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Looking for some lineup advice? You've come to the right place. First, go through every game on the schedule right here to find out who Dave is starting and sitting for all 32 team. Then, check out Dave's Cheat Sheets — PPR is here, while Non-PPR is here — for start and sit calls for every relevant Fantasy player.
Raiders at 49ers
Sit Him
I actually began the week liking Nelson, figuring the Raiders will manufacture his matchup across from poor cover cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon. But, in order to trust Nelson, you must overlook his recent track record. In all but two games this season he's had four targets and he's averaged over 11.0 yards per catch in just three of seven games. He has one outing with more than 10 Fantasy points in non-PPR and three games with more than five points in full PPR. The issue isn't him getting old or getting double-teamed nearly as much as it is Derek Carr simply missing him when he's open. I hate passing up this good opportunity, but Nelson doesn't get as many of those as he'd probably like. He's simply a risk not worth taking unless it's as a low-end flex or bye-week replacement.
Start Him
Doug Martin definitely had some juice last week, running with fresh legs against a bad Colts run defense. But his usage was odd — he played only 31 snaps, most in the first half. He had all of one fourth-quarter snap and it resulted in a game-changing fumble with under 6:00 to play. His day was done after that. If the Raiders had involved him more, he'd have topped 100 yards easily. This leads to questions about his workload against the 49ers, who have bent for seven touchdowns on the ground to running backs in their last six games and have struggled with volume rushers until finally slowing down David Johnson last week. The Raiders' offensive inconsistencies and Martin's own disappointing usage last week would normally keep him from being a good Fantasy option, but the late change to Nick Mullens at quarterback should mean more offensive opportunities for Oakland. Martin is a low-end No. 2 running back for this week.
Bears at Bills
Start Him
Well, it finally happened last week — Trubisky's streak of 300-yard, three-score games snapped. He only had two touchdowns and 220 yards. But he also ran for over 40 yards for the fourth straight game, continuing to pad his point totals. The Bills have themselves a scrappy defense, but it's one that's constantly put into bad positions because of their offense. It worked out for them last week against the Patriots, but after being on the field for 76 plays on a Monday, chances are they'll show signs of exhaustion against the Bears. Expect Trubisky to go after matchups involving the Bills' linebackers and safeties, steering clear of ballhawk Tre'Davious White. While he might not have another rock-star outing like he did in Weeks 4, 6 and 7, his outlook is still better than Ben Roethlisberger, Philip Rivers or Matthew Stafford's.
Sit Him
McCoy survived the trade deadline and remains with the Bills, but we'll see if his Fantasy owners can survive with him in lineups this week. The Bears have gone seven straight games without allowing a rushing touchdown and have yielded just one rush of 20-plus yards. Guess what? McCoy and the Bears have something in common — McCoy has also had just one rush of 20-plus yards this season. McCoy has more catches for 20-plus yards (two). So, if you're starting McCoy, you better hope he lands four-plus receptions (it would be only the third time this season) and somehow finds the end zone (something he hasn't done yet). The Bears allow a not-so-nice 69 percent catch rate to running backs with 7.2 yards per grab.
Buccaneers at Panthers
Start Him
The Bucs don't have a defensive back who can muscle up with Funchess. They barely have defensive backs who can play well against anyone. Funchess' track record against the Bucs is poor (under 20 yards in each of last three meetings) but the current-day matchup is mouth-watering. Tampa Bay's allowed 13 touchdowns to receivers this year and more recently 13.3 yards per catch and a 72 percent catch rate in their last four. A perimeter receiver has hit 10-plus Fantasy points in three of four and the highest-targeted receiver has notched 11-plus Fantasy points in every game this year. Last week, Funchess had fewer than seven targets for the first time since Week 1 — expect a bounce-back. He feels like a safe bet for a touchdown.
