The Fantasy Footballers’ Starts of the Week for Week 13

It is the final stretch of the regular season. It’s time when you have got to get a win to make sure you are in the playoffs, or you want to be the villain of the story and ruin someone else’s chances at the playoffs. Regardless of the situation, this is crunch time, and some critical teams are on bye over the next two weeks. That means this period, more than maybe anytime before you need to check in with the Fantasy Footballers, especially regarding your decisions on who to start. Thursday’s episodes always bring us the Starts of the Week, but this week is slightly different. Mike has been absent, so this week we only had Andy and Jason to help guide us. It would be best if you still heeded their advice. Check out the entire episode on Youtube below.

Keep reading below for all the breakdown and analysis at the Start of the Week. Of course, if you are starving for even more Fantasy Footballers’ wise guidance, you can always join the #Footclan at jointhefoot.com. Now, onto the week 13 Starts of the Week. 

Andy’s Starts of the Week

QB- Jared Goff vs. JAX

The home splits for Goff are very good! He is averaging 258 yards and 2.5 touchdowns. The Jaguars are a wonderful QB matchup, ranking 31st against the QB over the last six weeks. The home environment should help, and there could be a lot of back-and-forth scoring. This year, the Lions’ home games are averaging 62 total points per game. That is the highest in the NFL. The weapons Goff does have are pretty good, namely Amon-Ra St. Brown. Ride the lighting with Goff, and hope it strikes well this game. 

RB- D’Andre Swift vs. JAX

Staying in this game, Andy is willing to go out on a limb. He is trying to convince players to believe in Swift. This game is the time when you have to make some decisions about D’Andre Swift. The snap counts are rising; he had 13 opportunities last week and eight targets. Jamaal Williams didn’t have any targets last week. Those are high-value touches for Swift in PPR leagues. The Jaguars are allowing the fourth most running back receptions per game. Pass-catching specialists have been successful against Jacksonville. Jerick McKinnon had eight targets, Deon Jackson had ten, Austin Ekeler had eight, and the Gibson plus McKissic tandem had 11 targets. Swift is getting healthier, and the eye tests show he looks more like himself. This week is an excellent time to get him back into your lineup. 

WR- Keenan Allen vs. LV

This game is another game where the fantasy output should be delectable. Allen ran 49 routes last week, second in the NFL. That led to five catches for 49 yards and a touchdown on seven targets. He will continue to be worked in more as he gets healthier. He has a very safe floor, and the ceiling is always high for Keenan. He has averaged nine targets, six receptions, and 66 yards against the Raiders in his career. Since Week 4, the Raiders have ranked 24th against fantasy wide receivers. The game total is fifty points and could easily go over. This week should be a big week for the Chargers as an offense, and that means Keenan should also be solid. 

TE- Hayden Hurst vs. KC

Hayden Hurst could bring some light this week in the dark world that is tight ends. This game should be a shoot-out and is the highest over/under of the week. Hurst is reliable enough. Kansas City started out as a defense you wanted to target for tight-end matchups. In Weeks 1-7, they were 30th in schedule-adjusted fantasy points to the tight end. It has been better, but the Chiefs haven’t seen great passing games that feature the tight end the last few weeks. Hurst has a good floor and could have a decent chance at a touchdown. That is all it takes to be a worthy tight end these days. 

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Jason’s Starts of the Week

QB- Trevor Lawrence vs. DET

The opposite side of the field from Andy is Trevor Lawrence. Lawrence has seven QB1 performances on the year. That is more than Herbert, Geno, or Cousins. This week he is the top streaming QB in the Ballers’ rankings. The Lions are a plus matchup because Detroit is dead-last in schedule-adjusted fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks. It was mentioned earlier in the week, but it bears repeating: 38% of pass attempts against the Lions result in a first down or a touchdown. That is the second-highest rate in the NFL. Lawrence could have a breakout game this week. 

RB- David Montgomery vs. GB

With Khalil Herbert on IR, Montgomery has gobbled up all the opportunities. He has had 80% of the snaps and an elite 38% of the total team rushing attempts and targets. Anything above 30% is an RB1-level workload. This week he plays the Packers, who just suffered 364 rushing yards on Sunday Night. Since Week 4, Green Bay is 27th against fantasy running backs. Jason does think Montgomery will be better without Justin Fields, but he would play him either way. 

WR- Garrett Wilson vs. MIN

For the second week in a row, Jason is going with the Jets’ rookie receiver. Last week he finished as the WR2. He was discussed in the Never Not Working segment earlier in the Thursday show. It is time to stay in the flames. Wilson saw a 28.5% target share in Mike White‘s first start. He is emerging as the alpha in that receiver room. Now he gets a matchup with Minnesota, which allows the most passing yards per game and the second-highest rate of 15-plus-yard pass plays. If Zach Wilson is on the sideline, then Garrett Wilson is in your lineup. 

TE- George Kittle vs. MIA

There are concerns for Kittle because San Francisco has so many weapons, but Deebo is banged up and McCaffrey is questionable. This should be one of those game plans Kyle Shanahan draws up around Kittle. He is still running a route on 75% of the team’s drop-backs, which is top five among tight ends. Kittle is ping-ponging from good to bad games, but only Travis Kelce has more double-digit fantasy weeks since Week 6. Since Week 7, the Dolphins are 31st in schedule-adjusted points allowed to tight ends. They are just slightly behind the Cardinals, and we can’t target them this week because they are on bye. So take the next best option and ride with George Kittle.