Editor's Note: Drew Brees. Ben Roethlisberger. Cam Newton. That's quite a bit of starpower on the sidelines for Week 3, and longer in Roethlisberger and Brees' case, at least. Even if you drafted a quarterback with the thought you can just lock them into the lineup in Week 1 and ignore them, there's a chance you're scrambling to find someone to start this week. That's just the nature of the position so far this season. The good news is, Jamey Eisenberg's got his Start and Sit calls for QB ready to go for Week 3, whether you need an injury replacement or are just playing the matchups.
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START 'EM & SIT 'EM
Quarterbacks
Start 'Em
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I've been impressed with Allen so far this season, including his comeback at the Jets in Week 1 as well as his quality outing in Week 2 at the Giants. Winning back to back road games is tough, especially to start the season, and Allen has improved already in his second year in the NFL. He's still running the ball, which helps his Fantasy output, and he has 17 carries for 59 yards and two touchdowns on the year. This week, he's facing a Bengals defense that allowed 19 Fantasy points to Russell Wilson in Week 1 and 27 Fantasy points to Jimmy Garoppolo in Week 2. I expect another 20-point outing from Allen this week, and he's worth using as a No. 1 quarterback in all leagues.
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The Winston breakout game we've been waiting for is coming this week against the Giants. He improved his play in Week 2 at Carolina on Thursday after being a total disaster in Week 1 against San Francisco, and the extra time to prepare for this week should help him, as well as facing an inferior opponent. The Giants have allowed at least 24 Fantasy points to Allen and Dak Prescott, and Winston should do well in this game at home. He's faced the Giants in each of the past two seasons, and he's averaging 25.0 Fantasy points in those meetings. Hopefully, that continues this week.
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Wilson was excellent in Week 2 at Pittsburgh with 30 Fantasy points, and the best thing about his performance was he attempted 35 passes. He only attempted 30-plus passes six times in 2018, and he had at least 22 Fantasy points in five of them, so we like it when Wilson is throwing. Of course, it will help if the Saints make him throw, either by making this a high-scoring affair or taking away Seattle's ground attack. But even if Wilson is under 30 with his attempts, he should still be started this week. The Saints allowed at least 21 Fantasy points to both Deshaun Watson and Jared Goff, and I expect Wilson to finish as a top-10 Fantasy quarterback in Week 3 at home.
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Ryan is off to a good start with his Fantasy production through two games, scoring at least 22 Fantasy points in outings against Minnesota in Week 1 and Philadelphia in Week 2. Both were comeback efforts, but Ryan is proving, once again, to be a quality Fantasy quarterback in all leagues. This week, he's facing a Colts defense that struggled with Philip Rivers in Week 1 (29 Fantasy points) but contained Marcus Mariota (15 points) in Week 2. I expect Ryan to be closer to Rivers this week, and he's worth starting in all leagues.
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Rivers has faced the Texans four times in his career, and he's lit them up every time. In those games, he has 862 passing yards, 14 touchdowns and three interceptions, and he's scored at least 23 Fantasy points in each outing. He's also played well at home going back to last season. In his past five home games, including his 29-point outing against the Colts in Week 1, he has at least 24 Fantasy points in three of them. The Texans allowed 24 Fantasy points against Drew Brees in Week 1 and 17 Fantasy points against Gardner Minshew in Week 2, so there's an opportunity here for Rivers to succeed. He's worth using as a low-end starter in all leagues.
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Sleepers
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We'll see what role Minkah Fitzpatrick plays this week as the new safety for the Steelers, but I still expect Garoppolo to do well in this matchup at home. He just scored 27 Fantasy points at Cincinnati, and the Steelers have allowed huge games to Tom Brady and Wilson in consecutive weeks, with those quarterbacks combining for 641 passing yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions. Garoppolo is worth using as a low-end starting Fantasy quarterback this week.
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Brissett is only averaging 27.5 pass attempts through the first two games of the season, but he's also averaging 20.0 Fantasy points per game over that span. I like the matchup for him at home against the Falcons, who have allowed multiple touchdowns in each game to Kirk Cousins and Carson Wentz. Brissett is a good streaming option in Week 3.
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This is one for deep two-quarterback and Superflex leagues since Cam Newton (foot) is out in Week 3. Now that Allen is starting against the Cardinals, he might be better than the other replacement guys, including Mason Rudolph and Teddy Bridgewater. Arizona has been awful against Matthew Stafford and Lamar Jackson in the first two games, allowing 657 passing yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions, as well as 142 rushing yards. Allen could be a sneaky option in all leagues, and he had 28 Fantasy points in one start in Week 17 last year at New Orleans.
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Sit 'Em
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I had high expectations for Carr in Week 2 against Kansas City with the thought that he would be chasing points against the Chiefs. He was chasing points, but he failed to deliver a good stat line, scoring just 10 Fantasy points. It could be ugly for Carr this week at Minnesota, even though the Vikings have allowed multiple touchdowns in each game to Ryan and Aaron Rodgers. Carr, obviously, isn't at the same level as those guys, and he's barely an option in two-quarterback leagues this week.
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Cousins could have a bounce-back game this week at home against the Raiders after scoring a combined 25 Fantasy points through two weeks, or he could have another performance like what happened to him in Week 1 against Atlanta. Against the Falcons, Cousins attempted just 10 passes because the run game and defense were dominant. I'm OK with Cousins as a starter in a two-quarterback or Superflex league — the Raiders were just embarrassed at home by Patrick Mahomes for 443 passing yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. This game should be a lot of Dalvin Cook for the Vikings, though, and I expect Cousins to have a low floor, even in a favorable matchup at home.
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Dalton is averaging 23.0 Fantasy points through two games this season, and he seems to be a good fit for Zac Taylor's offense in Cincinnati. The fact that he has 729 passing yards, four touchdowns and one interception in two games against Seattle and San Francisco, without A.J. Green (ankle), is impressive. But I hate this matchup for him in Week 3 at Buffalo. The Bills defense should be tough on opposing quarterbacks all year, and this should be Dalton's first game with fewer than 20 Fantasy points. I would only start Dalton in two-quarterback or Superflex leagues this week.
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Murray had 25 Fantasy points in a comeback effort against Detroit in Week 1, and he scored just 15 points at Baltimore in Week 2, although he played better. He completed 25-of-40 passes for 349 yards, but he had no touchdowns against the Ravens. I'd start Murray in a two-quarterback or Superflex league this week at home against Carolina, but the Panthers have done a nice job against Jared Goff and Winston in two games, holding them to a combined 394 passing yards, two touchdowns and one interception. I'm expecting Murray to have his second game in a row with fewer than 20 Fantasy points.
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Bust Alert
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Mayfield has been a Fantasy bust through two games, and I don't expect him to turn things around this week against the Rams. He's scored a combined 28 Fantasy points this season against Tennessee and the Jets, and the Rams have yet to allow a touchdown to an opposing quarterback in matchups against the Panthers and Saints. Now, consider that something is clearly off with Newton, and Brees was hurt against the Rams, but this defense should continue to make Mayfield uncomfortable and limit his Fantasy production. Mayfield is only worth starting in two-quarterback and Superflex leagues.
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So who should you sit and start this week? And which surprising quarterback could lead you to victory? Visit SportsLine now to get Week 3 Fantasy football rankings for every position, plus see which QB is going to come out of nowhere to crack the top 10, all from the model that out-performed experts big time last season.