Start ‘em or Sit ‘em: Chargers vs. Colts

Each week, we will look at all of the potential fantasy starters in the Chargers’ game to help you decide if any of them should be in your fantasy lineup. We will roll through them by position groups and tag them as sits, starts, or potential flex plays. We will assume a PPR format and a 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 W/R/T flex setup.

Quarterback

SIT: Philip Rivers & Jacoby Brissett

Neither signal caller in this game should have you feeling good about them being in your starting lineup for Week 1 of the fantasy season. Rivers projects as a higher-end QB2 and Brissett as a fringe QB2, so unless you’re playing in a 2 QB or Superflex league, I hope you have other options.

Running Back

START: Austin Ekeler

SIT: Justin Jackson, Nyheim Hines

FLEX: Marlon Mack

I’m just going to assume that nobody is rostering Jordan Wilkins or Troymaine Pope, but if you are, go ahead and leave them on your bench, too. Ekeler is a solid RB2 this week who thanks to his big play ability always has RB1 upside. The Colts’ Mack is entrenched as the starter for the Colts and his projected playing time makes him an attractive flex play even without the scoring upside he had pre-Andrew Luck retirement. Jackson and Hines are both have roles too small to be comfortable starts, but if you’re thin at running back, they aren’t terrible flex plays, though you could likely do better.

Wide Receiver

START: Keenan Allen, T.Y. Hilton, Mike Williams

SIT: Devin Funchess, Parris Campbell, Travis Benjamin

Given where you drafted Allen, you are probably expecting to start him every week, and the first game of the season is not going to be the exception. He is a quality, low-end WR1 this Sunday and an easy start. Both Hilton and Williams have lower floors than Allen, but the ceiling is definitely there. You can confidently roll both out with WR2 expectations. The rest of the receivers in this game are dart throws at best and are better left on your bench (or the waiver wire).

Tight End

START: Hunter Henry

SIT: Eric Ebron, Jack Doyle

Now, technically, there are no pure sits at the tight end position. It is incredibly shallow, so anybody that has a pulse and is active on game day is a potential start, especially if you didn’t land one of the top 7 or so in your draft and are streaming the position. If that’s the case, you could potentially be doing worse than Ebron or Doyle, and far be it from me to tell you to bench them when you probably don’t actually have a better option. That said, there are definitive starts at the position and Henry is one of them. He has more locked in work than all but a small handful of players at the position and in one of the league’s best offenses to boot. Start Henry.

Kicker

START: Michael Badgley

SIT: Adam Vinatieri

Kickers don’t really deserve that much analysis. Pick one from an offense with a high implied point total and hope for the best. Badgley fits the bill if he is healthy enough to play. Vinatieri does not.

Defense

START: Los Angeles Chargers

SIT: Indianapolis Colts

The Chargers are at home and get to face a backup quarterback in his first start of the season. Matchups don’t get much better than that. The Colts are on the road facing one of the NFL’s best offenses. Take a pass on them.