Sit/Start Week 1: Reviewing All Fantasy Relevant Players In Every Single Game

Game Info

Kickoff: Sunday, September 11 at 1:00 PM ET

Location: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

Betting Odds: NYJ +7, 44.5 Total on Oddshark

Network: CBS

Writer: Drew DeLuca (@DrewDeLaware on Twitter)

 Baltimore Ravens

QUARTERBACKS

Lamar Jackson (Start), Tyler Hundley (Sit)

Lamar Jackson should be one of the highest-scoring players in all of fantasy football this week. In fact, he’s currently the QB1 in Fantasy Pros Week 1 Expert Consensus Rankings. With the Ravens backfield once again in a state of flux, expect the former MVP to rack up tons of yards on the ground after exploiting the Jets defense through the air. If only all lineup decisions were this easy.

RUNNING BACKS

J.K. D0bbins (Sit), Mike Davis (Start, Flex), Kenyan Drake (Sit), Justice Hill (Sit)

According to reports, J.K. Dobbins may suit up for Week 1. However, even in a best-case scenario, it would be foolish to expect the Ravens to feed him a sizeable diet of carries in his first game back. Kenyan Drake hasn’t been around long enough to stake a claim to a large slice of the pie, and Justice Hill is an afterthought until further notice. That leaves Mike Davis by default, and it feels like a trap. Davis was just plain bad last year in Atlanta, and while the situation in Baltimore is better, he now has a quarterback who’s likely to command more red zone carries than he will. Still, the Jets are the Jets, so fire up Davis in flex spots.

WIDE RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS

Rashod Bateman (Start, WR2),  Devin Duvernay (Sit), James Proche (Sit), Demarcus Robinson (Sit), Tylan Wallace (Sit), Mark Andrews (Start), Isaiah Likely (Sit), Nick Boyle (Sit), Josh Oliver (Sit)

Rashod Bateman should draw D.J. Reed, Jr., who quietly turned in a fine 2021 season, with some Sauce Gardner on the side. Even if his WR/CB matchup seems a bit tricky on paper, he should see enough volume to warrant a start in just about all formats. Devin Duvernay is worth monitoring in larger leagues, but in traditional 12-teamers, his rightful place is with teammates James Proche, Demarcus Robinson, and Tylan Wallace in the free agent pool.

Mark Andrews is the overall TE1 on several boards as the season draws near, and should be started in all formats. Isaiah Likely is a shiny new toy in the fantasy community, but let’s see some actual utilization before we start thinking about starting a team’s second tight end, even in this offense. Nick Boyle is a blocking tight end extraordinaire, nothing more. Josh Oliver is a non-factor.

New York Jets

QUARTERBACKS

Joe Flacco (Sit)

Zach Wilson has been ruled out for Week 1, so the Jets welcome Joe Flacco back to the huddle. The former Rookie of the Year (2008) and Super Bowl XLVII MVP has a proven, established rapport with Elijah Moore, so he’s got that going for him.

Joe Flacco threw the ball 42 times last year in two appearances for the Jets.

13 went to Elijah Moore, for a 31% target share.

— Graham Barfield (@GrahamBarfield) September 7, 2022

Unfortunately, the odds of Flacco racking up enough points to finish in the Top 12 this week are slim, so it’s hard for us to get excited about the idea of starting the former Delaware Blue Hen in traditional 1QB leagues of nearly any size. Flacco is no more than a palatable desperation play in 12+ team 2QB and superflex leagues this week.

RUNNING BACKS

Breece Hall (Start, Flex), Micheal Carter (Sit), Ty Johnson (Sit)

Breece Hall is a blue-chip rookie talent, and that’s not a term to throw around lightly. The company he finds himself in as a prospect is quite impressive:

Breece Hall and Travis Etienne are 2/6 RB’s who earned a 99 overall grade from Next Gen Stats

The other 4:
Saquon Barkley
Jonathan Taylor
Melvin Gordon
Nick Chubb

— Alex Caruso (@AlexCaruso) August 9, 2022

Last year, Tevin Coleman was the Week 1 starting running back for the New York Jets, and we all know how that turned out. It’s understandable to be a bit nervous about Week 1 contributions from a rookie, but let’s not have Micheal Carter scare us away from putting Hall in flex. Carter is the Week 1 starter in name only, and while he should contribute, talent finds a way. It almost always does. Oh, hi Ty Johnson. Forgot you were there. Carry on…nothing to see there.

WIDE RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS

Elijah Moore (Start, WR2), Garrett Wilson (Sit), Corey Davis (Sit), Braxton Berrios (Sit), Denzel Mims (Sit), C.J. Uzomah (Sit), Tyler Conklin (Sit), Jeremy Ruckert (Sit)

Let’s make this easy: start Elijah Moore because he’s one of the NFL’s most underrated wide receivers and a budding star. Trust the talent; don’t overthink it. As for the rest of this corps: Garrett Wilson is too unproven, Corey Davis and Braxton Berrios are too mid, and Denzel Mims is too disappointing. The Ravens defense was upgraded during the offseason, so getting too cute with second, third, and fourth options in a subpar passing game will come with consequences.

The Jets’ tight end room is uninspiring. Those expecting C. J. Uzomah to repeat last year’s success in this offense will have better luck shark fishing in a koi pond. Tyler Conklin was quietly productive in 2021, but it’s hard to envision a steady volume of targets going his way. Jeremy Ruckert was once a tremendous prospect at Ohio State, but he was never much of a factor in the Buckeyes offense. Hard pass on all three.