Sit/Start Week 4: Reviewing All the Fantasy Relevant Players In Every Single Game

Game Info

Kickoff: Sunday, September 29th at 1:00 pm EST

Location: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA

Betting Odds: ATL -4, 45 Total via Oddsshark

Network: CBS

Sleeper Spotlight: Adam Humphries

 

Tennessee Titans

 

Quarterback:

• Marcus Mariota (Sit)

 

Last week the Titans offensive line collectively decided Marcus Mariota needed to lay down, so they allowed nine sacks. Joking aside, this Titans offense has looked poor to start the year. The offensive line has allowed Mariota to be sacked a league-high 17 times, which limits the upside of everyone. The Falcons defensive line only has five sacks on the year, so Mariota should have more time in the pocket this week, but I’m taking a wait and see approach, even in 2-QB leagues.

 

Running Backs:

• Derrick Henry (Start/RB1)
• Dion Lewis (Sit)

 

If the Titans are smart, big IF, they’ll watch the game film of the Falcon’s Week 1 game against the Vikings and see Dalvin Cook shredding them for 111 yards and two scores. The Falcons run defense took another hit when they lost strong safety Keanu Neal to a torn Achilles in Week 3. Derrick Henry has yet to see 20 carries, mostly due to game script, but this should be the week he gets a big workload. Dion Lewis has maintained a 50% snap share with Henry this season, but has received just six targets and has just nine carries.

 

Wide Receivers and Tight Ends:

• Delanie Walker (Start/TE1)
• Corey Davis (Sit)
• A.J. Brown (Sit)
• Adam Humphries (Sit/Deep Flex)
• Tajae Sharpe (Sit)

 

Delanie Walker has been the only consistent player in the Titans passing game. He has the highest target share at 23% and the most Air Yards. In the messy world of tight ends, he’s a TE1. The Titans wide receivers are just such a mess. Corey Davis only saw four targets in their Week 3 loss, but that could be explained away by the pass rush, seeing coverage from Jalen Ramsey, and this pass offense being generally terrible. This week, Davis will see some coverage by Desmond Trufant, so it might not get better. Last week Adam Humphries became Mariota’s safety blanket, getting nine targets. He caught six of those targets for 93 yards. If I were a betting man, and I am, I’d say Humpries earned a lot of trust with his quarterback and I’d be surprised if we didn’t see Humpries target share stay above 20% moving forward. A.J. Brown saw five targets in Week 3, only connecting with one. He’s an intriguing prospect, but ultimately his upside is limited by how poor this offense is. Tajae Sharpe saw three deep targets, aDOT 30.3, and connected on two for 70 yards. Sharpe is a player to keep our eye on but would require a steep increase in targets before becoming relevant.

 

Atlanta Falcons

 

Quarterback:

 

• Matt Ryan (Start/QB1)

 

 

The Falcons have thrown the ball on 70.33% of their plays this year, cementing Matt Ryan into the upper echelon of fantasy quarterbacks. Ryan has three straight games of eclipsing 300 yards passing and has thrown eight touchdowns but has been plagued by the interception, throwing six over his first three games. The Titans have allowed the third-fewest passing yards to start the season, however, that may have more to do with their opponents – Baker Mayfield, Jacoby Brissett, and Gardner Minshew. 

 

Running Backs:

 

• Devonta Freeman (Start/RB2)

• Ito Smith (Sit)

 

 

You’ll have to keep an eye on Ito Smith’s status for this game as he left last week’s game after three snaps with a concussion. Following his departure, Devonta Freeman played on 90% of the Falcons snaps and received 12% of the target share, getting four targets in the passing game. Hopefully, we see this type of workload moving forward for Freeman. The Titans defense has allowed 119.0 yards per game to running backs which is a neutral matchup, but Freeman is a start just based on his workload.  

 

Wide Receivers and Tight Ends:

 

• Julio Jones (Start/WR1)

• Calvin Ridley (Start/Flex)

• Austin Hooper (Start/TE1)

• Mohamed Sanu (Sit/Deep Flex)

• Justin Hardy (Sit)

 

 

Julio Jones is a lock and load WR1 and leads the Falcons in target share (24%), Air Yards, receiving yards, and more importantly to fantasy owners, has found the endzone four times in his first three weeks. Calvin Ridley had a week to forget, receiving just one target after getting ten targets against the Eagles. Hopefully, we see a bounce-back this week, but until I see it, I’m only deploying Ridley as a flex option, especially in a matchup against a team that has allowed the third-fewest passing yards this year. Know who has the second-highest target share in this offense through three weeks? Austin Hooper, who has an 18% target share. He’s mostly been a safety blanket, with an aDOT of just 5.5 yards, but has already found the end zone twice. While he does have a 15% target share, Mohamed Sanu should only be in consideration in deep PPR leagues. 

-Rich Holman,(@nextdoorFFguru)