TGIF! Welcome back to my start/sit HUB and congrats on a fantasy season that is wrapping up. Hope you have been successful and/or are having fun and learning more about fantasy football. We have reached the championship week for most leagues and a lot of leagues hold consolation games as well. Keep fighting. I hope you all have a fun and safe New Year and what better way to kick off 2023 than with a Sunday full of football. Mike Hubbard Jr 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). You can tweet me or message me with any questions you might have regarding the fantasy football season.
Last night was the final Thursday Night Football game of the season. We saw the Cowboys play the Titans. Both teams were without players including Derrick Henry for the Titans and Tony Pollard for the Cowboys. The Titans kept it close in the first half, but the Cowboys still wound up with the 14-point win by a score of 27-13. Dak threw 2 INTs and lost a fumble, but his 2 TD passes to Schultz and 100 yards to Ceedee Lamb made all the difference. The Cowboys week 18 game is against the Commanders in Washington while the Titans face the Jags in the final regular season game for each team with everything on the line. Winner goes to the playoffs and loser goes home. That should be a fun one assuming everyone is healthy.
The week 17 games I’m most interested in and will follow most closely are the Dolphins/Patriots, the Panthers/Bucs, the Jets/Seahawks, the Vikings/Packers, and the Steelers/Ravens. Playoffs on the line in every one of those games so we will see who can step up and who will not.
I’m here every week during the fantasy football season including 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.
START OF THE WEEK
Start – George Kittle – Kittle and the red-hot 49ers get to face the depleted Raiders. Kittle has caught 10 of his 13 targets over his last 2 games for 213 yards and 4 receiving TDs. Those stats are a huge chunk of QB Purdy’s passing completions making their chemistry continue to grow. Raiders have played decently defending the TE position if you exclude the 4 TD Kelce game. I think Kittle is the closest to Kelce talentwise at TE this season that they have seen this season. Can’t exclude Zach Ertz who caught 8 passes for 75 yards against them early in the season. Raiders have Kittle this week and Kelce again next week and I don’t think they will be able to contain either TE or either offense really.
Saints @ Eagles
Start – DeVonta Smith – The former Alabama Heisman trophy winner is having a season to remember in just his 2nd year in the NFL. He has surpassed 1,000 receiving yards and has now scored 7 TDs. Both Smith and AJ Brown are having great seasons for the Eagles and especially of late. DeVonta has been targeted 8+ times in each of his last 7 games. Smith has scored 4 TDs in his last 4 games and has eclipsed the century mark for receiving yards 3 out of his last 4 games. Hurts and now even Minshew have clicked well with DeVonta, and I see that continuing this week against the Saints in Philly. Win and the Eagles clinch the #1 seed in the NFC giving them a BYE in the playoffs. If Marshon Lattimore plays, he will most likely cover AJ Brown freeing up more space and opportunity for Smith to catch and run with his speed and allusivity.
Sit – Chris Olave – It’s hard to put a team’s best current WR on the bench in such a pivotal fantasy week, but his health is an issue, and his matchup is not ideal. Olave missed his last game due to a hamstring injury and is currently questionable for Sunday. The Eagles have shut down corners so it would be a difficult matchup even with full health. I expect a lot of Alvin Kamara in this game but I’m not high on any Saints.
Cardinals @ Falcons
Start – Drake London – London has been on fire in his last 3 games. He has 32 targets, 20 receptions, and 261 receiving yards. He has more than double Olamide Zacchaeus’ targets who is 2nd to him over the last 4 weeks. No other pass catcher is remotely close to London lately for the Falcons. The Cardinal’s defense has allowed 3 different players to reach 60 receiving yards in their last 2 games. London is playing at home and regardless of game flow he is clearly the only pass catcher getting attention from Atlanta QBs making him a solid play this week.
Sit – Cordarrelle Patterson – Patterson has been average at best lately. Tyler Allgeier is stealing the show and stealing the carries. Cordarrelle has been irrelevant in the pass game this season not being able to topple 20 receiving yards in any game. On Christmas Eve Patterson rushed 8 times for 17 yards and caught a pass for 14 more yards. He has had less carries in just 1 game this year and the 17 rushing yards is his season low. Even with a juicy matchup against the Cardinals I’m benching Patterson and starting Allgeier over him.
