X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Stats & Leaders
Starts and Sit
Daily Fantasy
Who To Pickup
24x7 News and Alerts

Thursday Night Football Matchups Analysis - Week 1

Rejoice! The extensive football drought is finally over and, what's more, we get to watch a classic matchup to kick off the 2019 NFL season.

In a historic rivalry game between the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears, two NFC North teams with realistic aspirations of getting to the Super Bowl will look to start their season on a high note. With so many fantasy-relevant players on both squads, many fantasy owners will also look to set the tone for the rest of the year this Thursday as well.

Let's dive into Thursday Night Football Matchups Analysis for Week 1 of the 2019 NFL season!

Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2024:

 

Green Bay Packers @ Chicago Bears

Date and Start Time: September 5 at 8:20 PM ET

Notable Injuries and Status:

 

Offensive and Defensive Rankings from 2018 Regular Season:

Packers Bears
Passing Yards 9th 21st
Rushing Yards 22nd 11th
Pass Defense 12th 7th
Rush Defense 22nd 1st

 

Must Starts

Top Performers That Have To Be In Your Lineups

Aaron Rodgers (QB, GB)

A lot of turnover has taken place in Green Bay with the hope of the Packers returning to the playoffs, but one man remains the driving force. Rodgers is a must-start in fantasy football despite having been hot and cold against the Chicago Bears Defense last year, scoring three touchdowns in their first meeting versus zero touchdowns and an interception in their second.

Davante Adams (WR, GB)

As about as safe of a fantasy wide receiver as you can project, Adams will always be an essential part of the Packers passing attack given his status as quarterback Aaron Rodgers' most trusted wideout. Bears star corner Kyle Fuller may stymie his upside, but Adams has the ability to overcome even the toughest of matchups.

 

Solid Options

Which Players Will Have Solid Games and Which Could Surprise?

Solid Option: Aaron Jones (RB, GB)

Jones has moved past a hamstring issue that he dealt with in the offseason and ready to lead the Green Bay rushing attack for Week 1. Packers head coach Matt LaFleur has made it a point of emphasis to get his running backs more involved in the passing game after the team finished last season ranked 24th in total receptions from the position. However, his ceiling is largely capped by a fantastic Bears run defense.

Solid Option: Mitch Trubisky (QB, CHI)

The Packers were an above average passing defense last season, but Green Bay's secondary is far from a must-avoid for fantasy purposes. Trubisky enters his second year in Matt Nagy's system with an opportunity to improve on his QB-15 in 2018 against a division rival.

Solid Option: David Montgomery (RB, CHI)

The Bears vacated just under 250 carries with the departure of Jordan Howard. While backfield-mate Tarik Cohen is likely to see some form of uptick in his workload, Chicago didn't spend third round draft capital to have Montgomery take a backseat.

Sleeper: Tarik Cohen (RB, CHI)

It is difficult to draw conclusions on how Chicago's backfield will shape up this season. Cohen will likely see fewer touches with both David Montgomery and Mike Davis being more prototypical first and second down backs, but he should remains the primary option on passing downs.

 

Consider Sitting

Players To Avoid Putting In Your Lineup If Possible

Marquez Valdes-Scantling / Geronimo Allison (WRs, GB)

One promising sign for Valdes-Scantling and Allison is that Green Bay had the third-most passing attempts in the NFL last season, but how those targets are divided across Packers pass-catchers beyond No. 1 option Davante Adams remains to be seen.

Jimmy Graham (TE, GB)

Fantasy owners in need of a streaming option should take a wait-and-see approach with Graham, who only managed to find the end zone twice last season despite his quarterback throwing for over 4,000 passing yards. Only time will tell if Graham can shake the consensus label of a touchdown-dependent TE2.

Jamaal Williams (RB, GB)

Until we see otherwise, Aaron Jones is the presumptive lead dog in Green Bay's backfield and Williams will get a limited amount of touches in the rotation. The fact that the Chicago Bears were the most dominant run stopping unit in the league in 2018 and figure to be one again should also weigh heavily in the decision to bench Williams.

