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

Week 1 Fantasy Football Matchups: Start/Sit Advice (Games 1-8)

Each week we will be taking a look around the NFL at all of the weekly fantasy football matchups, and will be trying to help put together your optimal winning lineups. If you aren't sure if you should start or bench a player, or are looking for potential weekly sleepers, you've come to the right place.

Below is part one of our Week 1 start/sit and fantasy football matchups analysis, providing advice and recommendations on matchups that we love, matchups that we hate, and some high risk/high reward players as well. Check back for part two of our matchups piece tomorrow. Part Two: Start/Sit Analysis for Games 9-12, and Part Three: Start/Sit Analysis for Games 13-16.

 

Editor's Note: make sure to also bookmark our famous fantasy football waiver wire pickups list to find those waiver wire gems, and dominate your football leagues. Our waiver wire list is updated throughout each week of the fantasy football season, for all positions. Good luck RotoBallers!

 

Packers @ Seahawks

Matchups We Love

Rotoballer-Fantasy-Football-Advice-Analysis-Russel-WilsonRussell Wilson: Wilson's coming off a monstrous preseason with some high potential. This is a good matchup for him against a struggling defense.

Marshawn Lynch: Lynch is up against a defense with run stopping troubles and has their starting NT on IR.

Matchups We Hate

Jarrett Boykin: This isn't the right week to try out Boykin.

Packers Defense: Bench. With the amount of momentum the Seahawks offense has had this preseason, you've got to let them cool off before starting anyone against them. Especially at home.

High Risk, High Reward

Randall Cobb: The Seahawks struggle against small speedy receivers (see T.Y. Hilton, 2013). This could be Cobb's time to shine.

 

Saints @ Falcons

Matchups We Love

Jimmy GrahamJimmy Graham: Is there a matchup you wouldn't love Graham against?

Drew Brees: Same question as above, especially against the Falcons.

Matt Ryan: The Saints defense might be able to keep the Falcons from winning but they won't be able to stop Ryan from connecting with Julio and Roddy all game long.

Matchups We Hate

Saints Defense, Falcons Defense: This is really a bad game to be hoping for either defense to do anything.

 

Vikings @ Rams

Matchups We Love

Two teams with weak quarterbacking and a stout defenses. Hard to find something to love.

Matchups We Hate

There's no big bad matchup here.

High Risk, High Reward

Cordarrelle Patterson: If there's a game for Patterson to break out, this is the one. The Rams lack the corners to deal with someone like him and have a very weak back end.

 

 

Browns @ Steelers

Matchups We Love

"Antonio brown vs coty sensabaugh" by original: Paula Livelyderivative: Diddykong1130 - https://www.flickr.com/photos/29621494@N02/9776950676/in/set-72157635570176915. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Antonio_brown_vs_coty_sensabaugh.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Antonio_brown_vs_coty_sensabaugh.jpg

Steelers Defense: A perennial backup QB on the road with his best offensive weapon out? I'd believe in the Steelers defense this week.

Antonio Brown: Both times he faced Haden last season he had 10 or more targets and 80 or more yards.

Brown might have been kept out of the end zone, but a 100 yard game from him is totally on the table.

Matchups We Hate

Brian Hoyer: If you were thinking of starting Hoyer this week, this isn't the week to try him out.

Le'Veon Bell and LeGarrette Blount - The Cleveland run defense has looked very stout this preseason and the addition of Karlos Dansby only makes it better. Can't recommend benching Bell (especially since he still gets passing game touches) but Blount isn't in the best position in this game as the change of pace back.

 

 

Jaguars @ Eagles

Matchups We Love

Every Single Player On The Eagles Offense: The Eagles are bound to come out swinging and their up against the weak Jaguars defense that could see the field all game long. Lots of scoring potential here.

Matchups We Hate

Toby Gerhart: Not that Gerhart is up against a particularly stout run defense but the Eagles are going to run up the score. Gerhart's looking at an uphill battle if he expects a lot of touches this game.

High Risk, High Reward

Eagles Defense: Yes, the Jaguars offense is weak but with the way the Eagles play offense, their defense is going to see the field a lot. Does that mean they allow more scores than you expect or get more sacks, ints and fumbles?

