a big day against the Bucs. Jake Roth/USA TODAY Sports
29. Last season, the Bills allowed a touchdown on 82.1 percent of goal-to-go drives last season, the fourth-highest rate in the league.
30. Alex Collins scored on 40 percent of his goal-to-go carries last season.
30a. That was good for the fourth-highest rate among players who had at least 10 such carries.
31. Last season, from Week 8 onward, Collins was the eighth-best running back in fantasy.
32. In games in which he had at least 15 touches last season, Collins averaged more than 16 fantasy points per game.
32a. The Ravens are a 7.5-point favorite against the Bills.
33. There is a running back who has at least three touchdown catches in each of the past three seasons.
33a. That same RB ranked top-10 in receptions per route run last season.
33b. That same RB is playing a defense this week that allowed opponents to complete 77.9 percent of passes to RBs last season, way up from the 61.2 percent completion rate they give up to all other positions.
33c. That same RB plays with a quarterback who has, since 2015, thrown 27.8 percent more touchdown passes to RBs than any other quarterback, despite missing four games in 2016.
34. That running back's name is James White.
34a. Sony Michel is banged-up, Dion Lewis is on the Titans and White is still available in about 30 percent of leagues.
35. Last season, eight different receivers recorded at least one 40-plus-yard catch against the Colts (Taywan Taylor, Keelan Cole, Marquise Goodwin, Allen Hurns, J.J. Nelson, Marqise Lee, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Tyler Lockett).
36. As noted earlier, the Colts allowed the most deep completions in football last season.
36a. John Ross is available in 47 percent of ESPN leagues.
37. Sammy Watkins has scored single-digit fantasy points in 48 percent of his games in his career.
37a. Over the past two years, Watkins is averaging fewer than 10 points per game.
38. In fact, 44.8 percent of his career points have come via the deep pass.
38a. Opponents completed just 29.5 percent of their deep passes against the Chargers last season.
38b. That's the lowest completion percentage on deep passes since the Revis Island Jets in 2009.
39. Last season, Nelson Agholor led all pass-catchers in fantasy points from the slot.
40. With Nick Foles under center, Agholor's target share was 22.7 percent.
40a. With Carson Wentz, it was 16.2 percent.
41. The Falcons allowed the fourth-most slot touchdowns last season.
42. ... and the third-highest completion percentage when targeting the slot.
42a. Alshon Jeffery will not be playing in this game.
43. Last season, only one tight end (Travis Kelce) had more catches than Jack Doyle.
43a. That was without Andrew Luck.
43b. Luck is back.
44. During Luck's career, 23.1 percent of his completions, 21.9 percent of his passing yards and 31.8 percent of his passing touchdowns have gone to tight ends.
45. Last season, Bengals opponents completed a league-high 72.8 percent of passes to tight ends.
46. Over the past three years, only Rob Gronkowski has more touchdown catches per game among tight ends than ... Jordan Reed.
47. Reed actually leads all tight ends in catches per game during that same time frame.
48. In those past three years, no QB has targeted tight ends more than ... Alex Smith.
49. In that time frame, 29 percent of Smith's completions and touchdowns have gone to the tight end.
50. Last season, Arizona was the ninth-worst red zone defense in the NFL.
