• The IDP Guys’ NFL Week 15 Start/Sit List: Offense

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    Find success this weekend with the NFL Week 15 Start/Sit offense list!


    A few notable developments around the NFL are worth discussing for the 15th week of the season. First of all, all of the bye weeks are completed so there will be a full slate of matchups from now until the end of the regular season.

    The second item to discuss is concerning the alarming spread of Covid-19 through the league. Week 15 is shaping up to be a week where you are feeling grateful if you are able to fill a starting lineup. It would serve you best to monitor the injury and Covid related updates throughout the week to optimize your free agency moves as well as your lineup optimization.

    Piggy-backing off of that last point, week 15 includes two games that will be played on Saturday! This fact should be on the radar so you can best plan ahead and make wise lineup decisions, especially if your team is riddled with players holding questionable tags.

    Finally, and most importantly, fantasy football playoffs are officially underway. If you have made it to the playoffs in your league, congratulations! If you have secured a round 1 bye week, that is even better (especially with the current state of the season)! The only option you have now is to win, and I have laid out how to best navigate the week 15 slate.

    Below is the explanation of my start/sit decision-making system. Tough calls will likely need to be made with the questionable availability of players throughout the league, but the system below will help give you the best chance to succeed.

    Let’s review the system and dig into the matchups.

    The “Trust, If You Must, and Bust” System:

    Trust” = Strong start, a player who should be started in all formats!

    If You Must” = Weak start, a player who is good enough to be a starter, but faces a tough matchup or holds an unclear opportunity in a good offense. Some caution should be used while the risk is recognized, as this is often league format dependent.

    If you play in a shallow league, I would lean towards benching this player if you have a decent replacement option. In a deep league, I would lean towards starting, since the options may be more scarce. Either way, expectations should be managed.

    Bust” = Keep on your bench, at least for now. These players should be avoided since stronger options at the relative position should be considered first. These are players who fit into one of the following categories:

    1. A player in a tough matchup or currently holds ambiguous weekly opportunities in the offense.
    2. A strong bench stash for season-long purposes but currently in a “wait and see” period. Wait and see if their role expands for starter caliber consideration. For example, this type of player may be a strong backup RB behind a stud in an elite offense or could be in line for a big workload if the starter misses time.
    3. Currently lacking a clear offensive opportunity in either a projected good or bad offense
    4. Is too volatile on a week-to-week basis. There is no need to play boom or bust type players if you can help it.

    Weekly Start/Sit Decision Reminders

    Be sure to always be mindful of weekly injury reports and gameday inactive announcements as this could pivot a weak starter into a strong starter!

    Be sure to always leave the FLEX spot(s) free of Thursday night players!


    Thursday Night Football

    Kansas City Chiefs at Los Angeles Chargers
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    Chiefs

    TrustPatrick Mahomes QB, Tyreek Hill WR, Travis Kelce TE, Clyde Edwards-Helaire RB

    If You MustDarrel Williams RB, Mecole Hardman WR

    Chargers

    TrustJustin Herbert QB, Austin Ekeler RB, Keenan Allen WR (if active), Mike Williams WR (if active)

    If You MustJared Cook TE, Jalen Guyton WR (if Allen or Williams are inactive)

    BustJosh Palmer WR

     

    Saturday Slate

    Las Vegas Raiders at Cleveland Browns
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    Raiders

    TrustDarren Waller TE (if active), Josh Jacobs RB, Hunter Renfrow WR

    If You Must – Derek Carr QB

    Bust Zay Jones WR, Bryan Edwards WR

    Browns

    TrustNick Chubb RB, Donovan Peoples-Jones WR

    If You MustBaker Mayfield QB, D’Ernest Johnson RB

     

    New England Patriots at Indianapolis Colts
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    Patriots

    TrustHunter Henry TE, Damien Harris RB (if active)

    If You MustRhamondre Stevenson RB (TRUST if Harris inactive), Jakobi Meyers WR, Mac Jones QB

    BustJonnu Smith TE, Nelson Agholor WR, Kendrick Bourne WR

    Colts

    TrustJonathan Taylor RB, Michael Pittman WR, Carson Wentz QB

    If You MustJack Doyle TE, Nyheim Hines RB, T.Y. Hilton WR

     


    Sunday Early Afternoon Slate

    Washington Football Team at Philadelphia Eagles
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    Football Team

    TrustAntonio Gibson RB, Terry McLaurin WR

    If You MustTaylor Heinicke QB, Ricky Seals-Jones TE

    Eagles

    TrustJalen Hurts QB (if active), DeVonta Smith WR, Dallas Goedert TE, Miles Sanders RB (if active)

    If You Must – Boston Scott RB (TRUST if Sanders inactive )

    BustJalen Reagor WR, Kenneth Gainwell RB (If You Must if Sanders inactive)

     

    Carolina Panthers at Buffalo Bills
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    Panthers

    Trust –  D.J. Moore WR (if active)

    If You MustRobby Anderson WR, Chuba Hubbard RB, Cam Newton QB

    Bills

    TrustJosh Allen QB (if active), Stefon Diggs WR, Dawson Knox TE

    If You MustDevin Singletary RB, Cole Beasley WR, Gabriel Davis WR

    Bust Matt Breida RB, Zack Moss RB

     

    Arizona Cardinals at Detroit Lions
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    Cardinals

