The Biggest Start/Sit Decisions for Week 2 (Fantasy Football)

“Oh I can ALWAYS withstand victories.”
— Jason Moore

Willkommen, Footclan! Welcome to Week 2 of the Start/Sit series, where we’ll identify and discuss your most commonly asked “Who should I start?” questions for the week.

The projections between any two players on your roster may appear similar, but this “simple” choice could be the difference between your team’s victory or defeat. Luckily, the Fantasy Footballers have created an amazing Start/Sit tool to easily compare any two (or more) players with insight from the Ballers themselves, and trust me — it’s an extremely valuable asset that will help you make these crucial lineup decisions that could ultimately lead you to your #FootClanTitle. Please note that the Footballers’ rankings are constantly being updated as news breaks, so make sure you check out the tool for yourself to catch any last-second changes.

So, without further adieu, let’s kick things off with the most popular Start/Sit questions for Week 2:

Featured Matchup:

QB:
Carson Wentz (WAS) or Trey Lance (SF)?

Let’s play a game:

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Quarterback A:

• Last week’s QB3 with 27.7 fantasy points.
• Completed 27 of 41 passes (66%) for 313 yards and 4 TDs.
• Passer rating: 101.
• All offensive weapons are healthy.
• Higher implied point total.

Quarterback B:

• Last week’s QB27 with 10.0 fantasy points.
• Completed 13 of 28 passes (46%) for 164 yards and 0 TDs.
• Passer rating: 50.3.
• Lead TE unlikely to play; lead RB on IR.
• Heavy favorites.

Quarterback A is Carson Wentz and Quarterback B is Trey Lance. Surprised? Probably not since these stats are misleadingly cherry-picked, but I digress. Wentz has emerged as the top streaming option after a dominating display against Jacksonville. He was the QB5 in passing yards (313), tied for QB6 in pass attempts (41), QB2 in passing TDs (4), and QB2 in time to throw (3.14) per Next Gen Stats.

Fun fact: this was his best fantasy week since Week 7 of the 2020 season.

Not so fun fact: in his next game, he only managed 123 passing yards, two interceptions, two fumbles, and took four sacks.

In other words, consistency has never been Wentz’s forte, so don’t be surprised if the wheels fall off without notice. This week, he’ll be gifted with a Lions defense that just gave away 38 points to the Eagles. His arsenal is stacked with Terry McLaurin, rookie Jahan Dotson, and the ghost of Curtis Samuel spreading the field, not to mention RB Antonio Gibson finally catching more passes (last week had career-high 8 targets) while TE Logan Thomas continues to regain strength.

Conversely, Lance had an awful showing in Week 1, but we can give him a mulligan since he and the entire city of Chicago was being flushed away. This was essentially his worst-case scenario as he couldn’t connect with any of his receivers and failed to score, yet he still ran enough (54 rushing yards) to at least give your team something to work with. Plus, he flashed moments of greatness every once in a while:

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This is as good of a throw as it gets from Trey Lance.

Layered throw, between the two levels of defenders, with zip and accuracy. This is the stuff that makes you excited for his development. pic.twitter.com/NwK6c71gZR

— Akash Anavarathan (@akashanav) September 12, 2022

He’s still the unanimous choice over Wentz by the Ballers, but another floor game is well within the realm of possibilities, especially without George Kittle and Elijah Moore to help move the chains. But also living in that realm is a potential nuclear eruption where Lance continually connects with Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel AND runs havoc over a Seahawks defense that just gave up 180 yards from scrimmage to Nathaniel Hackett’s version of manbearpig (aka, Melvonte). Different roles, sure, but with Elijah Mitchell out, Lance should continue to run the ball often and is always a threat to score. Just be mentally prepared for Deebo Samuel and Jeff Wilson Jr. to vulture some of his TDs.

The Verdict
I applaud those gambling with Wentz, but I’d rather give Lance another shot.

RBs:
Darrell Henderson Jr. (LAR) or AJ Dillon (GB)?

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	Darrell Henderson Jr. LAR RB vs ATL Sun, 9/18 4:05pm EST Clips	AJ Dillon GB RB vs CHI Sun, 9/18 8:20pm EST
	EXPERT PROJECTIONS
Proj. Points	12.8	13.6
Andy Rank	RB #19	RB #17
Mike Rank	RB #20	RB #12
Jason Rank	RB #22	RB #17
	MATCHUP DETAILS
Opp. Rank	1	4
Home/Away	Home	Home
Over/Under	47	42
Line	-10	-10

These two are closer than their rankings suggest. Both led their teams in RB touches and saw encouraging usage in the passing game. Both have tough matchups but should receive a higher workload as 10+ point favorites at home. AJ Dillon has a better chance of scoring since he was used more in the 5-zone and found success last week. But Darrell Henderson doesn’t have to deal with Aaron Jones commanding looks, and he should maintain a higher workload now that he’s the Rams’ de facto lead RB. That’s why our DFS boys love Henderson as a strong DFS play as his guaranteed volume is being undervalued on both FanDuel and DraftKings.

The Verdict
I like both guys, but I’m rolling with Dillon.

Chase Edmonds (MIA) or Jeff Wilson Jr. (SF)?

Based on the above, Jeff Wilson Jr. wins in nearly every category, and I’d have to agree. It all boils down to usage. When Wilson is given the keys and see at least 70% of snaps, he averages 23.3 opportunities (rush attempts + targets) and 17.8 fantasy points per game. Head coach Kyle Shanahan loves deploying Wilson near the goal line, so he’ll probably end up scoring too. Basically, he has a solid floor and realistic TD upside, making him Mike’s RB Start of the Week.

