Fantasy plays: Players to start and sit for NFL Week 3

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Fantasy plays: Players to start and sit for NFL Week 3

2024-09-18 02:55 Last Updated At：03:01

It's been a roller coaster so far in the first two weeks of the NFL season.

Especially for some of the most reliable and coveted fantasy football players.

There are still plenty of solid plays to take advantage of in Week 3 though, and we’ve got them right here for you.

Start: Derek Carr, Saints vs. Eagles

Carr is off to a fast start with offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, with 443 yards and five touchdowns and one interception. His dominant performances haven’t just come against winless teams such as the Panthers. This past week, Carr threw for two TDs and ran in one against the Cowboys. He could have a big game in Week 3 against the Eagles secondary.

Other locks:

—Baker Mayfield vs Broncos

—Jared Goff vs Cardinals

—Joe Burrow vs Commanders

—Lamar Jackson at Cowboys

Avoid: Jayden Daniels, Commanders at Bengals

Daniels had 2 rushing TDs in Week 1 and finished with 44 rushing yards and failing to find the end zone in Week 2 against the Giants. Daniels will face a Bengals defense this week that is top five in defending QBs.

Start: Rhamondre Stevenson, Patriots at Jets

Stevenson is really the only thing the Patriots have going offensively, aside from Hunter Henry last week, surpassing 20 carries for the second straight week, on the way to 90 combined yards and 1 TD. In Week 3, he’ll face a Jets team that just allowed more than 100 yards rushing to the Titans.

Other locks:

—James Cook vs Jaguars

—Derrick Henry at Cowboys

—Jordan Mason at Rams

—Alvin Kamara vs Eagles

Avoid: Kyren Williams, Rams vs. 49ers

You might think Williams is in for a big game, considering all the other injuries the Rams offense has sustained over the past two weeks, but with fewer premier players to worry about, the 49ers defense can stack the box and give all of their attention to the Rams run game. And if the game gets lopsided in the 49ers’ favor, the Rams could move to Blake Corum in the backfield, as they did when the Cardinals got out to a big lead in Week 2.

Start: Ja’Marr Chase, Bengals vs. Commanders

Chase is off to a slow start, but he was on a snap count in Week 1, and he was bracketed all Week 2 with Tee Higgins absent. Even if Higgins sits this week, Chase should still be able to put up good numbers, as the Bengals will go up against the Commanders’ league-worst secondary in Week 3.

Other locks:

—Marvin Harrison Jr. vs Lions

—Nico Collins at Vikings

—Chris Godwin vs Broncos

—Brandon Aiyuk at Rams

Avoid: Drake London, Falcons vs. Chiefs

With an improved QB situation, there was hope London could put up big numbers this season. But aside from a last-minute TD against the Eagles on Monday night, London is off to a slow start. London and the Falcons passing game could struggle against the Chiefs’ top-five secondary in Week 3 on Sunday night.

George Kittle, 49ers at Rams

Kittle caught seven of his eight targets for 76 yards and a score against a stout Vikings defense in Week 2. With Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel out this week, he’ll need to be a major part of the 49ers offense again. His opponent, the Rams, are a top-10 matchup for opposing TEs, so Kittle shouldn't have a difficult time getting open.

Other locks:

—Trey McBride vs Lions

—Brock Bowers vs Panthers

—Pat Freiermuth vs Chargers

—Noah Fant vs Broncos

Avoid: Isaiah Likely, Ravens at Cowboys

Likely had a huge game in Week 1, catching 9 of 11 targets for 111 yards and a score, before catching only two passes for 26 yards in Week 2. With Mark Andrews getting four catches for 51 yards in Week 2, I want to keep Likely on the bench until we see him build some consistency.

This column was provided to The Associated Press by RosterWatch, www.rosterwatch.com.

Mozambique votes for president and the ruling party could extend its 49 years in power

2024-10-09 13:46 Last Updated At：13:50

MAPUTO, Mozambique (AP) — Mozambique is voting for a new president on Wednesday in an election that is expected to extend the ruling party's 49 years in power since the southern African nation gained independence from Portugal in 1975.