 

Raiders @ Jets

Matchups We Love

darren-mcfadden-ppr-running-back-sleepers-fantasy-football

Jets Defense: The Raiders are on the road, starting a rookie QB who has yet to play with the first team, with a weak offensive line, against one of the best front 7's in the NFL.

To make matters worse, the only strength the raiders showed this season (their run game) is going up against one of last years best run stopping teams.

Geno Smith: Yes, I'm still begging everyone to pickup on Geno Smith. For those of you streaming QBs, Geno has a very nice streaming QB schedule early in the year and this matchup is one of them. Oakland doesn't boast any sort of competitive passing defense and their pass rush is minimal.

Matchups We Hate

Maurice Jones-Drew and Darren McFadden: As put up above, the Jets run defense is a smothering group. MJD and DMC would be entirely dependent on a big play in order to put up points this week.

High Risk, High Reward

Raiders Defense - Even though I'm high on Smith, last season's turnovers could still carry onto this season and the Raiders could find themselves with a pick 6. It's a desperate play, but it's one you can take.

Derek Carr - Although the Jets will be putting pressure on Carr all game long, they'll also be doing it with a decimated group of CBs. If Carr can get enough time to make some deep throws (and has a receiver that can actually come down with it) he could come out of this game smelling like roses.

 

Bengals @ Ravens

Matchups We Love

None of the matchups here stand out as particularly good.

Matchups We Hate

These might be the most evenly matched up teams this week.

High Risk, High Reward

Torrey Smith: I don't know what it is that makes me like Torrey's chances. Maybe it's that the Bengals safeties aren't very good. Maybe it's that Leon Hall is coming off an achilles tear that forced him out all of last season. Maybe it's that the Ravens are at home. There's something to like about Smith's matchup this week.

 

Bills @ Bears

Matchups We Love

alshon-jeffery-week-13-fantasy-footballAlshon Jeffery and Brandon Marshall - The Bills don't have corners that can keep up with either of these monsters and with the loss of Byrd, the deep throws should be wide open.

Matchups We Hate

EJ Manuel - Manuel has enough going wrong right now in preseason.

But to make matters worse he's going up against a completely revitalized Bears defense with Tillman returning and the additions of interior rushers Houston and Ratliff. This is a hard matchup for Manuel to prosper in.

High Risk, High Reward

C.J. Spiller - Last season the Bears run defense was worst in the league but in an attempt to make it a point of strength, they added Jay Ratliff and Houston (which were mentioned above). Both are good run defenders and showed it in the preseason, but it's hard to know if that preseason strength will also be there in the regular season. Spiller is an especially risky play this week.

 

 




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

Zhang Mingyang14 mins ago

Set For His Second UFC Fight
Daniel Jones23 mins ago

Giants Release Daniel Jones
Ozzy Diaz28 mins ago

An Underdog At UFC Macau
San Francisco 49ers3 hours ago

Nick Bosa "Questionable At Best" For Week 12
MacKenzie Weegar3 hours ago

Notches Three Assists Against Rangers
Macklin Celebrini3 hours ago

Tallies Two Assists In Thursday's Loss
Nikita Kucherov3 hours ago

Comes Up With Three Assists Versus Blue Jackets
Sean Monahan4 hours ago

Finishes Thursday's Win With Four Points
Zach Werenski4 hours ago

Enjoys Career Night With Five Points Against Lightning
Jack Hughes4 hours ago

Posts Three Assists Versus Hurricanes
Joonas Korpisalo4 hours ago

Records 21-Save Shutout Versus Utah
Jerry Jeudy6 hours ago

Leads Browns In Receiving In Week 12 Win
Nick Chubb6 hours ago

Scores Two TDs In Thursday Night Win Over Pittsburgh
Cleveland Browns11 hours ago

Kevin Stefanski, Andrew Berry Likely Returning To Browns In 2025
Deshaun Watson11 hours ago

