Sit/Start Week 3: Reviewing All Fantasy Relevant Players In Every Single Game

Game Info

Kickoff: Thursday, September 21st, 8:15 PM ET

Location: Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA

Betting Odds: SF -10.5, 44 total via PFF.com

Network: FOX

Writer: Chris Sanzo (@Doombot12_FF on Twitter/X)

New York Giants

Quarterbacks

Daniel Jones (Sit, QB2)

This is Daniel Jones. He’s the starting quarterback for the New York Giants. He was one of the most undervalued players in fantasy football. His defect is that he isn’t any good. Though that may have been a loose butchering of a memorable movie quote, the fact remains: Jones has done nothing to prove he can play against the better teams in the league. In Week 1, he failed to score two points against Dallas, arguably the best defense in the league. Now he heads into Santa Clara for the San Francisco 49ers home opener, and on a Thursday night to boot. This will be a long week for Jones, especially with Saquon Barkley already ruled out. His one redeeming quality could be his legs. The 49ers have consistently struggled with mobile QBs so if Brian Daboll is going to set them up for any sort of success, he’s going to need to move Jones around as much as possible.

Running Backs

Matt Breida (Sit), Gary Brightwell (Sit), Eric Gray (Sit)

Saquon Barkley is the only RB in New York anyone should roster. Even as handcuffs with opportunity, there is no reason to play Matt Breida or Gary Brightwell in this matchup. Breida, in backup and replacement capacities, has historically been a single-digit scorer who does not command a full workload. This brings Brightwell and even rookie Eric Gray into the fold, but there’s just nothing there to suggest this trio can even manage to combine for 10 points.

Wide Receivers/ Tight Ends

Isaiah Hodgins (Sit), Darius Slayton (Sit), Parris Campbell (Sit), Jalin Hyatt (Sit), Darren Waller (Start, TE1)

With few exceptions, the Giants’ wide receiver room is essentially the same guy cloned a bunch of times, a group poised to flounder in mediocrity. No boundary receiver has much of a shot to do anything this week, and outside of explosive rookie Jalin Hyatt, none really have the potential to develop into anyone capable of breaking out with Jones at the helm. Until someone separates themselves from the ordinary pack, they are all largely unplayable.

Darren Waller however, is a must start if he’s a full go. Tight ends and elite slot receivers have performed well against the 49ers, who are once again at a coverage disadvantage in the middle of the secondary. Provided the offensive line holds up long enough, Waller should see anywhere from 7-10 targets this week in a game script that will pad his stat line. This isn’t a week that’s likely to provide his first touchdown as a member of the Giants, but in PPR formats, the league’s TE4 should be a Top 5 option once again.

San Francisco 49ers

Quarterback

Brock Purdy (Sit, QB2)

There are a few nice plug-and-play spots on the horizon for Brock Purdy, but this one is riskier than it seems in 1QB leagues. The Giants “held” Dak Prescott to just 6 points in the season opener, but that will happen when your team is quick to drop 26 points in the 1st half before the opposing offense can manage 26 yards. The other side of the coin: the Giants’ defense made Joshua Dobbs look like Josh Allen as he steamrolled them for 27 fantasy points of his own. It’s tempting to believe Purdy is poised to impress in the home opener, but nothing has transpired this year to suggest that this won’t just be a copy/paste scenario from the Cowboys game. He hovers around the QB10-16 range for me, his familiar spot in my rankings. I likely have a better option in single quarterback leagues, but I’m thrilled to start him in superflex.

Running Backs

Christian McCaffrey (Start, RB1), Elijah Mitchell (Sit)

Christian McCaffrey is dominating the league and it isn’t even fair at this point. He’s averaging over 23.5 points as the RB1 and he hasn’t even gotten into full swing in the receiving game yet. McCaffrey leads the league in attempts and yards while averaging over 6 yards per carry. He played 100% of the offensive snaps in Week 2 after logging 85% of them in Week 1. Kyle Shanahan addressed his extremely high usage in the post-game press conference, owning it as a mistake and suggesting that he has to be better. While I tend to believe it was not their intention to play him as much as they did, Shanahan is not exactly a trustworthy source. His comments about Elijah Mitchell getting more work are empty until proven otherwise. Sadly, that also means anyone that drafted Mitchell expecting around 35-40% of the snaps will have to wait until things balance out or McCaffrey’s wheels fall off.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

Deebo Samuel (Start, WR2), Brandon Aiyuk (Start, WR3), George Kittle (Start, TE1) 

Week 2 yielded a big jump for Deebo Samuel in production because he was used more as the Wide Back they’re paying him to be. His 38 yards and a rushing touchdown were exactly what he needed to go from back-end WR3 to a back-end WR1 on the week. He is consistently seeing close to a 90% snap share and that should not change this week; he is the best receiving option in positive game script scenarios. Adversely, Brandon Aiyuk dropped from WR2 in Week 1 to WR65 in Week 2. He injured his shoulder during the game with the Rams, but returned to the contest before long. However, he’s currently listed as questionable for Week 3. Aiyuk may have avoided serious injury, but it’s unlikely Shanahan would play him anywhere near his normal snap percentage. He’s a “start if you must, but temper your expectations” player this week, assuming he plays. While the other WRs like Ronnie Bell and Jauan Jennings are still not worth firing up, it should lend more opportunity for George Kittle to heat up. Jake Ferguson and Zach Ertz combined for 15 targets in the two games against the Giants, completely battering not only the starting safeties, but their primary slot corner, Adoree’ Jackson. Jackson has been one of the worst defenders in the league the last two weeks, leaving Kittle lined up for a big game.

-Chris Sanzo (Doombot12_FF on Twitter)