You have lineup questions. We have answers. At least we hope. Start 'Em & Sit 'Em has helped fantasy managers for years make those pressing lineup decisions. And you know what is a good decision? Starting Patrick Mahomes. But that's too obvious, so you won't see that here. Instead here are some of the most-pressing questions. And, if you can't find a player you are looking for, please check out latest NFL Fantasy lineup rankings right here.
Start 'em
We will not leave Rodrigo behind when he needs us the most. This has been my dude all year and I’m not going to let him go now. Rodrigo had a tough day against the Lions as he pushed two extra-point attempts. And it got to the point where the Colts were going for two after that. And it’s fine. Sometimes the driver isn’t working and you have to leave it in the bag and regroup. The matchup against the Ravens is going to limit his opportunities, but I still have faith in him at home.
I don’t want Rodrigo to get upset at all that I’ve slid into the DMs of Younghoe, who I have some shares of in other leagues. We’re just friends, that’s all. But Younghoe has scored double-digit points in three of his last four games. He was perfect on all four of his field goal attempts against the Panthers on Thursday night. But did miss an extra point attempt, which was annoying. But I’d rather have him miss the single-pointers and make the field goals, so we’re square.
This seems like such an obvious pick, but Butker has reached double-digits only once since Week 2. It’s like the Chiefs offense is so good, dude ends up kicking just five extra points and calls it a day. Which is probably the chief reason to abolish the kicker position in fantasy. Oh shoot, I see what I just did there with chief reason. And that was unintentional, but I’m delighted by it in hindsight, so I’m going to keep it. But really. This is going to be my pitch for the developers. A fifth extra point by a kicker should be worth 10, just so they can also enjoy in the scoring bonanza. That would be fun, right?
McManus was great against the Jets and Patriots a few weeks ago when he went for 17 and 22 respectively. But he’s had 11 total points in the following two weeks. He did make his lone field goal against the Chargers. This is a good offensive matchup for the Broncos. And Drew Lock isn’t Patrick Mahomes (sorry, spoiler alert) and there should hopefully be more field goal opportunities.
Carlson should be rostered in just about every fantasy league. He’s scored at least eight fantasy points in every game this year, which is a pretty safe floor. He made three kicks against the Browns and nailed his one extra point. The only field goal he missed was a 41-yard shot that hit the upright. Which, if you’re asking me, should be worth four points. Give kickers something to shoot for. And yes, that means the Bears would have beaten the Eagles in the Double Doink game. But I’ve been pushing for that rule change for years.
Sit 'em
I don’t normally turn down dome kickers (you might have noticed a pattern above, I certainly have a type). But Gonzalez hasn’t been the fantasy bonanza you would expect for all of the offensive firepower with the Cardinals. He’s had double-digit points just two games this year. And he was making some clutch kicks, so it’s not like he’s not bad or anything. But he’s got the worst matchup of the week against the Dolphins who have allowed just over four points per game to the position this year.
The situation for the Cowboys is getting worse and worse. I’m not sure how many opportunities he’s going to have with Cooper or Da Nooch. Again, that would be a wonderful television show. I’d stream the whole season in a day. But man, you feel for Zuerlein. I’m sure this wasn’t the life he envisioned when he signed with the Cowboys.
This dude still hasn’t cracked double-digits this season and it’s starting to get a little annoying. He’s on the cusp of having one of those five-point games after the Steelers beat the Cowboys, 35-10. So again, I’m going to make my pitch for the fifth extra point to be worth 10 points. Or even five to make it a little more palatable.
Bass had an amazing Week 7 against the Jets when he made six of eight field goals and finished with 20 fantasy points. But he’s been a single-digit player in every other week. And honestly, I expect the Bills to be able to punch the ball in against the Seahawks, so that’s going to limit his opportunities.
The matchup is good against the Texans, which could mean a lot of chances to score some points. But while the Jaguars did have good success with a previous sixth-round draft pick from the Pac-12 at quarterback, I’m still going to need to see some success from Jake Luton before I can fire in.
