Graphic by Dina Kats
Evan Stotsky and Jake Arkowitz
Sports Reporters
Disclaimer: Kicker and obvious starters such as Ezekiel Elliot and Julio Jones will not be included.
With fall just beginning, the NFL has picked back up, and with it, the millions of fantasy football players. Whether it is money or simply bragging rights on the line, it is essential to put your best lineup forward. For those of you who are unsure about who to play and who to bench, we are here to provide you with suggested starts and sits for the next week if you are uncertain of who to start this week.
Play:
Evan Stotsky’s Play: Quarterback- Derek Carr. Carr and the Oakland Raiders offense have quietly significantly improved from last season to be a pretty good offense this season. Carr is coming off a great performance throwing for 285 yards and three touchdowns against the Texans, and now he has a great matchup against the Detroit Lions, who allowed 322 passing yards and four passing touchdowns last week to Daniel Jones. Start Carr this week if you can.
Jake Arkowitz’s Play: Quarterback – Josh Allen (Buffalo Bills). The second-year QB has seen many ups and downs this season but comes in this Sunday against a very average Washington Redskins defense. The Redskins are beat up at the linebacker position, and they are ranked 4th worst among rushing yards allowed (137.8 yards per game). Josh Allen has found a reliable target in John Brown, who proved himself last week, and with Allen’s ability to run the ball, he is poised for a huge week on Sunday.
Evan Stotsky’s Play: Running Back- Tevin Coleman. Coleman is coming off a four-touchdown performance, and now he has a favorable matchup against the Cardinals run defense that was obliterated by the Saints last week. Arizona is giving up an absurd 130.13 rushing yards per game, so expect Coleman to have another monster game, especially with Matt Breida, Jeff Wilson, and Raheem Mostert dealing with injuries this week.
Jake Arkowitz’s Play: Running Back – Josh Jacobs (Oakland Raiders). The rookie running back has flashed his potential and explosiveness in many games this season, and I expect a breakout week from him on Sunday after a mediocre outing versus the Houston Texans. The Detroit Lions present Jacobs with an extremely favorable matchup; 420.4 total yards allowed (second-worst in the league) and 26.6 points allowed per game (sixth-worst in the league). Don’t be surprised to see Jacobs running all over this dismantled defense.
Evan Stotsky’s Play: Wide Receiver- Tyrell Williams. Williams has caught a touchdown in every game he has played this season, and now he takes on a bad Lions pass defense, allowing 289.71 passing yards and two passing touchdowns per game. Williams has seen an uptick in production this year, as he is the Raiders number one wide receiver. Williams is going to have a massive game this week against Detroit.
Jake Arkowitz’s Play: Wide Receiver – Chris Godwin (Tampa Bay Buccaneers). This elite WR exploded onto the scene this season, boasting the fifth-most receiving yards and tied with the most touchdowns in the league thus far. He faces a run-stingy defense: the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks were once known to have the best secondary in the NFL, but with departures and injuries, they have only spiraled downwards. Mike Evans poses a threat to Godwin’s targets, but it seems as if Winston likes to throw both of them the ball. Godwin has undoubtedly had a more significant red-zone presence, and I expect just that from Chris Godwin this week.
Evan Stotsky’s Play: Tight End- Evan Engram. Engram had a nice game last week on National Tight End Day, catching a touchdown. This week he plays a Dallas Cowboys defense that hasn’t been great against tight ends this season, allowing 15.0 fantasy points per game to tight ends. Engram has formed a nice connection with quarterback Daniel Jones, so expect Engram to have another great game this week.
Jake Arkowitz’s Play: Tight End – Hunter Henry (Los Angeles Chargers). Hunter Henry has only played in three full games this season due to injury. He is fresh unlike many other players who are lingering with injuries, the Chargers fired their offensive coordinator, and are dealing with running back controversy. With all that, I expect Henry to have a huge game against the Packers, who have had TE’s troubles the past two weeks ( Travis Kelce with 65 yards and a TD last week, and Darren Waller with 125 yards and two TD’s the week before).
Evan Stotsky’s Play: Defense- Buffalo Bills. The Bills defense didn’t have such a great game last week against the Eagles, but they are bound to play better against the atrocious Redskins offense that is only scoring 12.4 points per game. The Bills already have 11 takeaways this season, so expect them to increase that number this week. Start the Bills defense if you have them.
Jake Arkowitz’s Play: Defense – Carolina Panthers. Not much to be said here, the Panthers take on the offensively-horrid Titans, who have had no luck whatsoever in their passing game. Tannehill can be inconsistent at times, which Luke Keuchly and Brian Burns will for sure take advantage of. After sacking Winston 7 times and picking him off 5, I see the same production from the Panthers coming this week against the Titans.
