The Lineup Cheat Sheet combines Fantasy analysis and game-flow predictions with a confidence scale to give you a definitive answer on who to start in your leagues.
It's pretty simple: The scale runs from 1-10. The higher the number next to a player's name, the more confident you should be to start him. The numbers are not a projection, just a confidence score to help you pick who to start. Every relevant player for Week 1 is here, so if a player isn't listed, don't start him.
To find a specific player, use your search function -- CTRL-F on PCs and Command-F on Macs. If neither of those are options, or if you're on a mobile device, you can scroll by game.
If you're still unsure, just send a note on Twitter (@daverichard) and I'll give it a look, time permitting. Ready to get off on the right foot? Here's how to approach every play for Week 1 in PPR leagues — the non-PPR Cheat Sheet is right here.
The line wants us to believe: Philadelphia's somehow not even one-score better than Washington. Casual bettors who saw Washington lose 10 games in 2019 by nine-plus points might race to bet the Eagles. That's what they want -- I expect Washington to keep this game close.
(8.3) | (4.6) | ||
Boston Scott | (7.4) | (6.0) | |
Corey Clement | (4.6) | (6.7) | |
(6.8) | (3.3) | ||
Jalen Reagor | (2.95) | (4.5) | |
(8.4) | Football Team DST | (5.8) | |
(5.2) | | | |
Eagles DST | (7.0) | | |
| | | | |
The line wants us to believe: The Tom Brady-less Patriots aren't even one-score better than a 2019 bottom-five team. Isn't this supposed to be a spot where New England blows out their lowly division rival? Feels like they want the betting public on the Patriots.
(5.0) | (6.0) | ||
(6.4) | (7.3) | ||
(5.9) | (4.8) | ||
(6.1) | (5.6) | ||
(5.2) | (4.1) | ||
(6.0) | Patriots DST | (5.0) | |
Dolphins DST | (5.6) | | |
The line wants us to believe: This will be a close game between familiar rivals. That should be the case, particularly with two run-minded offenses unleashing their full running back groups against each other.
(6.6) | (4.2) | ||
(8.9) | (9.0) | ||
(9.8) | (7.5) | ||
(4.8) | (4.4) | ||
(2.5) | Vikings DST | (6.6) | |
Packers DST | (6.2) | | |
| | | | |
The line wants us to believe: Jacksonville stinks and won't score more than the implied 18.5 points. Even though the Jacksonville O-line is pretty rough, this offense isn't expected to nervously contest the Colts' secondary, particularly given that the quarterback can make plays on the run.
(4.8) | (7.5) | ||
(7.0) | (5.5) | ||
(6.3) | (4.4) | ||
(4.7) | D.J. Chark | (8.7) | |
T.Y. Hilton | (7.2) | Laviska Shenault Jr. | (3.9) |
(4.2) | (2.9) | ||
(7.0) | (5.6) | ||
Colts DST | (8.1) | Jaguars DST | (2.2) |
The line wants us to believe: Matthew Stafford's return is enough to make the Lions a small home favorite in a low-ish scoring game. In reality, the Bears defense might not be dominant enough to keep Detroit immobile, and the Bears offense should be good enough to deliver against a suspect Lions defense. I'd expect around 24 points per team.
(6.3) | (5.9) | ||
David Montgomery | (6.5) | (5.6) | |
(6.7) | (4.2) | ||
(9.6) | Marvin Jones | (6.9) | |
(5.3) | T.J. Hockenson | (5.5) | |
(4.2) | Lions DST | (4.0) | |
Bears DST | (6.8) | | |
The line wants us to believe: The Raiders are still a bad team to only get three points on the road. Carolina's defense is an enormous question mark while the Raiders upgraded on both sides of the ball and have a decided edge on offense. The 47.5-point total is curiously high.
(6.4) | (5.4) | ||
(9.3) | (9.9) | ||
(6.5) | D.J. Moore | (9.4) | |
(9.1) | (3.7) | ||
Raiders DST | (4.8) | (5.1) | |
| | | Panthers DST | (2.8) |
The line wants us to believe: The Bills are only a touchdown-or-so favorite against the haphazard Jets at home. I despise falling for these "too good to be true" odds, but I just don't see how the Jets get much more than their implied total of 16.5 points. I do see the Bills just barely getting to their implied total, 23 points.
(3.8) | (6.7) | ||
(7.1) | (6.6) | ||
(5.9) | (6.2) | ||
(6.7) | (7.3) | ||
Jets DST | (3.4) | (3.4) | |
| | | (2.8) | |
| | | Bills DST | (8.5) |
The line wants us to believe: Lamar Jackson is still an MVP quarterback and the Browns haven't improved. Jackson should flourish, but the Browns offense figures to be a more steadying, reliable presence. Their defense? Concerns past the D-line make them extremely vulnerable.
(5.2) | (9.6) | ||
(7.6) | (7.2) | ||
(7.35) | J.K. Dobbins | (5.2) | |
(6.6) | (8.2) | ||
(5.7) | (9.4) | ||
(5.9) | Ravens DST | (7.3) | |
Browns DST | (4.2) | | |
The line wants us to believe: This will be a razor-close, high-scoring affair. Well, no duh. Hard to find many bad Fantasy players from this game, and kind of hard to believe the total is *only* the third-highest of the week.
(9.2) | (8.4) | ||
(8.6) | (7.5) | ||
(7.7) | (9.5) | ||
(7.4) | (8.5) | ||
(4.8) | (6.9) | ||
Seahawks DST | (3.8) | Falcons DST | (3.0) |
The line wants us to believe: The Bengals are still the Bengals. And maybe they are. But you'd think Joe Burrow's bandwagon would make the line smaller. The Chargers defense is great but there are many questions on offense. The total is on point, particularly given the Chargers' offensive pace changes.
(6.1) | (5.8) | ||
(9.7) | (8.7) | ||
(7.0) | (6.2) | ||
(8.0) | A.J. Green | (6.0) | |
Chargers DST | (7.6) | (3.2) | |
| | | (2.7) | |
| | | Bengals DST | (3.6) |
The line wants us to believe: The 49ers really are among the NFC's elite. But Arizona's offense should be much better and the Niners defense might not be quite as dangerous. The 48-point total tells you it's expected to be a high-scoring game. Perfect for Fantasy.
(8.6) | (4.4) | ||
(8.2) | (7.7) | ||
(8.0) | (4.55) | ||
(5.0) | (2.4) | ||
(3.8) | (9.0) | ||
Cardinals DST | (6.0) | 49ers DST | (7.7) |
The line wants us to believe: The Bucs will keep it close. Of course that's possible given the Bucs have played the Saints close in their own building before, and that's without Tom Brady. A lot of money has been put on the Bucs. Makes me think the Saints have more than a 3.5-point edge in reality.
(6.5) | (8.2) | ||
(5.1) | (9.4) | ||
(4.5) | (9.9) | ||
(8.4) | (4.4) | ||
(4.45) | (7.8) | ||
(6.6) | Saints DST | (6.4) | |
O.J. Howard | (4.7) | | |
Buccaneers DST | (3.2) | | |
The line wants us to believe: The Cowboys aren't that much better than the home-team Rams. I don't see how the Cowboys, with an improved pass rush and a better receiving corps than the 2019 version, are just a three-point favorite. Which means, the line is designed to get people to take the Cowboys. Perhaps the Rams are being overlooked.
(9.3) | (6.8) | ||
(9.6) | (5.4) | ||
(6.4) | (4.3) | ||
(5.5) | (8.6) | ||
(5.1) | (7.6) | ||
(7.5) | (3.0) | ||
Cowboys DST | (7.5) | (7.7) | |
| | | Rams DST | (4.4) |
The line wants us to believe: The Steelers are a significantly better team. And they are. The public is on them in a major way. Twenty-six implied points for the Steelers feels light, even if it is Ben Roethlisberger's first game back.
(7.1) | (5.6) | ||
(9.2) | (9.8) | ||
(7.8) | (5.4) | ||
(4.9) | (4.6) | ||
(2.6) | (4.0) | ||
(7.1) | (7.6) | ||
Steelers DST | (9.0) | Giants DST | (1.8) |
The line wants us to believe: Von Miller's loss is worth four points. The line swung from Broncos -2, as it should have. Losing him is terrible for the Broncos, opening the door for Ryan Tannehill to play comfortably.
(6.2) | (4.0) | ||
(9.1) | (6.8) | ||
A.J. Brown | (8.3) | (5.3) | |
(7.2) | (6.3) | ||
Titans DST | (5.2) | (4.5) | |
| | | (6.8) | |
| | | Broncos DST | (5.4) |
The line wants us to believe: This is going to be a high-scoring game Kansas City will pull away and win. Given the state of the Chiefs secondary and the speedy weapons all over the Houston offense, I expect the game to be closer with both teams putting up big points.
(9.5) | (9.4) | ||
(7.9) | (7.8) | ||
(7.9) | (6.1) | ||
(7.1) | (9.7) | ||
(4.3) | (4.7) | ||
Texans DST | (2.4) | (3.6) | |
| | | (9.3) | |
| | | Chiefs DST | (4.6) |
So who should you start and sit this week? And which surprising quarterback could lead you to victory? Visit SportsLine now to get Week 1 rankings for every position, plus see which QB is going to come out of nowhere to crack the top 10, all from the model that out-performed experts big time last season.
