We’re nearly a month into the fantasy football regular season and whether you’re sitting pretty on your playoff push or still looking for that first win, getting that lineup set right again this week is all that we can worry about for now! Every week throughout the fantasy year I’ll take a look through the Ballers’ rankings and take a dive into a few matchups at each position that could be the difference in moving your team forward or readying for the toilet bowl!
Quarterbacks
Justin Fields (PIT) vs Indianapolis
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| QB12 | QB12 | QB12 |
QB12 |
What a strange fantasy world we live in where Justin Fields has unexpectedly been a starter for the Steelers for the first three games of the season but fantasy managers haven’t seen the contributor that finished as the QB6 on the season in 2022. Possibly the biggest reason Fields hasn’t been a usable asset for fantasy managers is the lack of rushing production that we’re used to seeing from him, averaging just 30 yards on the ground per game. For reference, Fields averaged 50 rushing yards per game last season and 76 yards in 2022. From a passing perspective though, Fields is completing 73% of his passes so far this season which is by far the best of his career. Still, that hasn’t turned into a single top-12 QB finish for Fields this season, but he is coming off his best week as the Steelers starter finishing with 18.4 fantasy points.
For Fields to stay in the “streamable QB” category, he’s got a great chance to prove he belongs with a matchup this week against Indianapolis. The Colts’ defense is allowing the second-highest completion percentage on passing attempts so far this season with opposing QBs completing 78.3% of their passes against them. For fantasy, that has translated to two top-10 QB finishes in their first three games. In the one game they didn’t allow a big fantasy day from the opposing QB, they did allow Malik Willis to run for 41 yards. With one of the lowest projected point totals of the week, fantasy managers may only get one TD from Fields, but he could be a decent streaming option if needed.
Kurt would play Fields over: QB15 – Anthony Richardson vs Pittsburgh.
Jared Goff (DET) vs Seattle
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| QB10 | QB7 | QB11 |
QB10 |
It’s been a slower start than fantasy managers were hoping for when they drafted Jared Goff. Through three games, Goff has yet to live up to the “Dome-inator” nickname, finishing no higher than the QB18 on a given week. Goff hasn’t been bad on the field, but hasn’t had a game where he’s thrown for 200+ yards and multiple TDs, something he did eight times last season when he finished as the QB7 on the year. Fantasy managers should be encouraged by Goff’s 106 attempts on the season though, the fifth-most in the league so far this year.
If Goff is going to get back in fantasy managers’ good graces he’ll have a surprisingly tough task to do so against the Seahawks this week. Seattle’s defense has allowed the third-fewest passing yards on the season and just one passing TD. So far this season the highest a QB has finished for fantasy against the Seahawks was Bo Nix’s QB16 in Week 1. Granted, the other QBs Seattle has faced were Jacoby Brissett and Skylar Thompson so it’s likely they just haven’t been tested yet either. If Goff is going to get going for fantasy rosters this might be his best chance, and if he doesn’t, it may be time to start looking for other options until he heats up.
Kurt would prefer to play: QB13 – Sam Darnold at Green Bay.
Running Backs
Jerome Ford (CLE) at Las Vegas
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| RB24 | RB25 | RB23 |
RB28 |
The offense for the Browns hasn’t been great but one of the more stable fantasy options thus far has been Jerome Ford’s role in the backfield. Through their first three games, Ford has seen more than 80% of the RB carries in two of Cleveland’s games, the one exception being Week 2 when he missed time with an injury. Still, Ford has only finished as top-24 RB once this season and that came on the back of a red zone TD, so he is a bit limited on upside. Cleveland is bottom 10 in the league so far in both passing and rushing yards offensively, so unless something changes, Ford’s ability to be more than a flex option may be limited to getting into the end zone.
It was expected that the Raiders would be a defense to avoid coming into the season, but so far this season they’ve been particularly bad against the run. In their first three games, Las Vegas’ defense has allowed four top-24 RB finishes including three straight top-12 finishes at the position. The Raiders could be an ever juicier matchup this week with DE Maxx Crosby still dealing with an ankle injury, giving this already porus run defense an even larger downgrade. Ford may be a matchup based RB until fantasy managers can see this Browns offense find some consistency, but should be in lineups this week.
Kurt would play Ford over: RB22 – J.K. Dobbins vs Kansas City.
Rico Dowdle (DAL) at NY Giants
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| RB29 | RB30 | RB30 |
RB26 |
The Rico Dowdle experience hasn’t been what most fantasy managers were expecting when they took a late-round pick on the Dallas RB heading into the season, but things may be taking a turn in the right direction. There was some expectation that Dowdle and Ezekiel Elliott would be splitting the work in the Cowboys’ backfield, but Dowdle is trending in the right direction to be the “1A” that fantasy managers want a piece of. Over the last three weeks, Dowdle has seen his opportunities increase each week, while Elliott’s have decreased, bottoming out last week at just five total opportunities. Where Dowdle has maybe the most hope to carve out a bigger role is in the passing game for the Cowboys. Dowdle has seen five targets each of the last two weeks, which could be significant with Dallas’ inability to establish the run and their defense allowing 28 points each of their last two games.
It’s always nice to get a good start to the fantasy week on Thursday nights, and Dowdle has a great matchup to do just that in Week 4 against the Giants. New York’s defense is allowing the sixth-highest yards per carry on the season and gave up 23+ fantasy points to opposing teams’ RBs in their first two games of the year, both of which turned into top-10 RB finishes for those weeks. If Dowdle continues to chip away at the workload of Zeke in this Dallas backfield, this week could be the start of his emergence as the RB to have for this offense.
Kurt would play Dowdle over: RB28 – Rachaad White vs Philadelphia.
Carson Steele (KC) at LA Chargers
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| RB25 | RB29 | RB26 |
RB23 |
While it wasn’t a homerun debut for Carson Steele, he showed plenty for the Chiefs’ offense last week to gain some trust for fantasy managers moving forward. Steele finished as the RB33 on 19 total opportunities against one of the better-rated run defenses in Atlanta last week. What should be more encouraging is the limited participation that Samaje Perine saw in the offense with just 10 opportunities coming his way. There will still be questions to be answered regarding the Chiefs’ backfield with Kareem Hunt being added to the active roster this week and Clyde Edwards-Helaire’s potential return next week, but for now Steele seems like the RB to have in this offense.
It will be another tough test for fantasy managers hoping Steele can be a meaningful piece on their rosters this week against the Chargers. Los Angeles’ defense has allowed the sixth-fewest rushing yards so far this season and just one TD on the ground. For fantasy, that’s translated to 18 points or less to opposing teams’ RBs with the highest RB finish coming back in Week 1 as the RB18. If Steele continues to see the bulk of snaps and carries in the Chiefs’ backfield there’s a chance he’s a good flex option again this week on fantasy rosters.
Kurt would prefer to play: RB32 – Cam Akers vs Jacksonville.
Wide Receivers
Terry McLaurin (WASH) at Arizona
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| WR28 | WR26 | WR29 |
WR25 |
Monday night brought fantasy managers brave enough to stick with Terry McLaurin some gold with just his second 100-yard receiving game between this season and last. The Commanders’ offense seems to be finding its groove with rookie QB Jayden Daniels’ passing numbers increasing week-to-week. McLaurin seems to be the WR that Daniels is looking for consistently, leading the team in targets with 14 passes coming his direction over the last two weeks. There hasn’t really been another receiving option emerge in the offense outside of McLaurin and TE Zach Ertz, so this upward trend could be especially beneficial for fantasy managers moving forward.
Keeping the positive momentum going for Washington should be simple this week against Arizona. The Cardinals’ defense is allowing a league-high 75.3% of passes to be completed against them for 8.9 yards per attempt. For fantasy though, the Cardinals haven’t allowed a week-winning week from an opposing fantasy WR, with Amon-Ra St. Brown’s WR15 finish in Week 3 marking the best WR finish on a given week against them this season. It’s worth chasing McLaurin’s big week again for fantasy managers as a WR2 with upside.
Kurt would play McLaurin over: WR30 – Rashid Shaheed at Atlanta.
Jauan Jennings (SF) vs New England
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| WR26 | WR28 | WR24 | WR28 |
Easily the biggest spot start of the season so far, Jauan Jennings’ gigantic Week 3 finish should have fantasy managers looking his direction. Jennings set career-highs in receptions, yards, and TDs in a single game en route to just his second week as a fantasy WR1 in his young career. What’s impressive about Jennings’ huge week is how he won at all levels of the field for the 49ers’ offense, but mainly on medium and deep routes where he’s caught 100% of targets thrown his way this season. While there’s a chance this was a one week wonder, fantasy managers should expect Jennings to continue being involved in the offense for at least the immediate future with Deebo Samuel and George Kittle’s status still up in the air again for Week 4.