Bears @ Lions
Start – Jared Goff – The Lions are on the cusp of a playoff berth and if they are going to make it happen it will have to be with great play from QB Jared Goff. Goff has just 1 turnover in his last 7 games and that was a lost fumble in his last game. In those 7 games Goff has thrown 12 passing TDs and led his team to 5 victories. Jared gets to play the Bears in Detroit this weekend which should bode well for Goff and the Lions offense. Chicago has allowed 487 passing yards, 102 rushing yards, 2 passing TDs, and 3 rushing TDs in just their last 2 games combined. Amon-Ra St Brown is a star at WR for Detroit, but Goff also has great RBs to target and DJ Chark has emerged as a viable WR lately. Goff should have a good game and lead his team to a win over Justin Fields after losing to Carolina by 2 TDs.
Sit – David Montgomery – Don’t get me wrong, I like Montgomery a lot just not this week. He is perfectly capable of breaking tackles, gaining yards, and finding the end zone. He is in my sit spot due to matchup and possible game flow. If the Lions score a bunch like they have been able to do this season, Chicago will be forced to throw down field. Not many options for Fields to air it out to so I’m expecting a big rushing game for Justin Fields. Fields will have to run wild to keep them in the game as the Lions try to shut down the run game. Carolina absolutely embarrassed Detroit by running up and down the field all game so it would be strange for them to allow the same to occur with Montgomery. Khalil Herbert has returned to playing although he shouldn’t cut much time away from Montgomery.
Broncos @ Chiefs
Start – Isiah Pacheco – Pacheco has double digit carries in 7 consecutive games. In those 7 games he has averaged around 75 rushing yards per game. Despite only having 8 receptions in his last 5 games, he is averaging almost 20 receiving yards per game and over 12 yards per reception. Broncos are borderline terrible and have struggled to score this season and might do so again this week despite the Chiefs subpar defense. If KC can jump to a lead, I believe Pacheco will get more exposure in the run game. The Broncos allowed Cam Akers of the Rams to rush for 118 yards and scored 3 rushing TDs just days ago. KC is favored by almost 2 full TDs. Would be nice to see Pacheco rush for a TD this week.
Sit – Latavius Murray – Murray had 1 great game recently sandwiched in between 2 dud performances. His great game was week 15 when he ran all over Arizona. The games around that he had 8 carries in each game yet couldn’t reach 35 rushing yards in either. 1 of those 2 dud performances was week 14 when he took on the Chiefs first time around. Chiefs only won by 6 points but I’m assuming they win by more this time around, especially playing in KC. Murrays lackluster performance dwindles my hope for him in this game.
Dolphins @ Patriots
Start – Tyreek Hill – The Cheetah is 2nd to only Justin Jefferson in receiving yards this season out of the entire NFL. Tyreek put up 94 receiving yards against the Patriots way back in week 1 which almost set the tone for him moving forward with his new team. Tua is currently in concussion protocol (again) giving us the possibility of Teddy Bridgewater at QB for this game. This game has huge playoff implications and I’m sure Hill will want to be playing after the regular season. Hill is an obvious start this week no matter who is throwing to him. Both Tua and Teddy have good chemistry with Tyreek when either of them are playing. I like him to hit the century mark in receiving yards this week like he has already done 7 times this season.
Sit – Mike Gesicki – Looking at his ownership makes me think you probably don’t have this guy on your team, especially if you are fighting for a championship this week. Regardless, Gesicki has been missing for nearly 2 months. Missing from fantasy relevance. Since week 9 Mike has 9 total targets, 4 receptions, and 60 receiving yards. That’s a decent game for most TEs, but he reached those stats over a 7-game span. He is not worth owning or playing. Don’t get cute, bench/drop him.