Start Him
Defenses have been beating up on Panthers cornerback James Bradberry, and the Bucs figure to be no different. There's a better chance of Godwin making plays on him than someone with speed like DeSean Jackson — he'll probably see more of better cover corner Donte Jackson. Godwin's been quiet lately, but that might have to do with who's been throwing him the ball. Godwin averaged 10.6 yards per catch from Jameis Winston with one touchdown in 14 quarters, and 13.6 yards per catch from Ryan Fitzpatrick with three touchdowns in 15 quarters. He also had a few more targets from Fitzpatrick. A touchdown-or-bust receiver to the core, Godwin should see improved numbers as the Buccaneers continue to throw frequently. Godwin is a good-enough No. 2 receiver this week, ahead of the likes of Josh Gordon, Calvin Ridley and Doug Baldwin.
Chiefs at Browns
Risky Non-PPR Starter
The Chiefs have improved against the pass and have especially done well slowing down slot receivers. In the last six weeks, only Julian Edelman has crossed the 10-point mark in non-PPR leagues (he had 54 yards and a score). Landry is running about half of his routes from the slot. He's also been pretty dang disappointing over his last five games, posting just one game above 10 non-PPR Fantasy points and three with six or fewer. His last touchdown came against the Bucs and involved him diving for a pass short of the end zone and reaching across the goal line before a defender could touch him. There's no doubting his target share (10-plus looks in all but one game this year), but his receiving average has taken a nose dive and his scoring opportunities are slim.
Start Him
Njoku only trails Landry in targets, catches and yards from Baker Mayfield (they each have two touchdowns), but Njoku has the better catch rate. Njoku also has the better matchup this week as tight ends have scored on the Chiefs in consecutive weeks. They've used cornerbacks and safeties to cover tight ends and they've struggled. Count on Njoku to come back strong after last week's stunning target-less outing. The remaining offensive brain trust shouldn't let that happen again.
Jets at Dolphins
Start Him
Crowell is a dicey proposition because he's only come through for Fantasy owners when he's had a long touchdown run and/or scored from short yardage. He should be able to do at least one of those things against the Dolphins. Miami has allowed a touchdown to a running back in every game this season, but a drill-down into their last three games shows that the run defense was busted for short-yardage scores in each of its last two — and it would have been three in a row if not for a rare Jordan Howard fumble near the goal line. The Fins have also given up at least one long run (20-plus yards) in each of their last four with a 50-yard run in each of their last two. The Jets will sense they can win the game with a big dose of the run, so expect 15 carries for Crowell. Every time he's done that, he's scored at least 15 Fantasy points. Use him as a No. 2 option.
Sneaky Sleeper
Know what's weird? Herndon has been on a three-game touchdown streak while playing under 30 snaps per game, all season-lows. He's not even running as many routes as he was earlier in the year. But he's been clutch in the red zone the last two weeks after being a big-play threat three games ago. If the Jets are wise, they'll recognize that Dolphins linebackers have allowed a score to a tight end in each of their last three (five touchdowns total). It's worth giving Herndon a nod as a bye-week replacement.
Sneaky Sleeper
Even with a 46-yard ping-pong ball fluke grab last week, Parker played like a first-rounder should. He combined his 6-foot-3 size with swift speed and good hands, catching off-target passes from Brock Osweiler (that'll happen). So long as Miami's receiving corps is thin and Parker isn't ticking off his coach or nursing a minor injury, he should have a path to high volume. Against this Jets defense, that's a good thing — without cornerback Trumaine Johnson, they've given up seven touchdowns to receivers in four games.
Steelers at Ravens
Sit Him
Fitting that Roethlisberger plays at Baltimore after Halloween — M&T Bank Stadium has been a house of horrors for him. The last time he totaled two touchdowns at Baltimore was November of 2016. The last time he threw two touchdowns at Baltimore was November of 2013. The last time he threw for over 300 yards at Baltimore was November of never. These stats wouldn't mean anything if the Ravens pass defense was bad, but they're sporting cornerbacks who have allowed one touchdown to a receiver in their last four contests. The team has yielded three scores to wideouts since Week 3, including a solo score to Antonio Brown back in Week 4. They've also handled slot receivers well, including JuJu Smith-Schuster in Week 4 (4-60-0 on 11 targets). Big Ben will have to buck history and bend Baltimore's bullying secondary in order to bring home a big benefit to his Fantasy owners. It's a bunch to ask.
