Week 1 of the fantasy football season is here, and we’re back with another crop of start/sit options. Week 1 is always the most challenging week to find quality under-the-radar picks and traps to avoid, but this weekend, those spots seem pretty clearly defined.
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With that in mind, we’ll pick wide receivers who should exceed expectations in Week 1, along with three you should probably sit.
Start
I don’t care if you’re playing season-long or daily fantasy, if you don’t have Bryant in your lineup, you’re doing it wrong. Everything points to Bryant having a monster game in his return to weekly play with the Steelers. He has 14 touchdowns in 21 career games. The Browns secondary is very beatable, and with Antonio Brown on the other side, Bryant should have his way in single coverage. He’s going to get plenty of deep shots, and he’s going to convert them.
He isn’t getting any younger, but that doesn’t mean Fitz isn’t still a potent weapon in this offense. The Lions have a solid defense, but it’s not so hot against slot receivers. Fitzgerald remains Carson Palmer’s favorite weapon and it will get deployed here. Especially in PPR leagues, Fitzgerald should eat this week.
The Saints are almost annually a source of wide receiver goodness, allowing the fifth-most receptions to wide receivers last season. Both Diggs and Thielen should produce here, as long as Sam Bradford stays upright. And if Dalvin Cook lives up to his rookie hype, the passing game could heat up even more.
Sit
Blake Bortles is the starter; the game is in Houston. The Texans are fired up to heal their hurricane-devastated city, and J.J. Watt is the face of that effort. Having the time to get the ball to Robinson is going to be an enormous challenge for a quarterback who probably shouldn’t even have a job. Not the recipe for wide receiver success.
Alshon Jeffery, Philadelphia Eagles (@ Washington)
Welcome to Philly, Mr. Jeffery. We’d like you to meet Josh Norman.
How much you trust Hilton this week is directly proportional to how much you trust Scott Tolzien to get him the ball. I don’t trust Scott Tolzien to get him the ball.