Colts @ Giants
Start – Daniel Jones – Jones has been a nice surprise for most of this season, at least in fantasy aspects. He gets the Colts defense this week at home. The Colts allowed Jalen Hurts to rush for 83 yards and a TD in week 11, then in week 13 and 15 (week 14 BYE) they allowed a total of 7 passing TDs. Jones gets a lot of his fantasy appeal due to his rushing abilities. Jalen Hurts is the only clear dual threat QB the Colts have faced this season and Hurts excelled. Jones has the 5th most rushing yards by a QB in the NFL with 617 rushing yards to this point. Expect a lot of Saquon Barkley rushes and receptions, but other than that Jones has the ability to take off and he has been clicking with his receivers Slayton, James, and Hodgins.
Sit – Deon Jackson – I’m not going to lie; I expected Jackson to have a bigger role in the offense last game. He didn’t have a single rush attempt in the game and caught all 3 of his targets but for just 9 total yards. Zach Moss is the only RB you should have any confidence in for the Colts. The offense looked just terrible on MNF. Nick Foles was supposed to provide a spark to the offense, but it only seemed to spark the opponent’s defense. Colts have scored over 21+ points just 1 time in their last 9 games and that was their biggest comeback in NFL history loss. I’m steering clear of almost every Colt.
Panthers @ Buccaneers
Start – Leonard Fournette – Fournette came to life last week carrying the football 20 times for 72 yards and added 90 receiving yards catching 9 of 10 targets. Fournette is always a threat to catch and run, but the 20 carries are very encouraging since he hadn’t even had 15 or more since week 6. In the first meeting between these teams Leonard had just 19 rushing yards and 7 receiving yards. This is another do or die game for Brady and the Bucs, so I think Lenny comes out more aggressive and easily surpasses his forgettable first matchup stats.
Sit – Rachaad White – I obviously like Fournette a lot more than White in this game. Rachaad has 15+ rushing attempts just 1 time all season and that was in week 10. White is also involved in the pass game like Fournette, but Leonard has 25 more targets, 23 more receptions, and 236 more receiving yards than White this season. The Carolina defense was up to the challenge stopping Tampa’s RBs in their matchup earlier this season so I’m rolling with Lenny as he usually gets hot this time of year.
Browns @ Commanders
Start – Brian Robinson – Robinson Jr has held his own since becoming the definitive RB1 for Washington. The 3rd round draft pick from Alabama has anywhere from 15-26 carries in all but 4 games out of the 11 games he has played in. The Browns have allowed 64+ rushing yards to a RB in every game since their week 9 BYE. As long as Washington doesn’t abandon the run game Robinson should have a great outing at home.
Sit – Terry McLaurin – It’s a tough decision to put scary Terry in my sit spot this week knowing he is a great talented WR. The problem here is that the Commanders have decided to go with Carson Wentz this week. Big mistake? Time will tell. When Wentz is behind center Terry get a significantly less target share compared to when Heinicke plays. Wentz started the first 6 games of the season for Washington and in those games, McLaurin had 3 or less receptions in half of them, just 1 total TD, and averaged a little over 60 receiving yards per game. Curtis Samuel could make a splash with Wentz playing since they connected a lot early in the season. In fact, Samuel was the leader in targets in all of the Commander’s games that Wentz started.
Jaguars @ Texans
Start – Evan Engram – Evan Engram has been solid lately and not just for a TE, but for any pass catcher. 33 targets in his last 3 games and totaled 337 receiving yards and 2 TDs. Jags have won 3 in a row and are in the playoff hunt. In the last 4 weeks Engram leads Jacksonville in targets, receptions, and receiving yards. Only Zay Jones has more TDs in that time period mostly due to his crazy 3 TD game in their week 15 comeback victory over Dallas. I’m riding Engram until the wheels fall off and this is championship week for most fantasy leagues so he could certainly help you get that championship W.
Sit – Marvin Jones Jr – Jones Jr is my pick in the sit spot this week because of the lack of exposure and opportunity compared to others. Jones is stuck in the mix with Kirk, Engram, and Zay Jones. Trevor Lawrence has been slinging it and looking great lately, but that hasn’t translated into peak Marvin Jones Jr. Jones Jr is having one of his worst seasons statistically, and he has just 2 games with 5+ receptions all season. His best game of the year did come against Houston back in week 5, but the Texans have been surprisingly solid against opposing WRs this season and let’s not forget this game doesn’t mean much to the Jags as their playoff hopes lye on their week 18 matchup with Tennessee.