Sit Him
This has nothing to do with the Ravens acquiring Ty Montgomery and everything to do with the Steelers' tough run defense and Collins' own situation. While it stunk seeing him fumble last week, the Ravens coaches didn't punish him for it as he was in on the next offensive snap. But Collins continued splitting reps with Javorius Allen, who caught a red-zone touchdown. The reality is that Collins has 12 carries or less in all but two games this season and under 4.0 yards per rush in all but two games. If he doesn't score, he'll make your eyes sore. The Steelers have given up three rush scores to running backs this season. The odds are against Collins, who only had a good game last time against Pittsburgh because he caught a touchdown — the only one of his career.
Lions at Vikings
Start Him
In the wake of the Golden Tate trade, Jones' role shouldn't change but his target volume should. That's good news. Jones leads the Lions with a dozen end-zone targets, according to Sports Info Solutions, and also leads with 17 deep targets according to Pro Football Reference. Expect more of those. And as tough as this matchup is, the reality is that Jones went head-to-head with Xavier Rhodes and the Vikings last Thanksgiving and ripped 'em for over 100 yards and two touchdowns! That should tell you that Stafford won't fear throwing in Rhodes' direction, especially if he's still dealing with a balky ankle. I expect the Lions to throw a hefty amount this week, so expect Jones to come through with some solid yardage and a potential touchdown.
Start Him
The Lions pass defense has fallen off this season thanks to a lack of pass rush. That will come in handy this week for Kirk Cousins, who was under siege last week and hasn't been able to pick secondaries apart because his O-line has struggled. Detroit has yielded 15 passing touchdowns this season and 10 in the last four weeks — three to tight ends. After coming so close to scoring last week, bank on Cousins going back to Rudolph for a touchdown. It helps that Rudolph has at least four receptions in 6 of his last 7 games.
Falcons at Redskins
Risky Starter
You may already know Ryan isn't as much of a slam-dunk on the road as he is at home, but in his last 10 games overall outdoors and on a natural surface, he's topped 300 yards twice and thrown multiple touchdowns three times (twice in 2016). Already this year, Ryan has struggled in tough road matchups at Philly and Pittsburgh, throwing one touchdown in the two games combined. He'll have another toughie this week — Washington's let opposing passers top 300 yards twice this season, though they have given up two-plus scores to five of the last six quarterbacks they've faced. Washington's zone coverage has limited rivals to just 23 pass plays of 20-plus yards (tied for eighth-best) and five pass plays of 40-plus yards and should theoretically inhibit Julio Jones (whose last regular-season touchdown on natural grass came in 2016) and Calvin Ridley from dominating via the long ball. They're also adding Ha Ha Clinton-Dix to their defensive backfield to further tighten things up. Expect a modest game from Ryan.
Sit Him
Two games into life without Devonta Freeman and Coleman has averaged 10.5 carries, 4.0 rush yards, 1.5 catches and 12.7 receiving yards per week. It's not what many had expected. Touchdowns continue to buoy his numbers as he's scored in both games. He's going to need to score if he's going to succeed against Washington. Over the last three weeks, the Redskins held Christian McCaffrey to 2.5 yards per carry, Ezekiel Elliott to 2.2 yards per carry and Saquon Barkley to 2.9 yards per carry. None of them scored. The Redskins run defense seems capable of containing Coleman, particularly if he's not going to handle a bunch of carries.
Risky Starter
I've been discouraged by Reed's usage and Alex Smith's play, but last week was a step in the right direction. A small step. Nearly all of Reed's 12 targets were in close proximity to the line of scrimmage and there were still some issues with Smith's accuracy. But at least he had 12 targets and seven receptions. The Falcons pass defense hasn't been good, but they should still be able to contain Reed since he's not challenging downfield very often and still drawing double-teams in goal-to-to situations. He's a good-enough start in PPR leagues, but not as good in non-PPR formats.
