Happy Thursday and welcome back to my weekly Start/Sit HUB! Mike here, providing you with information that can help you win your fantasy league week in and week out. For all things fantasy football, follow me on Twitter (@FantasyHubbard).
Its week 17 and some of you are in your fantasy championship game, some are still fighting, and some seasons are a forgone conclusion. Regardless of your record, hopefully you have something to play for whether it be prizes or simply pride. Keep going you got this. We get a TNF matchup between the Jets and the Browns. The game is being played in Cleveland who have won their last 4 home games and are quickly becoming playoff noise relevant. Browns are favored by 7.5 with an over/under of 36.5. My prediction is a 31-17 win for Cleveland at home.
I’m here every week during the fantasy football season and playoffs with start and sit suggestions that can impact your team each week. My decisions as always include obvious and not so obvious picks. I would also like to clarify that my sit suggestions are based on the assumption you have or can add a player that has a better chance at success. Good luck this week and continue to check out my weekly articles.
This week we have just the 1 Saturday game to start the weekend so make sure your lineups are set appropriately.
TNF START/SIT
Browns @ Jets
Start – Amari Cooper – Cooper is on an insane hot streak after an unheard of 265 receiving yard performance in week 16 where he scored 2 receiving TDs. He set season highs in receptions, targets, receiving yards, and receiving TDs. Amari has a history of huge performances but 265 is a career high for him at this point in his career and a new franchise single game record. Cooper will most likely be shadowed by Sauce Gardner, but you can’t bench him, especially if he’s helped you get to this point in fantasy. Coop has 3 TDs in his last 2 games with 374 yards. David Njoku and Jerome Ford are also Browns I like here.
Sit – Trevor Siemian – Although you probably don’t own Trevor, this is your reminder that there is good reason for that. He has thrown more INTs than TDs in his limited action this season. He found a way to escape the Commanders with a victory, but the Browns defense is a different animal. They have excelled this season and should give Siemian a lot of trouble this week.
Lions @ Cowboys (SATURDAY)
Start – Dak Prescott – Dak may have lost to Miami this past week, but he looked like he was back on track. He threw 2 TDs to go along with 253 passing yards and 25 rushing yards. Lions have excelled against RBs but have struggled to defend the pass. Dak should have the greenlight to tee off on Detroit at home and throw a few TDs. The Cowboys and Lions are both making the playoffs so it’s all about positioning now so I think Dak will be giving his best. Lamb and Ferguson strong plays as well.
Sit – Tony Pollard – Tony hasn’t been bad this year, but he is well short of what was expected of him after a dominant year last season with Dallas. Weeks 1-3 and weeks 11-13 seem to be his best performances, but other than that he has struggled. This week he has to play the Lions who have been fantastic defending opposing RBs. I know the Cowboys are at home, but I think they will be throwing a lot in this game. Lions defense has allowed the lowest amount of rushing yards to RBs this season with 884. Pollard is just outside my top 20 RBs this week.
SUNDAY GAMES
Cardinals @ Eagles
Start – D’Andre Swift – This may be the best matchup and opportunity for Swift to pop off. We saw him top 300 rushing yards with the combination of week 2 and 3 so we know what he is capable of. Given the carries I believe Swift could dominate here. He has 38 carries in his last 2 games and Philadelphia is finding success on the ground. Hurts and Swift should combine for a ton of rushing yards and rushing TDs. Arizona has allowed 14 rushing TDs and 8 receiving TDs to RBs this season so I’m sure Swift is licking his lips for this game.
Sit – Arizona WRs – The Cardinals are hurting at WR, especially with Marquise Brown now on IR. Trey McBride has been a bright spot on the offense but he isn’t a WR. Greg Dortch, Rondale Moore, and Michael Wilson are the top WR options, and they all feel like boom or bust options. Philly usually allows a lot of garbage time to pass catchers late in the game, but it’s not something I would rely on for fantasy points in a crucial week like this week.
Patriots @ Bills
Start – Ezekiel Elliot – At first, I thought Zeke is going to get plugged up quick and rushing won’t be his best day taking on the currently hot Bills team. Then I thought he might get a chance to score, but even that seems unlikely here. Then I checked the game log and took a look at his receiving stats. In his last 4 games played Zeke has at least 4 catches in each game. In fact, the last 4 weeks Zeke has averaged over 6 catches per game, over 7 targets per game, and averages over 40 yards receiving. He has scored 2 receiving TDs in his last 3 games. Patriots are going to have to throw in this game and Zeke seems to be a huge beneficiary of that.
