Fantasy Football starts, sits, and sleepers for Week 3
BOSTON -- With Week 3 upon us, you've likely settled into a routine with your fantasy football roster. But it's when you think you've reached your comfort zone is usually when reality football starts to hit back.
And if you're nowhere near a comfort zone, you're not alone. There is no shame in seeking out help to set your lineup every week, and you have a great fantasy mage in CBS Sports' Jaimey Eisenberg, who passes along his start and sit advice each and every week. For good measure, he also throws some sleepers into the mix.
Here are the guys you must start, the ones you should stay away from, and the ones worth taking a flyer on in Week 3. Eisenberg's list includes a pair of Jets play-makers that should be riding your bench, and one Patriots player who could score some points for both New England and your fantasy team.
Quarterback
Start: Minnesota's Kirk Cousins vs. L.A. Chargers
"Cousins is on pace for 6,018 passing yards, which is insane. He won't keep this up, but he's been great so far in two games this season against Tampa Bay and Philadelphia with 708 passing yards, six touchdowns and one interception. This week, he's facing a Chargers defense that has already allowed 712 passing yards, four touchdowns and one interception against Tua Tagovailoa and Ryan Tannehill, and the projected score for this matchup is the highest of the week at 54 points. Look for a shootout between Cousins and Justin Herbert in Minnesota on Sunday."
Sit: Chicago's Justin Fields @ Kansas City
"Four designed runs. That's it for Fields so far this season, and it likely explains his struggles in Fantasy and reality. Now, part of that is teams are taking away his rushing lanes by playing zone defense on 74 percent of his dropbacks, which is the third-highest rate among quarterbacks, per ESPN. But still, let him use his legs since he rushed for 1,143 yards last season. He's averaging just 16.6 Fantasy points per game this season, and the Chiefs have held Jared Goff and Trevor Lawrence to a combined 25 Fantasy points in two games. I still have Fields as a low-end starter in most leagues, but he'll likely need garbage time to help his Fantasy production this week."
Sleeper: Dallas' Dak Prescott @ Arizona
"The reason Prescott isn't considered a slam-dunk starter this week is the potential for another Cowboys blowout at Arizona. The Cowboys have already trounced the Giants and Jets in two games by a combined 70-10, but Prescott was still successful in Week 2 against the Jets for 23.6 Fantasy points. Now, he also scored just 6.3 points in Week 1 against the Giants, so keep that in mind, but the Cardinals just placed standout safety Budda Baker (hamstring) on injured reserve. And Daniel Jones also had 37.4 Fantasy points against Arizona in Week 2. I'd use Prescott as a low-end No. 1 Fantasy quarterback in Week 3."
Check out all of Eisenberg's start and sit advice for quarterbacks at CBSSports.com
Running Back
Start: Miami's Raheem Mostert vs. Denver
"It's been an excellent start to the season for Raheem Mostert on several fronts. The Dolphins are 2-0 with road wins at the Chargers and Patriots. He's thriving with 28 carries for 158 yards and three touchdowns, along with three catches for 19 yards on three targets. And his competition continues to get hurt."
Patriots fans are familiar with what Mostert can do, after he ran for 121 yards and two touchdowns last weekend -- including a 43-yard TD run in the fourth quarter. His big production to start the season has Mostert as Eisenberg's "Start of the Week" for Week 3.
Sit: New York Jets' Breece Hall vs. New England
"Hall is still too risky to trust right now heading into Week 3 against the Patriots. He was great in Week 1 against Buffalo with 147 total yards on just 11 touches, but he was miserable in Week 2 at Dallas with four carries for 9 yards and no catches on two targets. ... New England was trounced by Raheem Mostert in Week 2 for 127 total yards and two touchdowns, but the Patriots were daring Miami to run to protect against the Dolphins passing game. The Jets passing game isn't scaring anyone right now with Zach Wilson under center, so Hall could have another game with poor production in Week 3."
Sleeper: L.A. Chargers' Joshua Kelley @ Minnseota
"We're waiting to find out if Austin Ekeler (ankle) will play in Week 3 at Minnesota, but if he's out then consider Kelley a starter in all Fantasy leagues. He had a bad game in place of Ekeler in Week 2 at Tennessee with 13 carries for 39 yards and no catches on one target, but that was a brutal matchup against the Titans. The good news is Kelley played 79 percent of the snaps, and he would once again see a hefty workload if Ekeler can't play."
Check out all of Eisenberg's start and sit advice for running backs at CBSSports.com
Wide Receiver
Start: Baltimore's Zay Flowers vs. Indianapolis
"The Colts have been absolutely abysmal against opposing receivers this season, so hopefully Flowers takes advantage of this secondary. We could see Odell Beckham Jr. and Rashod Bateman also perform well, but I only have faith in Flowers. In two games against the Jaguars and Texans, five receivers have scored at least 13.4 PPR points, with four touchdowns. ... Given the matchup, I'll trust Flowers again as a No. 2 Fantasy receiver in the majority of leagues."
Sit: New York Jets' Garrett Wilson vs. New England
"Wilson has two touchdowns in two games with Zach Wilson, which is great. But how Garrett Wilson has scored is a little problematic. In Week 1 against Buffalo, Wilson had to play defense on a terrible throw into the end zone that he somehow turned into a touchdown. And in Week 2 at Dallas, Wilson scored on a 68-yard slant where Cowboys safety Malik Hooker missed a wide-open tackle. So far, Wilson has only seven catches for 117 yards on 13 targets, and the touchdowns have saved him. I'll start Wilson in three-receiver leagues in Week 3 against the Patriots, but he's outside the top 24 receivers in my rankings. As long as Zach Wilson is the starter for the Jets, Garrett Wilson will be tough to trust."
Sleeper: Tampa Bay's Chris Godwin vs. Philadelphia
"It feels strange to put Godwin in the sleeper section given his career, but this is where we are heading into Week 3. He's had a quiet start to the season at 10.5 PPR points per game with just 10 catches for 109 yards and no touchdowns on 14 targets, and Mike Evans has been the go-to guy for Baker Mayfield. But I like Godwin's chances for a quality outing in Week 3 against the Eagles. Philadelphia slot corner Avonte Maddox (pectoral) was placed on injured reserve, and the Eagles have struggled with receivers this season as four guys have scored at least 12.4 PPR points, with four touchdowns. Evans is a must-start Fantasy receiver in all leagues with how he's played in two games, but Godwin should be considered a high-end No. 3 option given the matchup."
Check out all of Eisenberg's start and sit advice for wide receivers at CBSSports.com
Tight End
Start: New England's Hunter Henry vs. New York Jets
"It's time to trust Henry as a starting Fantasy tight end heading into Week 3 at the Jets. Through two games, Henry has 11 catches for 108 yards and two touchdowns on 13 targets. Even without the touchdowns, Henry would still be averaging 10.5 PPR points per game. Mac Jones is leaning on Henry in the passing game, and Fantasy managers should buy into him being productive in new offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien's system. The Jets also allowed two touchdowns to the Cowboys tight ends in Week 2."
Sit: Tennessee's Chigoziem Okonkwo @ Cleveland
Okonkwo once again disappointed Fantasy managers in Week 2 against the Chargers with four catches for 35 yards on four targets, but it was an improvement from his Week 1 stat line against the Saints when he had no catches. We'll see what happens in Week 3 against the Browns, but Cleveland has so far eliminated Irv Smith Jr. and Pat Freiermuth in two games with a combined four catches for 19 yards and no touchdowns on six targets. I'm not starting Okonkwo in any leagues in Week 3 if I can avoid it.
Sleeper: Carolina's Hayden Hurst @ Seattle
"In Week 1 at Atlanta, Hurst was great with five catches for 41 yards and a touchdown on seven targets. He disappeared in Week 2 against the Saints, who are awesome against tight ends, with just three catches for 20 yards on three targets. In deeper leagues, I'd go back to Hurst again in Week 3 at Seattle. The Seahawks just allowed Sam LaPorta to catch five passes for 63 yards on six targets, and Hurst could post a similar stat line in this matchup."
Check out all of Eisenberg's start and sit advice for Week 3 at CBSSports.com
Tune in to Patriots-Jets on WBZ-TV -- the television home of the New England Patriots. Coverage continues Friday with Patriots All Access at 7 p.m. on WBZ-TV. We have everything you need come Sunday, starting at 11:30 a.m. with Patriots GameDay, the Pats and the Jets will kick off at 1 p.m., and we'll have full reaction and analysis of the game on Patriots 5th Quarter after the game -- all on WBZ-TV!
