Week 2 had some huge performances, wild comebacks, and disappointing players. Our Fantasy Football Start ‘Em Sit ‘Em Week 3 will help you figure out who to consider starting in this slate, and what players to avoid.
Injuries also had a big impact, which makes the waiver wire doubly important.
Here are our Fantasy Football Start ‘Em Sit ‘Em Week 3 picks.
QUARTERBACKS
Start ‘Em
Jameis Winston (New Orleans Saints) – On the surface, the Panthers’ pass defense looks like one to avoid as they have been the third stingiest in the league allowing just 150 yards per game. However, if you are afraid to start Winston because of this, don’t be. Carolina has faced off with Jacoby Brissett and Daniel Jones, both of whom are terrible and their weapons aren’t much better. Look for Jameis and company to beat up on a bad Panthers team this week.
Jared Goff (Detroit Lions) – Goff currently sits sixth in the league with six TDs, just one behind a small group who have seven. This week he takes on the Vikings who put up no resistance against the Eagles on Monday night. Coming off a short week, and having to contend with Amon Ra St. Brown and D’Andre Swift won’t bode well for their porous defense. Goff should capitalize and put up a nice stat line against the league’s 29th-ranked pass defense.
Sit ‘Em
Tom Brady (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) – Brady just missed the cut for this article last week and he should have been in it. He just doesn’t have any of his weapons. Mike Evans is suspended and both Chris Godwin and Julio Jones are limited at best. Combine that with the fact that the Packers put up little resistance against the run and Leonard Fournette will likely just pound them into submission while Brady manages the game.
Aaron Rodgers (Green Bay Packers) – Rodgers is going to struggle to move the ball against a tough Bucs defense with what he currently has to work with. This is going to be a low-scoring game with a lot of short drives for the Packers and clock-running drives from the Bucs. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Green Bay doesn’t manage to score 20 points in this game. After two games Rodgers is tied for 23rd in pass attempts with Marcus Mariota and Lamar Jackson, 20th in yards, and has a TD-INT ratio of 2-1.
RUNNING BACKS
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Darrell Henderson (Las Angeles Rams) – Henderson managers were worried about Cam Akers coming in and stealing touches from Henderson and it happened last week. It may have been a blessing in disguise because Akers looked horrible. Despite out-carrying Henderson 15-10, Akers managed a measly 2.9 yards per carry while Henderson both outgained him and scored the touchdown. It’s hard to imagine a competent coach like Sean McVay watching that film and giving more touches to Akers again.
Dameon Pierce (Houston Texans) – After a scary Week 1 when Rex Burkhead dominated the Texans’ backfield, Pierce saw all 15 running back carries and had one target to Burkhead’s three. It appears Pierce should be the clear-cut RB1 moving forward. This week he takes on Chicago whose rush defense has been the worst in the league by 20 yards per game. This should be the breakout game we’ve been waiting for all summer.
Sit ‘Em
A.J. Dillion (Green Bay Packers) – The Packers also aren’t going to be able to run the ball against the Bucs because no one can. The only player on the team worth starting is Aaron Jones because he should see the majority of the dump-offs. Both backs will see up and down games and this sets up to be a down game for Dillion.
Cordarrelle Patterson (Atlanta Falcons) – Week 1 appears to be an aberration for Patterson’s usage thanks to an early injury to Damien Williams. Last week Patterson and rookie Tyler Allgeier both saw 10 carries and Patterson didn’t catch his only target. Without heavy utilization in the passing attack, Patterson is a low-floor start with limited upside. Until something changes with his situation you should leave him on your bench.
WIDE RECEIVERS
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Jahan Dotson (Washington Commanders) – Through two games Dotson now has 10 targets and three TDs. Carson Wentz is airing it out and while it’s not always pretty for the Commanders it’s great for fantasy. With Darius Slay likely locked on Terry McLaurin, Dotson could see the largest target share of his young career in this game.
Garrett Wilson (New York Jets) – Wilson’s 14 targets in Week 2 gave him 22 on the year as he went for over 100 yards and two TDs against the Browns. Joe Flacco now leads the league in pass attempts with 103 and no one else is particularly close. Flacco is hyper-targeting Wilson and as long as he’s under center the volume should be there for the rookie wideout who’s looking like his talent is living up to his draft capital.
Jakobi Meyers (New England Patriots) – It’s time to plug Meyers into PPR lineups. He has separated himself as the top target in New England coming off a 13-target outing. This week he gets the Ravens’ defense which was absolutely torched by the Dolphins. Granted, Tua Tagovailoa is much better than Mac Jones and Meyers is neither Tyreek Hill nor Jaylen Waddle. Nonetheless, even if the Pats can muster up half of what Miami did Meyers should be a great start in PPR leagues this week.
Sit ‘Em
Terry McLaurin (Washington Commanders) – Watching Darius Slay dominate Justin Jefferson on Monday night should be enough to scare you off of Carson Wentz’s top target. With Slay shadowing McLaurin this week it’s hard to have any faith in him. Especially when other viable options have emerged in this offense. If you have another option this week go with it and avoid this matchup.
Amari Cooper (Cleveland Browns) – Cooper had a good week but don’t buy into it and think it’s safe to plug him into your lineup against the Steelers. Jacoby Brissett is still a disaster and this is a pass-attack that should be avoided if at all possible. Even without T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh’s defense is infinitely better than the Jets. Don’t chase the points. Leave Cooper on your bench this week.
Adam Theilen (Minnesota Vikings) – Theilen looks like he may be washed. He had a few catches in garbage time to make his terrible performance look less terrible, but he wasn’t involved in this offense for the majority of the game. His numbers weren’t great and they look much better than the film. He also isn’t getting the red-zone looks. It would be a surprise if by season’s end he’s looked at as anything more than bye-week filler.
TIGHT ENDS
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Logan Thomas (Washington Commanders) – Thomas has 11 targets after two weeks and a TD. He is a major part of this offense and gets an Eagles defense this week which is susceptible to the tight end. They aren’t particularly strong in the middle of the field and just gave up seven catches for 64 yards and a score to Vikings tight ends on Monday night. Wentz is throwing the ball a ton and Thomas should see more than five targets in this one. With poor tight-end play throughout fantasy this year, that’s about as much as you can ask for.
Irv Smith (Minnesota Vikings) – Smith looked impressive on Monday night after pulling a no-show in Week 1. He caught five of his eight targets for 36 yards and a touchdown. However, he could have had a much bigger night as he beat the defense down the sideline but dropped what would have been a 60-plus-yard TD catch. While that’s not ideal it does give you an idea of how high his ceiling may be.
Sit ‘Em
T.J. Hockenson (Detroit Lions) – Despite consistently seeing targets, Hockenson just doesn’t produce. He’s clearly not what he was expected to be. He’s turned 14 targets into 64 touchdown-less yards. You may have to start him because options are limited at the position. However, this is the official notice that he is not an every-week must-start. If you can trade him based on his name you should. He’s no different from any other guy on the wire that you add and hope he catches one in the end zone.
Tyler Higbee (Las Angeles Rams) – The tight end is the only position the Cardinals can cover in the passing attack. They have the personnel to stop a mediocre talent like Higbee. We are telling you this because it currently looks like you should start every tight end against the Cards. After all, they’ve faced Travis Kelce and Darren Waller so far this season. Higbee is not Kelce or Waller.