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The only argument for Chase Edmonds is based on his target share. Last week, he ran a route on 57% of Tua Tagovailoa’s dropbacks and secured a 13% target share, catching all four targets for 40 yards. Meanwhile, Wilson hasn’t had a game where he’s seen four or more passes since the 2020 season. I could see a case for Edmonds in full PPR, otherwise, I’m with the Ballers on this one.

The Verdict
Wilson all the way.

Ezekiel Elliott (DAL) or Cordarrelle Patterson (ATL)?

This is a rough one. Ezekiel Elliott is coming off a disastrous fantasy week, something that’s become a more frequent occurrence lately. While I’m confident he’ll bounce back, it probably won’t happen this week with Cooper Rush handing him the ball against a stout Bengals defensive front that just held the Steelers to 75 total rushing yards. In his one game with Rush in charge, Elliott averaged 3.1 rushing yards per attempt (4.2 season average) and 5.8 yards per catch (6.1 season average), resulting in his fifth-worst fantasy performance in a year where he played all 17 games.

Cordarrelle Patterson, on the other hand, continued his late-career resurgence with a dominating 22-120-1 onslaught on the ground last week against the Saints. He also caught 3 of 5 targets for an additional 16 yards. That’s over twice as many carries, targets, and yards as Elliott garnered, and nearly four times as many fantasy points (21.1 vs 5.4). We know that RBs who see 20+ carries in Week 1 end up averaging 944 yards and seven TDs for the season, although that would actually be a downgrade compared to his outstanding 2021 breakout year.

The Verdict
Andy and Mike favor Zeke, but I’m sashaying with the Big Shimmy and going with Patterson.

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WR:
Brandin Cooks (HOU) or Marquise Brown (ARI)?

It’s our first “Start/Sit” rematch! The Footclan was very invested in these two wideouts last week where Marquise Brown was unanimously favored (and barely won by 0.6 points). He’s still the consensus favorite, and while the gang isn’t overly optimistic, he should be funneled with targets as Kyler Murray’s top weapon… although that hasn’t quite manifested yet. Their match at Las Vegas is expected to be a firefight with a high point total, and I’m betting that Hollywood will contribute to it once again. Brandin Cooks saw twice as many targets as Brown (12 vs 6) and so he has a higher floor, but the latter’s upside is hard to resist.

The Verdict
Hollywood, baby.

WR:
Rashod Bateman (BAL) or Allen Robinson II (LAR)?

	Rashod Bateman BAL WR vs MIA Sun, 9/18 1:00pm EST	We do the work. You dominate your draft. Get the 2023 UDK Allen Robinson II LAR WR vs ATL Sun, 9/18 4:05pm EST Clips
	EXPERT PROJECTIONS
Proj. Points	11.3	11.4
Andy Rank	WR #26	WR #28
Mike Rank	WR #27	WR #25
Jason Rank	WR #26	WR #24
	MATCHUP DETAILS
Opp. Rank	10	30
Home/Away	Home	Home
Over/Under	44.5	47
Line	-3.5	-10

Rashod Bateman had a lackluster outing last week as the team’s “WR1” until a 55 (heyyo!) yard TD saved his fantasy day. Pouring salt on the wound was Devin Duvernay with two TDs. Then again, the Ravens didn’t have to try that hard against the Jets. Things may change against the Dolphins at home, and while the implied point total leaves room to be desired, it should be a close one where Lamar Jackson will need to rely heavily on his receivers.

Allen Robinson was a straight-up fart in the season opener. Like a fart, he stunk up the place and then quietly disappeared. But, also like a fart, he’s back and ready to strike on unsuspecting prey. I’m still a believer in him despite his frighteningly low targets per route run (4%), and I’m optimistic that Matthew Stafford will throw more balls his way against a much softer opponent in the Falcons. Personally speaking, I’m running it back with Robinson in the leagues I roster him because I’m committed to the sunk cost fallacy, but ARob is not for the faint of heart. We’ve just seen his floor — and my goodness is it low — so only play him if your team can handle it.

The Verdict
Andy likes Bateman while Mike and Jason prefer Robinson. Bateman is the safer choice.

TE:
Cole Kmet (CHI) or Robert Tonyan (GB)?

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	Cole Kmet CHI TE @ GB Sun, 9/18 8:20pm EST	Robert Tonyan GB TE vs CHI Sun, 9/18 8:20pm EST Clips
	EXPERT PROJECTIONS
Proj. Points	7.6	7.7
Andy Rank	TE #17	TE #13
Mike Rank	TE #15	TE #16
Jason Rank	TE #15	TE #17
	MATCHUP DETAILS
Opp. Rank	6	7
Home/Away	Away	Home
Over/Under	42	42
Line	+10	-10

I formally apologize to anyone who followed my advice last week on Cole Kmet. Turns out, Kolekomo was not a place we wanted to go. Someone must’ve started a game of Jumanji at Soldier Field as the rain poured relentlessly and washed away any chance for either offense to get going. But go on and blame it on the rain and give Kmet another chance, this time behind enemy lines at Lambeau. It was nice to see that he remained a fixture on the field with 83% snaps. Let’s hope that can turn into targets this week.

On the other side of the field is Robert Tonyan. Despite being eased back with only 36% of snaps, he still received 5 targets — including one in the red zone. That’s already more than he’s ever averaged in any of his four previous seasons in the NFL. It makes sense that Aaron Rodgers would be desperate to throw to any familiar or trusted target, and the two once shared a strong connection at the end zone. Can Tonyan rekindle the flames?

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The Verdict
Tonyan is the slight favorite by projected points, but don’t be afraid to stick with Kmet.