We’re officially through a full month of NFL football. Isn’t that wild? It feels like the pre-season positional rankings were just being released yesterday, and yet we’re all already battling each other on the waiver wire for guys like Damien Williams, Alex Collins, and… Olamide Zaccheaus?
No matter who you’ve rostered, it’s likely been a topsy-turvy start to the year. This season, we have an extra week to contend with on top of everything, which means it’s time to start planning ahead and either consolidating assets or taking larger swings and hoping they pan out. If you’re 4-0 or 3-1, is it worth it to take two very good wide receivers and bundle them for a bonafide stud to a struggling team?
For those struggling, is it worth stashing Rashod Bateman in the hopes that he turns it around for you in the next few weeks?
Never forget, it only takes a week or two to completely turn things around, so don’t give up hope just yet – we’ll wait a few more weeks before going down with the ship!
Our weekly picks have been made with 0.5 PPR leagues in mind, with standard rosters of one quarterback, two running backs, two wide receivers, one tight end, and one RB/WR/TE FLEX spot.
QUARTERBACKS
QB Start: Joe Burrow, Bengals (vs. Packers)
Burrow has had an up-and-down year but generally speaking, he’s looked good considering he’s coming off an ACL tear in his rookie season. While the Jaguars were the team on the other side of his first 300-yard effort of 2021, he’s looked more decisive recently as the Bengals slowly increase his workload from week to week. Against a Packers defensive unit that has struggled at times this year, and with Joe Mixon nursing an injury, he’s going to be asked to throw the ball a lot, which can only be good for your fantasy team.
QB Start: Daniel Jones, Giants (@ Cowboys)
One way or another, Jones sure has appeared plenty in these articles, hasn’t he? I think he deserves one more nod after throwing his first career 400-yard game against the Saints last weekend. Now, Jones gets a date with the Cowboys. NFC East divisional games are always a bit wacky, historically speaking, but outside of star CB Trevon Diggs, the Dallas defence is allowing 315-plus passing yards per game, which is currently second-most in the NFL.
Other starter to consider: Kirk Cousins, Vikings (@ Lions)
QB Sit: Justin Fields, Bears (@ Raiders)
After the Bears’ offence put on an abysmal showing in Cleveland, it took a slight step up last weekend against Detroit – and, even then, Fields still only scored between seven and nine fantasy points depending on your league settings. Long-term, I believe that Fields is going to be a stud, so hold onto him in your dynasty leagues. But this week against the Raiders — a unit that has one of the top pass-rushes in the league — I’d sit him to see how head coach Matt Nagy deploys the offence. If there are more designed runs and more usage of Fields’ legs, we’ll all feel a lot better about starting him against Green Bay next weekend.
QB Sit: Carson Wentz, Colts (@ Ravens)
By all accounts, the two sprained ankles that Wentz suffered a few weeks ago have progressed quite a bit, and he gets the extra day of rest before Monday night’s matchup with a formidable Ravens defence. Even so, the ceiling remains pretty low with Wentz as long as his mobility is limited. Keep him on the bench (or waivers, depending on your league) for options with higher upside.
WIDE RECEIVERS
WR Start: Marvin Jones Jr., Jaguars (vs. Titans)
With D.J. Chark out long-term, Marvin Jones Jr. becomes the wide receiver to own in Jacksonville. The passing game is a work in progress down south as Trevor Lawrence adapts to the NFL game, but he’s shown enough flashes individually and enough chemistry with Jones to warrant a start against a Titans defence that has allowed the most receiving yards and touchdowns to opposing wide receivers. With Laviska Shenault getting the underneath targets, that should allow the big-play ability that Jones flashed during his days in Detroit to shine through once again.
WR Start: Corey Davis, Jets (@ Falcons in London)
In any given week, Davis is probably the lone startable Jets player. (Jamison Crowder is a distant second.) Even that is capped, however, by the ups and downs of Zach Wilson’s season so far. But the best remedy for virtually any offensive struggles is to play the Atlanta Falcons’ defence. Davis is Wilson’s biggest, fastest target, and the Falcons simply don’t have many ways to keep up with him.
Don’t forget to set your lineups early, too, as this game is in London, England and gets going at 9:30 a.m. ET on Sunday morning.
Other starter to consider: Kadarius Toney, Giants (@ Cowboys)
WR Sit: Robby Anderson, Panthers (vs. Eagles)
It’s been a rough month for Anderson owners, as Darnold’s resurgent success has not extended to his fellow former Jet. There are some bright spots – in last week’s loss to the Cowboys, Anderson commanded 11 targets — but only converted those into five catches for 46 yards. It’s possible that with Christian McCaffrey likely to still out on Sunday, Anderson will still get a larger share of the offence, but given that he’s only topped 50 yards on the season once, I’d like to see his role remain consistent before rolling him out there.
