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By SPM Scott
Hopefully you've navigated your way through the first three weeks of the National Football League season by guiding all of your fantasy teams to at least one victory. It seems odd, but 1-2 is a lot better than 0-3.
Even if we aren't happy with a team and feel that it's weak and needs improvement, that one win buys us a little time. An extra week of data and watching our guy play can bring a lot more clarity to the moves we want and need to make. If you're 0-3 at this point, it's a must-win situation, and if you don't win this week it's time to blow it up and pray for a miracle.
Blowing it up doesn't mean that we are giving up, though. Trying to turn a loser into a contender is part of the fun of playing fantasy football, and the teams we've turned around and taken to the playoffs after rough starts have been our most enjoyable fantasy experiences.
Week 4 is when things start to get serious in full-season fantasy football. Injuries are mounting. Legitimate data is pouring in. And it's time to consider benching some of our starters who might be underachieving in favor of surprising upstarts and player with better matchups.
Of course, there are always the untouchables. Quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, Jalen Hurts and Lamar Jackson should be in your lineups every week - although this week is the closest we've been to thinking about not playing Jackson. Joe Burrow also is an automatic play - but the leash is getting shorter - and Kirk Cousins is moving into that territory along with Anthony Richardson, while Justin Fields and Trevor Lawrence have fallen out of that group
Wide receivers Davante Adams, Tyreek Hill, Ja'Marr Chase, CeeDee Lamb, Stefon Diggs, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jaylen Waddle, A.J. Brown, DeVanta Smith, Keenan Allen and Deebo Samuel should never see the bench - and some other wideouts are closing in on that status or may even be there already. Any team's RB1 who receives the bulk of the backfield touches should play, and at tight Travis Kelce, T.J. Hockenson, George Kittle and Mark Andrews are weekly no-brainers.
These aren't all the auto-plays, but you get the idea. As we enter Week 4, however, now is the time to look at some of the lesser-known players who are off to great starts as well as lower-ranked players with the best matchups as possible starters.
Here are some of the players who may not normally start to strongly consider as Week 4 starters:
Quarterback
Brock Purdy
Matthew Stafford
Kenny Pickett
CJ Stroud
Daniel Jones
Running Back
Kyren Williams
Zach Moss
Joshua Kelley
De'von Achane
Wide Receiver
DJ Chark
Tutu Atwell
Adam Thielen
Nico Collins
Josh Palmer
Quentin Johnston
Jakobi Meyers
Tank Dell
Puka Nakua
Jerry Jeudy
Courtland Sutton
Tank Dell
Gabe Davis
Tight End
Logan Thomas
Jake Ferguson
Cole Kmet
So far we've been able to lead all of our full-season head-to-head teams to at least one victory. Our Guillotine team lost Nick Chubb, so it's been a struggle. We were able to barely sneak through and survive twice while finishing in the middle of the pack once. This week we added Tee Higgins, but missed out on a couple of running back who would have helped. The good news is that the Bengals seem to be figuring it out, and Higgins has a nice matchup this week. Our team that is in a points-based league is in second place, just four points out of first, one of our other teams is leading its division, another is in second place and a third is 2-1 and a game out of first.
Here is a look at our potential lineups and lineup decisions for Week .
Team 1 - 12 Team PPR
1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 1 WR/RB/TE, 1K 1D
QB - Herbert
RB - Moss, Javonte W.
WR - Deebo, ARSB
F - N. Collins, Pacheco
TE - Hockenson
K - Gay
D - Jets
Bench
Richardson, Dowdle, J. Reynolds, Bateman, Chark, J., C. Samuel, Barkley
Decisions:
Considered playing Chark over Pacheco, but went with the guaranteed 15 touches over the better matchup. This team is 5-1 (two matchups per week vs. a team and the league average).
Team 2 - 12 Team Deep PPR
1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 2 WR/RB/TE, 1K 1D
QB - Cousins
RB - Najee, Pierce
WR - ARSB, Godwin, G. Davis
F - Allgeier, Smith-Njigba
TE - Kelce
K - Gay
D - Bucs
Bench
Watson, MVS, Dowdle, T. Jones, Toney, Perine
Decisons: Losing Mike Williams hurt this team, but hopefully JSN is ready to emerge as a legit fantasy option. Jamaal Williams also on the IR. This team is 2-4 (two matchups per week vs. a team and the league average).
