Fantasy Football 2026: Week 3 Starts and Sits

Let’s try this again. Kyler Murray was the first person I wrote about in my starts section back in Week 1. His debut ended in 10 plays after taking a nasty hit and getting a concussion. He is now cleared to play, and I am expecting a major rebound against a struggling Buccaneers defense.

In addition, both of the Vikings starting RBs could be out in this one, which tells me that Murray might be a big part of the run game. This is what we want from our fantasy QBs, so that is why K1 should be in your lineups.

Start Jared Goff vs. Jets

Jared Goff is quietly looking like one of the better picks you could have made in fantasy. I say that because he obviously leads one of the best offenses in the NFL but also because the Lions might have the worst defense in professional football. It didn’t feel like it because they were losing the whole game, but Goff had a 29 fantasy point performance against the Bills throwing his way back into that game.

A lot of the production came in garbage time. I don’t discriminate! It all scores the same in fantasy. I expect this game to be more competitive and even with sneaky shootout potential. Goff is poised to throw for a bunch of yards against an untested Jets defense.

Other Starts: Patrick Mahomes at Dolphins, Justin Herbert at Bills, Tyler Shough vs. Raiders and Brock Purdy vs. Cardinals

Sit Baker Mayfield vs. Vikings

We are staying in the battle of Oklahoma QBs but Baker Mayfield is on the wrong side of this one. Mayfield’s matchup is a lot tougher going up against arguably the trickiest defense in the NFL. Not to mention, the Bucs passing offense looks broken right now. They just seem like they can’t get anything going down the field, and I don’t expect that to change against a Brian Flores unit.

Sit Matthew Stafford at Broncos

The Broncos defense showed this week that they are still a very good group holding Trevor Lawrence to 6.2 fantasy points. Matt Stafford bounced back in a big way against the Giants but playing on the road against this excellent Denver secondary is going to be a much tougher test. Not to mention, it sounds like the Rams will be without Puka Nacua again. I think this is going to be a low scoring defensive showdown.

Other Sits: Trevor Lawrence vs. Patriots, C.J. Stroud at Colts and Bo Nix vs. Rams

Start David Montgomery at Colts

David Montgomery and the Texans run game had an alarmingly bad performance against the Bengals. He ran the ball 6 times for 10 yards. I mean brutal stuff. That wasn’t even the worst of it. Woody Marks was much more involved in Week 2. He out-touched Montgomery 13 to 8 and even lost some of the red-zone work. This split needs to be closely monitored in the next couple weeks but this should be a spot for Montgomery to rebound.

The Colts have allowed the 2nd most yards per game and are allowing the most rushing yards before contact per rush in the NFL. That should aid a struggling Texans offensive line. I am also expecting the Texans to really try to establish the run with their top receiver Nico Collins likely missing another game.

Start Cam Skattebo vs. Titans

It has been a very tough week for the Giants losing Jaxson Dart for the season. Their offense definitely takes a hit in fantasy and Cam Skattebo will probably feel his absence the most. Rushing QBs open a lot up for the running game and the Giants will no longer have that element of their offense.

That said, I still think this is a good spot for Skattebo to bounce back. The Titans were pretty good against the run in Week 2, yet that had more to do with a struggling Eagles offensive line in my opinion. They were much worse against the Jets in Week 1, and that is a closer representation of what the Giants will present.

Jameis Winston is a fine backup QB, but we all know he is prone to throwing the ball to the other team. I don’t think Brian Daboll is going to want to live in the Yolo Jameis world, which is why I expect a heavy dose of Skattebo in what should be a neutral scripted game.

Other Starts: Chuba Hubbard at Browns, Quinshon Judkins vs. Panthers and Tony Pollard at Giants

Sit Marshawn Lloyd vs. Falcons

What? This is a great matchup for Marshawn Lloyd. Why in the world would you sit him? Well, maybe because he was pretty much benched last week. Lloyd fumbled against the Jets and didn’t see another touch for the rest of the game. Kaleb Johnson also got 8 carries in this game, and I would expect his role to continue to increase.