Likely To Remain With Browns, Could Face Competition
Cedric Tillman11 hours ago

Enters Concussion Protocol
Cedric Tillman13 hours ago

Suffers Head Injury On Thursday Night
Wendell Carter Jr.14 hours ago

Out Against Lakers
Anthony Davis14 hours ago

Available Versus Magic On Thursday
Rui Hachimura15 hours ago

Unavailable Thursday
Carlos Ulberg15 hours ago

Looking To Cement Himself As A Title Contender At UFC Macau
Volkan Oezdemir15 hours ago

Eyes Another Knockout At UFC Macau
Gabriella Fernandes15 hours ago

A Big Underdog At UFC Macau
MMA15 hours ago

Cong Wang Puts Undefeated Record On The Line At UFC Macau
Deiveson Figueiredo15 hours ago

Looks To Extend Win Streak At UFC Macau
Petr Yan15 hours ago

A Favorite At UFC Macau
Yves Missi16 hours ago

Listed As Questionable For Friday
CJ McCollum16 hours ago

Not Likely To Play Friday
Alexander Mattison16 hours ago

Zamir White Miss Practice Again
Brandon Ingram16 hours ago

Questionable For Friday
Shohei Ohtani16 hours ago

Named National League MVP In 2024
Aaron Judge17 hours ago

Wins American League MVP Award
Ja'Kobe Walter17 hours ago

Ready To Go Thursday
Donte DiVincenzo17 hours ago

Available Thursday
Mike Conley17 hours ago

Will Not Play Thursday
Jordan Clarkson17 hours ago

Sits Out Thursday's Game
Ausar Thompson17 hours ago

Won't Play On Thursday
Zach Collins17 hours ago

Cleared To Play Thursday
Domantas Sabonis17 hours ago

Gets Through Full Practice
Chris Paul17 hours ago

Good To Go Thursday
Brock Purdy17 hours ago

Limited Again On Thursday
Malik Monk17 hours ago

Making Progress
George Kittle17 hours ago

Limited Again On Thursday
Tre Mann18 hours ago

Good To Go On Thursday
Miles Bridges18 hours ago

Won't Play On Thursday
Vince Williams Jr.18 hours ago

Out At Least A Month
Scottie Barnes18 hours ago

Returning On Thursday
Alex Ovechkin18 hours ago

To Miss 4-6 Weeks With Fractured Fibula
Paul George18 hours ago

Out At Least Two Games
Aaron Gordon18 hours ago

Availability In Question For Friday
Zach Hyman18 hours ago

Expected To Miss 4-7 Days
Kent Johnson18 hours ago

Back For Blue Jackets Thursday
Yaroslav Askarov18 hours ago

Makes Sharks Debut Thursday
Jalen Hurts18 hours ago

Practices In Full On Thursday
Mikael Granlund18 hours ago

Good To Go Thursday
Alexandar Georgiev19 hours ago

Returns To Action Versus Capitals
TB19 hours ago

Nicholas Paul Will Miss Thursday's Game
Frederik Andersen19 hours ago

To Miss 8-12 Weeks
Jake Ferguson19 hours ago

Still Not Practicing
Sam LaPorta19 hours ago

Looking Good For A Week 12 Return
Sam Darnold19 hours ago

Upgrades To Full Participation, On Track To Play
Isiah Pacheco19 hours ago

Remains Limited On Thursday
D'Andre Swift19 hours ago

Upgrades To Limited Participant On Thursday
CeeDee Lamb20 hours ago

Sidelined During Thursday's Practice
Ladd McConkey20 hours ago

Does Not Practice On Thursday
Mike Evans20 hours ago

Logs Full Practice On Thursday
DeVonta Smith21 hours ago

Misses Another Practice
Cody Bellinger22 hours ago

Cubs Looking To Trade Cody Bellinger?
22 hours ago

Blake Snell Has Met With Red Sox, Dodgers
Chandler Stephenson1 day ago

Registers Three Assists Versus Predators
Jason Robertson1 day ago

Totals Three Points In Wednesday's Win
Nils Lundkvist1 day ago

Exits Early With A Lower-Body Injury
Matthew Knies1 day ago

Sustains An Upper-Body Injury
Mikael Granlund1 day ago

Exits Late With Injury Wednesday
Patrik Laine1 day ago

Returns To Practice
Chris Sale2 days ago

Wins National League Cy Young Award
Tarik Skubal2 days ago

Wins 2024 American League Cy Young Award
Austin Eckroat2 days ago

Heads To The RSM Classic After Win
Harris English2 days ago

Finding Form Heading To The RSM Classic
Ben Griffin2 days ago

Continues Playing Well Heading To The RSM Classic
Denny McCarthy2 days ago

Returns to The RSM Classic
Ludvig Aberg2 days ago

Looks To Defend RSM Classic Title
Si Woo Kim2 days ago

An Intriguing Option At RSM Classic
Maverick McNealy2 days ago

In Solid Form Ahead Of RSM Classic
Eric Cole2 days 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
3 days ago

