Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em Fantasy Football Quarterbacks Week 17: Perfect Time for a Justin Fields Bounce Back

If you survived his Week 16 clunker, Fields can help you win a title.

Start ‘Em, Sit 'Em is the ultimate look at the best and worst matchups based on a PPR scoring system in fantasy football. This column will not cover the elite players in the NFL like Josh Allen, Austin Ekeler or Tyreek Hill. Instead, I'll look at the players you have questions about who could exceed or fail to meet expectations at each position. For all of your final fantasy lineup decisions, be sure to check out my weekly player rankings which will be updated daily throughout the 2022 NFL season.

Fabs Top 10 quarterbacks
1. Josh Allen at Bengals (MNF)
2. Patrick Mahomes vs. Broncos
3. Joe Burrow vs. Bills (MNF)
4. Justin Fields at Lions
5. Dak Prescott at Titans (TNF)
6. Jared Goff vs. Bears
7. Trevor Lawrence at Texans
8. Justin Herbert vs. Rams  
9. Kirk Cousins at Packers
10. Daniel Jones vs. Colts

Week 17 Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: QUARTERBACKS | RUNNING BACKS | WIDE RECEIVERS | TIGHT ENDS | KICKERS & TEAM DEFENSES

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Week 17 Start ‘Em: Quarterbacks

Start of the Week

Justin Fields at Lions (1 p.m. ET, Fox): Fields is coming off one of his worst stat lines of the season, scoring just 9.9 fantasy points in a loss to the Bills. Still, he’s a virtual must start when the Bears face the Lions. He beat them for nearly 40 points earlier in the season, and no team in the league has allowed more fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. Look for Fields to rebound in this NFC North contest.

SI Sportsbook Player Prop: Fields over 70.5 rushing yards (-125)

Start ‘Em

Justin Herbert vs. Rams (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS): Herbert has been awful over the last two weeks, scoring single digit points in his last two games. If you were able to survive, he's still worth a look against the Rams. Their defense has surrendered 18-plus fantasy points to three different quarterbacks since Week 11, including 23 points to Geno Smith (Week 13) and 22.2 points to Andy Dalton (Week 11).

Jared Goff vs. Bears (1 p.m. ET, Fox): Goff is coming off his best stat line on the road in 2022, scoring 25.7 points in a loss to the Panthers. He’s now back at Ford Field where he’s been quite productive, throwing for multiple touchdowns in all but one game. The Bears have allowed nearly 24 points per game to quarterbacks in the last four weeks, so Goff should put up a nice stat line this weekend.

SI Sportsbook Player Prop: Goff over 1.5 touchdown passes (-200)

Trevor Lawrence at Texans (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Lawrence has been on fire lately, scoring the fifth-most fantasy points among quarterbacks in the last four weeks. I like that success to continue against the Texans, as the first-place Jaguars look to make a postseason push. Houston has been tough on quarterbacks on paper, but its defense has surrendered 18-plus points to three signal-callers since Week 9.

Daniel Jones vs. Colts (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Jones has produced 17-plus points in three of his last four games, including 20.8 points in last week’s loss to the Vikings. Next up is a date with the Colts, who have struggled against quarterbacks lately. In fact, Jalen Hurts and Kirk Cousins have both beaten them for more than 24 fantasy points in games since Week 11, and Derek Carr had 18 against them in Week 10.

More Starts
• Gardner Minshew vs. Saints (1 p.m. ET, Fox)
• Brock Purdy at Raiders (4:05 p.m. ET, Fox)

DFS Bargains
• Jared Goff vs. Bears ($5,600)
• Gardner Minshew vs. Saints ($5,500)
• Brock Purdy at Raiders ($5,500)

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Week 17 Sit ‘Em: Quarterbacks

Sit of the Week

Russell Wilson at Chiefs (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Wilson has a great matchup, as he’ll face a Chiefs defense he beat for almost 26 points in Week 14. So why is he a sit? Well, it’s championship week and I find it tough to trust a player who is maybe the biggest bust among quarterbacks. He looked awful last week, scoring 8.3 points, and Wilson has failed to score more than 14.2 points in all but three games.

SI Sportsbook Player Props: Wilson under 200.5 passing yards (-120)

Sit ‘Em

Geno Smith vs. Jets (4:05 p.m. ET, Fox): Geno has a big-time revenge game, as he’ll face his former team, the Jets, in Seattle. He’s produced two stinkers in a row, however, and Gang Green has been tough on opposing signal-callers. In fact, the position has averaged fewer than 15 fantasy points per game against New York. So, while the revenge game narrative is in place, the matchup is bad for Smith.

SI Sportsbook Player Prop: Smith under 1.5 touchdown passes (-125)

Aaron Rodgers vs. Vikings (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS): Rodgers has a nice matchup on paper, as the Vikings have allowed the fifth-most points to quarterbacks. Here’s the problem: Rodgers played a Dolphins team that’s even worse against QBs last week, and he scored just 13.3 points. The veteran has scored fewer than 16.9 points in all but one game, including seven with fewer than 14 this season. I'd sit Rodgers.

Deshaun Watson at Commanders (1 p.m. ET, Fox): Watson has failed to put up more than 16.3 fantasy points in his four starts this season, and he’s failed to score more than 12.6 points three times. I can’t trust him to help me win a fantasy title against the Commanders, who have allowed an average of 14.3 points per game to quarterbacks since Week 13. Watson can be released in one-QB formats.

Baker Mayfield at Chargers (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS): Mayfield had a solid game last week in what was a blowout win over the Broncos, but do you want to play him in championship week? I don't, not even in a multi-quarterback league. The Chargers have allowed just 15 fantasy points per game to the position too, so the matchup isn't to kind in the battle of Los Angeles. Keep Baker out of your kitchen.

More Sits
• Mac Jones vs. Dolphins (1 p.m. ET, CBS)
• Kenny Pickett at Ravens (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC)

DFS Fades
• Kirk Cousins at Packers ($6,400)
• Tom Brady vs. Panthers ($6,100) 
• Geno Smith vs. Jets ($5,900)

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Michael Fabiano is an award-winning fantasy football analyst on Sports Illustrated and a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association (FSWA) Hall of Fame. Click here to read all his articles here on SI Fantasy. You can follow Michael on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram for your late-breaking fantasy news and the best analysis in the business to help you win a fantasy championship!