    TrustKyler Murray QB, DeAndre Hopkins WR, James Conner RB (if active), Zach Ertz TE

    If You MustChristian Kirk WR, Rondale Moore WR, A.J. Green WR, Chase Edmonds RB (if active)

    Lions

    TrustD’Andre Swift RB (if active), T.J. Hockenson TE (if active)

    If You MustAmon-Ra St. Brown WR, Jared Goff QB, Josh Reynolds WR

    New York Jets at Miami Dolphins
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    Jets

    Trust – Michael Carter RB (if active)

    If You MustJamison Crowder WR,  Ty Johnson RB (if Carter inactive)

    BustZach Wilson QB

    Dolphins

    TrustMike Gesicki TE,  Tua Tagovailoa QB, Jaylen Waddle WR, DeVante Parker WR

    If You MustDuke Johnson RB

     

    Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants
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    Cowboys

    TrustDak Prescott QB, Amari Cooper WR, CeeDee Lamb WR, Dalton Schultz TE

    If You MustEzekiel Elliott RB, Tony Pollard RB (if active), Michael Gallup WR

    Giants

    Trust – Saquon Barkley RB

    If You Must – Sterling Shepard WR (if active), Evan Engram TE

    Bust-  Daniel Jones QB (if active) Kenny Golladay WR, Darius Slayton WR

     

    Tennessee Titans at Pittsburgh Steelers
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    Titans

    Trust –   Ryan Tannehill QB

    If You Must –  Julio Jones WR, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine WR, Dontrell Hilliard RB, D’Onta Foreman RB

    BustJeremy McNichols RB

    Steelers

    TrustNajee Harris RB, Diontae Johnson WR, Chase Claypool WR, Pat Freiermuth TE

    If You MustBen Roethlisberger QB

     

    Houston Texans at Jacksonville Jaguars
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    Texans

    TrustBrandin Cooks WR

    If You MustRex Burkhead RB (if active), Royce Freeman RB (if Burkhead INactive)

    BustDavis Mills QB, Brevin Jordan TE, Nico Collins WR

    Jaguars

    If You MustJames Robinson RB, Marvin Jones WR, Laviska Shenault WR, Trevor Lawrence QB


    Sunday Mid Afternoon Slate
    Cincinnati Bengals at Denver Broncos
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    Bengals

    TrustJoe Burrow QB,  Ja’Marr Chase WR, Tee Higgins WR, Joe Mixon RB

    If You MustTyler Boyd WR, C.J. Uzomah TE

    Broncos

    Trust –  Javonte Williams RB, Jerry Jeudy WR, Noah Fant TE

    If You MustMelvin Gordon RB (if active), Courtland Sutton WR, Tim Patrick WR, Teddy Bridgewater QB

    Atlanta Falcons at San Francisco 49ers
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    Falcons

    TrustKyle Pitts TE, Cordarrelle Patterson RB

    If You MustMatt Ryan QB, Russell Gage WR

    Bust – Mike Davis RB

    49ers

    TrustGeorge Kittle TE, Deebo Samuel WR, Elijah Mitchell RB (if active), Jeff Wilson RB (if Mitchell inactive)

    If You MustJimmy Garoppolo QB, Brandon Aiyuk WR

     

    Seattle Seahawks at Los Angeles Rams
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    Seahawks

    TrustRussell Wilson QB, D.K. Metcalf WR, Tyler Lockett WR

    If You MustGerald Everett TE, Rashaad Penny RB

    Rams

    Trust –  Matthew Stafford QB, Cooper Kupp WR, Sony Michel RB, Van Jefferson WR

     

    Green Bay Packers at Baltimore Ravens
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    Packers

    TrustAaron Rodgers QB, Davante Adams WR, Aaron Jones RB, AJ Dillon RB

    If You Must –  Allen Lazard WR, Marquez Valdes-Scantling WR

    Ravens

    TrustLamar Jackson QB (if active), Mark Andrews TE, Marquise Brown WR, Devonta Freeman RB

    If You MustRashod Bateman WR

    Bust – Latavius Murray RB


    Sunday Night Football

    New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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    Saints

    TrustAlvin Kamara RB, Taysom Hill QB

    If You Must –  Marquez Callaway WR, TreQuan Smith WR

    Buccaneers

    Trust – Tom Brady QB, Mike Evans WR, Chris Godwin WR, Leonard Fournette RB, Rob Gronkowski TE

    Bust Ronald Jones RB


    Monday Night Football

    Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears
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    Vikings

    TrustKirk Cousins QB, Dalvin Cook RB (if active), Justin Jefferson WR, Adam Thielen WR (if active)

    If You Must –  Tyler Conklin TE, K. J. Osborn WR (if Thielen is inactive)

    Bears

    Trust – David Montgomery RB, Darnell Mooney WR

    If You Must – Justin Fields QB, Cole Kmet TE, Allen Robinson WR 

    Bust – Khalil Herbert RB

     

    Good luck with your Week 15 start/sit offense selections and enjoy the games!


    Thank you for reading my NFL Week 15 Start/Sit list for offensive players! You can find more of my work on my IDP Guys Author Page. Feel free to reach out anytime on Twitter at @FantasyLadder for any fantasy football-related advice, questions, or discussion so you can climb the ladder of fantasy football success with me
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