I love football! We had another great week of games in Week 2, with some exciting finishes, including two overtime games. There were a lot of points scored in Week 2 compared to Week 1, so I think the offenses are starting to get rolling now. But, of course, one of the games that I thought would be high-scoring was the lowest-scoring game of the weekend in the Chiefs/Jaguars game. You just never know what is going to happen from week to week and that is why you gotta love sports! Now that Week 2 is in the books we can turn the page to Week 3 and look at who to start and sit this week.
The season can be a grind at times, from doing waiver claims to looking at rankings and then finally deciding who to start. It can seem difficult, but that is where the staff at DrRoto.com comes in to help you. We have everything you need to make the tough decisions here in one place. I will be writing this start/sit article each week to help you make the tough lineup decisions. You can also join our members-only Discord channel and ask us personal questions anytime you want on there.
Keep in mind before I get into my starts and sits this week that certain players should always be in your starting lineup. Please don’t try to get cute and sit the likes of Justin Jefferson, Christian McCaffrey or Patrick Mahomes. They are in your lineup regardless of matchups. The decisions I am here to help you with are for the players drafted in the middle to late rounds of your draft. These players could be an RB2, a flex play or might end up on the waiver wire eventually. So, let’s get started with Week 3’s starts and sits.
Week 3 Quarterback Starts
Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings vs. LA Chargers
Kirk Cousins has my top quarterback matchup of Week 3. The Chargers’ defense has given up big performances to Tua Tagovailoa and Ryan Tannehill the past two weeks. After two weeks, the Chargers defense is last in the NFL, giving up 666 total yards and 63 points this season. Cousins surprised me last week by having a nice game in primetime against a good Eagles defense on the road. Cousins completed 70.5% of his passes for 364 yards and four touchdowns. I expect this game to be a shootout and Cousins to have a big week.
Jared Goff, Detroit Lions vs. Atlanta Falcons
Write this down and store it somewhere safe for the rest of the season: Start Jared Goff when the Lions play at home. The Lions averaged over 30 points per game at home last season, and last week they scored 31 points against the Seahawks. Goff has thrown for 576 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception which is good for QB11 so far this season. If David Montgomery misses time with his thigh contusion, expect Goff to throw even more, and he will have a more dynamic playmaker in Jahmyr Gibbs starting in the backfield. The Falcons’ defense is better than expected so far this season, but they are still a work in progress, and I can see Goff having a big day against them.
Week 3 Quarterback Sits
Justin Fields, Chicago Bears at Kansas City Chiefs
Justin Fields has been struggling so far this season. Fields has completed 60.6% of his passes for 427 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. He has also only added 62 rushing yards and one touchdown so far this season. He is currently QB20 on the season. He draws another tough matchup this week on the road against the Chiefs. The Chiefs’ defense completely shut down Trevor Lawernce and the Jaguars’ offense last week, and I expect them to do the same to Fields and the Bears this week.
Daniel Jones, NY Giants at San Francisco 49ers
Daniel Jones and the Giants’ offense struggled mightily for the first six quarters of the season, and then they finally started to figure some things out in the second half last week against the Arizona Cardinals. They were able to pull out a close victory, but in the process they might have lost star running back Saquon Barkley for a few weeks with a sprained ankle. If Barkley misses time, then I believe Jones will struggle even more because he needs a strong run game to be able to work the play-action pass game. Jones so far this season has completed 63.1% of his passes for 425 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions. I expect Jones to struggle against a stout 49ers defense, so sit Jones if at all possible this week.
Week 3 Running Back Starts
Kyren Williams, LA Rams at Cincinnati Bengals
Kyren Williams is one of the biggest surprises of the season so far. He earned the Rams’ starting running back job last week after Cam Akers went back into Head Coach Sean McVay’s doghouse for not practicing hard. Williams has had a nice start to the season with 104 rushing yards, 50 receiving yards, and four touchdowns. He gets a Bengals defense that ranks 31st against the run, giving up a total of 384 rushing yards so far this season. I expect Williams to continue his hot start to the season this week.
Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions vs. Atlanta Falcons
Jahmyr Gibbs should see an expanded role for the next couple of weeks with David Montgomery out with an injury. Gibbs is an outstanding playmaker and with the expanded role we should get a chance to see if he can handle a larger workload. So far this season, Gibbs has 59 rushing yards, 57 receiving yards, and nine catches on 11 targets. He faces a Falcons defense that is ranked second against the pass, but 22nd against the run so far this season. I want to see what he can do with this expanded role and just how many touches the Lions are willing to give him this week.
Week 3 Running Back Sits
Cam Akers, LA Rams at Cincinnati Bengals
Where do I start here with Cam Akers? He got 22 carries, but for only 29 yards, and he did not receive one target in Week 1. That is an average of 1.3 yards per carry. He did manage to score a touchdown late in the game, which helped salvage his fantasy day. Then last week, Akers was a healthy inactive, just like he was in the middle of last season. It appears that he is back in Sean McVay’s doghouse and back on the trade block. I hope he gets traded somewhere soon so he can get a fresh start and hopefully a starting role again. In the meantime, he should be stashed away on benches and not started anywhere until the situation is resolved.
Dalvin Cook, NY Jets vs. New England Patriots
Dalvin Cook looked old and sluggish to start his first season in New York. So far this season, Cook has 17 carries for 40 yards, which is 2.4 yards per attempt, and four receptions for 31 yards. That is not the start to the season that Cook or the Jets were expecting from the veteran running back. Breece Hall is coming back from his torn ACL, and he should be seeing more touches than Cook moving forward. At least Hall looked explosive and made some big plays in Week 1. I would stash Cook on the bench for now.
Week 3 Wide Receiver Starts
Puka Nacua, LA Rams at Cincinnati Bengals
Puka Nacua has been setting records to start his rookie season in the NFL. He ranks as the WR2 overall in PPR scoring through the first two weeks of the season, with 25 receptions on 35 targets and 266 yards. He has not scored a touchdown yet, but I feel like that will be coming soon with the volume he is receiving to start the season. The Bengals are ranked 28th overall on defense to start the season, so he has a good matchup this week. He has filled in nicely with Cooper Kupp out with an injury to start the season, and even when Kupp returns in a couple of weeks I see Nacua with a role in the Rams’ offense. He is a must-start every week at this point.
Nico Collins, Houston Texans at Jacksonville Jaguars
Nico Collins has been excellent to start the season. Collins is the WR6 in PPR scoring with 13 receptions on 20 targets, 226 yards and one touchdown through the first two weeks of the season. Rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud has been looking Collins’ way early and often to start the season. Collins has a plus matchup this week against a Jaguars defense that ranks 25th against the pass, giving up 513 receiving yards so far this season. Collins is a must-start this week.
Week 3 Wide Receiver Sits
Odell Beckham Jr., Baltimore Ravens vs. Indianapolis Colts
OBJ is not off to a good start with his new team, and he got banged up last week as well. Head Coach John Harbaugh said Beckham should be fine to play this week, but I would not be starting him in fantasy lineups until we see him and quarterback Lamar Jackson start clicking together on the field. So far this season, Beckham has five receptions on seven targets for 66 yards, which puts him at WR80 in PPR scoring. Beckham is a sit for me until we see him getting more targets on a weekly basis.
Jaxson Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks vs. Carolina Panthers
Jaxson Smith-Njigba was being drafted way too high in Redraft leagues this season. He is the third receiver for the Seahawks behind D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. The Seahawks are also a run-heavy team, so their receivers will not see as many targets as other teams in pass-heavy offenses. Smith-Njigba is a really nice stash in Dynasty leagues as Lockett is getting older and may not be back with the team next season, but I would not be starting him in any league right now. So far on the season, he has just eight receptions on 11 targets for 47 yards. Right now, I would stash Smith-Njigba on my bench just in case Lockett or Metcalf goes down with an injury, but not put him in my lineup.
