LANDOVER, MARYLAND – AUGUST 18: Jacory Croskey-Merritt #32 of the Washington Commanders rushes for a touchdown in the first quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals during the NFL Preseason 2025 game on August 18, 2025 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
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There have been two weeks of football played, which means we’re now here to help with your week 3 start or sit decisions. If you’re a new reader to this series, we’ll be avoiding the obvious names that everyone is already talking about.
The requirements for this list case are simple. At the wide receiver position, these players must be ranked outside the top 36 to be eligible for the start of the week spot. For the sit spot, they must be inside the top 36.
At running back, that drops down to 24. Lastly, for quarterbacks and tight ends, that goes down to 12. The rankings that will be used as a baseline are from the Fantasy Pros Week 3 expert consensus rankings.
Start Wide Receiver Michael Pittman Jr (WR40)
After seeing the Indianapolis Colts and Daniel Jones in week one, you could have made the argument that their success was just luck. However, after Jones had 316 passing yards in week two, it’s time to start figuring out who in this Colts offense is going to benefit for fantasy football.
Tyler Warren is the obvious answer, but outside of that, it’s Michael Pittman Jr or Josh Downs. Although Downs is talented, people are forgetting that Pittman is a great player.
Back in 2023, Pittman had 15.6 PPG (PPR) before he had a sharp decline to 10.4 PPG in 2024. It’s tough to be productive, though, when Anthony Richardson started in 11 games last year, throwing for 1,814 yards, eight touchdowns, and 12 interceptions.
When Pittman scored 20 points in week one, he showed that Jones can help him be productive. Despite only having eight points in week two, Pittman had five targets and the second most routes run per PFF.
While the Colts don’t have a great matchup since the over/under is at 43.5 (per FanDuel), the fact that they’re 3.5-point favorites is fine. It seems like the Colts should beat the Tennessee Titans, but not by such a blowout that they won’t pass the ball.
Sit Wide Receiver Hollywood Brown (WR32)
Even without Xavier Worthy, Hollywood Brown had just eight points last week. The issue with Brown is that he had just five targets last week after having 16 in week one.
Now that it looks like Worthy will be playing in week three, that’s going to make it even harder for Brown to get targets. In comparison to Pittman, not only is Brown a year older, but his last season over 10 PPG was in 2022, with 13.
If Worthy ends up missing some more time, Brown is a fine flex play. With that being said, it’s not as if week three is a great matchup for Brown either.
The Kansas City Chiefs take on the New York Giants, where the over/under is set at 44.5, which isn’t great. Not only that, but it seems like the Chiefs should easily win this game as they’re 5.5-point favorites.
Start Running Back Jacory Croskey-Merritt (RB28)
Jacory Croskey-Merritt has been a fan favorite all year, and in week three, he’s going to get his chance. Croskey-Merritt was a 7th-round pick due to the fact that he played in only one game during his final year of college, which was due to an eligibility issue.
In the limited sample size that we have from Croskey-Merritt, he’s been great. During week one, Croskey-Merritt had 10 carries, which he turned into 82 yards, a touchdown, and 14.2 points.
In week two, Croskey-Merritt would touch the ball just four times, leading to 17 yards. However, Austin Ekeler suffered an Achilles injury, and Jeremy McNichols is going to be his main competition. These three were the only active running backs last week.
McNichols is a 29-year-old running back who’s never had more than 300 yards in a season. The odds of Croskey-Merritt leading this backfield are strongly in his favor.
This week, the Washington Commanders take on the Las Vegas Raiders, where they’re 3.5-point favorites. It should be a close contest, but it slightly favors the running game for Washington.
Sit Running Back Tony Pollard (RB23)
Despite being the RB1 for the Titans, Tony Pollard hasn’t done much. It’s now been back-to-back weeks where Pollard has scored less than 10 points.
The concern here is that Pollard has not been getting involved at all in the receiving game. Through two games, Pollard has two targets, one catch, and 29 yards through the air.
In week three, as mentioned above, the Titans take on the Colts in what should be a low-scoring game, leading to fewer touchdown opportunities. While it’s not drastic, the Titans being underdogs does favor the passing game just a bit more.
At 28 years old, there are serious concerns about Pollard and his ability to be productive despite his volume. Pollard is a player that I’d leave on your bench until he proves himself.
Start Quarterback Daniel Jones (QB15)
After seeing Jones have two fantastic games in a row, it’s time to start him as a QB1. For my week three waiver wire article, Jones was the top quarterback pickup for the week.
If you want to get a better understanding of how good Jones has been and why you should bet on him as a player, go and read that (linked below). In terms of his matchup, it’s the same one that’s been brought up twice already.
Although the Colts are likely going to slightly favor the running game, Jones is dangerous himself on the ground as he’s run for three touchdowns. Even in a mediocre game script, Jones has done enough to where he should be your starting quarterback if you’re streaming the position.
GLENDALE, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 08: Kyler Murray #1 of the Arizona Cardinals celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the first quarter against the Seattle Seahawks at State Farm Stadium on December 08, 2024 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
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Sit Quarterback Kyler Murray (QB11)
Kyler Murray has a lot of talent, but he’s never reached that 20 PPG range that he did in 2021 (21.5 PPG) and 2020 (23.7 PPG). Most recently, in week two, Murray had just 220 passing yards, one touchdown, and 14 points.
The week before, Murray had two touchdowns but only 163 yards through the air, all while adding less than 40 yards on the ground in both games. At this point, Murray is a fine quarterback who’s going to be matchup dependent.
Next week, Murray takes on the San Francisco 49ers in a game where the Arizona Cardinals are 1.5-point underdogs. That doesn’t really tell you enough to say that the Cardinals are going to throw or run the ball a ton.
The over/under is at 43.5 points, which is low and means there should be fewer touchdowns going around. If you can start Jones over Murray this week, that’s a decision that I would be making.
Start Tight End Ja’Tavion Sanders (TE20)
There aren’t a lot of great options at tight end, but Ja’Tavion Sanders is a fine play from the waiver wire. The Carolina Panthers are now 0-2, and they’ve been trailing for most of their first two games.
Expect that trend to continue in week three as the Panthers are 5.5-point underdogs to the Atlanta Falcons. Sanders is going to benefit from the fact that Bryce Young has been throwing the ball a ridiculous amount in the first two weeks.
Young had 35 passing attempts in week one and 55 in week two. Sanders proved last week that he can be a player Young feels comfortable funneling those targets toward.
In week one, Sanders had just three targets, but let’s also keep in mind he’s entering his second year in the NFL. The following week, Sanders was tied for the second most targets on the team with nine, which he turned into 12.4 points.
One final thing to note is that since tight ends don’t typically catch as many passes as wide receivers, they’re more touchdown dependent. Sanders was able to score those 12.4 points without a touchdown. If Sanders finds himself in the end zone this week, he could have a monster day.
Sit Tight End T.J. Hockenson (TE10)
Many people drafted T.J. Hockenson early in their drafts, and so far, that hasn’t looked like a great call. To be frank, without the name value of Hockenson, there’s nothing that would show signs of hope.
Hockenson had 4.5 points in week one and 2.2 in week two with seven total targets. Now the Minnesota Vikings are going to backup quarterback Carson Wentz in week three after a J.J. McCarthy injury.
Despite all of this, the Cincinnati Bengals are also missing Joe Burrow, which has put the Vikings at three-point favorites. Not only are the Vikings likely going to favor the run, but an over/under of 42.5 is the lowest total that we’ve talked about yet.
Although Hockenson managers are going to be torn on whether to start or sit him, he’s another player who shouldn’t be in your starting lineup until he proves it.