Week 3 Start/Sit Advice

Thursday, Sep 22, 2022 at 8:50 pm ET

This is the Fantasy Nerd's look at the best and worst matchups for Week 3 of the 2022 NFL season. Analysis is aggregated from multiple sources including FN. Rankings are based upon PPR (point per reception) scoring. Given the known conditions, these matchups are the ones to watch and/or avoid.

Please Note: This list does not generally include the elite players that you are going to start regardless of matchup. You don't need us to tell you to start Jonathan Taylor, Travis Kelce, or Cooper Kupp. Instead, we take a look at other players on your team that we believe either have great matchups or should be avoided for multiple reasons. Factors like opposing defense, performance trending, and peer comparisons may influence our decisions.

Start 'em Kirk Cousins (MIN, QB)
Short term memory is good here. We're going to forget the 3-pick performance from Kirk Cousins last week and focus on his incredible matchup in Week 3. The Lions have allowed more than 51 fantasy points through the first two weeks including almost 28 points to Carson Wentz in Week 1. Cousins should end in Top 10 territory this week.

4th Most Pts to QB

Start 'em Derek Carr (LV, QB)
Carr is on the fringe of starting territory this week facing a Tennessee defense that gave up almost 30 points in Week 1 to Josh Allen and 16 points to Daniel Jones last week. Derek Carr should fall somewhere in between in a plus matchup.

5th Most Pts to QB

Start 'em Matthew Stafford (LAR, QB)
Matthew Stafford comes into our rankings this week at #10 putting him into low-end QB1 territory. He'll face an Arizona secondary that has owned him in the past, but they've been pretty generous to QBs after two games this year averaging 26.9 fantasy points surrendered each week. He's got the tools and the matchup is there for the taking.

Most pts to QB

Start 'em James Robinson (JAC, RB)
Through two games, James Robinson has been the running back to own in Jacksonville. It's remarkable to think that this guy is a year post Achilles injury as he's looked great and has outplayed Travis Etienne (on our sit list this week). Robinson saw 25 touches last week, and while the Chargers have largely kept running backs in check, his volume and efficiency warrants RB2/Flex consideration.

11th Most Pts to RB

Start 'em Antonio Gibson (WAS, RB)
After a preseason of wondering whether or not Gibson would even play RB or be relegated to special teams, he has not just re-emerged but flourished. He also has the volume that we want to see out of our RB2. While Philly held Dalvin Cook in check, D'Andre Swift put up big numbers including a monster run. Look for Antonio Gibson to carry around 15 times but also be involved in the passing game.

8th Most Pts to RB

Start 'em Cordarrelle Patterson (ATL, RB)
Week 1 looked like the Cordarrelle Patterson of 2021, but splitting the workload with Tyler Allgeier last week ended up diluting his value a bit. We would anticipate his carries coming back up this week against Seattle who has given up an average of 16 fantasy points to Javonte Williams and Jeff Wilson making Patterson a nice flex option.

11th Most Pts to RB

Start 'em Christian Kirk (JAC, WR)
Christian Kirk has been a fantastic addition to this Jacksonville offense averaging almost 22 fantasy points per game. He's also averaging 9 targets per game so we would anticipate that volume continuing as they face a Chargers secondary that has been pretty middle-of-the-road against the pass. Kirk is a low-end WR2 this week.

15th Most Pts to WR

Start 'em CeeDee Lamb (DAL, WR)
Normally CeeDee Lamb would not be mentioned on this list as it's generally assumed that you'll start him. The loss of Dak Prescott has prompted plenty of our users to ask about his viability. The Giants have been solid against receivers, but Lamb is coming off back-to-back games of 11 targets each. That kind of volume will keep him in the starting lineup discussion. Truth be told, the Giants haven't faced a talent like Lamb yet. DJ Moore nabbed 13 fantasy points last week, but Tennessee provided no such talent in Week 1, so this will be a good test for that New York secondary.

2nd Fewest Pts to WR

Start 'em Drake London (ATL, WR)
Similar to CeeDee Lamb above, Drake London has been able to take advantage of volume in the passing game. According to ESPN, London has been targeted on 37.3% of his routes through two weeks. For a rookie, that's not just pretty awesome, it's fantasy-awesome! The real challenge here is whether or not that volume is going to translate to points against the Seahawks. As a low-end WR2 or high-end WR3, we think it will.