Daniel Chapo, 47, is the candidate for the ruling Front for the Liberation of Mozambique, or Frelimo, seeking to succeed President Filipe Nyusi, who has served a maximum two terms.

Analysts say the strongest challenge to Chapo and Frelimo's dominance will likely come from 50-year-old independent Venancio Mondlane.

People also will vote for the makeup of Parliament and for provincial governors in a country of some 33 million people that went through a bloody, 15-year civil war that ended in 1992, and more recently has been shaken by an ongoing violent jihadist insurgency in the north.

Ending that insurgency and bringing stability to Cabo Delgado province — where 1.3 million fled their homes and more than half remain displaced — is a pledge by both leading candidates, while poverty, youth unemployment and government corruption are top issues for voters.

"I am still selling biscuits at a vegetable market here in Maputo to take care of my two children," said 35-year-old Felicidade Simao. “My husband is unemployed and we are struggling. I want the best for my children and the winner of this election must make the dream of a better life in the future.”

Polls opened at 7 a.m. local time and vote-counting is due to start right after polls close in the one-day election. Preliminary results from some areas are expected from Thursday, and the full results must be delivered to the Constitutional Council within 15 days of polls closing to be validated and formally declared. Around 17 million people are registered to vote.

The credibility of the election will be under scrutiny, with the leftist Frelimo party accused of ballot-stuffing and falsifying results in previous votes, including last year's local elections, where it was declared the winner in 64 out of 65 municipalities.

Frelimo has consistently denied the accusations of election tampering. Teams of regional and international election observers are in Mozambique, including from the European Union.

Frelimo effectively established a one-party state following independence and fought a civil war against the Mozambique National Resistance, or Renamo, for a decade and a half. The country, where Portuguese remains the official language, held its first elections in 1994, two years after a peace agreement.

Renamo is also contesting this election, with party leader Ossufo Momade, a military commander in the civil war, its candidate for president. The former rebel group has seen its popularity wane, while the peace between Frelimo and Renamo has been fragile, with an outbreak of more fighting in 2013. Momade and outgoing leader Nyusi signed another peace deal in 2019.

But tensions remain, especially between the two political parties that were once at war with each other.

The independent Mondlane, who broke away from Renamo, has focused his campaign on young Mozambicans frustrated with poverty and unemployment. The country boasts a long coastline of picturesque beaches on the Indian Ocean, but that vulnerable area has been battered by cyclones in recent years. A drought this year in the southern African region has left more than a million Mozambicans impacted by hunger.

Meanwhile, it emerged in 2016 that government officials and others had embezzled more than $2 billion in foreign loans that were kept secret, sending the economy into a crisis from which it is still recovering.

“All Mozambicans have high hopes from the new president,” said 69-year-old Baptista Antonio, who was one of the first to vote at an elementary school in the capital, Maputo, a port city on the east coast of Africa. "I was born during the colonial era and saw many transformations of the country from wars to development and all I can say is it’s a work in progress. There are many challenges ahead.”

Mondlane was aligned with a coalition of opposition parties, but they were barred from contesting the election, which raised accusations against Frelimo of attempting to control the election. Mondlane is now supported by a new party called Podemos, which means “we can” in Portuguese.

While Mondlane, a former banker, represents a fresh challenge to Frelimo, most analysts expect the ruling party to remain in power. It was declared the winner with more than 70% of the vote in national elections five years ago.

The Pangea risk company, which provides security and investment advice on developing countries, said Chapo's election has been "carefully stage managed" by Frelimo.

Chapo worked as a radio announcer and television presenter before becoming a law professor. He was the governor of southern Inhambane province — Mozambique's flagship tourism region — but was a surprise winner of an internal party vote in May to become Frelimo's presidential candidate.

Chapo would be Mozambique's first leader born after independence if he wins.

AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa