Wide Receiver Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Picks For Fantasy Football Week 3

Michael Fabiano | Sep 19, 2024

Start Em, Sit Em Wide Receivers: Week 3 /

It’s Week 3, folks! Time to set those fantasy lineups! Start ‘Em, Sit 'Em is the ultimate look at the best and worst matchups in a given week for fantasy football leagues. I won’t cover elite players like CeeDee Lamb or Justin Jefferson, because you already know to start them! Instead, I'll examine other wide receivers who could exceed or fail to meet expectations based on their weekly opponent … like Chris Godwin in Week 2!

For your final lineup decisions, check out my fantasy player rankings. I update them daily! Also, make sure you subscribe to Fantasy Dirt with Lindsay Rhodes and I, as we break down all things fantasy football five days a week!

Don't forget to also check out my start 'em, sit 'em picks at every other position before you set your lineup too: QB | RB | TE | K & D/ST

Fabs’ Top 10 Wide Receivers for Week 3

1. CeeDee Lamb vs. Ravens
2. Amon-Ra St. Brown at Cardinals
3. Justin Jefferson vs. Texans
4. Rashee Rice at Falcons
5. Ja'Marr Chase vs. Commanders (Mon.)
6. Devonta Smith at Saints
7. Nico Collins at Vikings
8. Davante Adams vs. Panthers
9. Mike Evans vs. Broncos
10. Chris Godwin vs. Broncos

Complete Week 3 wide receiver rankings!

Week 3 Start ‘Em: Wide Receivers

Start of the Week

Devonta Smith at Saints (1 p.m. ET, Fox): Smith put up a nice stat line on Monday night, scoring 20.6 fantasy points in a loss to the Falcons. He also saw 10 targets, and his usage will remain high with A.J. Brown out of action. Smith will remain a must-start against the Saints in a game with a 50-point total, and their defense gave it up to both CeeDee Lamb and even Jalen Tolbert last week. Look for Smith to fly high in this contest.

Start ‘Em

Marvin Harrison Jr. vs. Lions (4:25 p.m. ET, Fox): Harrison Jr, listed as a start ‘em last week, went off for two touchdowns and 29 fantasy points in a win over the Rams. He has another great matchup this week, playing the Lions in a game that has an over/under of 51.5 points. The Lions have also allowed the second-most fantasy points to home wide receivers and the sixth-most points to perimeter receivers since last season.

Chris Olave vs. Eagles (1 p.m. ET, Fox): Olave has had a slow start to the season, as he’s scored just 15.9 combined points in his first two games. What’s more, teammate Rashid Shaheed has been a far better fantasy option. I’m going to keep the faith in Olave though, as a plus matchup against the Eagles awaits. No team has allowed more fantasy points to wideout since last season, and Vegas has the over/under at a lofty 48.5 points.

Brandon Aiyuk at Rams (4:25 p.m. ET, Fox): Aiyuk has been invisible in the stat sheets, scoring just 13.1 combined points in his first two games. The slow start isn’t unexpected though, as he held out of the preseason and training camp. I’d keep him in lineups against the NFC West rival Rams. Their defense has given up big totals to Jameson Williams and Harrison Jr. so far, and Aiyuk should see more targets with Deebo Samuel Sr. out.

Jameson Williams at Cardinals (4:25 p.m. ET, Fox): Williams has looked great in his first two games, scoring a combined 38.8 fantasy points. He should remain in starting lineups against the Cardinals in a game that has all the looks of an absolute barnburner. Arizona has surrendered 11 touchdowns and the 10th-most fantasy points to opposing perimeter receivers since the start of last season, so look for Williams to produce once again.

WRs With Good Matchups

• DJ Moore at Colts (1 p.m. ET, CBS)
• George Pickens vs. Chargers (1 p.m. ET, CBS)
• Amari Cooper vs. Giants (1 p.m. ET, Fox)

Week 3 Sit ‘Em: Wide Receivers

Sep 12, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin (3) brings down Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (17) just short of the goal line during the first half at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images / Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images

Sit of the Week

Jaylen Waddle at Seahawks (4:05 p.m. ET, CBS): This has nothing to do with Waddle and everything to do with the absence of Tua Tagovailoa (concussion). In his absence, Miami will start Skylar Thompson. In three games where he’s thrown at least 21 passes, Waddle has a combined 11 catches for 119 yards and no touchdowns. Thompson, who has a bad career completion percentage of 57.1, hurts both Waddle and Tyreek Hill in Seattle.

Sit ‘Em

Drake London vs. Chiefs (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC): London will be tough to sit coming off a big stat line on Monday night, but this week’s matchup against the Chiefs is difficult. Their defense just held Ja’Marr Chase in check, and perimeter receivers have scored just nine touchdowns and averaged the third-fewest points against them. London, who runs close to 70% of his routes out wide, could be in for a less-than-stellar performance.

Christian Kirk at Bills (Mon. 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN): What the heck has happened to Kirk? He’s scored a combined 4.9 points in his first two games, seeing just seven targets. Heck, he had 0.90 points last week without Evan Engram in the lineup! This week he gets a bad matchup in Buffalo against a Bills defense that just held Hill and Waddle to a combined 15.1 points last week. Unless you’re desperate, I’m sitting Kirk this weekend.

Diontae Johnson at Raiders (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Johnson was listed as a sit ‘em in this space last week, and he scored a miniscule 4.5 points. He also now scored 8.4 combined points in his first two games with the Panthers, whose offense is easily the worst in the NFL. The good news for Johnson is that Bryce Young has been benched in favor of Andy Dalton, but I still can’ trust Johnson as much more than a risk-reward flex at best.

Courtland Sutton at Buccaneers (1 p.m. ET, Fox): Sutton has been brutal in the stat sheets, scoring a combined 11.4 points in his first two games. That has everything to do with Bo Nix, who is 31st among quarterbacks in EPA and has a completion percentage of 59.7. He’s also near the bottom of the league in fantasy points per drop back, and a matchup against the Buccaneers isn’t favorable. As a result, Sutton is a sit ‘em.

WRs With Bad Matchups

• Terry McLaurin at Bengals (Mon. 8:15 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN+)
• Christian Watson at Titans (1 p.m. ET, Fox)
• DeAndre Hopkins vs. Packers (1 p.m. ET, Fox)

And remember, I have you covered with start 'em, sit 'em picks for Week 3 at every other position too:

• Quarterback
• Running back
• Tight end
• Kicker and defense