Sit:
Evan Stotsky’s Sit: Quarterback- Kyler Murray. Murray had been on a hot streak recently, but he had a bad performance last week. Now, he has to take on a daunting opponent in the San Francisco 49ers defense that is only allowing 128.71 passing yards and 0.71 passing touchdowns per game this season. If you have another quarterback to start this week, start him as Murray is not in line for a big game.
Jake Arkowitz’s Sit: Quarterback – Carson Wentz (Philadelphia Eagles). Carson Wentz has been average this year and has dealt with a lot of WR injuries, which takes value away from him. This week he faces the Chicago Bears, who were undoubtedly the best overall defense last year. Their defense has not been as dominant, but their secondary has only gotten better with the addition of SS HaHa Clinton-Dix. They ranked tenth in passing yards allowed and sixth in total points allowed per game, so I do not see Wentz having a superb game and should be benched in most leagues.
Evan Stotsky’s Sit: Running Back- LeSean Mccoy. Mccoy had a dismal performance last week against the Packers. Don’t expect him to bounce back this week, as he takes on a dominant Minnesota Vikings run defense that is only giving up 89.38 rushing yards per game, and has only allowed one rushing touchdown the whole season. Considering Patrick Mahomes is still out, Mccoy is not a great start this week.
Jake Arkowitz’s Sit: Running Back – David Montgomery (Chicago Bears). After an outstanding performance by the rookie running back last week (135 yards and a TD), Montgomery is matched up against a hard-hitting and tough Eagles front seven. The Eagles have been average regarding the passing game, but have held running backs to an average of 90.5 yards per game (eighth in the league). While the Bears appear to trust Montgomery more, and he is the most elusive back out of this year’s draft class, I don’t see him producing much this week. If you have other borderline options this week, store Montgomery on your bench.
Evan Stotsky’s Sit: Wide Receiver- Terry McLaurin. McLaurin has cooled off since his strong start to the season. With inexperienced rookie Dwayne Haskins at quarterback, McLaurin’s numbers will dip even more than they have in the last few weeks. McLaurin also faces a Buffalo Bills defense that is only giving up 194.43 passing yards and 0.71 passing touchdowns this year. Don’t start McLaurin this week if you have another option.
Jake Arkowitz’s Sit: Wide Receiver – Golden Tate and/or Sterling Shepard (New York Giants). I am using both Giants’s WRs because it is still up in the air about Shepard’s availability, but I do not expect either WR to have a superb game. The Cowboys have seemed weak at times, but they still hold opponents to 17.7 points (seventh in the league) and only 228 passing yards per game (ninth in the league). On top of that, I see Evan Engram making a much more significant impact because of LB to TE favorability. Byron Jones has also been playing at a high level and will lock up the Giants’ number one option. Thus I would opt not to start either of these players.
Evan Stotsky’s Sit: Tight End- Mark Andrews. Obviously, if Andrews is your only tight end, you have no choice but to start him. But, if you have the luxury of having many starting-caliber tight ends, don’t play Andrews this week as he takes on the New England Patriots. The Patriots are allowing the least fantasy points per game to tight ends, only giving up 4.8 fantasy points per game. Andrews is destined for a dud this week.
Jake Arkowitz’s Sit: Tight End – Zach Ertz (Philadelphia Eagles). Yes, I know. It is impossible these days to have two elite tight ends, let alone just one. Just hear me out, Zach Ertz has a tough matchup against the Bears, who have proven themselves as a top defense in the NFL. On top of that, the Eagles other tight end, Dallas Goedert, has seen a lot more action and a lot more targets (in the red zone too). Maybe this is because Ertz is always double-teamed because he is such a threat, I don’t know, but I do know that you will not be seeing the production you expect from him this week.
Evan Stotsky’s Sit: Defense- Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars have been a solid defense the past few weeks, but now they face one of the NFL’s premier offenses in the Houston Texans. The Texans have been putting up very good numbers, averaging 395 total yards and 26.5 points per game. Find another defense to play this week instead of Jacksonville.
Jake Arkowitz’s Sit: Defense – Tennessee Titans. The Titans defense has been a bright spot for the organization, but this week they face the Carolina Panthers, home to the number one fantasy player this year so far, Christian McCaffrey. The Panthers passing game isn’t terrible, but CMC will run all over any team, no matter how good they are. Last week, CMC had 118 yards and a TD against the second-best defense in the league, the 49ers. Teams cannot seem to figure him out, and I assume the Titans will fall victim to the wrath of Christian McCaffrey. The Tennessee Titans defense is one to keep on your bench this week.
