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 :: Start 2 of these 3: Oronde Gadsden, Jake Ferguson, and Jauan Jennings? (0.5 PPR) (emtebr44)
Answer :: Assuming Gadsden is cleared from his quad injury, my answer here is Gadsden and Jennings. The 49ers have a good matchup against Arizona and Jennings looked the healthiest he has all season last week. He is the clear first choice from this group for me. Then we are left with the tight ends and I slightly prefer Gadsden, who has more competition but less elite competition. Ferguson plays an underrated Raiders defense and has been largely dependent on reception volume for his production this season. With George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb both on the field, that will be hard to come by, which leaves him relying on touchdowns since he isn’t really a big-play threat. Gadsden, however, does have big-play ability and matches up well against Jacksonville, so I prefer him slightly.
Question 2 :: Start 3, PPR: TreVeyon Henderson, Rico Dowdle, Chase Brown, or Woody Marks? (Dreward27)
Answer :: This is a good problem to have. Henderson already played on Thursday (and yes, I answered this user before then!!), but he was a lock. Among the other three, Dowdle is also a lock in a matchup against a Falcons defense that is most susceptible to the run. Last week, Carolina’s offense fell apart and Dowdle still managed a respectable stat line. Lock him in. As for the last spot, I am all aboard the Woody Marks second-half hype train, but you have to go with Chase Brown in this spot with Samaje Perine likely to miss this game. The Bengals don’t really have any other RBs they trust and this is a huge game, so Brown is likely to play close to 90% of the snaps.
Question 3 :: Pick 2 Flex, PPR: Parker Washington, Cade Otton, Rachaad White, Michael Wilson, Harold Fannin Jr. or Cedric Tillman? (JesusPiece)