49ers @ Raiders
Start – George Kittle – SEE START OF THE WEEK TOP OF PAGE
Sit – Raiders DST – Was going to put Derek Carr in this spot but the Raiders beat me to it and benched him. Therefore, I’m going with the Raiders DST because I think Davante Adams talent still gives me a good shot at production. Josh Jacobs might be in trouble here too facing the 49ers stout defense. Raiders will need to run to win which is a tall mountain to climb. I think the 49ers handle business here putting up 24+ points on Vegas and not giving the Raiders defense much to work with.
Jets @ Seahawks
Start – Garrett Wilson – Ok Jets fans you get Mike White back at QB in time to face Seattle while sitting on the bubble currently not in the playoffs. Wilson is 4 yards short of 1,000 receiving yards for the season so far. White and Wilson have a solid connection and both teams will be fighting for their post season dreams to come true. If the Jets are going to turn their losing streak around this week it will have a lot to do with whether Wilson has a big game or not.
Sit – Geno Smith – Geno has had an incredible comeback season to rejuvenate his career. This week he will face the Jets defense. Jets may have lost their last 4 games but 3 of them were 1 score games. Mike White will be back to attempt to lead his team to victory as they are favored which gives the defense all the more juice to shut down Geno. He will have Metcalf ready, but Lockett is still up in the air. Geno is outside my top 15 QBs this week making him a sit spot in a crucial fantasy week.
Vikings @ Packers
Start – Aaron Rodgers – Aaron Rodgers smells blood and he is going to attack. The NFC allowed the packers to stay alive and they might end up regretting that if Rodgers can get hot and sneak into the playoffs. Vikings played Packers all the way back in week 1. Packers are in a different place now and Rodgers and starting to gel with his pass catchers. They are playing in Green Bay and the Vikings defense is giving up almost 25 points per game this season. Rodgers says relax and start him.
Sit – Adam Thielen – Going with Adam here due to his inconsistency and TD dependency in fantasy. Thielen caught just 1 ball for 6 yards on 5 targets in Vikings narrow win over the Giants. Thielen may have caught 3 TDs in his last 5 games, but he has under 50 receiving yards in 5 of his last 7 games. Green Bay has more on the line here and will be trying to shut down the Vikings offense as much as they can. Jefferson and Hockenson have been getting the bulk of work on the receiving side of the offense.
Rams @ Chargers
Start – Cam Akers – Akers has been on fire lately being the focal point of the Rams offense. He has double digit carries in 5 of his last 6 games including 23 on Christmas day. Akers is putting on a show scoring 6 rushing TDs in his last 4 games and of course 3 came on Christmas day as well. Chargers defense isn’t very intimidating to opposing RBs as they have allowed RBs to reach 100+ rushing yards 8 times.
Sit – Joshua Palmer – Palmer has dropped down the totem pole slightly now that the Chargers top WRs Keenan Allen and Mike Williams are both healthy and back to producing. Even TE Garret is getting more involved, and you always have to account for Ekeler to rush and receive all game long. Lots of mouths to feed in LA and Palmer hasn’t eclipsed 60 receiving yards or have a TD in any of his last 5 games.
Steelers @ Ravens
Start – Pat Freiermuth – Pat caught 3 passes for 33 yards and a TD back in their first meeting just a few weeks ago. Difference this game is that he has Pickett throwing to him for hopefully the full game. Could be somewhat of a revenge game for Pickett as he will most likely try to beat them through the air unless Najee Harris can get it going early. I think as always this will be a low scoring field goal type of game but if Steelers get in the red zone, I know Pat will be a big reliable body to target.
Sit – JK Dobbins – I know what you’re thinking, why sit Dobbins when he roasted them for 120 rushing yards and a score just weeks ago. Well Since the Ravens ran all over Pittsburgh, the Steelers have tightened their defense up defending the run. Last week they held the Raiders to 10 points and Josh Jacobs had only 44 rushing yards. The Week prior to that the Steelers allowed the Panthers only 21 rushing yards total. Just 21! The Steelers defense is ready for this showdown, now let’s hope the offense follows suit.