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| Sunday, October 2, 2022 |
| Good morning. While you're getting breakfast ready, there's football about to be played, with the Vikings and Saints kicking off at 9:30 a.m. EST from London. And, fittingly for Week 4, there are a ton of injuries in that game to worry about, with the Saints hit especially hard -- they'll be without starting QB Jameis Winston and star WR Michael Thomas, with Jarvis Landry and Alvin Kamara also entering the game beat up. |
| This week features a simply ridiculous amount of injuries, with a number of big players already ruled out -- and many up in the air for Sunday's games. There's a lot you need to sort through, and the Fantasy Football Today team is here to help. Jamey Eisenberg, Heath Cummings, and Dave Richard are on CBS Sports HQ at 10 a.m. to answer your questions and get you the latest up-to-date injury news live until kickoff. And if you want more direct answers to your questions, I've got two more ways for you to win: Go to Twitter and use the hashtag "#AskFFT", where our whole team will be answering questions all morning; and go to the FFT YouTube channel to chat with Adam Aizer, Frank Stampfl and I starting at 11:30. We'll be there right up until kickoff answering as many questions as we can, so make sure you're in the chat early to get your questions in. |
| For more Week 4 help, here's the rest of our preview content to get you ready: |
| Week 4 Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: QB | RB | WRStarts, sits and sleepers for every gameCheat Sheet: PPR | Non-PPRWeek 4 Position Previews: QB | RB | WR | TEWeek 4 Rankings: Jamey | Dave | Heath My Updated Week 4 Rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE |
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| For the rest of this morning's newsletter, I have updates on the latest injury news as well as answers to your questions in an #AskFFT mailbag -- email me at [email protected] throughout the week to get your emails included. |
| Week 4 Injury Report |
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Quarterbacks
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| Zach Wilson (knee) is set to start for the Jets as expected, and there shouldn't be any surprises or suspense today. |
| Out: Jameis Winston (back/ankle), Dak Prescott (thumb), Mac Jones (ankle) |
| Andy Dalton will start for the Saints, Cooper Rush will start for the Cowboys, and Brian Hoyer will start for the Patriots. Of those three, Dalton is the only one I would come close to wanting to use in a two-QB league, but he's a low-end No. 2 at best. |
| Running backs |
| Dalvin Cook (shoulder) and Jonathan Taylor (toe) were ultimately removed from the injury report and are expected to play their normal roles. Cook has experience playing through this shoulder issue in the past, but there is still some elevated risk of re-injury – not that you're even considering sitting him. Dameon Pierce, Miles Sanders, James Conner, and AJ Dillon were all also removed from the injury report after being listed earlier in the week. |
| Questionable: Christian McCaffrey (thigh), Alvin Kamara (ribs), Cordarrelle Patterson (knee) |
| I'm expecting all three to play, with some positive reports coming out about McCaffrey especially over the past few days. Patterson seems like he might be the longest shot to play seeing as he only got a limited session in during Friday's practice and we haven't gotten confirmation that he'll play. He's also the easiest to sit of the three if you're wary, given his limited passing game role since Week 1. He's an RB2, and if Patterson is out, I would only consider Tyler Allgeier an RB3, because I wouldn't expect much of a passing game role. |
| Out: D'Andre Swift (shoulder/ankle), David Montgomery (ankle/knee), Boston Scott (rib) |
| No real surprises here – Scott's absence could mean more opportunities for Kenneth Gainwell, though Scott only has 10 carries and one target through three games, so it isn't a significant role he's leaving behind. With Swift out, Jamaal Williams figures to be the Lions lead rusher, with Craig Reynolds likely to take on some passing downs. Williams is the Start of the Week for the matchup against the Seahawks , and it's a great matchup – albeit one where Williams is playing in a very beat up offense that could struggle to move the ball. He's more of an RB2 for me. Khalil Herbert is the better option in Davis Montgomery's absence, if you ask me (and you are). |
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| Wide receivers |
| There are a ton of WR injuries to keep track of heading into today's games, but at least the likes of A.J. Brown, Allen Lazard, DeVonta Smith, Greg Dortch, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Michael Gallup should be good to go Sunday, among others. Bears rookie Velus Jones Jr. is also set to make his NFL debut, per reports, and remains worth a look in deeper leagues just in case this passing game starts to figure something out. |
| Questionable: Chris Godwin (Hamstring), Julio Jones (Knee), Gabe Davis (Ankle), Jarvis Landry (Ankle), Josh Reynolds (Ankle), Laviska Shenault Jr . (Hamstring), Marquez Valdes-Scantling (Abdomen), Marquise Brown (Foot), Rondale Moore (Hamstring), Russell Gage (Hamstring), Zay Jones (Ankle) |
| The Buccaneers guys are obviously worth watching. My expectation is that Godwin is the least likely of the trio to play, with both he and Jones expected to be game-time decisions – Jones didn't practice Friday, but with a "rest" tag, which complicates things. My preference would be to avoid non-Mike Evans receivers for the Buccaneers until they prove healthy enough to make it through a full game. |
| There is going to be plenty of interest in Josh Reynolds, given the absence of Swift, Amon-Ra St. Brown and D.J. Chark , but I'll just remind you that there was very little interest in starting Reynolds last season when he was playing without most of those guys. He did have a decent stretch where he caught 16 passes for 259 yards and a couple of scores over four games last season, albeit mostly after St. Brown broke out and took the offense along with him. Reynolds isn't a terrible option, but I'm expecting that offense to mostly be pretty bad with all their injuries, and Reynolds may not be good enough to overcome that. |
| Otherwise, it looks like Valdes-Scantling and Davis are expected to play, as are Brown and Moore – Moore will be making his season debut, and his return makes it tougher to trust Dortch. Moore has a RB2/3 upside in this offense, but I'm not sure he'll play a full complement of snaps just yet. He's a stash. |
| Doubtful: Breshad Perriman (knee/hamstring)Out: Keenan Allen (Hamstring), Michael Thomas (Foot), Hunter Renfrow (Concussion), Amon-Ra St. Brown (Ankle), Wan'Dale Robinson (Knee), A.J. Green (Knee), Kadarius Toney (Hamstring), Jakobi Meyers (knee), D.J. Chark (Ankle) |
| Mack Hollins is coming off a huge game with Renfrow out, and he's an interesting flier for this one. Josh Palmer has some appeal for the Chargers as well, and both of them are in the same WR3/4 range as Reynolds for me. If Landry plays, he's not far from that role, though the absence of Winston adds some complications for the Saints offense as a whole – which includes Chris Olave coming off a massive game. Olave is my favorite of that whole crew, including the WR3/4 types already mentioned, but I'm a little worried about what the switch from Winston to Dalton means for him. |
| Tight ends |
| Questionable: Dawson Knox (back/hip), Dalton Schultz (knee) |
