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Fantasy Football Starts and Sits for Week 4

Week 4 in the Fantasy Football season we are here to help with those tough lineup decisions you have this week.
Week 4 Fantasy Football Start Sit

Whatever fantasy football questions you have for Week4, we are here to hopefully answer them. This fantasy season has been very weird so far this year. Players we expected to dominate have been bad and players with no expectations have been great.

It’s not time to panic drop or trade anyone yet, but hopefully, things swing your way here soon. For this week, we are here to help you with the tough lineup decisions you are contemplating.

READ MORE: Week 4 Survivor Picks

Fantasy Football Starts and Sits for Week 4

Quarterback Starts: Jared Goff and Kirk Cousins

Jared Goff has gotten off to a solid start this season sitting at QB11. He gets a great matchup in Week 4 against the Seattle Seahawks, the over/under for this game is at 48.5. so many points are expected in this game. Goff has thrown six touchdowns in two home games this season and has only been sacked four times on 71 pass attempts. The Seahawks are an average at best pass rush with only six sacks on the season to go along with a young secondary. Goff is third in the NFL in red zone passing touchdowns with five. The Lions are second in the NFL in fourth down attempts giving off extra opportunities to score points.

Kirk Cousins was a start in Week 3 and he did fine; the Vikings offense got going in the second half and made a comeback vs the Lions. This week, he heads to London for a matchup against the New Orleans Saints. The Saints have a tradition recently of being a dominant defense, although some of that is starting to go away. The Saints are bottom five in the league in sack rate and they struggle to get pressure on the quarterback.

 

Shutdown cornerback Marshon Lattimore should do well vs Justin Jefferson but the other matchups favor the Vikings pass-catchers. The Saints are still a great run defense and with Dalvin Cook’s injury status, the Vikings may look to throw it around this week in London.

Quarterback Sits: Carson Wentz and Matthew Stafford

Carson Wentz was sacked nine times last week vs the Philadelphia Eagles. This week, Wentz gets the best pass-rushing team in the NFL.

The Dallas Cowboys pressured the New York Giants 35 times in Week 3 against the New York Giants. The Commanders are playing with backups on the offensive line and that’s something Dallas will look to take advantage of. Wentz has nine turnovers in eight career games vs the Cowboys. Avoiding Wentz this week wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Matthew Stafford has gotten off to a shaky start this season with more turnovers than touchdowns. Stafford was sacked seven times in Week 1 vs a dominant front four in the Buffalo Bills. This week, he gets another dominant pass-rushing group in the San Francisco 49ers. In two regular season games vs the 49ers in 2021, Stafford was sacked seven times and had four interceptions. Changes to the offensive line leave them as a compromised group in this matchup. The Rams have also struggled to run the ball this season, which leaves their line vulnerable against a team like the 49ers.

Running Back Starts: Jamaal Williams and Dameon Pierce

Jamaal Williams is currently the RB8 with four rushing touchdowns which leads the NFL. D’Andre Swift is expected to miss some time, so Williams is expected to take the full workload. Even with Swift playing, Williams was having a fantasy impact. His increased role along with his matchup is why he belongs in your lineup this week. The Seattle Seahawks are second-worst in the NFL in rushing yards allowed with over 155 per game. The Seahawks are giving up over 18 PPR points per game to number one running backs. Williams is number one in the NFL in red zone carries. In a game where the Lions are favorites, at least one touchdown should be expected for Williams this week.

Dameon Pierce started the season in an RBBC but is starting to take over as a lead back. In Week 1, Pierce had a 29% snap share with Rex Burkhead at 71%. Since then, Pierce has a 60% snap share, leading the Texans. Pierce also leads the Texans in red zone carries with 11 while Burkhead only has one. This is officially Pierce’s backfield now; the Texans are 30th in the NFL in red zone passing attempts. Matchup-wise, this is a good spot for Pierce vs the Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers are bottom-ten in the league in yards per carry and stuffed rate allowed to running backs.

Running Back Sits: J.K. Dobbins and Clyde Edwards-Helaire

J.K. Dobbins made his return last week and had 40 yards on nine touches. Coming back from the surgeries that he had, nobody should hold that against him. He should start to see a boost in his workload coming but the Ravens are struggling to run the ball whether it is Dobbins or any of the other Ravens running backs.

Lamar Jackson currently has 60% of Raven’s rushing yards. He has 15 carries in the RedZone, and the next closest player has three. The Ravens average under three yards per carry without Jackson’s production. The Ravens face a Bills defense that is second in the NFL in second-level yards rate according to footballoutsiders. This game also portrays as a shootout and with the Ravens running struggles, they may give up on it sooner than later.

