Welcome back to weekly Start/Sit Hub! So far, we have seen the defending champion Eagles take down the Cowboys 24-20 and the Chiefs losing to the Chargers in an upset by a score of 27-21. Strong performances in those games by Justin Herbert, Jalen Hurts, Patrick Mahomes, Quentin Johnston, Hollywood Brown, Javonte Williams, and CeeDee Lamb. Next week we get a TNF matchup between the Commanders and the Packers.
Some of the games I am looking forward to watching this weekend include Buccaneers/Falcons, the Lions/Packers, and the Ravens/Bills.Baker and the Bucs against Bijan and the Falcons, Goff and the Lions against Love and the Packers, and a juicy matchup between Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen. Get your popcorn ready. Enjoy your football weekend and good luck getting your first win of the season.
START OF THE WEEK
Start – Nico Collins – Nico Collins is one of my favorite players this season of fantasy football. The Rams aren’t the best matchup for him, but he is almost matchup proof. CJ Stroud targets him often and he hardly ever disappoints. He will be the focal part of the offense and for good reason. Fire him up with ease.
Cardinals @ Saints
Start – Marvin Harrison Jr – Marvin Harrison Jr should be in for a good week 1. Well, most Cardinals are when facing the Saints if they are resembling last year’s defense. Harrison doesn’t have to worry about Marshon Lattimore since he went to Washington. Could see a big game for Marvin, along with Connor and McBride.
Sit – Chris Olave – Olave is coming off a bad season for the Saints where he only played 8 games and totaled 1 TD after having back-to-back seasons with over 1000 receiving yards. He is talented, but my issue here is the QBs for the Saints. Spencer Rattler does not impress me and neither do the 2 QBs behind him in the depth chart. I think the Saints will rely heavily on Alvin Kamara, and it doesn’t help Olave that he has competition for targets with Brandin Cooks and Rashid Shaheed.
Dolphins @ Colts
Start – De’Von Achane – I think Achane should get a big workload against the Colts. He ran for 77 yards against them last season and it’s no shock that Tua has struggled with their passing game and well, Tuas health in general. When Tua struggles, he loves to hand it off or even throw it to Achane. Could be a 2 TD type of game for De’Von as long as he stays healthy.
Sit – Daniel Jones – Jones is finally on a new team, so that means he will be better, right? I don’t see it. Jones needs to channel his inner Jlen Hurts or Lamar Jackson and run wild in order to be fantasy relevant. He has some decent playmakers like Pittman, Downs, and Warren, but there’s no way to trust him, especially week 1.
Raiders @ Patriots
Start – Drake Maye – Drake Maye sophomore season is loading. He gets a week 1 matchup at home against the Raiders. Drake is mobile and has shown he is capable of winning and can air it out as well. If Maye can run effectively and get Stefon Diggs and Hunter Henry involved a lot, he should be in line for a good performance.
Sit – Rhamondre Stevenson – Stevenson is RB1 for the Patriots but there has been so much buzz over Treveyon Henderson that I wouldn’t feel comfortable with Rhamondre starting on my fantasy team. Raiders aren’t a very difficult matchup, but his workload has a big question mark to start the season.
Steelers @ Jets
Start – Jaylen Warren – Steelers love to run the ball, and this game has the makings of a low scoring battle. Aaron Rodgers also likes to hand it off and utilize his RBs in the pass game. You could make the same argument for Kaleb Johnson, but for now going with the experience and depth chart. We know Jets have a better pass defense than rush defense too.
Sit – Breece Hall – Breece Hall will have to deal with the Steelers rushing defense along with his mobile QB taking carries from him. That and Halls backup from Braelon Allen who has a promising future and has been digging into Halls playing time since all of last season.
Giants @ Commanders
Start – Jayden Daniels – Don’t have to say much here, amazing fantasy QB at home against the Giants?? Start without hesitation and witness some incredible football. The addition of Deebo Samuel is only going to give Daniels more options.
Sit – Russell Wilson – Russell Wilson is in the same category as Aaron Rodgers to me, which is experienced but not even a little tempting. He has Malik Nabers to possibly make him look great, but other than that I don’t see Wilson excelling behind his O line. He has a lot to prove so playing well here could be a literal game changer. He should not be starting for your fantasy team.
Panthers @ Jaguars
Start – Brian Thomas Jr – I am very high on Brian Thomas Jr. Last season he showed his greatness and the link with Trevor Lawrence seems smooth and inevitable. Yes, the Jags now have Travis Hunter but make no mistake Thomas Jr is the WR1 and will look to improve on his stellar 1200-yard rookie season that included 10 receiving TDs. Panther’s defense is not a big concern here.