Week 3 Tight End Starts
Hunter Henry, New England Patriots at NY Jets
Hunter Henry is off to a great start this season. Quarterback Mac Jones and Henry have developed a nice chemistry so far. Through two games, Henry has 11 receptions on 13 targets for 108 yards and two touchdowns, which makes him the TE2 in PPR scoring behind only T.J. Hockenson. He does draw a tougher matchup against the Jets this week, but I would still start him because good tight ends are hard to find this season and Henry seems poised to have a great season.
Zach Ertz, Arizona Cardinals vs. Dallas Cowboys
Zach Ertz has been seeing a ton of targets to start the season from quarterback Joshua Dobbs. Ertz is getting older, so he does not have as much juice left for yards after the catch, but he is seeing a lot of targets every week. Through the first two weeks of the season, he has 12 receptions on 18 targets for 77 yards, which ranks him as the TE7 in PPR scoring so far this season. He does have a tough matchup this week against the Cowboys, but when a tight end is averaging nine targets a game it is hard to bench him, regardless of the matchup.
Week 3 Tight End Sits
Tyler Higbee, LA Rams at Cincinnati Bengals
Higbee was a sit last week against a tough 49ers defense, and that turned out to be a good call. Quarterback Matthew Stafford has not relied on him like most people thought he would with Cooper Kupp out to start the season. Higbee finished the game with three receptions on seven targets for 12 yards. Through the first two weeks of the season, he has six receptions on 10 targets for 60 yards. So, I will sit Higbee this week if a better option is available.
Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons at Detroit Lions
It hurts me to put Kyle Pitts in the sit portion of my article. I am a huge fan of Pitts as he has so much talent, but Head Coach Arthur Smith has not found a way to get him targets on a weekly basis. He should be a set-it-and-forget-it starting tight end every week in fantasy, but you can’t do that right now. Through the first two weeks of the season, Pitts has four receptions on eight targets for 50 yards, which ranks him as the TE28 in PPR scoring. Pitts is a sit for me this week, even in a good matchup against the Lions.
Week 3 Defense Starts
Dallas Cowboys Defense at Arizona Cardinals
The Dallas Cowboys’ defense is the first overall defense in total yards allowed in the NFL through the first two weeks of the season. The Cowboys also a great matchup against the Cardinals this week, which makes the Cowboys a must-start defense this week. They will be a must-start defense every week moving forward if they keep playing like they have the first two weeks of this season.
Cleveland Browns Defense vs. Tennessee Titans
This should be a low-scoring defensive matchup between the Browns and Titans, as both offenses struggle to move the ball at times. The Browns’ defense is ranked second overall in total yards against through the first two weeks of the season. If the Browns can stop the Titans’ rushing attack, then it could be a long day for Ryan Tannehill and the rest of the Titans’ offense, as the Browns have a plus-four turnover margin so far this year.
Week 3 Defense Sits
NY Giants Defense at San Fransico 49ers
The NY Giants’ defense had trouble stopping Joshua Dobbs and the Cardinals’ offense last week, and now they must travel to San Fransico on a short week to play an excellent 49ers team on Thursday Night Football. I will sit the Giants’ defense this week.
LA Chargers Defense at Minnesota Vikings
The LA Chargers’ defense has been bad through the first two weeks of the season. They are the 32nd-ranked defense in the NFL through the first two weeks of the season. They have given up 877 total yards so far this season. I am expecting this game to be a shootout, as the Vikings’ defense is also ranked in the bottom half of the league through the first two weeks of the season. I will sit the Chargers’ defense this week and probably every week this season unless they find a way to turn things around at some point.
Good luck in Week 3, everyone!