Texans at Broncos
Sneaky Sleeper
Everyone expects Sutton to start in Thomas' old spot along the sideline in the Broncos offense. Everyone also expects Sutton to see something pretty close to the 7.0 target average Thomas had from Case Keenum. The difference is that Sutton is far more explosive than Thomas and can be a nuisance to a banged-up Texans secondary. One of Houston's starters figures to be Natrell Jamerson, a fifth-round rookie who had his first taste of playing time last week — and missed three tackles. This is a nice first spot for Sutton to shine in as a starter, making him a borderline No. 2 receiver and a quality flex choice.
Sneaky Sleeper
I can't recall ever seeing a receiver play against his former team the week after getting traded away. It's going to be interesting — Thomas surely knows the strengths and weaknesses of his former teammates, just as they know his strengths. But the one thing Denver cannot do is focus on slowing Thomas down — not with DeAndre Hopkins on the field. So expect the coverage on Thomas to be toned down, and expect him to try and one-up his former mates. This week, Thomas should play nearly every snap, won't have to lose targets to a rookie looming over his shoulder and has a slightly more accurate quarterback in Deshaun Watson. These elements should result in Thomas being a good Fantasy option, especially in PPR.
Chargers at Seahawks
Risky Starter
Allen's targets have declined over three straight weeks, costing him valuable receptions. It doesn't help that he's taking on a Seahawks squad that's great at keeping receiving yardage under wraps. Only two wideouts have gone for over 100 yards on Seattle this season and only one, Emmanuel Sanders, was a predominant slot guy like Allen. Slot cornerback Justin Coleman did a nice job on Golden Tate last week and has only allowed one touchdown this season. Shaquill Griffin is the weak link in the secondary and probably won't line up across Allen very often. When you're hoping your Fantasy receiver scores when he hasn't in six straight games, and he's on the road in a tough matchup, you should probably consider every option before putting him in your lineup.
Rams at Saints
Sneaky Sleeper
If you're like me, you're expecting a major shoot-out in the Superdome between these teams on Sunday. Why wouldn't you? The Saints allow 26.1 points per game and the Rams are giving up 22.1 points per game versus teams not quarterbacked by Sam Bradford. But Los Angeles has specifically struggled with the pass since Aqib Talib's injury, giving up 200.6 yards per game just to wideouts, along with nine touchdowns. Combine all of that, and we should see a game where Drew Brees will have to throw a lot and Smith (and, of course, Michael Thomas) come up with multiple big plays. It's enough to give him a shot as a bye-week replacement.
Packers at Patriots
Risky Starter
While the Packers' first game out of their bye featured Jones as their top ball carrier, it's not like they're changing their offensive identity. Aaron Rodgers still runs this show. The Packers also showed us that they're still not quite ready to trust Jones at the goal line — Jamaal Williams played two snaps from the 1 and scored while Jones was on the bench. In fact, Jones has played just three snaps from inside the 5-yard line with two carries and one touchdown. Williams is also seemingly the preferred third-and-long back. Don't panic, Jones should still get upwards of 14 touches and can break off a big play, even against a Patriots run defense that held running backs to 2.8 yards per run over the last two weeks.
Titans at Cowboys
Sneaky Sleeper
While I doubt the Cowboys veer much from their run-first approach, there should still be ample opportunities for Cooper to latch on to a nice percentage of Dak Prescott's targets in a positive matchup. Dallas has manufactured a receiver with more than six targets just four times this year (three by Cole Beasley), but Cooper should buck that trend, if only by one or two throws. Expected to play on the outside, the Cowboys should aim to line Cooper up across from Malcolm Butler, who has allowed over 500 yards and five touchdowns already this season. The Cowboys raved about Cooper's play in practice and expect him to command defensive attention similarly to Dez Bryant. I'm not ready to call for a huge game from Cooper, but it wouldn't surprise me if he finished with 10 Fantasy points.
So who should you sit and start? And what shocking QB could win you Week 9? Visit SportsLine now to get Fantasy football rankings for every single position, and see which shocking QB finishes in the top 10 this week, all from the model that out-performed experts big time last season.
