Our Week 4 fantasy football start and sit recommendations are now live with a whole lot to look at after the first three weeks of the NFL season.
Last week saw us recommend quarterbacks Kirk Cousins and Brock Purdy as starts. They did their thing. We also pressured folks into sitting Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell. We hope you listened after his four-interception performance in a blowout loss to the Buffalo Bills.
Without further ado, here’s our fantasy football start and sit for Week 4 of the 2023 NFL season.
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Week 4 fantasy football start and sit: Quarterbacks
Start
Andy Dalton, Carolina Panthers
We’re really not crazy. We promise. With rookie quarterback Bryce Young (ankle) looking at another week of absence, Dalton is seemingly a great streaming option or low-end QB1 in DFS contests. If you’ve picked him up off the waiver wire and are not happy with your current QB1, we recommend you look in this direction.
The veteran completed 34-of-58 passes for a whopping 361 yards with two touchdowns and zero interceptions last week against the Seattle Seahawks. He now has the pleasure of going up against a Minnesota Vikings defense that has yielded the third-most fantasy points to quarterbacks on the season. That includes a 76.2% completion with seven passing touchdowns compared to one interception. The math is not hard here.
Russell Wilson, Denver Broncos
First off, Wilson is not to blame for his defense giving up 70 points last week to Miami. It would be laughable to blame him. In fact, the embattled veteran has played pretty darn well through three games despite the Broncos’ winless record (65% completion, 791 yards, 6 TD, 2 INT). This actually has Wilson as the eighth-best fantasy quarterback through three weeks.
Whether Denver can hand the Chicago Bears their 14th consecutive loss on Sunday remains to be seen. What we do know is that this is a plus-level matchup for Wilson. The Bears have given up nearly 1,100 passing yards with seven touchdowns to opposing quarterbacks. They have also recorded just one sack, meaning Wilson should be able to cook their defense.
Related: Fantasy football waiver wire picks for Week 4
Sit
Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
You’ll be inclined to stream Jackson in DFS leagues and start him every week regardless of the matchup. This shouldn’t be the case if you have a solid QB2 in Week 4. The dual-threat star is set to go up against an absolutely dominant Cleveland Browns defense that has given up just 408 passing yards with one touchdown and one interception in three games. For his part, Jackson has tallied a mere two passing touchdowns in three games.
We’re expecting this Week 4 AFC North matchup to be low-scoring. Look for both the Ravens and Browns to dominate on the defensive end. It’s going to make viable fantasy players on either team hard to come by.
Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
Dallas’ red-zone struggles last week have been a major talking about. They scored just one touchdown on five trips inside the Cardinals’ 20-yard line in what was a shocking loss for the Cowboys. Sure, Prescott wants to rectify this. But it’s going to be incredibly hard against the New England Patriots come Sunday.
New England has yielded the fifth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks on the season. That includes well less than 200 yards per game with two touchdown passes through three outings. Heck, this unit even held Tua Tagovailoa in check in Week 2 (249 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT). Sit Prescott and thank us later.
Week 4 fantasy football start and sit: Running backs
Start
Kenneth Walker, Seattle Seahawks
We told you to go with Walker last week, and we’re not backing down from that heading into Monday night against the New York Giants. Walker turned around a slow start to the season in Week 3, putting up 156 total yards and two touchdowns in a win over the Carolina Panthers. He’s now starting to gain the same momentum that saw the former Heisman finalist dominate at times as a rookie last season.
It doesn’t hurt that Seattle is taking on a Giants team that has yielded 408 total yards and four touchdowns to the running back position in three weeks. Start Walker without any hesitation.
James Cook, Buffalo Bills
We’re expecting Buffalo’s Week 4 matchup with the Miami Dolphins to be the highest-scoring on the slate. The Dolphins are averaging 43.3 points per game. As for the Bills, they are second behind their AFC East rivals at 30.3 points per.
One of the primary aspects here is the fact that Buffalo will want to keep Miami’s high-flying offense off the field as much as possible. That’s where Cook comes into play. He’s been stellar over the past two games, going for 271 total yards. While it has not yet led to a touchdown on the season, look for that to change Sunday. Miami has given up three rushing touchdowns in as many games while yielding the seventh-most fantasy points to running backs.
Sit
James Conner, Arizona Cardinals
Conner has been a godsend for the surprising Cardinals through three games, going for nearly 300 total yards and two touchdowns. This has him as a top-eight fantasy back. This will also have you looking to strike gold heading into Week 4.
Beware. Arizona is set to take on a San Francisco 49ers defense that has given up a total of 111 rushing yards at a clip of 3.6 yards per rush on the season. Given the 49ers’ ability to score, the onus will likely be more on quarterback Joshua Dobbs in this one. Don’t even think about starting Conner.
Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons
Say what? It appears that we have gone done lost our minds. But that’s just the appearance. Hear us out. First off, Atlanta is taking on a Jaguars defense that has given up all of 165 rushing yards in three games. This has them as the fourth-best fantasy defense against running backs through three weeks.
Secondly, teams are now starting to stack the box more against Robinson given Desmond Ridder’s uneven play at quarterback. This came out in droves with the stud rookie gaining a mere 33 yards on 10 attempts last week. Robinson is a start most weeks. But if you have that quality backup with a better matchup, consider having him ride the pine.
Related: Week 4 fantasy football rankings
Week 4 fantasy football start and sit: Wide receivers
Start
Davante Adams, Las Vegas Raiders
Some might think that sitting Adams in favor of a team with a better QB situation makes sense. That’s simply overthinking it. Whether it’s Jimmy Garoppolo (concussion protocol), Brian Hoyer or rookie Aidan O’Connell starting against the Chargers on Sunday, Adams remains a must start.
The All-Pro caught 13 passes for 172 yards and two touchdowns from a shaky Garoppolo last week against Pittsburgh. He now gets to go up against a Chargers defense that has yielded 807 yards and six touchdowns to wide receivers in three games. Those are some absolutely pathetic numbers.
Adam Thielen, Carolina Panthers
The idea of streaming both Dalton and Thielen brings us back to a simpler time when we walked 20 miles in the snow without shoes on to set our fantasy lineups. But it actually makes perfect sense in the year 2023. Let us explain.
Minnesota has allowed 55-of-72 passes to be completed to wide receivers throughout three weeks (76%). It has also given up five touchdown passes and the third-most fantasy points to receivers. Thielen will cook against his former team.
Sit
George Pickens, Pittsburgh Steelers
Yes, Pickens has been great as a fantasy performer during the early stages of his sophomore season (bottom-end WR2). No, we’re still not sold on anyone catching passes from Kenny Pickett as being a reliable fantasy option. Simply put, the quarterback is a bit too erratic at this stage of his career.
It also does not help that Pittsburgh is taking on a Houston Texans defense that has yielded the fifth-fewest fantasy points to receivers on the season. That includes just 42 receptions for 432 yards. Sit Pickens and thank us later.
Among-Ra St. Brown, Detroit Lions
We’re not buying St. Brown at his DFS cost or even as a top-end WR1 in PPR leagues. Why? He’s going up against a Packers defense on Thursday Night Football that has given up all of 373 yards to receivers in three games. Regardless of Jaire Alexander’s status (missed Week 3), this is not a plus-level matchup for St. Brown.
Instead, we’re expecting quarterback Jared Goff to continue targeting stud rookie tight end Sam LaPorta at a high clip. The first-round pick has seen 22 passes thrown in his direction through three games, including 11 last week.
Related: Ranking NFL defenses heading into Week 4
Week 4 fantasy football start and sit: Tight ends
Start
Luke Musgrave, Green Bay Packers
Surprisingly, Musgrave is tied for the Packers lead in receptions with 11 through three games. The rookie tight end also caught 6-of-8 targets from Jordan Love in Week 3. He now has a plus-level Thursday night matchup against a Lions defense that has allowed tight ends to catch 25-of-36 targets for 263 yards in just three games this season. Again, the math is not hard.
Sit
Fresh off signing a lucrative long-term extension, Njoku has gained 92 yards in three games this season. He has not been a fantasy relevant option. That won’t change Sunday against a Ravens defense that has yielded just eight catches for 45 yards in three games to tight ends this season.