9th Fewest Pts to WR

Start 'em Tyler Higbee (LAR, TE)
If it seems like there is a theme this week, there is. Tyler Higbee's target share has been fantastic. He has seen an average of 10 targets per game - more than any other tight end after the first two weeks. While not the most efficient with those targets, he has been consistent with his points delivered each week (avg 11.5). Keep him locked into your lineups in a great matchup.

Most pts to TE

Start 'em Zach Ertz (ARI, TE)
This is not a great matchup as the Rams kept both Kyle Pitts and Dawson Knox to less than 4 points each, but there is no doubt that Kyler Murray seeks out Ertz. In fact, no other Arizona receiver saw as many targets as Ertz did last week (11). There is enough opportunity here to keep Ertz in your lineups.

3rd Fewest Pts to TE

Start 'em Chicago Bears (CHI, DEF)
Checking the weather report indicates that there's little chance of the kind of monsoon weather that we last saw in Chicago. That's good. The Bears will get their opportunity to face Davis Mills and the Houston Texans. This matchup puts the Bears inside our Top 5 defenses for Week 3.

13th Most Pts to DEF

Start 'em Jake Elliott (PHI, K)
After putting up 6 and 8 points over the first two weeks respectively, we're anticipating Jake Elliott hitting double digits this week against a Washington defense that has given up 10 points to both Riley Patterson and Austin Seibert.

4th Most Pts to K

Sit 'em Aaron Rodgers (GB, QB)
Aaron Rodgers hasn't exactly lit the fantasy world on fire. His receiving corp remains suspect and the Tampa Bay secondary is legit. It will be fun to watch a Rodgers vs Brady game, but Dak Prescott struggled against the Bucs before getting hurt and they kept Jameis Winston to just 7 fantasy points. There are better streaming options out there this week.

2nd Fewest Pts to QB

Sit 'em Matt Ryan (IND, QB)
We're not entirely sure the way this one will go down. On paper it looks like a positive matchup - especially after watching Ryan toss 352 yards in his season opener with the Colts, but he came back to Earth last week against Jacksonville with a whopping 1.8 fantasy points. Typically a matchup with the Chiefs should present shoot out opportunities, but we're not sold on Ryan's ability to duplicate his Week 1 efforts...even with Michael Pittman back.

7th Most Pts to QB

Sit 'em Jimmy Garoppolo (SF, QB)
The most expensive NFL backup QB is now the starter once again for the Niners. The Denver defense is strong enough that they'll present a significant challenge for Jimmy G. In fact, they've only allowed two passing touchdowns on the year and have allowed the sixth fewest fantasy points. If you picked him up on the waiver wire, there will be time later to play him, but for now, stash him on the bench.

6th Fewest Pts to QB

Sit 'em Travis Etienne (JAC, RB)
It looks like we're going to need to wait a bit to see Travis Etienne in our lineups. He has yet to see more than nine carries or deliver more than 8.5 fantasy points in a game, and it looks like James Robinson has easily been the more effective runner in this backfield. Until that changes, it's going to be difficult to use Etienne as anything more than a very low-end flex.

11th Most Pts to RB

Sit 'em J.K. Dobbins (BAL, RB)
At this moment, J.K. Dobbins remains questionable for Week 3 at New England, but given where you likely drafted him, you're going to want to get him into your lineups at some point. This isn't the week to do that. The Pats have given up just 78 rushing yards per game and the 9th-fewest fantasy points to running backs including Chase Edmonds and Najee Harris.

9th Fewest Pts to RB

Sit 'em Chase Edmonds (MIA, RB)
Speaking of Chase Edmonds, this is not a great week to start him either. The matchup is awful as the Bills are an elite defensive unit and coming off a Week 2 performance that kept Derrick Henry to just 8.5 points. As if that weren't enough reason, Edmonds is sharing time with Raheem Mostert and the splits are heavily dependent upon the game script. Edmonds can be used as a flex, but lower your expectations.

4th Fewest Pts to RB

Sit 'em Darnell Mooney (CHI, WR)
After two games, Darnell Mooney has essentially been absent. He has only seen 5 targets over the first two games and brought home an average of just 1.2 fantasy points. Until Justin Fields really starts to develop into a prolific passing QB and the Bears don't have to rely so heavily on their ground game, it's going to be tough going for Mooney.