Sit – Dalton Kincaid – Kincaid was playing well mid-season and looked to become a top TE fantasy option. Dawson Knox returned from injury and even though he didn’t play too well either, Kincaid has been on the struggle bus since his BYE week in week 13. Since the BYE he has a total of 12 targets, 6 receptions, and 28 receiving yards. He has not scored or even hit 50 receiving yards since week 10. Patriots like to shut down opposing TEs as well.
Dolphins @ Ravens
Start – Lamar Jackson – Lamar is playing great football; he is the leader in MVP odds and his team is currently set up as the #1 seed in the AFC. He will burn you by taking off and running or he can burn you with the fake and throw it over the top. Losing Mark Andrews earlier this season was a big blow, but it seems to have only made Lamar tougher and stronger. Jackson feels matchup proof at the moment and no matter what Miami tries to stop, Lamar will be ready to do the opposite.
Sit – Tua Tagovailoa – Tua has certainly taken his foot off the petal since opening the season guns blazing. Recently Tua has been average. He is getting passing yards, but TDs are the big moneymakers in fantasy. He has 2 TD passes in his last 3 games. Not going to cut it, especially having to play against a big contender in Baltimore this week.
Falcons @ Bears
Start – DJ Moore – Taking a stab at Moore this week despite the not ideal matchup with Atlanta’s defense this season. Moore was more injured than not in his last game, but he is not on any injury report and should be good to go to face the Falcons. Moore is the best pass catcher for Justin Fields, and we have seen what they can do together. If Moore can get some wiggle room, I expect a big game.
Sit – Khalil Herbert – Yes Herbert had a good game in week 16 rushing for 112 yards and scored a TD. That was without Foreman and Foreman is set to play again this week. Not to mention the matchup is less than ideal facing the Falcons rush defense. Too many RBs on a team with Justin Fields who is a rushing QB so I’m thinking Herbert doesn’t get the volume or production you’re looking for this week.
Raiders @ Colts
Start – Zamir White – Josh Jacobs is doubtful to play which usually means he will not play, and White will be RB1 for Vegas come Sunday. What a great matchup for Zamir who is poised to play well like he did last week. He ran all over Kansas City in week 16 accounting for 145 rushing yards on 22 carries. He had 17 carries the week prior and scored a TD. White is in a great position to not only get a hefty workload, but to utilize his chances and rack up a lot of rushing yards.
Sit – Gardner Minshew – Minshew mania feels like a past time because he has not shown that dominant factor we have seen in seasons past when he is given opportunity. Vegas’ defense shouldn’t have too much of a problem with Minshew. I think Jonathan Taylor will be the focal point in this game for the Colts offense.
Panthers @ Jaguars
Start – Evan Engram – Engram is in a good spot here playing the Panthers. Carolina has been making opponents air it out to beat them lately so CJ Beathard will have Engram and Ridley as his top 2 targets. His stats have been amazing for a TE over the past 4 weeks. In 3 of his 4 games, he last played he has 9+ targets and 9+ receptions in each of those 3. He has 3 TDs in his last 4 games and is closing in on 100 receptions for the season.
Sit – Carolina DST – I don’t think this was an option for you, or at least I hope it isn’t. Carolina allows the 3rd most points per game this season with an average of over 25 points allowed.
Titans @ Texans
Start – CJ Stroud – Welcome back Stroud. The rookie QB hasn’t played in a game since leaving week 14, meaning he has missed 2 entire games. Stroud is going to want to get back to airing it out a lot if needed to and with 8 wins they are very much alive in the playoff race. He should have all of his weapons with the exception of Tank Dell. Top 10 QB for me this week.
Sit – DeAndre Hopkins – Hopkins can be a target hog and can catch almost anything thrown in his vicinity. Problem here is the Titans offense. The matchup with Houston is not terrible nor amazing, but we saw it already a couple weeks ago and it wasn’t good for DHop. Hopkins caught just 2 of 9 targets when they faced off in week 15 for 21 yards and followed that up last week with 2 receptions on 4 targets for 20 yards. Back-to-back disappointing games, and this time Houston is the home team. I don’t like the Titans offense this week.
Rams @ Giants
Start – Matthew Stafford – The Rams are in the fight for playoff contention, and it should show in this game. Rams have everything they need to beat up on the Giants and make it clear they aren’t going down easy. Stafford has been elite throwing multiple TDs in 5 consecutive games, and he has 4 consecutive without throwing an INT. I like Stafford, his pass catchers, and Kyren Williams a lot this week.