Clyde Edwards-Helaire is currently RB4, averaging almost 18 PPR points per game. But digging deep into the numbers. his production is a lot flukier than it seems. As a fantasy manager, all you should care about is the points, but going forward, struggles may come his way. CEH is second on the Chiefs in snap count percentage at 40.5% behind Jerick McKinnon at 45%. In the first three games, CEH’s snap counts are 39, 44, and 40 percent. CEH is also behind McKinnon and Isaiah Pacheco in red zone carries. He has three red zone targets and two receiving touchdowns. That sounds amazing, but it isn’t replicable across a 17-game season. Oh, and he has an awful matchup this week vs the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who are top 10 in yards per carry and open field yards allowed this season.

Wide Receiver Starts: CeeDee Lamb and DK Metcalf

CeeDee Lamb scored his first touchdown in Week 3 against the New York Giants. Lamb was expected to be a breakout receiver this year, but with the injury to Dak Prescott. that hasn’t happened so far. Backup quarterback Cooper Rush has performed well in Prescott’s absence. Lamb is averaging over 11 targets per game so far this season. Receivers who get double-digit targets against the Commanders are averaging over 26 PPR points per game. The Commanders struggle in the secondary but specifically in the slot. With Michael Gallup’s possible return, expect Lamb to mainly line up in the slot going forward.

DK Metcalf has gotten off to a slow start this season. With the quarterback change, that was expected. Geno Smith has performed well so far and that gives Metcalf a positive outlook this week.

The Detroit Lions have one of the worst secondaries in the league and Metcalf should be able to take advantage this week. The Seahawks are underdogs this week, so they will possibly be in catch-up mode. So far this season, the Lions have given up four receiving touchdowns to receivers and allowed four 70-yard games to opposing wide receivers.

Wide Receiver Sits: Allen Robinson and Brandin Cooks

Allen Robinson has gotten off to a tough start as a member of the Los Angeles Rams. In Week 3, Robinson had 23 yards on five targets in what was perceived to be an easy matchup against the Cardinals. Robinson and Stafford haven’t been on the same page so far as Robinson has just 12 targets in three games. Robinson is fourth on the Rams in targets and yards, which was not expected going into the season. An 11% target share isn’t good enough, especially in a tough matchup against the San Francisco 49ers. Matthew Stafford is a sit this week, so Robinson being one as well should come as no surprise.

Brandin Cooks leads the Texans in catches, targets, and yards on the season. Those types of numbers you’d think someone wouldn’t be in the sit category right? But the Texan’s offense has been wildly inefficient so far this season.

Cooks has a 27% target share but has only caught 45% of those targets. Quarterback Davis Mills is 31st in the league in red zone passing attempts. The opportunities just haven’t been there for Cooks and the Texans passing game. The Los Angeles Chargers are a defense that takes away the big play while playing mostly a shell coverage. This will take away Cooks’ chances at creating a big play in this game. With the lackluster efficiency and lack of red zone opportunities, getting away from Cooks this week wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Tight End Starts: David Njoku and Hayden Hurst

David Njoku has just 16 targets on the season, but in Week 3, he had 10 targets and 24 PPR points. Hopefully, this is what is to come for him shortly. Quarterback Jacoby Brissett has been solid to start this season and that should continue with a good matchup against the Atlanta Falcons.

The Falcons allow eight targets and 74 yards per game to tight ends which are both bottom ten in the NFL this season. Njoku plays 90% of the snaps for the Browns which is number one out of all their skill position players. Njoku is also top five in tight-end red zone targets this season.

Hayden Hurst is probably the fifth passing option on the Bengals, but he brings solid fantasy value if you aren’t happy with your current tight end. Hurst plays in over 70% of the snaps and almost 80% of the snaps when the Bengals played from behind. Hurst is yet to find the endzone this season but he has two red zone targets and has a good matchup this week. The Dolphins are giving up ten targets per game to tight ends and with this being a high over/under total, the Bengals are expected to throw quite a bit.

Tight End Sits: Tyler Higbee and Cole Kmet

Tyler Higbee is second on the Rams in targets so far this season but only had four in Week 3 against the Arizona Cardinals. The Rams offense has struggled to consistently move the ball so far this season. In Week 4, they have a tough matchup against the San Francisco 49ers. The 49ers are number one in targets and yards allowed to tight ends so far this season. In three games against the 49ers last season, Higbee had 93 yards on 16 targets. Throughout his career, Higbee averages under five PPR points per game against the 49ers.

Cole Kmet has been a non-factor for fantasy this season. The Chicago Bears average 15 pass attempts per game, which is historically low. There are 25 teams with more passing completions than the Bears have passing attempts. Justin Fields is only completing 51% of his passes. Kmet plays 87% of the snaps which is amazing, but the opportunities just aren’t there. Kmet has 40 yards on five targets this season. The Bears have a tough matchup against a Giants defense that allows just five targets per game to the tight end position.

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