The Fantasy Footballers’ Starts of the Week for Week 3
Welcome back, FootClan, to my favorite weekly segment: Starts of the Week!
Andy, Mike, and Jason join us today to break down some of their favorite (and sneakiest) plays to help you take down your league-mates yet again in Week 3. With two weeks of film and data to review, our fearless leaders have made the difficult decisions easy, outlining some of the most challenging start/sit decisions and allowing you to play them with the utmost confidence.
Want the full Thursday episode? Click the link below!
Andy’s Starts of the Week
QB – Jared Goff @ BAL
After a tone-setting QB1 overall performance in Week 2, Andy is calling his shot back-to-back with Jared Goff in Baltimore. This game has the highest O/U on the week (53.5), and Detroit is a +5.5 underdog, implying they will be playing catch-up toward the end of this game. Baltimore has allowed the second most passing yards on the season, and is ranked 29th in both sack rate and fantasy points allowed to the position. It’s time we erase the “Goff can’t play on the road” narrative, and let Jared bite kneecaps – or cook. Whatever it is they say in Detroit.
RB(s) – Travis Etienne/Bhayshul Tuten vs. HOU
The Texans allowed two top-20 performances to Bucky Irving and Rachaad White on MNF last week, and Andy is banking on another duo to repeat that trend. The Jaguars have plenty of fixing to do on their offense, but they have run the ball surprisingly well through the first two weeks of the season. Etienne is averaging 7.1 YPC, and while Tuten only played 25% of snaps last week, he touched the ball on 56% of them. The Jaguars somehow rank second in yards before contact, and both RBs have shown success in the receiving game as well. Houston is currently bottom-eight in points allowed to RBs, and Andy is continuing to ride the wave until proven otherwise.
WR – Rome Odunze vs. DAL
Rome Odunze has stepped right in as Ben Johnson‘s new WR1. After playing third fiddle all of 2024, Rome has a 28% target share and 33% of Caleb’s first read looks this season, and will now take on a Dallas secondary that just allowed 450 yards and 3 TDs to the ghost of Russell Wilson. He is certainly due for some regression, but fantasy’s WR3 overall should be locked into lineups as +1.5 underdogs with a 50.5 O/U in Dallas.
TE – Juwan Johnson @ SEA
Juwan Johnson has seemingly established himself as the Saints’ slot TE/WR for the foreseeable future. He leads all TEs with 20 targets through the first two weeks, and is second to only Trey McBride in first-read target share (32%). He already has two top-four finishes, and travels to Seattle this week, who ranks 30th against the TE position and is still missing several members of their secondary. Follow the targets, and start Juwan Johnson with confidence in Week 3.
Jason’s Starts of the Week
QB – Justin Herbert vs. DEN
Despite going up against a stingy Denver defense, Jason is going right back to his boy, Justin Herbert. This team and coaching staff have seemingly evolved from their run-heavy past selves and have finally realized what they have in Herbert. Over the first two weeks of the season, Herbert and the Chargers rank first in pass rate over expectation, while also ranking second in aDOT. He has elevated this entire receiving core, boosting both Quentin Johnston and Keenan Allen to top-12 status, while scrambling on 9.6% of his drop-backs (the highest rate of his career) and averaging 31.5 yards on the ground/game. Herbert is fantasy’s QB5 and PFF’s QB6, and Jason is expecting him to continue finding success against Denver this week.
RB – Jordan Mason vs. CIN
We were admittedly wrong about Mason last week, but he remains a must-start in a dream matchup against Cincinnati. Aaron Jones (hamstring) has been placed on IR, leaving Mason to handle this workload alone for the foreseeable future. The Vikings will also be without JJ McCarthy, implying an even higher likelihood that Coach Kevin O’Connell will want to establish the run. Enter the Bengals, who rank 31st in fantasy points allowed to RBs, including two top-18 finishes to Travis Etienne (RB12) and Bhayshul Tuten (RB17) last week. Mason was more involved as a receiver after Jones left the game, and is a lock for 15+ touches as -3 point favorites. We’re all expecting a bounce-back week for Jordan Mason, and he should be in all starting rosters.
WR – Michael Pittman @ TEN
After a down week against Patrick Surtain (it happens), Jason is pumped to get back to Michael Pittman in a far better matchup this week. The Titans have allowed the fourth most fantasy points to WRs, allowing huge games to Courtland Sutton, Puka Nacua, and Davante Adams thus far. Pittman is seeing a 21% target share through the first two weeks and is a solid FLEX play this week in Tennessee.
TE – Zach Ertz vs. LV
Zach Ertz is the Derrick Henry of the TE position. How many times – and teams – have waved this man off into the sunset, yet he still continues to perform. Despite high expectations for second-year TE Ben Sinnott, Ertz is playing 90% of snaps and averaging 13.1 PPG over the last seven games (including last year’s playoff run). If Jayden Daniels is playing, then that’s great news, of course. But even if it’s Marcus Mariota at the helm, our two-game sample size from last year resulted in nine receptions, 84 yards, and two TDs. At an extremely volatile and TD-dependent position, Ertz is a great streamer if you’re in need.
Mike’s Starts of the Week
QB – Dak Prescott @ CHI
This is the fantasy game script you pray for. Two high-paced and powerful offenses against two defenses that are unable to stop anything. With an O/U of 50.5, the Cowboys hold the third-highest team implied point total (26), signifying another potential shootout should be in store. The Bears have been unable to generate any pressure this season, ranking 30th in pressure rate, and Dak is at his best with a clean pocket. He is currently third in the league in pass attempts (86) through the first two weeks, and is set up for success once again against a Bears secondary ranked dead last in fantasy points allowed to opposing QBs. With CBs Jaylon Johnson (IR) out and Kyler Gordon (hamstring) still unable to practice, the sky is the limit for Cowboys pass catchers, and Dak has top-5 upside in Week 3.
RB – Jaylen Warren @ NE
After RB17 and RB13 finishes, Mike is putting all his faith into Jaylen Warren in New England. The threat of rookie Kaleb Johnson continues to diminish each week, while Warren has cemented himself as the lead back on this team. In Week 2, Warren saw 35% of the team’s touches, placing him with Bijan Robinson and Christian McCaffrey as the only backs to see 30 touches and 100 receiving yards through the first two weeks. New England has been solid against the run this season, but just allowed 10 receptions and an RB3 overall finish to De’Von Achane last week. Warren is a locked-and-loaded RB2 as -1.5 point favorites.
WR – Ricky Pearsall vs. ARI
Regardless of who is at QB for the 49ers, Mike is rolling with Ricky Pearsall as his Start of the Week. He has not had a blow-up week quite yet, but he has quietly averaged 6.5 targets/game over the first two weeks, and will be taking on an Arizona secondary that is missing all three of its starting CBs. Pearsall is seeing 25% of the team’s first-read targets, 2.41 YPRR, and is in line for a potentially huge day against a depleted Cardinals secondary.
TE – Jake Ferguson @ CHI
Jake Ferguson has established himself as the perfect “tier down” trade target. He has been targeted on 26% of his routes and averaged nine targets/game through the first two weeks. While we are all still waiting on the George Pickens blow-up game, it’s Jake Ferguson who is stealing all his targets underneath. We have covered the shootout implications of this game, and Turd Ferguson has sneaky upside at the position this week.