| Both guys are expected to play, though with Schultz we have specific reporting indicating that, while Knox is more of an assumption – he was able to practice on a limited basis every day this week. Schultz is the better Fantasy option if he plays, though I wouldn't be surprised if his role was limited, and he's less of a must-start option than you're typically used to with him. |
| #AskFFT Mailbag |
| Send your questions to [email protected] to be included next week |
| John: I don't trust Matthew Stafford on Monday night, so I believe the best two options (that are available) are Marcus Mariota and Kirk Cousins. I know Cousins has a good history against the Saints, but he just got pounded by the Eagles "under the lights" and this again is a prime time game again in London Sunday morning. Jefferson currently also struggling to connect with him. The Saints are also statistically stomping all over QBs stats, so I'm leaning towards Mariota. It looks unlikely that Myles Garrett and JaDaveon Clowney can go, two huge blows to the front. Cleveland has also given up monster plays, including to Baker and Flacco. With Mariota's mobility and the high over/under for this matchup, I think that makes him the play and up for a monster day, with a safer floor as well. What do you think? |
| John, I'm going to be honest, I think you might be overthinking this one. Mariota has been decent, as I hoped he would be, but he also just had 19.6 points against a pretty bad Seahawks defense. Stafford was awful in the season opener and only had 10.2 points in Week 3, but he also had both Cooper Kupp and Allen Robinson drop touchdowns, and he averaged 10 yards per attempt despite that. The 49ers have allowed the second-fewest Fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks so far, but they've also faced Justin Fields, Geno Smith, and Russell Wilson, and I'm not sure we can really say that's a particularly impressive stretch at this point. I'm sticking with Stafford here. |
| Andy: I have Leonard Fournette, Saquon Barkley, Khalil Herbert, and Alvin Kamara. Do I bench Fournette if Kamara is healthy? |
| I want to say this is a good problem to have, but having too many starting-caliber players is a headache. It never feels like you're going to make the right choices. The problem here is that Herbert seems like one of your better choices, and he's got the shortest track record of this crew by far. I actually have Kamara ranked the lowest of this group overall, but with Michael Thomas out and Andy Dalton starting, it's easy to envision Kamara having a breakout game as the team's go-to short-area target in the passing game. The good news is, all four of these guys are in my top-12 for running back this week, so you can't make a wrong choice. Unless, you know, you do. |
| Albert: I have Garrett Wilson and Mike Williams as bench replacements for Amon-Ra St. Brown. The Chargers are not looking as good as everyone thought they would be so far and Justin Herbert is a little banged up and on the road, so I'm a little hesitant on Williams. On the other hand, Wilson is facing the Pittsburgh defense with QB Zach Wilson making his comeback from injury, so I'm a little hesitant with him too. Who would you go with? |
| I think both of these guys are a little less certain than they should be for exactly the reasons you give. I'm going to give Williams the edge simply because of his longer-term track record. He hasn't been great this season overall, but he did have that huge game in Week 2 against the Chiefs, and you know he's going to get downfield and red zone looks, at the very least. The truth is, we don't really know what to expect Wilson's usage to look like with his new QB. I think he'll remain the No. 1 target for the Jets, but it's worth noting that Elijah Moore has run 44 more snaps than Wilson this season, including 53 to 37 in Week 3. That uncertainty pushes Williams ahead. |
