The Biggest Start/Sit Decisions for Week 4 (Fantasy Football)
Did you lose a player to injury this week? Did you lose three or four like me? Brutal. The injury report keeps growing by the day: Achane, Etienne, Hall, Daniels, Smith, Jefferson, Nacua, Coker… the list goes on and on. If your roster currently looks like a hospital waiting room, welcome to the club. We have snacks, and absolutely no healthy RBs.
If you are a fantasy manager that is 0-3.. 1-2.. or plagued by injuries.. you need to hear this 🫡 pic.twitter.com/ka9xqB2jpC
— Fantasy Footballers (@TheFFBallers) September 30, 2026
The good news is that somebody still has to go in your lineup, and that is where I come in. By pairing the Start/Sit recommendations from the Fantasy Footballers tool with my weekly analysis, I am sorting out which Week 4 Start/Sit decisions you can lock in with confidence:
Braelon Allen or Jacory Croskey-Merritt?
You did not pick Braelon Allen up off waivers to bench him. Breece Hall left in the fourth quarter against the Lions in Week 3 with a quad injury after saying he “felt something,” which is never the sentence you want to hear from your RB1. The MRI was encouraging, but he is still week-to-week, and that makes this Allen’s backfield. In his only career game with Hall inactive, Allen turned 16 opportunities into 81 total yds. Not too shabby. Add primary red-zone duties, and you get a solid floor with real TD upside.
Need an RB start this week? Pick up Braelon Allen ✅ pic.twitter.com/lOnk4uvBH8
— Fantasy Footballers (@TheFFBallers) September 29, 2026
The matchup helps too. The Chicago Bears rank 26th against RBs and dead last in yds allowed before contact. Allen’s speed score sits in the 95th percentile. Translation: he may be a few yards downfield before anyone catches up. With Adonai Mitchell out and Sadiq limited on Thursday, expect the Jets to lean on the run game.
“Bill” Croskey-Merritt has the volume, just not much to show for it. He saw a season-high 20 touches against the Seahawks and turned 19 carries into 36 yds, with one catch for seven more yards. Through three games, he has 142 yds and a TD on 47 carries. That is 3.0 yds per carry with only two runs of 10-plus yards. Now the offense around him gets worse. Jayden Daniels will not be ready to return, so it is Marcus Mariota against the Colts in London. Rachaad White has missed two straight practices, but the Commanders just signed Austin Ekeler, who could step right into the passing-down work.
Verdict: It’s Braelon Allen off waivers for me. He is Mike’s RB Start of the Week. Plug Allen right into your lineup.
Braelon Allen or Omarion Hampton?
There is no way we are starting the backup RB on the Jets that we just snagged off waivers over Omarion Hampton, who we drafted all summer as a top-10 RB!?! When I clicked on the Start/Sit tool and saw the Ballers were siding with Allen, my jaw dropped. I guess we are. And guess what? It makes sense. The Chargers are completely stagnant. I legit am staring down this same decision in one of my leagues, so I am sweating this one with you, FootClan.
Last week, Hampton didn’t do anything special. 15 carries for 56 yds. The offense as a whole didn’t do anything special, putting up only 16 total points in a matchup against the Bills where points should be flying. Keaton Mitchell continues to be a thorn in the side of Hampton owners. The matchup against Seattle for Hampton and the 0-3 Chargers is brutal. I expect them to put up even fewer points than last week and fall to 0-4. Give me no part of that.
Verdict: It’s Braelon Allen again.
Carnell Tate or Dontayvion Wicks?
The box score was not pretty, but the volume finally showed up. Tate caught six of nine targets for 58 yds in Sunday’s 12-7 loss to the Giants, setting season highs in catches, targets, and receiving yds. Through three games, the fourth overall pick leads the Titans with 20 targets, which he has turned into a modest 13-123-0 line in one of the league’s weakest passing attacks.
Mike Manderson (or “Mando,” as our Discord friends know him) sees the arrow pointing up in his Targets Per Route Run Report:
“Look, I know there are a lot of negative things to be said about the Titans, Cam Ward, and therefore Carnell Tate. But last week was some pretty bad weather, and Tate saw a 27.3% TPRR. He has improved every week. It may click sooner rather than later, and he might become the flex WR you are looking for down the stretch. Keep an eye on it.”
The Rams are a middle-of-the-road matchup, ranking 15th against opposing WRs and allowing 26.3 fantasy points per game to the position.
Wicks was quiet on Monday night, catching two of five targets for 32 yards in a 27-7 loss to the Bears. He did kick off the Eagles’ only scoring drive with a 13-yard catch-and-run, but that was about it while the game was still competitive. Through his first three games in Philadelphia, he has a 9-179-1 line on 15 targets.
The reason to care this week is opportunity. Betz has Wicks as one of his NFL DFS DraftKings Cash Picks:
“DeVonta Smith is likely to miss multiple games with a hamstring injury, which opens up a ton of opportunity in the Eagles offense. Worth noting, Dallas Goedert (Knee) also remains out, so Jalen Hurts will be down a couple of his top targets in Week 4.”
The Ravens rank 23rd in fantasy points allowed to WRs, giving up 30.3 per game to the position.
The Verdict: Wicks. Tate is trending the right way, but Wicks is stepping into a bigger role with Smith and Goedert sidelined, and he gets the softer matchup on paper.
Darren Waller or Isaiah Likely?
Who had Darren Waller as a weekly fantasy starter on their 2026 bingo card? He hauled in five of eight targets for 51 yds in the loss to the Browns, leading the team in both catches and targets, and all three numbers were season highs. Through three games in Dave Canales’ offense, he has 10 receptions for 112 yds and two TDs on 13 targets. He had a third TD called back for pass interference as well. Bryce Young clearly trusts him, especially near the goal line.
Now he gets a home matchup with the Lions on Sunday night, and this one has fantasy goodness written all over it. Detroit is dead last in fantasy points allowed to TEs. Not bottom five. Dead last.
Pick and flex Darren Waller! Waiver Wire #sponsored by @tmobile pic.twitter.com/bBaLS4gzyu
— Fantasy Footballers (@TheFFBallers) September 29, 2026
Waller is also Andy’s TE Start of the Week:
“Waller has been ramping up each week, with his snap shares climbing from 35% in Week 1 to 44% and then to 51% last week. His snap involvement, along with Jalen Coker‘s injury, has resulted in an increase in targets each week as well, resulting in targets and five catches for 51 yards in Week 3.”
Isaiah Likely was on a heater to start the season, racking up 13 catches over the first two weeks. Last week with Jameis under center? Two receptions for 13 yds. It wasn’t pretty. While he still finished second on the team in targets, the targets weren’t pretty. The matchup does offer some hope. The Cardinals rank 27th against TEs and just let George Kittle go off for a 6-82-2 line in a 36-30 loss to the 49ers. The caveat? Many of those points belong to Kittle alone, and he is one of the few receiving options left standing in San Francisco.
The Verdict: I’m going with Darren Waller. Sorry, Likely managers, but I am riding with Waller this week. The matchup against Detroit is far too juicy to pass up, and I really do not want to put my fantasy hopes into the hands of Jameis Winston.
Between the injury report and the lineup holes it left behind, this week feels less like setting a roster and more like playing fantasy football Jenga. If you are still agonizing over a tough Start/Sit call right before kickoff, take a deep breath. You can always hit me up on X or catch Mike live on his Sunday Start/Sit show to talk you through it. The Fantasy Footballers Start/Sit tool is also there for any last-minute tiebreakers. Now go lock in those lineups and continue our quest for another W in that win column.