This is likely now a three-way split between Chris Brooks, Lloyd, and Johnson, which we know is troublesome for fantasy. So don’t take the bait and keep Lloyd out of your lineups. It honestly might be all but over for any of the intrigue we once had.

Sit: Jacory Croskey-Merritt vs. Seahawks

This one is pretty simple. If they aren’t an absolute stud player, the Seahawks are a no-go. Then you also add in the fact that Jayden Daniels is out. I expect more of Rachaad White in this game, who is more of the pass-protecting/two-minute back.

Sit: Rhamondre Stevenson at Jaguars, Jadarian Price at Commanders and Saints RBs vs. Raiders

Start Rashee Rice at Dolphins

Rashee Rice has been extremely underwhelming through 2 games of the 2026 season. He currently has 10.8% target share on 6 catches for 102 yards. The question is why has he taken such a step back? Some of it seems to be his health because he is still recovering from a cleanup surgery he got in the offseason.

The main culprit is that it seems like he no longer has the underneath scheme role he had in the two seasons prior. So much of Rice’s production came from the Chiefs just force feeding him the ball however they could. They have now shifted towards more of a run heavy play action offense that wants to take shots down the field. Kenneth Walker has also seen a lot of underneath opportunities that would go to Rice.

I would be pretty concerned with what we have seen so far based on where he was drafted. However, this should be a get right spot against a Miami defense that has been getting shredded by everyone they have gone up against.

Start Matthew Golden vs. Falcons

The Packers lost Jayden Reed to what looked like a pretty serious neck injury. He is going to miss some time to say the least. While unfortunate for the Packers, this opens up more targets for Golden. The Packers were one of the most frustrating teams in terms of rotating receivers and dividing targets.

Now, the offense is basically concentrated to Christian Watson, Tucker Kraft and Golden. Oh, and they cannot run the ball. This is an excellent matchup against a Falcons defense that just lost AJ Terrell to IR. I am expecting Golden to get his fair share of opportunities.

Other Starts: Josh Downs vs. Texans, Adonai Mitchell at Lions, Mike Evans vs. Vikings, Rashod Bateman vs. Cowboys (if no Zay Flowers) and Devaughn Vele vs. Raiders

Sit: Bears WRs vs. Eagles

The three major Bears pass catchers who are Colston Loveland, Luther Burden and Rome Odunze have been extremely frustrating fantasy players through 2 weeks. I am personally not that panicked about any of them. The Bears have played 2 extremely weird games. This past one was against one of the best defenses in football in terrible weather conditions.

So, I think it would be a mistake to make any sweeping conclusions. The problem is the Bears could be down to 38 year old Case Keenum against a tough Eagles defense. I am not saying it’s impossible that any of the Bears WRs have a good game. Just good luck guessing which one it is.

Sit: DK Metcalf vs. Bengals

DK Metcalf is another repeat offender on the sit list. This again is another tough matchup against one of the better corners in the NFL in DJ Turner. The Steelers offense just looks lifeless. The Aaron Rodgers and Mike McCarthy reunion does anything but inspire confidence. Metcalf might be their WR1 by default, therefore will get WR1 treatment from the Bengals. I am picking Turner to win this fight.

Other Sits: Terry McLaurin vs. Seahawks, Brian Thomas Jr. vs. Patriots and Quentin Johnston at Bills

Start Terrence Ferguson at Broncos

I mentioned it in my Week 3 waiver wire article , but Terrence Ferguson is a must start as long as Puka Nacua is out. We saw against the Giants that he pretty much becomes the Rams WR2. That is too valuable a role to keep out of your tight end spot or even your flex.

Other Starts: Kyle Pitts at Packers, Pat Freiermuth vs. Bengals and Dalton Schultz at Colts

Sit: TJ Hockenson at Buccaneers

It might be tempting to give TJ Hockenson the nod given the Buccaneers have been getting torn apart by tight ends. But he is firmly the No. 2 target in this offense and could even be put further down the list with Jauan Jennings’s return. He seems like another bait guy to me.

Other Sits: Brenton Strange vs. Patriots, Kenyon Sadiq at Lions and Jake Ferguson vs. Ravens