Nick Pivetta Declines Boston's Qualifying Offer
Jose Siri3 days ago

Mets Acquire Jose Siri From The Rays
3 days ago

Phillies To Meet With Juan Soto
3 days ago

Luis Severino Rejects Qualifying Offer From Mets
3 days ago

Willy Adames Declines Brewers Qualifying Offer
3 days ago

Teoscar Hernandez Declines Qualifying Offer From Dodgers
3 days ago

Juan Soto Declines Yankees' Qualifying Offer
Luis Gil4 days ago

Wins AL Rookie Of The Year Award
Paul Skenes4 days ago

Named 2024 NL Rookie Of The Year
Brady Singer4 days ago

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

Sean Manaea To Reject Mets' Qualifying Offer
4 days ago

Braves Have Interest In Walker Buehler
4 days ago

Astros Interested In Willy Adames
Charles Oliveira4 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Michael Chandler4 days ago

Gets Dominated At UFC 309
Karine Silva4 days ago

Suffers Her First UFC Loss
Viviane Araujo4 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Mauricio Ruffy4 days ago

Extends His Win Streak To Six
James Llontop5 days ago

Loses Clear-Cut Decision In Thrilling Fight At UFC 309
Paul Craig5 days ago

Loses Decision At UFC 309
Bo Nickal5 days ago

Remains Undefeated With Lackluster Performance At UFC 309
Stipe Miocic5 days ago

Retires After UFC 309 Loss
Jon Jones5 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

MORE RECENT ARTICLES

 
DeVon Achane - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL DFS Picks, Injury News

Fantasy Football Start 'Em, Sit 'Em - Week 12 Matchups Analysis

Welcome back, RotoBallers, to another start'em and sit'em piece as we look ahead to Week 12! There will be a whopping six teams on bye this week (Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, New Orleans Saints, Jacksonville Jaguars, and New York Jets), so that means fantasy managers might need to look deeper on their benches. This Week 12 matchups […]


Josh Downs - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

WR/CB Matchups to Upgrade and Downgrade - Fantasy Football Week 12 (2024)

Welcome back to our WR/CB Matchups for Week 12 of the 2024 fantasy football season. For those unfamiliar, this weekly series looks at fantasy football matchups for wide receivers versus the cornerbacks who are projected to cover them. The data we access for offensive and defensive players continues to skyrocket. Though we mainly focus on offensive […]


Houston Texans Defense D/ST Streamers, Rankings, Waiver Wire - Derek Stingley Fantasy Football IDP

D/ST Strength of Schedule: Best Fantasy Football Defense Streamers and Matchups (Weeks 12-17)

Ahh, the good old Defense/Special Teams (DST) position in fantasy football. It is a controversial inclusion in fantasy lineups for some fantasy players, but strategizing around DSTs is one of my favorite aspects of the in-season fantasy football experience. In the article below, I will present the strength of schedule (SOS) for the fantasy Defense/Special […]


NFL DFS: FanDuel Daily Fantasy Football Picks for Week 12 - Top Lineup Plays Include Jayden Daniels, Jahmyr Gibbs, Jared Goff, Puka Nacua

It’s already Week 12, although the end of the 2024-25 campaign can’t come soon enough for teams like the Jaguars, Raiders, Giants, and Panthers, to name a few. On the other hand, clubs like the Bills, Chiefs, and Lions are only a few weeks away from officially punching their tickets to the postseason.   In […]


Braelon Allen - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Best/Worst Fantasy Football Playoff Schedules: Streamers and Starts To Win A Championship (2024)

