Each Friday, Mike Johnson tackles lineup and trade dilemmas pulled from the OWS X and our Fantasy Football Discord channel. Real questions, real context, and actionable advice to guide you through the toughest calls of the week.
Some things in fantasy football are easy. We know we should start Puka Nacua and Bijan Robinson. We know we should bench the backup running back who is only on our roster in case of injury and the guy who was ruled out early in the week. A lot of the decisions are made for us. However, there are a lot of things that are not so simple. All of the “in between” situations are what can make the difference between a few wins and losses, and therefore it can be the difference between a successful season or a failed season. Every Friday, we are here to help!!
I’ll take questions each week in our #fantasy-football channel in our Discord from people looking for Start/Sit advice and give my thoughts. This article will feature a few of those questions and responses each Friday, so join our Discord to be a part of the conversation or ask questions of your own!!
Question 1 :: Christian Watson or Courtland Sutton? (PPR) (Chiefsboom40)
Answer :: Many will want to follow the recent production of Watson and the strong on-paper matchup against the Bears defense, who just gave up a massive game to A.J. Brown. However, the Packers receiving corps has been dealing with injuries recently and the team may be getting Matthew Golden and Jayden Reed back this week, which is likely to muddy the waters for their receivers once again. Also, the Bears recently got multiple key members of the secondary back from injury and are stronger in that area than their season-long numbers reflect. Finally, the Packers are a run-based team and have a great matchup on the ground against Chicago. The reality here is that Watson’s situation is a lot less certain than recent production would indicate, so I would give the nod to Sutton.
Question 2 :: Colston Loveland or Darren Waller at TE? Devin Neal, Woody Marks, or Kyle Monangai for my RB2? Thanks!? (PPR) (dwr-unc)
Answer :: Waller has had a nice season whenever he has been on the field, but it should be noted his reluctance to play in cold weather and run-block. This game is in New York, where the temps will be frigid and we know Tua Tagovailoa has struggled in cold weather throughout his career. Meanwhile, Bears WR Rome Odunze missed practice Wednesday and Thursday while Loveland’s role has been growing and Chicago has a huge divisional matchup with Green Bay. I say go with the youth. As for your RB situation, Devin Neal is my choice (assuming Alvin Kamara is out once again). The matchup isn’t great at Tampa, but he has a massive role and should catch some passes. Marks is also in a tough matchup with the Chiefs, has been inefficient on his workloads recently, and is battling an ankle injury. Monangai is coming off a huge game, but he has a tough matchup and is a game-script-reliant back.
Question 3 :: Emeka Egbuka or Devaughn Vele at WR? (rickysabogal)
