Fantasy football is officially underway and frankly, it feels like Christmas. Some people had Amon Ra St. Brown in their lineups and are really content with how Thursday turned out. Others started Kadarius Toney... woof.
Today's the big day though, with the bulk of lineups in action. We've got our starts, sits and sleepers for week one to give y'all a nudge if you need it, maybe some DFS advice, or perhaps just some Sunday reading. Regardless, here we go.
Starts
Kirk Cousins vs. Tampa Bay: 1 o'clock Kirk, at home in the dome against an iffy team with a bad group of cornerbacks. 300 yards and 3 touchdowns seems feasible
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| Photo: Bruce Kluckhohn/ AP |
Geno Smith vs. Los Angeles Rams: Outside of Aaron Donald, the Rams have an inexperienced defense that'll likely be on the field a good bit due to an offense that can't sustain drives. With the Seahawks more likely to have success through the pass game than the run, look for Geno and his weapons to have nice afternoons
JK Dobbins vs. Houston: The Texans undoubtedly got better defensively over the offseason, but they still gave up 170 rushing yards per game a year ago. JK Dobbins looked great during his eight games in 2022, despite the fact he couldn't get out of third gear. He should be all healed up now and ready to dominate in this cake matchup
AJ Dillon @ Chicago: No Christian Watson in the lineup definitely caps the vertical potential of this offense. Aaron Jones is likely to get a nice workload, but I expect Dillon to outperform him, mainly due to through his work in the passing game. Either is a good play, but something makes me think the fourth year back is going to be the bigger contributor
Chris Olave vs. Tennessee: The Titans pass defense was the worst a year and didn't do much to improve it this offseason. Chris Olave is a rising star who should feast on the inferior cornerbacks all afternoon
Justin Jefferson/Jordan Addison vs. Tampa Bay: If Kirk's popping off, his pass catchers have to be the benefactors. I think it'll be Jefferson and Addison leading the way while Hockenson squares off with Devin White. Very excited to see what the rookie from USC can bring to this pass attack
Tyler Higbee @ Seattle: The Seahawks allowed the second most yards to the tight end position a year ago. With Cooper Kupp out, Matthew Stafford has to throw the ball to somebody. Higbee should see double digit targets
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| Photo: Jayne Kamin-Oncea/ Getty |
Juwan Johnson vs. Tennessee: The Titans had the honor of being the only defense worse than Seattle against tight ends in 2022. Juwan Johnson has shown he can be a reliable target, and Derek Carr's got a good history of working connecting with his tight ends, so this could be a nice day for Johnson
Sits
Jimmy Garoppolo @ Denver: Jimmy G's going to have Vegas in a spot to potentially pull off the upset late. I don't think they'll succeed, but he's going to keep it close-- it's just what he does. His stats won't be pretty in the process though, not versus Patrick Surtain II and Co.
Bryce Young @ Atlanta: The first overall pick may be down his top three receivers for his pro debut...not what the Panthers were hoping to surround him with. Atlanta's cornerbacks aren't bad either. The combination should really limit Young's numbers as he works with a backup cast of wideouts
Alexander Mattinson vs. Tampa Bay: I'm genuinely confused by the good bit of people who seem to believe Alexander Mattinson isn't a pretty substantial downgrade from Dalvin Cook. They'll find out soon enough...he's a fine running back, but Dalvin's just a different level. Tampa's pretty decent against the run, and should be much more attackable on the perimeter, leading me to think Minnesota's new RB1 isn't going to have a crazy stat line
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| Photo: Quinn Harris/ Getty |
Najee Harris vs. San Francisco: The 49ers don't give up rushing yards. Najee Harris' head of steam is looking like the vaporizer in my daughter's bedroom over the last few seasons. Maybe could salvage his day with a score, but a single digit output wouldn't shock me here
Deandre Hopkins @ New Orleans: Marshon Lattimore's a stud and Ryan Tannehill isn't known for airing it out. Not a good forecast for Nuk in his debut for the Titans, good chance you've probably got better plays on your bench
Stefon Diggs @ New York Jets: I know, I know, you're not going to sit Diggs. Davante Adams' name almost went here too, which some may consider equally outrageous. But he's going to be fed all the sauce Monday night, giving him little room to make much happen
Cole Kmet vs. Green Bay: Packers allowed the second fewest yards to tight ends a year ago, while Cole Kmet was generally inconsistent. I think he's a good player, but not a fun matchup for him this week
Pat Freiermuth vs. San Francisco: Fred Warner and the San Francisco defense is really stout over the middle, leaving Freiermuth to get most of his work in the flats. He could be a decent PPR play if he turns into Pickett's safety valve, and like Harris, a touchdown could salvage his day. But not his best performance of the year coming up
Sleepers
Anthony Richardson vs. Jacksonville: The Jaguars have a bad defense, no two ways about it. I expect a lot of tuck and run by Richardson in this one, with lanes to do it through too. If you're desperate for quarterback play, expect at least eight points on the ground from AR15
Tank Bigsby @ Indianapolis: Staying in Indy for our running back pick, but Tank Bigsby will be squaring off against the Colts. The third rounder gained some hype during the preseason, while confidence in Travis Etienne Jr. seemed to wane, at least among fantasy managers. I think we could see Bigsby tanking into the teeth of the defense with some regularity Sunday
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| Photo: Jaguars Wire |
Jayden Reed @ Chicago: No Watson opens up a nice chunk of targets for somebody in the Green Bay offense. Rookie Jayden Reed may be the recipient of some of those, priming him for at least a 4-5 reception day. Not the worst play if you're in a pinch
Hayden Hurst @ Atlanta: The Falcons gave up a good bit of yards to position in 2022 and Bryce Young may have no receivers to throw to. Hurst should have a bunch of receptions, even if he doesn't do much with them
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@Choppinglines
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