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

Steelers at 49ers

 

Game Info

Kickoff: Sunday, September 22nd at 4:25 pm EST

Location: Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA

Betting Odds: SF -6.5, 44 Total via Oddsshark

Network: CBS

Sleeper Spotlight: James Washington

 

Pittsburgh Steelers

 

Quarterback:

• Mason Rudolph (Sit)

 

Following the Ben Roethlisberger season-ending injury, the Mason Rudolph era continues in San Francisco. Rudolph was solid in his replacement of Roethlisberger, throwing two touchdowns and keeping the Steelers in the game against the Seahawks. The 49ers defense has looked good, albeit in matchups with the Buccaneers and Bengals. I’m taking a wait and see approach with Rudolph. 

 

Running Backs

• James Conner (Start/RB2)
• Jaylen Samuels (Sit)

 

James Conner’s knee injury appears to be minor and as of this writing, he should be good to go for Sunday. If that’s not the case, Jaylen Samuels becomes a flex play, but the 49ers run defense has shut down the Buccaneers and Bengals run attacks. This is certainly a situation to keep our eye on to see how the run game is affected by new quarterback Mason Rudolph. 

 

Wide Receivers and Tight Ends

• JuJu Smith-Schuster (Start/WR1)
• Vance McDonald (Start/TE1)
• James Washington (Sit)
• Donte Moncrief (Sit)

 

Mason Rudolph quickly learned that JuJu Smith-Schuster was his favorite target when he hit him with a 45-yard completion on his fourth pass thrown. Smith-Schuster’s should get heavily targeted but will face tough coverage from Richard Sherman and Jason Verrett. Vance McDonald is a low-end TE1 and caught all seven targets against the Seahawks making McDonald a nice safety blanket for Rudolph. If you’re looking for a narrative in today’s game, look no further than James Washington being reconnected with his Oklahoma State quarterback. Washington should find himself moving up the depth chart, as Donte Moncrief has tallied five drops, including a costly one that led to an interception against the Seahawks. I’m not rolling out Washington yet, but this situation is one for us to keep an eye on. 

 

San Francisco 49ers

 

Quarterback:

• Jimmy Garappolo (Sit)

 

The Steelers made a trade to add Minkah Fitzpatrick to their secondary to fill one of their biggest weaknesses – slot coverage. With the 49ers being 6.5 point favorites, I view this game as one they’ll be happy to run the ball and let their defense do the heavy lifting, limiting Jimmy Garappolo’s upside. Garappolo is fine if you’re in a 2QB league. 

 

Running Backs: 

• Matt Breida (Start/RB2)
• Raheem Mostert (Start/Flex)
• Jeff Wilson (Sit)

 

Matt Breida was so efficient in Week 2, that it made it look like he wasn’t the lead back. Breida racked up 121 yards and a touchdown in the first three quarters against the Bengals. Raheem Mostert took the reins from there and finished with a 47% snap share. Both running backs were very effective. Jeff Wilson served as the goal-line back, vulturing two touchdowns in Week 2. Head Coach Kyle Shanahan stopped short of crowning him their short-yardage back, but it’s a situation to monitor moving forward. 

 

Wide Receivers and Tight Ends

• George Kittle (Start/TE1)
• Deebo Samuel (Start/Flex)
• Marquise Goodwin (Sit)
• Dante Pettis (Sit)

 

Despite his slow start, George Kittle is still a must-start tight end. The game script of Week 2 against the Bengals allowed the 49ers to run the ball and control the clock. In Week 1, Kittle received 10 targets and is the top target in the 49ers pass offense. We’ll go in reverse order, but Dante Pettis is clearly in the dog house. Pettis failed to get a target in Week 2 after having just one target in Week 1. Marquise Goodwin looks healthy and is back to being the deep ball threat that he was in his career season of 2017. He’ll be a flex play on weeks that seem like the game script calls for a shootout. Finally, we get to Deebo Samuel, who looked like the clear top wide receiver on this team in Week 2. Samuel caught five of his seven targets for 87 yards and a touchdown. The 49ers even got Samuel involved as a runner twice. Samuel makes for a decent flex play this week but could sneak into WR3 range moving forward. 

 

-Rich Holman (@nextdoorFFguru)