Planning too far in advance to align your fantasy football players for an optimal playoff performance comes with many pitfalls. However, positioning yourself for good fortune in Weeks 15 through 17 should be a key piece of your strategy if you're in line to make the bracket. Fantasy players still have time to trade for […]


Bo Nix - Fantasy Football Rankings, QB, NFL Rookies, Draft Sleepers

The King's Week 12 Lineup Rankings and Analysis (Premium Content)

RotoBaller senior writer Scott "The King" Engel shares his Week 12 fantasy football lineup rankings for PPR, half PPR, and standard scoring league participants. He also provides an analysis of the rankings at every skill position. Regular starting options are included to highlight that some of your must-start players have a good chance of supplying […]


Courtland Sutton - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Week 12 DraftKings NFL DFS Picks - Main Slate (2024): Anthony Richardson, Brian Robinson Jr., Courtland Sutton, and more

How's it going, RotoBallers? Welcome back to our DraftKings Main Slate article. Known around the fantasy football world as "Bye-Mageddon," Week 12 certainly offers up some unique challenges from a DFS perspective. Don't worry, we'll work through those difficulties to find the best plays we can on this slate. These DraftKings lineup recommendations are based […]


Brian Robinson Jr. - Fantasy Football Rankings Running Backs, Waiver Wire Sleepers, NFL DFS Picks

Bold Predictions for Fantasy Football Week 12: Tua Tagovailoa, Rhamondre Stevenson, Brian Robinson Jr., Ladd McConkey, Will Dissly

Week 12 is here, and I’m back with another edition of fantasy football bold predictions. This week’s list of bold predictions will include Tua Tagovailoa, Rhamondre Stevenson, Brian Robinson Jr., Ladd McConkey, and Will Dissly. Every week, I will provide some fun and bold fantasy football predictions. While these bold predictions aren’t the most likely […]


Ladd McConkey - Fantasy Football Rankings, Rookies, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Booms and Busts - Fantasy Football Starts and Sits for Week 12 Lineups Include Tua Tagovailoa, J.K. Dobbins, Ladd McConkey

Week 11 was pretty kind to us in this space. We correctly labeled Justin Herbert as a boom pick. He threw for 297 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 65 yards on the ground. It culminated with a QB8 finish. We also nailed Kirk Cousins and Tony Pollard as busts. Cousins and the Falcons […]


Chuba Hubbard - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, Waiver Wire Pickups

Week 12 Fantasy Football Busts? Players Who May Disappoint Include Jayden Daniels, D'Andre Swift, Chuba Hubbard, Mark Andrews

Welcome back, RotoBallers, to our Week 12 fantasy football busts, or players who may disappoint for fantasy lineups this week. It's a strange week in the NFL with six teams taking their bye week. That could mean lineups are gridlocked and fantasy managers don't have the luxury of analyzing matchups to decide their starters. Potential […]


Josh Downs - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

PrizePicks NFL DFS Prop Picks - Over/Under Props for Week 12 (Sunday Main Slate)

Hello everybody, and welcome to our PrizePicks NFL DFS prop picks for Week 12 - Sunday Main Slate! The 2024 NFL season is now past the midpoint, and our friends over at PrizePicks have a TON of great DFS plays we can look to take advantage of. Our partners at PrizePicks offer some of the […]


Bo Nix - Fantasy Football Rankings, QB, NFL Rookies, Draft Sleepers

Fantasy Football Matchups We Love - Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Picks for Week 12 Include Bo Nix, De'Von Achane, Quentin Johnston, Calvin Ridley, more

It seems as though fantasy managers were either incredibly disappointed or incredibly excited in Week 11. The output was modest for most players. However, if you had a monopoly on a select few players such as Cooper Kupp, Taysom Hill, or the Detroit Lions, you likely won your week. With the fantasy playoffs roughly three weeks […]


Najee Harris - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

NFL Week 12 Predictions: Picks and Analysis for Every Game Including Thursday Night Football

After some high-octane matchups over the last couple of Thursday nights, Week 12 kicks off in a more old-school fashion with a classic rivalry game between the Steelers and Browns. There are some fun matchups on this Week 12 slate, however, "Bye-Mageddon" certainly does take a little of the sizzle away, as six teams will […]