Allen Robinson (WR, CHI)

Robinson will undoubtedly see rising star defensive back Jaire Alexander for most of the game, who contested a league-high 36% of his targets as a rookie. Fantasy owners who drafted Robinson will likely have to wait another week to see if their pick was a hit or a miss.

Trey Burton (TE, CHI)

Burton was a tough sell for Week 1 even without him having to deal with a groin injury. A reduced snap count is highly likely given his injury and how many practices he missed in the offseason.

More Fantasy Football Analysis




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Stats & Leaders
Starts and Sit
Daily Fantasy
Who To Pickup
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Brandon Ingram15 mins ago

Questionable For Friday
Shohei Ohtani23 mins ago

Named National League MVP In 2024
Aaron Judge29 mins ago

Wins American League MVP Award
Ja'Kobe Walter33 mins ago

Ready To Go Thursday
Donte DiVincenzo38 mins ago

Available Thursday
Mike Conley45 mins ago

Will Not Play Thursday
Jordan Clarkson53 mins ago

Sits Out Thursday's Game
Ausar Thompson1 hour ago

Won't Play On Thursday
Zach Collins1 hour ago

Cleared To Play Thursday
Domantas Sabonis1 hour ago

Gets Through Full Practice
Chris Paul1 hour ago

Good To Go Thursday
Brock Purdy1 hour ago

Limited Again On Thursday
Malik Monk1 hour ago

Making Progress
George Kittle1 hour ago

Limited Again On Thursday
Tre Mann1 hour ago

Good To Go On Thursday
Miles Bridges2 hours ago

Won't Play On Thursday
Vince Williams Jr.2 hours ago

Out At Least A Month
Scottie Barnes2 hours ago

Returning On Thursday
Alex Ovechkin2 hours ago

To Miss 4-6 Weeks With Fractured Fibula
Paul George2 hours ago

Out At Least Two Games
Aaron Gordon2 hours ago

Availability In Question For Friday
Zach Hyman2 hours ago

Expected To Miss 4-7 Days
Kent Johnson2 hours ago

Back For Blue Jackets Thursday
Dorian Finney-Smith2 hours ago

Uncertain To Face The Sixers
Yaroslav Askarov2 hours ago

Makes Sharks Debut Thursday
Jalen Hurts2 hours ago

Practices In Full On Thursday
Nicolas Claxton2 hours ago

Questionable Versus Philly
Nikola Jokic2 hours ago

Absent From Practice On Thursday
Mikael Granlund2 hours ago

Good To Go Thursday
Cam Thomas2 hours ago

Probable On Friday Night
Alexandar Georgiev3 hours ago

Returns To Action Versus Capitals
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope3 hours ago

