Fantasy: Who are the locks for Week 2?

TORONTO — You can’t go wrong with the Edmonton Eskimos in TSN CFL Fantasy.

That appears to be the approach in Week 2, with Mike Reilly, Derel Walker, C.J. Gable and D’haquille Williams appearing more and more frequently on Fantasy rosters everywhere.

No surprise, then, that two of this week’s three locks on the CFL Fantasy Podcast wear the green and gold, especially with what is widely viewed as an appealing matchup against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

“I’ll go with an Eskimo for a second consecutive week, I’ll go with C.J. Gable ($7,330) this week,” said Steinberg. “I like that matchup, and I think against Hamilton we’ll see a much steadier dose of Gable against his former team. A guy that really has transformed that offence, and I think the Eskimos are going to make a really concerted push to use Gable as much as they can and to have as well-rounded an offence as they can.”

You can listen to this week’s podcast in its entirety right here.

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The Double E strategy worked in Week 1 for Hannah Nordman and Pat Steinberg, who both had big weeks thanks to Week 1-leading receiver Derel Walker ($6,534). However, neither had Mike Reilly ($14,000), who dominated the field — and all other quarterbacks — with 34.6 points.

They weren’t the only ones shying away from Reilly, whose costly price tag made him only the 17th most-picked player in the game, third among quarterbacks. But Nordman won’t make the same mistake twice.

“Last week I asked if Mike Reilly was really worth $4,000 more than the next most expensive quarterback, and in Week 1 he showed he absolutely is, with 13 points more than the next best quarterback,” said Nordman. “I’m going to splash the cash on Mike Reilly this week.”

While Nordman and Steinberg go back to the well, Krever is looking for maximum value with his lock of the week, zeroing in on Chris Williams at a far more affordable $3,798. Williams ranks 15th among projected receivers by RotoExperts this week, but the hope is that he can exceed his 12.4 projected points an deliver significant return on investment.

Williams is going up against a defence notorious for allowing big plays, and is coming off a six-catch, 98-yard performance in his first game with the Alouettes.

“What I saw from Chris Williams was very impressive,” said Krever. “This is a guy that noticably last year was not himself coming off the torn ACL. He looks like himself right now — he’s fast. I think he’s as fast as he ever was.”

Projections below powered by RotoExperts.

CFL Fantasy Podcast Week 2 Locks

Those hoping to get Mike Reilly under centre this week will need to make concessions elsewhere. Dominique Rhymes ($2,500), Mike Jones ($2,500) and Declan Cross ($2,756) are all reasonably priced and can provide the flexibility needed to spend elsewhere.

Rhymes has earned the start at boundary slotback, as he looks to fill the production of Kenny Shaw, Josh Stangby and Juron Criner, who have all departed.

“This is a big man, he’s in great shape and he’s just been waiting for his opportunity,” said Krever. “He’s not a true rookie in that he’s kind of been biding his time in that offence. They’ve got an opening there and I think Rhymes steps in and makes a big impact in that offence from start to finish this year.”

Jones had the best game of his career for the Ticats in Week 1, an effort that Steinberg believes can be duplicated in what could be a high-scoring affair with the Eskimos. The sophomore receiver had five catches for 120 yards vs. the Stamps, including a 76-yard catch-and-run.

The most improvisational pick of the week might be Cross, who’s been somewhat of a secret weapon in the Argos’ offence. Cross has scored four touchdowns in his last six games and is used as a receiver fairly frequently, a trend that could continue if Anthony Coombs is forced to miss any more time.

He had four catches, 10 yards and a touchdown in Week 1 and comes in at a low price for a running back of $2,700.

CFL Fantasy Podcast Week 2 Money Picks