Sit – NYG WRs – Giants passing attack is what I’m trying to avoid here. Rams defense isn’t too scary when it comes to throwing on them, but regardless of Tyrod Taylor or Tommy DeVito behind center, no WRs appeal to me. Saquon Barkley and Darren Waller are the only Giants I’m considering starting in any way or format.
Saints @ Buccaneers
Start – Mike Evans – Evans I starting to feel like a robot the way he is so consistent year in and year out. The Tampa Bay Buc has 13 TDs this season which leads all pass catchers in the NFL including Tyreek Hill who has 12. Evans has scored 10 TDs in his last 10 games including 2 multi-TD games. This game has shootout written all over it so Evans is sure to be a focal point in this one. If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it. Evans is far from Broke even at his age in football years.
Sit – Alvin Kamara – Hurts me to put such a star on the bench in such a crucial time, so I don’t blame you if you ignore this, but I’ll give you my reasoning. Kamara just played an elite rushing defense in the Rams, and he was limited to 19 rushing yards and 16 receiving yards. He faces yet another top rushing defense in the Bucs this week, so I don’t expect Kamara to have a lot of success.
49ers @ Commanders
Start – George Kittle – SF is almost 2 TD favorites in this game which can be good but also bad for Kittle. Luckily, he is coming off an excellent game (him, not the team). Kittle went for 126 receiving yards in a sloppy game by Brock Purdy against the Ravens. Kittle is closing in on 1000 yards this season and he has 6 TDs. Washington gives up the most points to opponents so this might get ugly very quickly.
Sit – Antonio Gibson – Gibson got into the end zone last week in a loss to the Jets which was definitely needed for anyone who started him in fantasy. Gibson is usually more of a pass catching threat and with a healthy Brian Robinson around I think Antonio will not have a ton of opportunity. Garbage time is the only time for him I can see.
Steelers @ Seahawks
Start – Najee Harris – Great spot for Najee this week taking on the Seahawks who are toward the bottom of defenses taking on RBs. Najee is coming off a 19-carry game resulting in 78 rushing yards and a score. He hadn’t scored since week 10 but now is fresh from the end zone. If Harris gets the touches, he should be able to progress through this poor run defense.
Sit – Zach Charbonnet – I’m not very high on both Charbonnet and Kenneth Walker this week, but clearly KW3 is the superior option if healthy. Zach is not used in this offense enough to be considered a starter unless Walker were to miss the game. The Steelers defense is going to want to create a lot of pressure up front starting with TJ Watt.
Bengals @ Chiefs
Start – Rashee Rice – The Chiefs may have been slacking lately but you can’t blame the rookie, Rice. Rashee has 9+ targets now in each of his last 5 games. Within those 5 games Rice scored 3 TDs and averaged 78 yards per game. Worth noting that Rice was targeted by far the most with 40 over the last 4 weeks and the next best was Kelce with 29.
Sit – Jake Browning – Browning has another tough defense to face this week in the Chiefs. He just took on Pittsburgh and it didn’t go well for Jake. He snapped the Bengals 3 game win streak and tossed 3 INTs. Since he started playing in week 11, he has 8 TD passes and 6 INTs. Chiefs have been bad lately, but I think they will be able to take care of Browning at home in a pivotal matchup to help playoff implications.
Chargers @ Broncos
Start – Austin Ekeler – Its crazy how fast a player can go from a sit spot to a start spot one week after the other. Never thought it would be Ekeler but I’m happy to report he is in a good spot facing the Broncos this week. Denver loves to allow opposing RBs to go off and with the Chargers changes in coaching they should lean on Ekeler a lot this week. He had 86 total yards last week which will hopefully be surpassed this week.
Sit – LA Chargers – Chargers defense is giving up nearly 25 points per game this season and has allowed anywhere from 20 to 51 points against them in 6 of their last 7. Not worth it no matter who is playing them or where. This game is ugly on paper.
Packers @ Vikings
Start – KJ Osborn – KJ is coming off a great performance against Detroit scoring a TD and gained 95 receiving yards. There is a chance Jordan Addison doesn’t play or is limited in this game, so they are the 2 pass catchers opposite of Justin Jefferson. Green Bay’s defense is middle of the pack, but when they played back in week 8, KJ had his previous best game of the season when he caught 8 of his 10 targets for 99 receiving yards. Jaren Hall is expected to start at QB, so he has options this week to throw to while playing at home.
Sit – Alexander Mattison – Just not worth the headache here. Ty Chandler is quickly becoming the go to back in Minnesota leaving Mattison not too much to work with. Mattison will need a lot of carries in this game to be relevant for me. Should be a good and fun game, just maybe not for the RB.