Sit – Tank Bigsby – Picking Tank here but not super confident about the decision. He is still behind Travis Etienne on the depth chart and is less involved in the pass game. Sit at your own risk. Only takes 1 big run and he had more carries than Etienne last season. If you need to start a Jaguar RB it’s a coin toss, with Etienne more involved in the pass game but Tank more involved in the run game. Tank has more TD upside as well.
Bengals @ Browns
Start – Chase Brown – Chase Brown is in an offense that everyone should be fearing. Joe Burrow loves to air it out and that includes Brown. Brown has nearly 1400 total yards last season with a total of 11 TDs. Bengals can’t throw it every down, but either way Brown is most likely going to be involved.
Sit – Dylan Sampson – The Browns backfield is a question still waiting to be answered but for now we know week 1 should have both Sampson and Jerome Ford as the featured Cleveland RBs. Quinshon Judkins just finally signed a deal with the Browns making next week and weeks going forward even more diverse. Staying away from sampson until proven he is fantasy relevant.
Buccaneers @ Falcons
Start – Emeka Egbuka – Egbuka was a monster in college and now gets to play alongside Mike Evans with Baker Mayfield tossing him the rock. Without Chris Godwin, Egbuka is expected to be WR2 in an explosive offense. Sky is the limit with him.
Sit – Rachaad White – White is backing up Bucky Irving who doesn’t seem like he will be losing any depth chart battles anytime soon. White would only be fantasy relevant if Bucky got hurt, but unless that happens, he should be benched if he is owned.
49ers @ Seahawks
Start – Kenneth Walker – Walker played in both games last season against the 49ers, and he scored a rushing TD in both of those games. Walker is a great runner, and the 49ers defense hasn’t been the powerhouse defensive unit we are used to. Walker is at home and should be in line to get a hefty workload on the ground with upside of a TD.
Sit – Sam Darnold – Darnold is in a new offense and is playing the 49ers to start the season. This could be terrible, great, or average and until we see this offense I am going to stay away. Darnold had an epic season last year, but I need to know it wasn’t a one season wonder.
Titans @ Broncos
Start – Courtland Sutton – Broncos are a team on the up and gets a Titans team in Denver for week 1. I don’t expect a close game, especially with Bo nix and Sutton connecting. The offense is looking good with vets and rookies, and this year should be exciting. I’m expecting a good number of targets for Sutton against a bottom of the barrel Titans team with no expectations.
Sit – Cam Ward – Cam has yet to play in a regular season NFL game but was drafted #1 overall and will start for the Titans. I’m expecting him to struggle in this offense with his best targets being Calvin Ridley and Tyler Lockett. Broncos have a great defense as well so Cam might get a rude awakening to the start of his career.
Lions @ Packers
Start – Jared Goff – The good news is that the Packers secondary isn’t great, and also that Goff has more weapons on offense than he’s ever had. Bad news is that the game is in Green Bay and also the Packers should have Micah Parsons suited up for his first Packers game. Avoid Parsons and he should be fine. He beat them twice last season with 4 total TDs.
Sit – Tucker Kraft – Kraft is a sleeper on the season for me but week 1 he might still be asleep. Lions only allowed 3 TDs to TEs last season, so this is a upward battle. 1 of those 3 TE TDs that the Lions gave up last season was to Kraft, so anything is possible in week 1. I’d rather target a different TE unless there is not a top 10 TE available.
Texans @ Rams
Start – Nico Collins – SEE START OF THE WEEK TOP OF PAGE
Sit – Tyler Higbee – Higbee is hopefully not someone you’re considering starting in fantasy, but if you are, know Stafford has been nursing injuries and both Davante Adams and Cooper Kupp should get the majority of targets from Stafford.
Ravens @ Bills
Start – Josh Allen – Another pick that doesn’t need explanation. Allen is a top 3 fantasy QB and for good reason. He will hurt you on the ground and through the air. Helps that they will be in Buffalo and he already showed in the AFC divisional playoffs last season against Baltimore that he can lead them to victory and get a cool 2 rushing TDs in the process. Always fire up a healthy Allen.
Sit – DeAndre Hopkins – Hopkins is new to the Baltimore Ravens this season after having a rather quiet couple of seasons in KC and Tennessee. I want to see how much he is used in an already star-studded offense with Derrick Henry, Lamar Jckson, Rashod Bateman, Mark Andrews, and Zay Flowers.
Vikings @ Bears
Start – DJ Moore – DJ is the Bears WR1 in an offense that is supposed to be better in the passing game this season and that starts week 1. DJ played the Vikings last year and went over 100 receiving yards and a TD in 1 of the 2 matchups. He also had his best games rushing the ball against the Vikings so there may be some of that. DJ is a big play guy and hopefully Caleb Williams targets him often.
Sit – JJ McCarthy – JJ is another question mark having not seen him play with this offense in the regular season. It helps to have Justin Jefferson on your side, but other than that I have no expectations. Wait and see with him for me.