The Fantasy Footballers’ Starts of the Week for Week 3

If you don’t have an injured star on your team, you should count yourself lucky! It has been a madhouse of a season, and I cannot believe it is only Week 3. My decisions to start the year seem to be perfect or completely stupid. The only good news is that I have Andy, Mike, and Jason to try to help me navigate this mess, and they are here to help you, too. On Thursday’s show, they again went to the well for their signature Starts of the Week. To catch the whole episode, check the link below:

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Now, let’s get into the breakdown of The Fantasy Footballers’ Starts of the Week for Week 3.

Andy’s Starts of the Week

QB – Joe Burrow vs. WAS

This season, it works well to follow the Commanders’ defense. Borrow got back to himself, throwing for 258 yards and two touchdowns. That happened with very little Ja’Marr Chase output and no Tee Higgins, who he could have back for the Monday Night Football game. Even without Higgins, the Commanders’ defense has been bleeding points to the QB position. In fact, in the last 18 games, the only QBs who have not scored 18+ fantasy points are Trevor Siemian and Mac Jones. Get Burrow in your lineup, and know he will do high-end QB things for your roster.

RB – Tony Pollard vs. GB

Pollard has been the steadiest part of the Tennessee offense. Mike mentioned earlier that he is the only RB with 15+ carries and four targets per game, equating to him being the RB11 and RB23 in the first two weeks. Now he goes into a matchup against Green Bay that looks juicy. The Packers are a run funnel defense, allowing 5.1 yards per carry, tied for the fifth highest in the NFL. The Packers have already allowed two big weeks for running backs when facing Saquon and Jonathan Taylor. Pollard could be the next RB with a significant game versus Green Bay.

WR – Chris Olave vs. PHI

The Eagles are another defense for us to target right now. They might fix their pass defense at some point this season, but there is no reason to believe it will happen soon. This week, the Saints, who have gone nuclear to start the season, must be forced into your lineups. Olave has long been the most talented passing option in New Orleans, and now the offense is using him that way. He had a 43% target share last week with the game being over at halftime, and he had a boss contested catch that went down at the one-yard line. In Week 1, Jayden Reed and Christian Watson scored on Philly; in Week 2, Darnell Mooney and Drake London found the end zone. Last year, Philly allowed the most fantasy points to WRs, and this year, they are currently ranked second through the first two weeks. Olave could go ballistic this week, especially if the Eagles keep the game competitive.

TE – Brock Bowers vs. CAR

There is little to not like from Brock ’em Sock ’em this season. Bowers’ 30% targets per route run currently leads the Raiders. That number jumps to 36% when he lines up in the slot position. He has 15 receptions so far, the most by a rookie TE in that span ever. He is locked in every week with this offense, which is throwing the ball much more than anyone thought it would. Vegas is number one in pass rate and number two in pass rate over expectation. The best news is that it is working to move the offense. Bowers is sixth in first downs among all receivers, tied with Davante Adams. Bowers must be locked into your lineup now and for the foreseeable future.

Jason’s Starts of the Week

QB – Derek Carr vs. PHI

Jason mentioned him in Stream of the Week, Andy had the Saints’ offense in the Hungry for More segments, and Mike is starting him in the Ballers’ League of Record. What could go wrong? Carr is leading all QBs in fantasy points per dropback and now faces a broken Eagles secondary. In the last 12 games, the Eagles have allowed a top-12 quarterback in nine of those games. The Eagles, tied with the Rams’ defense, allow 13.1 yards per completion, the highest in the NFL. Everything looks right for another big game for Carr, so have the confidence to put him in your lineup after all the last two weeks’ success.

RB – Zack Moss vs. WAS

Jason is back on his guy Zack Moss. There is a reason for this pick: Moss is leading the Bengals’ backfield, seeing 60% and 80% of the snaps in the first two weeks. That, paired with 75% of the running back attempts, tells you this team sees him as the workhorse back in the offense. Last week, versus the Chiefs, Moss had fire carries inside the 20-yard line. Now he faces the Washington defense, which ranks dead last in points per drive allowed. The same defense allowed Devin Singletary to carve them up for 5.9 yards a carry. Moss should be solid for you and offer some real upside if he can help put the game away late.

WR – Calvin Ridley vs. GB

Last week, we saw Ridley get into the end zone twice, and he has some metrics to help you think more could be coming. Through two weeks, Ridley is seeing 24% of the targets and 74% of the WR targets; that last percentage leads the NFL. He is the most important piece of the offense, and he said this week that he and QB Will Levis are adjusting to each other and getting to know how the other likes to play football. He is a very high-upside WR3 or flex option against the Packers’ secondary which has allowed the fourth most receiving first downs in the NFL this season. That combination could be deadly if Ridley continues to get in sync with Levis.

TE – Mark Andrews @ DAL

It is time for Mandrews to erupt. The game has a 48.5 over/under, and Andrews is still the clear TE1 for the team. Last week, Andrews ran way ahead of Isaiah Likely with 41 snaps to 32, 27 routes to 18, and a 15% target share compared to Likely’s 10%. Also, among all TEs with 40+ routes run, Andrews is number one in Fantasy Points’ separation score. The fantasy results haven’t come yet, but that hasn’t happened for most TEs. Jason thinks this is the week Andrews returns to the top-end fantasy TE he has been in the past.

Mike’s Starts of the Week

QB – Geno Smith vs. MIA

It looks like the return of the 2022 version of Geno Smith. He’s completed 74% of his passes for the fourth most completions total. He has been the QB7 and the QB5 on the year so far. The Ryan Grubb offense is working, scoring 26 and 23 points against two solid defenses this season. Geno is also taking care of the football, so you don’t get big negative plays from him, which means that while he may not give you the massive blow-up week facing the Skylar Thompson-led Dolphins, he also won’t make the mistakes that take fantasy points away from the QB position. Miami is allowing over 11 yards per completion and ranks 29th in 15+ yard pass plays allowed this year, so if Geno wants or needs to throw the ball deep, the defense should enable it.

RB – Zamir White vs. CAR

The decision is simple: Play your running backs when they face Carolina. Zamir hasn’t been the breakout many people hoped he would be up to this point in the season. However, The Raiders’ head coach said this week, “I’m gonna keep pumping him up. Our goal is to get 20+ touches with him. That was the goal this week, didn’t happen. That’s gonna be the goal this week and every week while he’s the starting running back and I’m here.” This week is a matchup in which he should get that volume, with Vegas as a five-point home favorite. Carolina is allowing 200 rushing yards per game so far because when teams get up on them, they are running out the clock in the second half. We should finally get the Zamir White game we all have hoped for.

WR – Jameson Williams @ ARI

The usage of Jameson Williams so far suggests that he will stick around as a critical piece in the offense. He is on the field for 89% of the snaps, seeing a 25% target share, and has five receptions in the first two games. Last week, he saw 11 targets, including two end zone targets. Williams’ role as the deep threat for the team seems locked in, which they needed to add to the offense from last year. Now they face an Arizona secondary, allowing the seventh-highest yards per attempt. If the Lions look for a big play, Williams is the guy they go to, which means he could explode for your team any week.

TE – George Kittle vs. LAR

Kittle has long been labeled a volatile TE, but he might be the most consistent of all the high-end options right now. In 12 games without Deebo Samuel, we have seen Kittle average seven targets and 80 receiving yards per game. The 49ers are seven-point favorites in this game and carry a team-implied 25.8 points. In San Francisco’s wins since 2023, they have gone over that 25-point implied total every time. Meanwhile, the Rams allow the most yards per play and the highest yards per attempt at 9.3 in the NFL. That is a recipe for Kittle to be successful this week.