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You have lineup questions, we have lineup answers — at least we hope so. Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em is here to help fantasy managers make difficult roster decisions. And you know what is a good move? Starting Justin Jefferson. But that’s too obvious, so you won’t see such simple analysis here. Instead, we’re exploring more debatable situations. And if you can’t find a player you are looking for, please check out the latest NFL Fantasy lineup rankings. Unless otherwise noted, all stats come from NFL Pro, Next Gen Stats or NFL Research.
Start ‘Em
Love has thrown multiple passing touchdowns in 11 straight games, going back to last season. That trend has led him to having such a safe floor — around 16 fantasy points. He brings a high ceiling, as well, with 25-plus fantasy points in two of his last four contests. This should be an upside week for Love, as the Jaguars are the best matchup a quarterback can have. They have allowed the second-most passing yards, touchdowns and fantasy points per game to quarterbacks this season. Love is a must-start option this week.
The Lions are red hot! Goff has played extremely well of late, throwing for at least 280 yards and multiple touchdowns in three straight games. Since 1950, he is just the fourth quarterback to record a 140-plus passer rating in three consecutive contests, while his 83.5 completion percentage over his last four games is the highest in a four-game span (min. 90 pass attempts). He’ll face a Titans defense that’s been tough for much of the year … but just got lit up by Josh Allen and the Bills. Start the hot hand.
Week 7 was a rough one for Stroud. He threw for a career-low 86 yards, didn’t have a touchdown and finished with 5.34 fantasy points. Yikes. But I wouldn’t consider pulling him out of your lineup just yet. A big part of Stroud’s struggles is that he’s been under pressure on the third-most dropbacks among quarterbacks this season. This week, he faces a Colts team that generates pressure at the third-lowest rate in the NFL. Indy has also allowed the seventh-most pass yards this season, while Stroud has multiple passing touchdowns in all three of his career games against the Colts. Give him another shot this week.
Don’t let the bye week make you forget how well Williams has been playing. He’s scored 23.6 and 28.6 fantasy points in his last two games. In that span, he has also thrown six total touchdown passes and run for 90 yards. Those performances came in good matchups, and he’s presented with another one in Week 8. The Commanders ranked top five in fantasy points per game allowed to quarterbacks before they played the struggling Panthers last week. If Jayden Daniels is healthy enough to play, both he and Williams should be in play to start in a battle of the top two picks from April’s draft.
Cousins was not able to take advantage of a good matchup against the Seahawks last week, and honestly, the fantasy results have been very pedestrian outside of that one monster game in Week 5. Luckily for him, that 509-yard, four-touchdown performance came against Tampa Bay, Cousins’ opponent again on Sunday. The Bucs have allowed the third-most passing yards and second-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks this season. With a number of QBs having huge fantasy outings against Tampa, including Cousins, he’s worth putting in your lineup this week.
Sit ‘Em
The last time I had Prescott as a “sit” option back in Week 3, he was held in check for over three quarters before exploding in garbage time against the Ravens. I’m giving it another shot here. First, Prescott hasn’t put up the fantasy numbers we have become accustomed to seeing in the past. That game against Baltimore is the only time this season he’s topped 17 fantasy points. In his other five games, he has averaged just 12.1 points, finishing as a fantasy QB1 (top 12) just once. Now he faces the 49ers, who have allowed 15-plus fantasy points to a QB in just two of seven games in 2024. Nick Sorensen’s unit has as many interceptions as pass touchdowns allowed (eight). If you are able to get away from Prescott this week, you should.
I am worried teams have figured out how to stop this version of Anthony Richardson. The Dolphins, Bears and Packers — the last three opponents Richardson has played full games against — used more zone and more single-high or split-safety coverages against the Colts. Richardson’s clearly had a tough time reading these defenses, throwing one total touchdown over those three games while completing 50 percent of less of his pass attempts in each contest. While he has enjoyed fantasy success against the Texans, it has largely been because of his legs, with three TD runs in two career games against them. In their first meeting of this season back in Week 1, Houston used zone and split-safety coverage at a higher rate than normal. Until we see Richardson improve as a passer, it’s OK to get away from him in fantasy football.
Just a name. I have been saying it for weeks. If you covered up this quarterback’s name and just looked at the stats, you would throw him on the waiver wire. He has not scored 17 fantasy points in a game this season. He has one top-12 fantasy finish, while ranking somewhere between QB16 and QB19 in every other week. Justin Fields, Bo Nix, Trevor Lawrence, Kirk Cousins and Daniel Jones are some of the many QBs with more fantasy points than Mahomes this season. The three-time Super Bowl MVP has not thrown a touchdown pass in either of his last two games, and he has a TD-to-INT ratio of 6:8 this season. Do I need to keep going? Mahomes has produced mixed results in his career against the Raiders, but they shut him down the last time they played. You cannot count on him right now, even with the trade for DeAndre Hopkins.
Last week was Herbert’s best game of the season, throwing for 349 yards and finishing with 14.76 fantasy points against the Cardinals. The arrow is pointing up, but if that is his best fantasy game, you cannot trust him. His pass catchers and the style of offense the Chargers run are holding Herbert back. Even in what is a good matchup this week, you can get away from Herbert until we see more consistent production.
Stafford is a good quarterback in real life, but it is not translating into any fantasy success this season. He threw for just 154 yards with an interception last week, finishing with 3.96 fantasy points. Numerous Browns, Saints and Commanders quarterbacks all outscored him in fantasy in Week 7. Stafford was less than half of a point away from being outscored by three Browns QBs. He has not reached 15 fantasy points in a game this season and has just three passing touchdowns. Even with Cooper Kupp potentially returning this week, you cannot trust the veteran signal-caller until we see more upside.
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