Out On Thursday Night
TB3 hours ago

Nicholas Paul Will Miss Thursday's Game
Frederik Andersen3 hours ago

To Miss 8-12 Weeks
Jake Ferguson3 hours ago

Still Not Practicing
Sam LaPorta3 hours ago

Looking Good For A Week 12 Return
Sam Darnold3 hours ago

Upgrades To Full Participation, On Track To Play
Isiah Pacheco3 hours ago

Remains Limited On Thursday
D'Andre Swift3 hours ago

Upgrades To Limited Participant On Thursday
CeeDee Lamb4 hours ago

Sidelined During Thursday's Practice
Ladd McConkey4 hours ago

Does Not Practice On Thursday
Mike Evans4 hours ago

Logs Full Practice On Thursday
DeVonta Smith5 hours ago

Misses Another Practice
Cody Bellinger6 hours ago

Cubs Looking To Trade Cody Bellinger?
Brandin Cooks6 hours ago

Preparing To Play In Week 12
CeeDee Lamb6 hours ago

Not Seen At Thursday's Practice
6 hours ago

Blake Snell Has Met With Red Sox, Dodgers
Aaron Rodgers6 hours ago

Jets Owner Suggested Benching Aaron Rodgers
Mike Evans8 hours ago

Practicing Again On Thursday
Chandler Stephenson9 hours ago

Registers Three Assists Versus Predators
Jason Robertson9 hours ago

Totals Three Points In Wednesday's Win
Nils Lundkvist9 hours ago

Exits Early With A Lower-Body Injury
Matthew Knies9 hours ago

Sustains An Upper-Body Injury
Mikael Granlund10 hours ago

Exits Late With Injury Wednesday
Patrik Laine10 hours ago

Returns To Practice
Chris Sale21 hours ago

Wins National League Cy Young Award
Tarik Skubal21 hours ago

Wins 2024 American League Cy Young Award
Austin Eckroat23 hours ago

Heads To The RSM Classic After Win
Harris English23 hours ago

Finding Form Heading To The RSM Classic
Ben Griffin23 hours ago

Continues Playing Well Heading To The RSM Classic
Denny McCarthy23 hours ago

Returns to The RSM Classic
Josh Jacobs24 hours ago

Limited With Multiple Injuries
DeVonta Smith1 day ago

Misses Practice On Wednesday
Seth Jones1 day ago

Expected To Miss Four Weeks
Sam Darnold1 day ago

Limited With Foot Injury
Max Domi1 day ago

Placed On Injured Reserve
Jalen Hurts1 day ago

Limited On Wednesday
Connor Ingram1 day ago

Out Day-To-Day With An Upper-Body Injury
Jake Ferguson1 day ago

Picks Up A DNP On Wednesday
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen1 day ago

Returns To Action Versus Kings
Alex Tuch1 day ago

Available Wednesday
Tage Thompson1 day ago

Remains Out On Wednesday
Jordan Eberle1 day ago

To Remain Out On Wednesday
Ludvig Aberg1 day ago

Looks To Defend RSM Classic Title
Si Woo Kim1 day ago

An Intriguing Option At RSM Classic
Maverick McNealy1 day ago

In Solid Form Ahead Of RSM Classic
Eric Cole1 day ago

Chasing First Tour Victory At RSM Classic
2 days ago

Guardians' Stephen Vogt Named AL Manager Of The Year
Milwaukee Brewers2 days ago

Pat Murphy Named NL Manager Of The Year
2 days ago

Nick Pivetta Declines Boston's Qualifying Offer
Jose Siri2 days ago

Mets Acquire Jose Siri From The Rays
2 days ago

Phillies To Meet With Juan Soto
2 days ago

Luis Severino Rejects Qualifying Offer From Mets
2 days ago

Willy Adames Declines Brewers Qualifying Offer
2 days ago

Teoscar Hernandez Declines Qualifying Offer From Dodgers
2 days ago

Juan Soto Declines Yankees' Qualifying Offer
Luis Gil3 days ago

Wins AL Rookie Of The Year Award
Paul Skenes3 days ago

Named 2024 NL Rookie Of The Year
Brady Singer3 days ago

Reds, Royals Discussing Jonathan India, Brady Singer
3 days ago

Sean Manaea To Reject Mets' Qualifying Offer
3 days ago

Braves Have Interest In Walker Buehler
3 days ago

Astros Interested In Willy Adames
Charles Oliveira3 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Michael Chandler3 days ago

Gets Dominated At UFC 309
Karine Silva3 days ago

Suffers Her First UFC Loss
Viviane Araujo3 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Mauricio Ruffy3 days ago

Extends His Win Streak To Six
James Llontop4 days ago

Loses Clear-Cut Decision In Thrilling Fight At UFC 309
Paul Craig4 days ago

Loses Decision At UFC 309
Bo Nickal4 days ago

Remains Undefeated With Lackluster Performance At UFC 309
Stipe Miocic4 days ago

Retires After UFC 309 Loss
Jon Jones4 days ago

Gets TKO Win At UFC 309 To Defend Heavyweight Title

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP