By Dave Moore (@davieremixed)
Without doubt, the biggest head scratcher of a fantasy football player is deciding who to start in their line-up each week. There is nothing worse than leaving a game on your bench and spending the entirety of the next week dwelling in hindsight.
Whether you’re in 1 league or 100 leagues, setting your line-ups is the most crucial part of your fantasy week and we’re here to let you know which players are in the best environments to boom and which are most likely destined to bust.
Don’t forget to keep your #EyesPeeled for tomorrow’s podcast where we dive into a full preview of the weekend games and make sure you head over to Twitter (@F10YFantasy) for “Start ‘em, sit ‘em, GIF ‘EM!”.
Spoiler alert: I still don’t like the Cowboys.
Sunday Late Games
Matchup: Miami Dolphins @ Denver Broncos
Start of the Game
Jakeem Grant – Wide Receiver – Miami Dolphins
He’s not the WR1 by any stretch but with Preston Williams out of the picture for Miami, I like Grant to build on his improving season after impressing on Special Teams. He went 4/43/1 against the Chargers which isn’t life changing but this Broncos team could be checked out for the season and I like this pick as a WR3/Flex choice.
Other Notable Starts
Miami Dolphins – N/A
Denver Broncos – N/A
Sit of the Game
Phillip Lindsay – Running Back – Denver Broncos
My hopes for Lindsay making himself the RB1 in Denver have faded as quickly as Denver’s AFC Wildcard ambitions did after their early bye week. Lindsay gained two total yards on four carries against the Raiders and it isn’t like the game was out of hand early so they had to abandon the run. It was 6-10 at the half! Sit him. Trade him. Cut him. Do not start him.
Other Notable Sits
Miami Dolphins – Durham Smythe – Tight End
Denver Broncos – Tim Patrick – Wide Receiver
Matchup: New York Jets @ Los Angeles Chargers
Start of the Game
Jalen Guyton – Wide Receiver – Los Angeles Chargers
If the Jets have anything to say about this game then the Chargers will not be able to Charger this up. The Jets seem pretty hopeless in most areas so let’s go with a WR3 who saw more targets than Mike Williams against the Dolphins in Jalen Guyton. There’s a chance you’ve got him stashed in your Taxi squad for Dynasty leagues. He’s had several single-digit Fantasy scores this year but against a bad Jets team, I fancy him to end with a line like the one he had in Week 7 against the Jags (2/84/1)…Maybe a lower YPC though!
Other Notable Starts
New York Jets – Denzel Mims – Wide Receiver
Los Angeles Chargers – Justin Herbert – Quarterback
Sit of the Game
Breshad Perriman – Wide Receiver – New York Jets
Whilst Jalen Guyton’s WR2 performance last week gets the proverbial juices flowing, not all cats are skinned the same and I am talking about Breshad Perriman here. Yes, a 5/101/2 game against The (Crumbling) Evil Empire is impressive but for me to believe in a Jets player for Fantasy from here on in I am going to have to see back-to-back performances of good calibre. I’m not a Perri-fan but go out there and prove me wrong, Breshad.
Other Notable Sits
New York Jets – Frank Gore – Running Back
Los Angeles Chargers – N/A
Matchup: Green Bay Packers @ Indianapolis Colts
Start of the Game
Nyheim Hines – Running Back – Indianapolis Colts
Did we see the changing of the guard in Indy? After Marlon Mack goes down for the season, the opportunity is bestowed upon rookie Jonathan Taylor to get out there and do his thing but he’s not taken that chance. As much was proved last Thursday when Nyheim Hines turned in another quality performance with a pair of scores and 100+ scrimmage yards. Against a Packers team who are terrible against the run I like this matchup a lot.
Other Notable Starts
Green Bay Packers – Allen Lazard – Wide Receiver
Indianapolis Colts – N/A
Sit of the Game
Mo Alie-Cox – Tight End – Indianapolis Colts
Nothing personal Big MAC. I promise. As bad as the Packers are against the run in Fantasy, their Fantasy D against Tight Ends? Stands for Dynamite. They’ve given up just one TD to a Tight End this year, tied for 2nd. The only team who have given up zero? The Colts. Back to Mo, he’s not turned in a big day in Fantasy since September against…You guessed it. The Jets.
Other Notable Sits
Green Bay Packers – Robert Tonyan – Tight End
Indianapolis Colts – N/A
Matchup: Dallas Cowboys @ Minnesota Vikings
Start of the Game
Kirk Cousins – Quarterback – Minnesota Vikings
I’ll step aboard Kirk the Crooner’s (if you know, you know and can’t unsee it) bandwagon for a game and say that he’s going to be a bigger impact here than he was against the Bears. Dallas is average in terms of the points they allow to QBs in Fantasy and I just feel like there’s more to come this year from Cousins with Thielen and Jefferson at his disposal.
Other Notable Starts
Dallas Cowboys – Amari Cooper – Wide Receiver
Minnesota Vikings – Justin Jefferson – Wide Receiver
Sit of the Game
Andy Dalton – Quarterback – Dallas Cowboys
I really agonised over this pick. The temptation is there to put Zeke as my Sit of the Game but I’ll give him one more chance! Just one! However, with Andy Dalton doing little to inspire confidence before getting hurt a few weeks ago I don’t trust him to do much more than be barely above average so if you’ve got Josh Allen or another QB on a bye week and you’re feeling a bit funky…Don’t do it.
Other Notable Starts
Dallas Cowboys – Michael Gallup – Wide Receiver
Minnesota Vikings – N/A
Sunday Night Football
Matchup: Kansas City Chiefs @ Las Vegas Raiders
Start of the Game
Clyde Edwards-Helaire – Running Back – Kansas City Chiefs
CEH perhaps hasn’t lit the world on fire as some would’ve hoped after his Week 1 opening salvo against the Texans but it’s important to remember that he’s playing in a pass-first Chiefs team. However, with the majority of the Raiders defensive line landing on the Covid list this week there’s a great deal of uncertainty heading into this game which I see as a fine opportunity for CEH to put up a Texans/Bills-style performance (ripping off over 100 yards on the ground both times). Eyes peeled!
Other Notable Starts
Kansas City Chiefs – Demarcus Robinson – Wide Receiver
Las Vegas Raiders – N/A
Sit of the Game
Nelson Agholor – Wide Receiver – Las Vegas Raiders
Back in Week 5, Agholor hauled in a score and 67 yards against the Chiefs but I don’t fancy him to have such good fortunes this time around. With the success the Raiders had against the Broncos I expect them to return to that well again fancy a Chiefs D that doesn’t defend the run particularly well.
Other Notable Sits
Kansas City Chiefs – N/A
Las Vegas Raiders – N/A
Monday Night Football
Matchup: Los Angeles Rams @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Start of the Game
Leonard Fournette – Running Back – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
A tough one this week in Primetime in terms of finding the guy but I do like Leonard Fournette to be given an absolute ton of carries to try and wear down this Rams pass-rush and also protect Tom Brady from being lit up by said Aaron Donald & Co. Ronald Jones II was the lead back for the Bucs last week but I prefer Fournette’s style of running in this matchup and I firmly believe he’s a goer in PPR, also.
Other Notable Starts
Los Angeles Rams – N/A
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – N/A
Sit of the Game
Jared Goff – Quarterback – Los Angeles Rams
This game could be an absolute classic but not for those of us picking who to Start/Sit. This guy shouldn’t be starting in many matchups but just to reiterate. Sit Jared Goff. The Rams style of play does not a winning Fantasy team make. Goff’s record this year sees him breaking the 17 point mark three times. This is a messy one to unpick and the only loose thread I see here is the Rams QB.
Other Notable Sits
Los Angeles Rams – Darrell Henderson Jr – Running Back
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Antonio Brown – Wide Receiver, Mike Evans – Wide Receiver
For the latest on each player’s start and sit status, make sure you checkout @F10YFantasy on Twitter. Remember, keep those #EyesPeeled.