To find a repeat performance, Jennings has a nice matchup against a Patriots defense that has struggled to start the season. New England’s defense was supposed to be what held this team together for 2024, but through their first three games they’ve allowed the sixth-most passing yards. That’s translated to a fantasy feast for opposing WRs over the last two weeks, where the Patriots are allowing an average of 42.7 points per game to the position. It’s nearly impossible to sit a player after a week like Jennings had in Week 3, and fortunately for fantasy managers, it looks like it shouldn’t be a tough decision based on this matchup and opportunity in the 49ers’ offense.
Kurt would play Jennings over: WR22 – Jayden Reed vs Minnesota.
Rome Odunze (CHI) vs LA Rams
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| WR32 | WR33 | WR30 |
WR33 |
The Caleb Williams to Rome Odunze connection that was promised when both players were taken by the Bears in the 2024 NFL Draft finally came to fruition last week. Odunze took full advantage of Keenan Allen’s absence for the second straight week, turning in his first career 100+ yard receiving game and catching his first NFL TD as the WR7 on the week. Maybe the biggest difference for Odunze last week was his 22.7 average depth of target, up nearly 10 yards per target from his first two games. Odunze profiled as a great deep-receiving threat coming into the league and was finally able to put that on full display last week.
Fantasy managers looking for a repeat may get their wishes granted as the Bears have another juicy passing matchup in Week 4 against the Rams. The L.A. defense has really struggled through their first three games, allowing the fifth-most passing yards and second-most passing TDs in the league. For fantasy that’s translated into absolute gold for WRs. The Rams have allowed back-to-back WR1 overall finishes and have allowed a top-five WR finish in every game this season. As long as Keenan isn’t back in the lineup for the Bears, Odunze should be a WR2 with top-10 upside this week for fantasy rosters.
Kurt would play Odunze over: WR31 – Brian Thomas Jr. at Houston.
Tight Ends
Mike Gesicki (CIN) at Carolina
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| TE12 | TE12 | TE12 |
TE11 |
After a slow start to the season, the Bengals’ offense seems to have gotten rolling and Mike Gesicki has been a real option for fantasy managers at TE. Over the last two weeks, Gesicki has averaged seven targets for 69 yards and finished as top-12 TE each week. Really the only thing missing from pushing Gesicki into top-six TE territory has been scoring a TD. Still, Gesicki is clearly the leading TE for targets in a Cincinnati offense that has completed the fifth-most passes in the league over the first three weeks, so there’s opportunity for him to produce on fantasy rosters.
If Gesicki is going to continue his trend of top-12 finishes, he’s got a good matchup to do so against the Panthers. Carolina’s defense is allowing an average of 11.4 fantasy points per game to opposing teams’ TEs, including the TE4 and TE2 in Week 1 against the Saints. It’s worth noting, the Panthers did slow down Brock Bowers last week, so changes being made to how they’re defending the position could affect Gesicki’s upside this week.
Kurt would prefer to play: TE14 – Zach Ertz at Arizona.
Brenton Strange (JAX) at Houston
| Consensus | Andy | Jason | Mike |
| TE22 | TE22 | TE21 |
TE22 |
Out of nowhere, Brenton Strange has turned in back-to-back top-eight TE finishes for the Jaguars. The second-year TE has seen a huge uptick in snaps with Evan Engram missing games due to a hamstring injury, but he’s made the most of his opportunity with the third-most receiving yards for Jacksonville over the last two weeks. What may be more enticing for fantasy managers is that Strange has earned a red zone target each of the last two games, and converted one into a TD last week. If Engram continues to miss time, Strange could be the waiver wire TE that fantasy managers are needing to get some production from the position.
If Strange is going to continue his fantasy relevance, he’ll have his work cut out for him this week against the Texans. Houston’s defense has only allowed 12.5 fantasy points to TEs on the entire season and has recorded the fourth-most sacks. That’s a problem for Jacksonville’s passing game since PFF has their pass blocking rated as the sixth-worst in the league through three games. Strange may be worth having on a roster while Engram is still recovering from injury, but fantasy managers may need to look elsewhere this week.
Kurt would prefer to play: TE15 – Tyler Conklin vs. Denver.
from Fantasy Footballers Podcast https://ift.tt/ecngw5D
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