As we roll into week three of this year’s NFL season, managing your fantasy team will be painful after the amount of injuries from the previous week. Don’t worry though, I’ve got your back.
With so many injuries, you may have to scan your league’s waiver wire to see who you can fill these positions with.
The most notable injuries from week two that will be affecting NFL fantasy week three. (Michael Lolley)
I’ll be here to tell you who should be starting and who should be sitting on your fantasy team every week. I will be covering the superstars and breakout players as well as every player who you could have possibly drafted, and why they should be in or out this week.
Quarterbacks:
Thursday night we have a young quarterback duel between Tua Tagovailoa and Gardner Minshew. Just 7.4% of leagues drafted Tagovailoa and 42% of leagues drafted Minshew, so I recommend if you need a new quarterback and you want to get up some good points, you should pick up these guys in free agency. Both of them will be putting up career numbers against the defenses that they’re playing Thursday night, after both Miami and Jacksonville got scorched by receivers in weeks one and two. I see them both putting up 20 points on your team.
One quarterback who has really caught my eye this year is Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons. With Julio Jones, being listed as questionable this week with a high ankle sprain, I’d say starting him could be a small risk but after the first two weeks of the season, putting up 24 and 28 fantasy points, I think he will put up great numbers once again.
On Monday, we have another great quarterback matchup between reigning Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes and regular season MVP Lamar Jackson. This game is most likely going to be an offensive onslaught between the Chiefs and Ravens and just like any other week, these guys need to be started.
Running Backs:
If you are in need of a new running back after week two’s injuries, I like Jacksonville’s James Robinson. From Illinois State University, he gets the chance to run all over Miami’s mediocre defense. I see Robinson putting up anywhere from 15 to 20 points this week.
Josh Jacobs of Las Vegas was able to have a stellar week one, but New Orleans found a way to hold him to just 88 yards and no touchdowns. However, I don’t see Atlanta doing the same, given that their defensive line is nowhere near up to par with New Orleans. Jacobs has the skill to single handedly beat this defense and put up huge numbers on Sunday.
On Monday night, Chiefs’ rookie Clyde Edwards-Helaire gets the opportunity to run against the third best run defense (according to ESPN Fantasy rankings) in the Baltimore Ravens. I don’t recommend you start him unless you have no other choice. I only can see him getting eight to 12 points in week three.
Wide Receiver and Tight End:
Thursday night there’s really only two guys that I would start if I had them on my team: the tight end from Miami, Mike Gesicki, or the wide receiver from Jacksonville, DJ Chark Jr. Other than them, there are no real good options. Miami doesn’t have any deep threat receivers, and other than Chark, Jacksonville doesn’t have any strong fantasy options on their team.
On Sunday, I really like the Arizona Cardinals’ Kyler Murray to Deandre Hopkins duo, especially against the Lions, who will probably match up Hopkins with their rookie cornerback, Jeff Okudah. If you have Hopkinks on your team, he is a must start.
Monday night has Pro Bowl wide receivers and tight ends all over the place. Starting Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce or Marquise Brown are all no-brainers every week. After weeks one and two being very mediocre however, I say you should sit Mecole Hardman, who had 5.9 total points, Sammy Watkins, putting up 15.6 total points, and Mark Andrews, with only 20.7 total points.
![Holding the disc, senior Nathan Thompson waits for an opportunity to pass to senior Timmy Fry. Parkway United’s ultimate frisbee team is made up of students from each of the four Parkway schools. “The one thing I really like about ultimate [frisbee] is the community because it’s so different from any other sport I've been a part of. [My] national teammates are people who we play against in the regular season, so we see each other all the time. It's always fun hanging out with [them],” Thompson said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/C96A6823-1200x800.jpg)
![Senior Josie Grunzinger watches the football game intently from the sidelines on Oct. 18. Grunzinger stood out to the crowd as the only girl on the football team, encouraging other girls who want to play football to take a chance and go for a sport outside of their comfort zone. “If you think you could [play football] and you want to do it, just try it, because all it takes is to actually try it out,” Grunzinger said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Untitled-design-1200x675.png)
![With her arms held high, junior Jenna Rickelman throws the ball across the pool during a girls water polo practice. With hours of practice after school and over the summer, Rickelman saw many improvements in her water polo skills. “When I look at [my] stats, I'm so much better than I was last year,” Rickelman said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Untitled-design-2-.png)
![Putting on his helmet, catcher and senior Tommy Eschbach prepares to get in his primary stance. Despite losing 6-1 against Eureka on April 16, Eschbach didn’t let the tough loss affect his playing or mental health. “It's [so] easy to get caught up in the sport and what you're doing that [after] one bad game or a stretch of games it is hard to remind yourself that your worth as a person isn't directly related to your performance on the field,” Eschbach said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/DSC_0415-1-1-1200x800.jpg)
![Sports organizations have changed lives on and off the field, improving athletes’ muscle strength, reducing their risk of diseases and building energetic work capacity worldwide. However, many student-athletes struggle to balance schoolwork and athletic commitments, hoping to seek more understanding and support from their teachers and coaches. “To lessen mental strain student-athletes [face] and create a healthier, more comfortable lifestyle, there shouldn’t be any homework. I'm already [at school] for eight hours and [homework] creates a bigger load for student-athletes in AP or honors classes,” track and field sprinter and sophomore Lucy Penton said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/DSC_0095-1-e1713883278514-1200x847.jpg)
![At the Spring Pep Rally on March 8, boys varsity water poloist and junior Jack Brau stands with the boys water polo team. The group, hoping to include everyone — whether boy or girl, varsity or JV — cheered on the girls water polo team during the sports team runouts. “Even though we all play separate games and have different practices, we like to see ourselves as one big group who represent one water polo [team],” Brau said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/DSC_8810-1-1200x800.jpg)
![Looking for an open teammate, freshman Patrick May passes the ball across the court at the Nov. 28 game against Parkway Central. May started in the game against the Colts. ”Growing up, [my parents] always gave me a basketball, [and] we had a basketball hoop outside. I grew up playing [all the time], playing on the [driveway] and shooting hoops with my dad.” May said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image2-1-1200x801.jpg)
