NFL Bold Predictions: AFC East Week 3

Welcome to Week 3. The AFC East is currently (and again) a division of haves (Bills) and have-nots (Patriots, Jets, and Dolphins). With two intradivision matchups this week, there’s a lot of shakeup that can happen. Will we end up with more parity in the division or yet more separation? 

Let’s dig into this week’s bold predictions for the AFC East.

James Cook is going to have a monster week for the Bills

While Josh Allen is still the star in Buffalo, James Cook is quickly emerging as the other integral piece of their offense. He’s coming off a 132-yard rushing effort against the Jets, and will now face a Dolphins defense that ranks bottom 10 in the league in both rushing and receiving yards allowed. Cook should be able to contribute in both areas, and I’m going to put him down for 100-plus rushing yards while also topping 40 receiving yards this week.

Josh Allen will have another quiet game this week

Allen didn’t have to do much in the Bills’ sleepwalk over the Jets last week, and I don’t think this week will be much different. The Dolphins are circling the drain after a 0-2 start, and the Bills will likely be able to rely upon their running game again. While I still think Allen will throw for 200-plus yards and add another 25-30 yards on the ground, there’s a very low probability that the Bills will need to air things out much against the Dolphins.

The Dolphins will stay within a touchdown of the Bills

I don’t know if this qualifies as a “bold” take since I’m not picking them to win, but the Dolphins have been bad enough that I think saying they’ll lose by less than seven points in Buffalo qualifies as bold. Especially considering the spread is upward of 12 points in some places. Miami has allowed 33 points in each of the games they’ve played this year, so they’ll probably need to score upward of 24 points if they want to make me look good here. 

De’Von Achane will top 150 combined yards

Achane has been the Dolphins most consistent player on offense thus far, and should be able to take advantage of a Bills defense that allowed a monster game to Derrick Henry two weeks ago. Achane has two receiving touchdowns on the season, and I think we’ll see something like 80 rushing yards and 75 receiving yards from the all-purpose back on Thursday Night Football. 

New England start 2-1 for the first time since 2020

No one feels bad for them, but it’s been a long five years for Patriots fans. The last time they started 2-1 was during the 2020 Covid season when Cam Newton was their starting quarterback. This is no layup against the Steelers, but Pittsburgh looked very beatable in both of their games, while the Patriots looked much-improved in their win against Miami.

Drake Maye will be a top-5 fantasy quarterback again this week

Drake Maye was a top-5 fantasy quarterback in Week 2 and is now QB8 on the season. He’ll take on a Steelers defense this week that gave up 48 rushing yards to Justin Fields in Week 1 and has given up the eighth-most passing yards in the league this season. Maye will be able to utilize both his arm and legs this week to again finish as a top-5 fantasy quarterback. 

Breece Hall will be a Week 3 fantasy dud

Breece Hall looked really good in his Week 1 performance against the Steelers, but was unable to do much in Week 2 against a Bills run defense that looked like Swiss cheese against the Ravens in Week 1. Hall averaged 2.9 yards per carry against the Bills last week and only saw 12 touches in the entire game. While it’s promising that Hall still looks locked in as the Jets RB1, he’s still a very risky fantasy start this week. 

Garrett Wilson will be another Week 3 fantasy dud 

Garrett Wilson might have the worst quarterback luck of any young wide receiver in the league. He’s had to suffer through the Zach Wilson era, the Aaron Rodgers era, and is now stuck in the Justin Fields/Tyrod Taylor era. While Taylor went 7-of-11 while filling in for the injured Fields last week, he only threw for 56 yards. That type of dink-and-dunk offense is not going to translate well for Wilson in terms of fantasy output, and his managers are playing with fire if they start him this week.