10th Most Pts to WR

Sit 'em Allen Lazard (GB, WR)
In his first game this season, Allen Lazard found the endzone, but that was the only saving grace for him on Sunday night. He was targeted just three times and pulled in two of those for just 13 yards and a total of 9.3 fantasy points. Without the touchdown, his fantasy day would have been just 3 points. The Green Bay receiving corp remains a work in progress which makes Lazard a touchdown-dependent player. There are so many better options out there this week - especially in a tough matchup with the Bucs.

10th Fewest Pts to WR

Sit 'em JuJu Smith-Schuster (KC, WR)
Expectations for JuJu Smith-Schuster couldn't have been higher given the high scoring offense that he was joining. Unfortunately, we haven't seen him emerge as the receiving threat that we hoped for. That may come, but right now he's averaging just 8 fantasy points (ppr). He saw just three targets last week, and a matchup with the Colts isn't particularly favorable.

11th Fewest Pts to WR

Sit 'em Albert Okwuegbunam (DEN, TE)
Albert Okwuegbunam was one of those players who was identified as a sleeper during the preseason. Unfortunately, the passing game in Denver hasn't lived up to expectations. Last week, Okwuegbunam's teammate Eric Saubert saw just as many targets (2). Coming off a doughnut in Week 2, Albert O is a risky play.

Feweset Pts to TE

Sit 'em Mike Gesicki (MIA, TE)
Although Mike Gesicki found the endzone last week, he did so in a pass-happy game script. In fact, he only saw four targets in that game. A matchup with the Bills is not likely to change his fortune. They've kept both Tyler Higbee and Austin Hooper to single digits.

7th Fewest Pts to TE

Sit 'em New England Patriots (NE, DEF)
The Patriots have traditionally had such a consistently good defense, but a matchup with the Ravens will test that. Lamar Jackson put on a scoring display last week and New England is going to struggle to contain him. This is a good opportunity to stream another defense this week.

2nd Fewest Pts to DEF

Sit 'em Nick Folk (NE, K)
Nick Folk has not delivered for fantasy owners yet and that's going to have to wait. He's averaged just three fantasy points so far this year and a matchup with Baltimore is not a recipe for success. The Ravens have held Jason Sanders and Greg "the leg" Zuerlein to 6 points or less.

11th Fewest Pts to K

Join the Discussion

If asking a sit/start question, be sure to provide your scoring format and contribute to answering questions from other FN members as well.

OldGeezer CommentedSep 24, 2022 3:18 pm

D London or DK in hop. D Samuel is other WR. Looking at Chubb, Fournette and D Montgomery as rbs/flex so not thinking of starting all 3 wrs

Nerd CommentedSep 24, 2022 4:02 pm

Seems crazy, but I'd start London over DK. Much more involved with targets.

mrock CommentedSep 25, 2022 9:54 am

Drake London

Drew Shoemaker CommentedSep 24, 2022 4:06 pm

Cooks or Gabe Davis at flex. Have Kupp and Amon Ra with CMC and Lenny

Nerd CommentedSep 24, 2022 4:11 pm

The volume will be there for Cooks. Good luck!

mrock CommentedSep 25, 2022 9:54 am

Cooks

Andrew Kent CommentedSep 24, 2022 6:34 pm

Robert Woods or Jerry Jeudy

mrock CommentedSep 25, 2022 9:55 am

Jerry Jeudy

jamisdiablo CommentedSep 25, 2022 9:56 am

Woods. Jeudy is hurting

Nerd CommentedSep 25, 2022 9:58 am

Jeudy for me

T-Jugg CommentedSep 24, 2022 8:43 pm

Two questions:
(1) PPR flex, need 2 of these three: Miles Sanders, Cee Dee Lamb, Christian Kirk
(2) PPR flex, need 2 of these four: Miles Sanders, Cordarrell Patterson, Christian Kirk, Terry McLaurin

jamisdiablo CommentedSep 25, 2022 9:55 am

1) sanders out for me 2) kirk, patterson

mrock CommentedSep 25, 2022 9:55 am

Kirk/Lamb

Nerd CommentedSep 25, 2022 9:58 am

1. Lamb and Kirk
2. Patterson and Kirk

T-Jugg CommentedSep 25, 2022 10:27 am

Thank you

Robsta CommentedSep 25, 2022 6:52 am

Flex Start Dilemma
1/2 PPR: Pick ONE
J Williams, J Robinson, K Allen, C Samuel or T Burks?

jamisdiablo CommentedSep 25, 2022 9:54 am

Jrob