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Fantasy Football Start Sit Week 4: Forget The Titans

Slow starts and injuries are starting to pile up. That’s forcing many fantasy enthusiasts to find alternate players to start, and to sit others who were expected to be reliable options. 

Knowing which player to target is a crucial part of weekly preparation. 

Your Team Intel page is an invaluable weapon, applying our award-winning weekly projections to your custom scoring to help you set your optimal lineup.

Quarterbacks

Jordan Love is set to rebound

Start 

Jordan Love, Packers

The Packers entered Cleveland with a ton of momentum but got humbled by the Browns’ defense. Love was held to 183 passing yards with 1 TD and 1 INT in the 13-10 loss to the league’s No. 1 defense. 

That won’t be an issue in Week 4. Love gets a prime rebound opportunity in Dallas, where the Cowboys are allowing the most fantasy points per game to opposing QBs. Dallas has surrendered a league-high 864 passing yards and 9 total TDs to signal-callers so far. 

Green Bay is projected to score the second-most points in Week 4. Love looks poised to bounce back against a defense that just got shredded by Caleb Williams and has allowed multiple QB scores in all three games. 

Sit

Dak Prescott, Cowboys

On the opposite side, Prescott’s Week 4 outlook is much bleaker. Prescott just lost his No. 1 WR in CeeDee Lamb, who leads the team with a 19% target share. Jalen Tolbert will step in for Lamb but will be hard-pressed to make an impact against a defense that Pro Football Focus grades as the NFL’s fifth-best in coverage. 

In addition to sporting a strong secondary, PFF grades Green Bay’s pass rush third. Edge Micah Parsons leads the league with a 91.5 pass-rush grade and is raring to get back at Jerry Jones and his old team. 

Prescott’s results when facing pressure have not been encouraging. This season, Prescott is being pressured at the highest rate of his career, resulting in the lowest depth of target and yards per attempt figures of his career. Green Bay’s defense is a bad all-around matchup for a front five that PFF grades as the league’s No. 31 pass-blocking unit. 

Expect Prescott to be under duress, which will lead to hurried, innocuous throws. Without Lamb, Dallas will struggle to sustain drives. 

Running Backs

It's Trey Benson's time to shine 

Start 

Trey Benson, Cardinals 

Benson already played 40% of Arizona’s snaps over the first two weeks. He took 27% of the Cardinals’ carries and claimed a higher target share than James Conner (12% to 10%). Now that Conner’s season is over, Benson will dominate touches in Arizona’s backfield. 

Benson was already playing all of Arizona’s 2-minute snaps and contributing in short yardage. He may cede some change-of-pace work to Emari Demercado, but Benson is poised to be a workhorse with weekly top-12 upside. 

The Cardinals are home underdogs this week against the Seahawks. Seattle allows 23.1 fantasy points per game to RBs, 10th-most. 

J.K. Dobbins, Broncos

Dobbins didn’t need an injury to dominate Denver’s backfield touches. Through three games, his 63% rush share stands higher than that of De’Von Achane, Travis Etienne, and Bijan Robinson. Dobbins has dominated short-yardage snaps and has matched R.J. Harvey in targets. 

And Dobbins has been very efficient with those opportunities. He ranks ninth with 222 rushing yards and has found the end zone in all three of Denver’s games. Dobbins quietly enters Week 4 as the No. 13 RB in PPR scoring. 

His hot start should continue in Week 4 as the Broncos host a Bengals’ defense that has already allowed four RBs to surpass 15 PPR points. 

Denver’s 25.5-point implied total ranks seventh in this slate, and the Broncos arrive as 7.5-point favorites. Dobbins looks poised to have another strong performance against a defense that has allowed 5 TDs to RBs so far. 

Sit

Travis Etienne, Jaguars 

Etienne has seen his usage and efficiency drop off since his 19-touch, 156-yard debut. In Week 1, Etienne played 62% of Jacksonville’s snaps in Week 1. In Week 3, Etienne’s snap share dipped to 55%. 

His production has also declined in each of Jacksonville’s three games:

• Week 1 18.6 PPR points
• Week 2 16.9 PPR points
• Week 3 11.6 PPR points 

At the same time, Bhayshul Tuten’s role has expanded. Tuten has accounted for 30% of Jacksonville’s rushing attempts over the past two weeks and is the only Jaguars RB to have seen a carry inside the 5-yard line. 

Jacksonville travels across the country in Week 4 to face a San Francisco defense that is allowing just 3.4 yards per carry to RBs. The Jaguars are 3.5-point underdogs in a game script that favors the pass. Etienne has just 2 receptions over  Jacksonville’s last two games. Don’t be surprised if he finishes the week outside the top 24.

Tony Pollard, Titans

Pollard’s usage has been strong. He leads all RBs with a 90% snap share and 84% rush share and ranks sixth with 54 carries. However, Pollard has struggled to capitalize on those touches. 

QB play has been an issue. The O-line has also been a problem. PFF grades Tennessee’s line 25th in run blocking. 

Pollard also hasn’t stood out. Among 78 RBs who have played all three games, Pollard ranks 41st with 2.24 yards after contact per attempt, meaning he’s not creating much absent the offensive line.  