WR Sit: JuJu Smith-Schuster, Steelers (vs. Broncos)
It’s crazy to say this, considering the talent level of all three wideouts in Pittsburgh, but the lone startable receiver on a week-to-week basis is Diontae Johnson and no one else — at least not right now. JuJu has just 15 catches, 119 yards, and zero touchdowns on the entire season, is dealing with a rib injury, and also has an inconsistent Ben Roethlisberger slinging the ball. It’s best to keep him on your bench, and hope the Steelers deal him away.
RUNNING BACKS
RB Start: Damien Williams, Bears (@ Raiders)
I anticipate fielding a lot of questions about Damien Williams, as David Montgomery is tentatively set to miss four to five weeks with a knee sprain. There’s a chance that rookie Khalil Herbert is worked into the mix as well, but Williams grabbed 50 of his 70 total yards from scrimmage after Montgomery departed, so at least against the Raiders – a team that allows 4.9 yards per carry to running backs through four weeks – Williams should get the bulk of the work.
RB Start: Chuba Hubbard, Panthers (vs. Eagles)
Another backup running back start – this one, a little tougher to project considering Hubbard did actually operate like a workhorse in the early going last week until Dallas started to run away with things. Once the game became a blowout, Sam Darnold was hurling the ball on virtually every down. If you believe the Panthers’ defence, which just added star CB Stephon Gilmore, can keep pace with Jalen Hurts and the Eagles, then Hubbard is a good play against a Philadelphia defensive unit that has given up the fifth-most rushing yards in the league in 2021.
Other starter to consider: Mike Davis/Cordarelle Patterson, Falcons (vs. Jets in London)
RB Sit: Samaje Perine, Bengals (vs. Packers)
The Week Of The Backup continues, but this time I am far less bullish. I really just wanted to add Perine here because some people might see a Mixon injury and think ‘Mixon backup = fantasy production.’ Unfortunately for us all, Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan has already said that, should Mixon miss time, it’ll be a committee approach for the backfield which means Chris Evans will be worked into the mix as well. Stay away from this mess if you can.
RB Sit: Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Chiefs (vs. Bills)
This is probably the toughest sit decision in this entire article, as it’s tough to sit a guy who has topped 100 yards rushing in two straight games, including a touchdown against the Eagles last week. What’s more, the Chiefs pounded the Eagles from the get-go, so the game-script was tilted towards the running game most of the day. However, Edwards-Helaire is now facing the Bills on Sunday night, a team that ranks fourth-best in the NFL in yards per carry allowed and rushing yards per game allowed. Expect this game to be a close one, which means late-game decisions will be coming off the arm of Patrick Mahomes instead of the legs of Edwards-Helaire.
TIGHT ENDS
TE Start: Dalton Schultz, Cowboys (vs. Giants)
A few weeks ago, I said I wanted to see how things shook out for Dallas’s tight ends, and right now it seems that Schultz has the trust of Prescott over Blake Jarwin. Last week, Schultz caught six of eight targets for 58 yards and a score, which was good for 36 per cent of the overall target share — surprisingly, the highest on the team. The Cowboys are creating schemes and opportunities specifically for Schultz, and now he faces a Giants defence that has allowed at least one touchdown to opposing tight ends in every single game of 2021.
TE Start: Dallas Goedert, Eagles (@ Panthers)
I truly believe that if Goedert was used in ways like Travis Kelce, Darren Waller, and (to a lesser degree) T.J. Hockenson and Mark Andrews, he’d put up some truly astonishing numbers. As it stands, he has to compete for targets with Zach Ertz, and is also on a run-first offence, which is why he’s not an every-week fantasy starter quite yet. However, with rumblings that Ertz could be moved at the deadline, Goedert looks like Hurts’ favourite red-zone target. The Panthers, as good as they’ve been, allowed two different tight ends in Dalton Schultz and Blake Jarwin to score last week. He might be a lower-end TE1 because the Eagles are a run-first team, but at such a scarce position, you could do a lot worse.
Other starter to consider: Mike Gesicki, Dolphins (@ Buccaneers)
TE Sit: Robert Tonyan, Packers (@ Bengals)
Boy, it’s been a rough year for Tonyan. Outside of the touchdown he caught in Week 2, he has just two or fewer receptions for eight, six, and eight scoreless yards in the other three weeks that followed. If you start Tonyan, you’re essentially hoping for a dart throw of a touchdown, otherwise you’re likely going to get nothing. Keep him on the bench.
TE Sit: CJ Uzomah, Bengals (vs. Packers)
If you read this series of start/sits, you’ll probably know by now that I operate under the ‘wait and see’ line of thinking – chasing points rarely works out well for me, and I can’t imagine that you are any different. Uzomah was a wrecking ball against the Jaguars last week, posting career-high numbers in yardage and touchdown catches, but with Tee Higgins returning to the passing offence I’m just not sure you want to gamble on even half of that production despite a plus matchup against the Packers defence. If he continues to get looks from Burrow with Higgins back in the lineup, then we’ll talk.
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