| Scott: Antonio Gibson or AJ Dillon? Michael Carter or Diontae Johnson or Cam Akers? |
| I'm going with Dillon over Gibson – Gibson just isn't getting the passing game usage we hoped for after Week 1, and the Commanders are set for another tough game against the Cowboys. I don't think this is going to be a set up that works for Gibson. And Johnson is the obvious choice for me – the Steelers offense hasn't taken the leap we were hoping for, but Johnson still has double-digit targets in each of the first three games, so he has both the high weekly floor and ceiling you're looking for. |
| Nick: I'm a bit worried about starting James Conner. He seems to be a bit banged up by injuries. He has been limited in practice this week. Also, the Cardinal's offense just hasn't looked good. I'm leaning more toward starting Rhamondre Stevenson, who has a good matchup and a great opportunity. Let me know if I'm crazy for this. |
| Conner has been a bit of a disappointment so far, mostly because the Cardinals offense has been a disappointment. I mean, sure, his 3.0 yards per carry isn't helping much, but he's been involved in the passing game like we hoped he would be and will still get a heavy share of the goal-line work when it arrives. I don't mind Stevenson, but he's in a timeshare in an offense that was pretty bad before losing its starting quarterback. Stevenson's passing game role is solid, but it's hard to argue he even has an edge on Conner in that regard, and I still have a lot more faith in Kyler Murray than Brian Hoyer. |
| Rankings Updates |
| Quarterbacks |
| Josh Allen @BALLamar Jackson vs. BUF Jalen Hurts vs. JAXPatrick Mahomes @TBKyler Murray @CAR Tom Brady vs. KCJustin Herbert @HOUKirk Cousins @NODerek Carr vs. DEN Trevor Lawrence @PHIAaron Rodgers vs. NERussell Wilson @LVMarcus Mariota vs. CLE Carson Wentz @DALMatthew Stafford @SFJared Goff vs. SEA Daniel Jones vs. CHICooper Rush vs. WASJustin Fields @NYGMitchell Trubisky vs. NYJZach Wilson @PIT Jacoby Brissett @ATLAndy Dalton vs. MINJimmy Garoppolo vs. LARMatt Ryan vs. TEN Ryan Tannehill @INDBaker Mayfield vs. ARIGeno Smith @DET Davis Mills vs. LACBrian Hoyer @GB |
| Running backs |
| Saquon Barkley vs. CHIChristian McCaffrey vs. ARIJonathan Taylor vs. TENAustin Ekeler @HOULeonard Fournette vs. KC Nick Chubb @ATLDalvin Cook @NOKhalil Herbert @NYGAaron Jones vs. NE Derrick Henry @INDAlvin Kamara vs. MINNajee Harris vs. NYJ Josh Jacobs vs. DENJavonte Williams @LVJamaal Williams vs. SEAJames Conner @CARAJ Dillon vs. NE Jeff Wilson vs. LARCordarrelle Patterson vs. CLEJames Robinson @PHI Ezekiel Elliott vs. WASMiles Sanders vs. JAXAntonio Gibson @DALKareem Hunt @ATLDameon Pierce vs. LAC Michael Carter @PITJ.D. McKissic @DALCam Akers @SFClyde Edwards-Helaire @TB Damien Harris @GBRhamondre Stevenson @GBJ.K. Dobbins vs. BUF Breece Hall @PITDevin Singletary @BAL Travis Etienne @PHI Rashaad Penny @DETNyheim Hines vs. TENDarrell Henderson @SF Tony Pollard vs. WASCraig Reynolds vs. SEAMelvin Gordon @LV Zack Moss @BALTyler Allgeier vs. CLEEno Benjamin @CAR Justice Hill vs. BUFSony Michel @HOU Kenneth Walker @DET Mark Ingram vs. MINRex Burkhead vs. LAC Alexander Mattison @NODontrell Hilliard @INDJordan Mason vs. LARKenneth Gainwell vs. JAXTristan Ebner @NYG Kenyan Drake vs. BUFJames Cook @BAL |
| Wide receivers |
| Cooper Kupp @SFStefon Diggs @BALJustin Jefferson @NO Deebo Samuel vs. LARDavante Adams vs. DENA.J. Brown vs. JAX Mike Evans vs. KCMichael Pittman vs. TENDiontae Johnson vs. NYJ Brandin Cooks vs. LACMarquise Brown @CARCeeDee Lamb vs. WAS Christian Kirk @PHICourtland Sutton @LV Amari Cooper @ATL Mike Williams @HOUDrake London vs. CLECurtis Samuel @DALDeVonta Smith vs. JAXGarrett Wilson @PITJuJu Smith-Schuster @TB Chris Olave vs. MIND.J. Moore vs. ARITerry McLaurin @DAL DK Metcalf @DETTyler Lockett @DETJosh Palmer @HOU Adam Thielen @NOAllen Robinson @SFRashod Bateman vs. BUF Brandon Aiyuk vs. LARElijah Moore @PITGabe Davis @BALChris Godwin vs. KCJerry Jeudy @LV Mack Hollins vs. DEN Rondale Moore @CARRobert Woods @INDRichie James vs. CHIZay Jones @PHIAllen Lazard vs. NE Corey Davis @PITTreylon Burks @IND Olamide Zaccheaus vs. CLEChase Claypool vs. NYJ Darnell Mooney @NYG Julio Jones vs. KCJarvis Landry vs. MINRobby Anderson vs. ARIRomeo Doubs vs. NEIsaiah McKenzie @BAL Josh Reynolds vs. SEANico Collins vs. LACK.J. Osborn @NO DeVante Parker @GBQuintez Cephus vs. SEA |
| Tight Ends |
| Travis Kelce @TBMark Andrews vs. BUF Kyle Pitts vs. CLEDarren Waller vs. DEN George Kittle vs. LAR T.J. Hockenson vs. SEADallas Goedert vs. JAX Tyler Higbee @SFZach Ertz @CAR Gerald Everett @HOU Evan Engram @PHIDavid Njoku @ATLDalton Schultz vs. WAS Tyler Conklin @PITDawson Knox @BALPat Freiermuth vs. NYJ Logan Thomas @DALNoah Fant @DET Cole Kmet @NYG Irv Smith @NOAlbert Okwuegbunam @LVEvan Engram @PHI |
| Flex |
| Cooper Kupp @SFStefon Diggs @BALSaquon Barkley vs. CHIChristian McCaffrey vs. ARITravis Kelce @TBJonathan Taylor vs. TENJustin Jefferson @NODeebo Samuel vs. LARAustin Ekeler @HOU Leonard Fournette vs. KCDavante Adams vs. DENNick Chubb @ATLDalvin Cook @NOKhalil Herbert @NYGAaron Jones vs. NEA.J. Brown vs. JAXDerrick Henry @INDAlvin Kamara vs. MINNajee Harris vs. NYJ Mark Andrews vs. BUFMike Evans vs. KCMichael Pittman vs. TENDiontae Johnson vs. NYJBrandin Cooks vs. LACMarquise Brown @CARCeeDee Lamb vs. WASChristian Kirk @PHICourtland Sutton @LVJosh Jacobs vs. DEN Amari Cooper @ATLJavonte Williams @LVJamaal Williams vs. SEAMike Williams @HOUDrake London vs. CLEJames Conner @CARAJ Dillon vs. NEJeff Wilson vs. LARCordarrelle Patterson vs. CLEJames Robinson @PHI Curtis Samuel @DALDeVonta Smith vs. JAXGarrett Wilson @PITEzekiel Elliott vs. WASMiles Sanders vs. JAXJuJu Smith-Schuster @TBKyle Pitts vs. CLEChris Olave vs. MINAntonio Gibson @DALD.J. Moore vs. ARI Kareem Hunt @ATLTerry McLaurin @DALDarren Waller vs. DENDK Metcalf @DETTyler Lockett @DETJosh Palmer @HOUAdam Thielen @NOAllen Robinson @SFDameon Pierce vs. LACGeorge Kittle vs. LAR Rashod Bateman vs. BUFMichael Carter @PITBrandon Aiyuk vs. LARElijah Moore @PITGabe Davis @BALJ.D. McKissic @DALT.J. Hockenson vs. SEACam Akers @SFChris Godwin vs. KCClyde Edwards-Helaire @TB Dallas Goedert vs. JAXJerry Jeudy @LVTyler Higbee @SFZach Ertz @CARDamien Harris @GBRhamondre Stevenson @GBMack Hollins vs. DENJ.K. Dobbins vs. BUFRondale Moore @CARBreece Hall @PIT Robert Woods @INDRichie James vs. CHIZay Jones @PHIDevin Singletary @BALTravis Etienne @PHIRashaad Penny @DETNyheim Hines vs. TENDarrell Henderson @SFTony Pollard vs. WASAllen Lazard vs. NE Corey Davis @PITTreylon Burks @INDOlamide Zaccheaus vs. CLEGerald Everett @HOUChase Claypool vs. NYJCraig Reynolds vs. SEAEvan Engram @PHIDarnell Mooney @NYGJulio Jones vs. KCJarvis Landry vs. MIN Robby Anderson vs. ARIRomeo Doubs vs. NEDavid Njoku @ATLIsaiah McKenzie @BALJosh Reynolds vs. SEANico Collins vs. LACMelvin Gordon @LVDalton Schultz vs. WASK.J. Osborn @NOTyler Conklin @PIT DeVante Parker @GBQuintez Cephus vs. SEAJahan Dotson @DALZack Moss @BALDonovan Peoples-Jones @ATL Marvin Jones @PHINoah Brown vs. WASDawson Knox @BAL Nelson Agholor @GBRandall Cobb vs. NEMarquez Valdes-Scantling @TBPat Freiermuth vs. NYJLogan Thomas @DAL Christian Watson vs. NETyler Allgeier vs. CLEEno Benjamin @CARKyle Phillips @INDJustice Hill vs. BUF Sony Michel @HOUDevin Duvernay vs. BUFKenneth Walker @DETNoah Fant @DETGreg Dortch @CARRussell Gage vs. KC Mecole Hardman @TBMark Ingram vs. MINCole Kmet @NYGIrv Smith @NORex Burkhead vs. LACAlbert Okwuegbunam @LV |
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