Houston’s not a scary matchup so far, especially for RBs (28th in rush defense DVOA). But the Titans’ implied total of only 15.5 points is the lowest for any team so far this season. That signals a floundering offense that will keep struggling to support its lead RB’s scoring.

Wide Receivers 

Calvin Ridley's struggles will continue in Houston

Start 

Deebo Samuel, Commanders

We’re expecting QB Jayden Daniels to be back under center this week. Daniels' return would be huge for Washington’s offense, particularly for Samuel, who led the team with a 25% target share over the first two weeks. 

Additionally, Terry McLaurin is “very much in doubt” for this week’s game. That would open up more opportunities for Samuel. 

Finally, the matchup is solid. Atlanta’s respectable showing against WRs has been boosted by an easy schedule. The Falcons were able to shut down Carolina’s and Minnesota's anemic passing attacks, but the Buccaneers’ receiving corps put up 40.6 PPR points in Week 1. 

Samuel will be the focal point for Washington this week, and the Commanders rank 12th in implied points. 

Quentin Johnston, Chargers

Johnston enters Week 4 as the No. 8 WR in PPR leagues. Although Week 3 provided Johnston’s lowest-scoring game so far, it might also have been his most impressive. 

Johnston put up his best target (10), catch (6), and yardage totals (89) of the season, all while being covered by CB Patrick Surtain II on 86% of his routes.

In Week 4, Johnston and the Chargers will see much more favorable coverage situations against a Giants’ defense that surrenders the second-most fantasy points to WRs. 

Five opposing WRs have already surpassed 15 PPR points against this secondary.

Treat Johnston as an every-week starter with top-12 upside. 

Sit

Tee Higgins, Bengals 

Name recognition is keeping Higgins in lineups, but his lack of production has been alarming. Higgins enters Week 4 as the No. 60 WR in PPR formats. 

Higgins has been held under 35 receiving yards in two of three games. He only has 7 catches for 104 yards and 1 TD. QB Jake Browning looked miserable in Minnesota, which exacerbates the issues facing Higgins and the Bengals. 

Those problems are unlikely to be resolved this week as Cincinnati visits the Broncos on Monday Night Football. Denver has permitted the eighth-fewest fantasy points to WRs, with only 1 TD allowed so far. 

Calvin Ridley, Titans

As the summer wore on, Ridley gained steam as a mid-round value pick. But he’s not coming close to paying off.

Cam Ward ranks last in fantasy scoring among QBs who have started all 3 games. And Ridley hasn’t even been the best WR on his own team. Rookie Elic Ayomanor has more catches (10 to 8) and a higher targets per route run rate (20% to 19%) than Ridley. 

The Titans have Tyler Lockett in the slot, which keeps Ridley lined up on the perimeter 82% of the time. That means he’ll be seeing a healthy dose of CB Derek Stingley Jr. this week, which isn’t the kind of matchup that projects to favor the league’s 31st-ranked passing attack.

Tight Ends

The Bills are poised to have a banner day

Start 

Dalton Kincaid, Bills

The Bills are spreading the ball around, but Kincaid has consistently stayed involved. Kincaid has caught 4+ balls in every game. His 16 targets rank second on the team, trailing WR Keon Coleman by only 2 looks. 

Kinciad has lined up in the slot on 55% of his routes and is making more plays downfield. His 2.13 yards per target average ranks third among all TEs who have commanded more than 6 targets. 

Buffalo is projected to score a league-high 32.5 points against the Saints in Week 4. Instead of guessing which of the team’s WRs will go off, inserting Kincaid into lineups is an optimal way of getting exposure to that production, and the Saints are allowing 12.5 PPR points per game to TEs, 14th-most. 

Cade Otton, Buccaneers

If you’re looking for a deep sleeper who can be plucked off the waiver wire, Otton is your guy. He only has 3 catches for 25 yards on the season, but his role should increase with Mike Evans sidelined for multiple weeks. 

When Evans missed three games with a hamstring injury last year, Otton averaged 9.7 targets, 7.3 grabs, 64.3 receiving yards, and 1.0 TDs. Granted, Chris Godwin was also out, but we don’t know if Godwin will return this week. Even if he does, he’s likely to be limited after missing the entire offseason and the first three games in his recovery from ankle surgery.

The Eagles allow the fourth-fewest fantasy points to TEs, so this isn’t an appealing matchup. However, Otton should see a big spike in targets, making him a decent (and inexpensive) option to consider in deeper leagues. 

Sit

David Njoku, Browns

The Lions have struggled to defend against TEs, but don’t go out of your way to start your Browns this week. Cleveland is only implied to score 18 points, the third-lowest total of the week. 

Even if the matchup were better, Njoku is far from a must-start option. He trails his teammate, Harold Fannin Jr., in targets, catches, and receiving yards. 

Njoku leads Fannin in route rate (80% to 61%) but is still being targeted at a lower rate. 

Cleveland ranks 16th with 203.7 passing yards per game, but QB Joe Flacco has thrown only 2 TDs. Neither of them went to a TE. Njoku has been reduced to a mid-range TE2 with little weekly upside.

Next Up

Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

Next Article  

Jody Smith, Analyst

Jody Smith has been playing fantasy football for over 30 years, the last 15 as an analyst, writer, and editor. Jody's rankings have been among the most consistent, placing him inside the top-10 in multi-year accuracy.