We have made it to (what should be) the final week of the fantasy football season! If you are lucky to make it this far, we got you covered! Our must starts are based off a formula that compiles players recent statistics as well as their current matchup.
Joe Mixon RB vs Miami: Mixon has been breaking out of his shell lately and even though he was scared to meet Tom Brady last week, he wasn’t scared of running all over the Patriots last week for 126 yards. The Bengals have been feeding Mixon heavily lately with 25 carries last week and 30 the week before. He is going up against the same Miami defense who is becoming a slum buster for opposing running backs, and we expect him to have a monster day. Mixon is our start of the week and he is the closest thing to a guarantee play we can offer.
Marlon Mack RB vs Carolina: There are a lot of Marlon Mack owners who aren’t in the championship this week because of his weak performance against the Saints on Monday Night Football. And to them I say, we feel your pain. That being said, Mack is a virtual lock to have a big week this week. The Colts got off to a terrible start against New Orleans and they simply got away from the running game. This week he gets a prime matchup against one of the worst defenses in the league and we are predicting two touchdowns for the young back.
Saquon Barkley RB vs Washington D.C.: We told you Barkley was going to break out last week and he did in a major way. Barkley gets another nice matchup where he can build off of his best game of the year. It is sad that most Barkley owners probably do not have the luxury to make this choice, but if there are some of you left make sure you start him as a high end RB2. Better late than never!
Alvin Kamara RB vs Tennessee: We all know the saga of AK47. He has been a massive disappointment this year, and I personally traded a high 2020 draft pick for him just to be eliminated last weekend. But for those of you still left that have Kamara, I urge you to start him this week. New Orleans is a high volume passing team and that leaves Kamara at a disadvantage, but he is building his way up to that monster game. And against Tennessee we feel that he will find the end zone once and tally up over 100 all purpose yards this week. Give AK one more chance!
Patrick Laird RB vs Cincinnati: Laird had a golden opportunity last week against the NYG but could not capitalize. This week he gets an joke of a Bengal rush defense who has no desire to do their job. Laird is a sneaky flex play with huge upside who could tip the balance in your favor this week. Do not expect massive numbers, but Laird is heavily involved in the offense and will get plenty of opportunity to shine.
Tyler Boyd WR vs Miami: Boyd had a tough week last week, but we expected that against Gilmore and the New England secondary. This week he gets a much better matchup going up against Miami and their Junior Varsity secondary. Boyd is in line for a huge game and we love him as a strong WR1.
Courtland Sutton WR vs Detroit: Sutton has been the definition of a roller coaster pay all year. In the snow against Kansas City he still managed to put up a respectable total in PPR, and was still targeted heavily by the Broncos coaching staff. This week, he gets a dream matchup vs the Detroit secondary which gave up a ridiculous amount of offense to Jameis Winston and company. Sutton is basically guaranteed to have a 20+ point game in PPR.
Terry McLaurin WR vs NYG: Scary Terry is a weekly star of our Must Start feature. McLaurin gets another great matchup against the Giants secondary that is filled with inexperienced and frankly talentless players. McLaurin should be able to have a huge game as basically the only offensive weapon D.C. has.
Curtis Samuel WR Indianapolis: D.J. Moore is a slam dunk play, but Samuel got more involved in the run game last week, and we think that will set him up to be a flex play with massive upside this week. The Panthers are going with rookie QB Will Grier, which is risky, but realistically Grier will get him and Moore the ball easily against this Colt defense.
Jared Cook TE vs Tennessee: Cook is a must start at TE this week. He may be the secret sauce you need to get to the chip. He has proven to be the man in this offense who is sort of an x factor. When they can’t go to Thomas for the big play, they go to Cook. He is a slam dunk play here.
Noah Fant TE vs Detroit: Fant gets a huge matchup this week this week and will look to capitalize in a game where there hopefully isn’t a lot of snow. Fant is targeted heavily by Lock and the Broncos defense, and we think he will find the end zone this week.