Team 3 - High Stakes 12 Team PPR
1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 2 WR/RB/TE, 1K 1D
QB - Richardson
RB - Bijan R., Mattison
WR - D. Adams, Deebo
F - Thielen, Jeudy
TE - Pitts
K - Koo
D - Dolphins
Bench
Watson, Gibson, Charbonnet, Hunt, C. Samuel, DJ Moore, MVS, Mingo, J. Reynolds, Jameson Williams.
Decisions:
This is a high-stakes league, so it's important to not always go by the book. We are happy to move Richardson back into the lineup this week. Looked to upgrade kicker and D, but apparently our waiver bids didn't work out. Pitts has good matchup this week, but if he doesn't perform it's time to add another TE. Thielen and Jeudy have great matchups. So does DJ Moore, so that was a tough call and could change by game time. This team is 2-1 and in second place.
Team 4 - 12 Team PPR
1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 WR/RB/TE, 1K 1D
QB - Lamar
RB - R. White, Walker
WR - Diggs, Lamb
F - Sutton
TE - Goedert
K - Aubrey
D - Bucs
Bench
Geno, G. Edwards, Hunt, DJ Moore, Brian Robinson, Cooks, Doubs
Decisions:
This lineup has a ton of WR talent and depth and is solid at RB, too. Too bad we didn't play Doubs. The Flex position is a tough call, with Sutton, Moore and Robinson all worthy of consideration. We may make a last-minute change to move Robinson into that spot. This team is leading its division at 2-1.
Team 5 - 12 Team PPR
1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 WR/RB/TE, 1K 1D
QB - Richardson
RB - J. Cook, Mattison
WR - Chase, Olave
TE - Henry
F - Ford
K - Maher
D - Packers
Bench
Watson, Najee, JSN, Toney, Charbonnet, DJ Moore, Doubs, Achane
Decisions:
The Flex decision here is between Najee, Achane, Ford and Moore. Clearly the smart play would have been Doubs. We are leaning toward Ford, but if Najee doesn't break out this week it's never happening, Achane is coming off a record-breaking performance and Ford has been very good in his short stint as the Browns' starter. This will be a game-time decision. This team is 1-2.
Team 6 - 12 Team PPR
1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 WR/RB/TE, 1K 1D
QB - Hurts
RB - Pierce, R. White
WR - Chase, Amon-Ra
F - Javonte W.
TE - LaPorta
K - Folk
D - Commanders
Bench
Aiyuk, Kincaid, G. Davis, Prescott, Atwell, G. Edwards
Decisions:
This team is 1-2. Gibson was dropped this week and LaPorta was added and inserted into the starting lineup. The only real decision here is Aiyuk or one of the RBs for the Flex. Aiyuk's health and the guaranteed volume make this decision a relatively easy one.
Team 7 - 12 Team PPR
1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 2 WR/RB/TE, 1K 1D
QB - Fields
RB - Etienne, Henry
WR - T. Hill, Deebo,
F - M. Evans, Lockett
TE - Kincaid
K - Moody
D - Browns
Bench
Geno, Howell, G. Edwards, McKinnon, C. Samuel, Chark, Jameson Williams, Ferguson, OBJ, Brian Robinson.
Decisions:
This team is 2-1 and is behind three 3-0 teams in the standings. It is pretty loaded and could be tough to beat if Kincaid develops into a legitimate fantasy producer. Tough decision here between Brian Robinson and Tyler Lockett. DJ Chark also received some consideration. Looking for Lockett to bounce back.
Team 8 - 18 Team Guillotine
1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 2 WR/RB/TE
QB - Lamar
RB - Mattison, J. Cook
WR - Higgins, DJ Moore
F- London, Chark
TE - Goedert
Bench
K. Herbert, Allgeier, Hunt, Q. Johnson, Jameson Williams, T. Burks
Decisions:
We added Mattision and Higgins, so hopefully that will keep us alive for a few weeks since we opened the checkbook to do it after losing Chubb and bareyly surviving last week. Went with Chark on a hunch. Getting Jameson Williams two weeks early will help if we can survive another week. Lamar's matchup is concerning. This team should squeak by with 15 teams still alive.