In this weekly article series, our Writer, Zach Zander (@ZTwiceFF), will help you make those tough decisions through Start-Sit picks, DFS Fades & Sleepers, along with Weekly Rankings!
Starts
Tyler Lockett vs ARI
I'm using the same process I did last week with Devonta Smith against the Cardinals this week for Lockett. Seattle faces Arizona in Week 6 and Arizona is a bottom-10 pass defense but has been surprisingly stout against their opponent's Top Wideout while letting the ancillary pieces run free. This includes limiting Cooper Kupp to 4 catches for 44 yards, Davante Adams to 2 receptions for 12 yards, and AJ Brown to 3 catches for 32 yards last week. The 2nd target in each of these matchups mentioned above had a great game. Looking at the matchups in 2021, the Cardinals slowed Metcalf and Lockett had two of his top-five outings of the season. Start Lockett as a fringe WR1 this week.
Geno Smith vs ARI
Geno Smith has been on an absolute tear this year, ranking Top 5 in most passing categories. I don't see that slowing down this week at home against the Cardinals. They are a bottom-10 defense in terms of passing yards, and their offense is good enough to warrant a high-scoring affair. The Seahawks lost Rashaad Penny for the season, forcing them to lean on the passing game even more. I have Geno inside my top 10 QBs this week.
Alvin Kamara vs CIN
Kamara looks like he is back to being a top-12 RB in fantasy. Last week he ran for over 100 yards and had 6 catches in the passing game, marking his first elite outing of the season. If it weren't for Taysom Hill stealing goalline touches, his week may have been in contention for the overall RB1 status. With all of the New Orleans relevant pass catchers questionable for Week 6, expect Kamara to be heavily involved in the run and pass game against an average Bengals defense.
George Kittle @ ATL
This is more of a gut call but I think this is the week Kittle finally gets going for fantasy purposes. He has yet to score in 2022, being used heavily as a blocker and receiving no more than 6 targets in a game. The TE landscape is volatile outside of the top 2 guys, and Kittle is a threat in the red zone for a plus matchup. That is all you can ask for at this point from a non-elite TE.
Sits
Jerry Jeudy @ LAC
Jeudy has yet to score more than 8 PPR points in games he does not catch a TD. Sutton is the redzone target for the team, and the Broncos offense has been brutally inefficient in the redzone, leaving Jeudy with minimal opportunities to score. The Chargers are a solid defense and I expect this game to be more of a grinder than some may think. Until we see consistency in targets and/or TDs, Jeudy is outside the WR3 range and only startable as a desperation flex play.
Jacoby Brissett vs NE
Similar to Geno Smith, Brissett has been surprisingly solid this season, scoring 15+ points each week outside of Week 1. This week he faces the Patriots defense that just shut out the Lions. In a game like this, we can expect low scoring and plenty of touches for the RBs. I'd avoid Brissett this week unless desperate in the 2QB league.
Cam Akers vs CAR
Sadly Akers is officially off my board for fantasy purposes. He is splitting work and when he gets touches, he does not look good. It was an incredible effort to get back in 6 months from the Achilles injury, but he is not the same RB unfortunately. Even in a plus matchup this week against Carolina, Akers is not startable and in my opinion, is not for the rest of 2022 barring an incredible change.
All TE's...
There are a number of TE's I could list here but frankly, outside of the top guys we're all just looking for a TD. Target TE's on good offenses with a chance at a TD and avoid those on bad offenses.
Streaming Options
QB: Daniel Jones vs Bal
TE: Will Dissly @ ARI
K: Riley Patterson @IND
D/ST: CHI vs Was
Rankings
QB
RB
WR
TE
Thanks for reading! Follow @ZTwiceFF, on Twitter for more Fantasy Football content throughout the season, and hit him up with any of your Start/Sit or Waiver questions.
