Every week offers more insight as to how real-life football will play out and how fantasy players can start the right players each week. In Week 3, a lot of people had Diontae Johnson, Tre Tucker, and Jauan Jennings on their benches and started Davante Adams, Nico Collins, or Tyreek Hill.

It’s impossible to predict how each week will go, and Adams, Collins, and HIll are no-brainer weekly starters for now. But when it comes to Flex positions, Jauan Jennings and Tre Tucker made a case for themselves, as did Rome Odunze, against weak secondaries. 

This week I’ve asked Fantasy Life experts their opinions on interesting Week 3 storylines and the nuances of fantasy lineups.

QUESTION #1: Andy Dalton? Bo Nix??

  • With Andy Dalton now starting at QB for the Panthers and Bo Nix delivering a solid performance for the Broncos in Week 3, which players from Carolina and Denver would you feel confident starting?
     
  • Bonus Panthers Question: Where is the ideal trade destination for Bryce Young?

Peter Overzet: This is a pretty easy answer with the Panthers–just Diontae Johnson and Chuba Hubbard (Xavier Legette is a nice bench stash with Adam Thielen out, though). Things are bleak with the Broncos with heavy rotations at both RB and WR. There's not a single player I'm "confident" in starting.

Young isn't getting traded, but Miami should be willing to kick the tires on him.

Paul Charchian: Diontae Johnson and Chuba Hubbard become weekly starters. We'll keep watching Xavier Legette and Jonathan Mingo, who had similar usage rates last week. Adam Thielen was running from the slot primarily, and Mingo took over those routes in Week 3, suggesting he could see a spike in playing time with Thielen out.

I don't expect the Panthers to trade Bryce Young for pennies on the dollar, but owner David Tepper is prone to quick reactions and could surprise us. Miami is the only team with an immediate need for a starter, but the better landing spot is somewhere like New Orleans, with an aging veteran quarterback, where they'd be able to groom Young for a few seasons.

Cooterdoodle: "Confident" is a strong word. I'm not confident in either of these offenses. But if I take a peek at my lineups (I'll never admit how many), I'm confident that I have to start Diontae Johnson, Chuba Hubbard, and Bo Nix (Superflex) next week.

Jess Bryant: I am absolutely starting Diontae Johnson this week, given his immense talent and with Andy Dalton behind center. Johnson can offer great value, as his preseason consensus ADP was 85. In a league where I have both Deebo Samuel and Puka Nacua sitting, I am forced to start Courtland Sutton. I'm not confident in that choice, but if Nix played like he did in Week 3, I think he's a decent option, though he lacks a real ceiling. I also picked up Chuba Hubbard off waivers on a team where I have Jonathan Brooks on IR right now. I'm excited to see how the RB situation plays out when Brooks is back.

As for Young, I think he gets traded before the end of the season for a fourth-round pick. Miami is ideal for him, though Huntley will be better than Skylar Thompson. Otherwise, I agree that learning from a veteran like Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford, Derek Carr, or Geno Smith would serve him well. 

QUESTION #2: Week 3 Surprises

Peter Overzet: Bucky Irving is a must-hold right now. He's seen his rushing work expand while Rachaad White's has decreased each week. He's giving you nice standalone value (two Top 30 RB finishes) on a very light workload, which means there is room for much, much more.

Paul Charchian: I'm actively trying to trade for Bucky Irving in my leagues, hoping his managers don't realize what's happening in Tampa. Rachaad White has been awful, ranking bottom-five among starters in rushing yards over expectation, yards per carry, and broken tackles. Meanwhile, Bucky Irving runs at triple White's yards per carry, 6.2.

Jess Bryant: I drafted Bucky Irving in most leagues in late rounds, and I am so happy that I did. I'm high on Rome Odunze after his Week 3 performance, as long as Caleb Williams' game improves. Regardless, he's a great play against weaker defenses, and the Rams have given up the most yards per game this year. 

QUESTION #3: Play, Fade, Trade: Bengals and Jaguars Edition

  • Who are you fading, playing, or trading from these rosters?

Peter Overzet: The Bengals offense is fine; it's their defense that sucks. You can fire up everyone on their offense comfortably, especially against the Panthers this week. The Jags, on the other hand, are a total mess. Etienne is a fine RB2, but Brian Thomas and Christian Kirk are just FLEX darts. The Jaguars really need a new coaching staff.

Cooterdoodle: Speaking as an unbiased, completely objective third party with absolutely no interest in the matter, let's go easy on 0-3 teams, fantasy or otherwise. We're, I mean, they're trying! That said, I currently have zero shares of any Jags and intend to keep it that way.

Paul Charchian: It's not going to shake your league's foundation when you acquire Tank Bigsby, either via the waiver wire or a cheap trade But you're getting a tantalizing back averaging 5.9 yards per carry and a whopping 43% broken tackle rate, granted on a small sample size of 14 carries.  Not only is he a good handcuff for Travis Etienne, but it's easy to envision his role growing to allow for spot starts in the future.

Jess Bryant: For the Bengals, Ja'Marr Chase, Zack Moss, and even Chase Brown are still viable fantasy options. Moss is currently averaging 12.17 Half-PPR points per game, and Chase is averaging 13.83. As for the Jaguars, I trust the running backs—Etienne for now and Bigsby with an injury opportunity or as the season progresses when the Jaguars want to see what they have in him. Burrow can still start in fantasy, but many teams probably have a more viable option on their bench by now, like Sam Darnold or Jayden Daniels. 

QUESTION #4: Jayden Daniels has QB1 Overall Upside

  • Which QBs, if any, are you starting over him in Week 4?

Peter Overzet: It's a pretty short list—Josh Allen, Kyler Murray, Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts. I think you start him over the Mahomes and Strouds of the world. Life comes at you fast. 

Paul Charchian: He's my QB5 this week, and all four guys in front of him are also run-pass hybrids—Kyler Murray, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, and Jalen Hurts. My only area of caution is that sometimes rookie passers take a step back right now when they've accumulated enough tape for defenses to figure out tendencies.

Cooterdoodle: I have to imagine that if you drafted Jayden Daniels, you also didn't draft the elite quarterbacks we've come to know in fantasy right now (Allen, Murray, Jackson). So, I genuinely hope you don't have tough decisions this week on the QB front. But for the sake of answering honestly, I'm starting Daniels over Stroud (though I love him), Mahomes (though he's the goat), and Sam Darnold (though he deserves so much better than anyone's bench).

Jess Bryant: I have Jayden Daniels on a team with C.J. Stroud. For the first three weeks, I started Stroud, but this week, I'm going with Cootderdoodle and starting Daniels. I'll look to matchups and player progressions in the future, but I am betting Daniels stays in that team's QB spot moving forward. I also have Daniels on a team with Anthony Richardson, and Daniels will undoubtedly be starting, though I reserve hope for Richardson. Otherwise, I'd prefer only Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, or Kyler Murray to Daniels. 

QUESTION #5: The Packers QB Situation

  • Who from Green Bay are you comfortable starting when Love plays versus Willis?

Peter Overzet: Josh Jacobs, that's it. Next question?

Cooterdoodle: The Packers' defense is guaranteed a pick or two, regardless of who's starting at QB, right? (I miss you, Mr. Love)

Paul Charchian: Let's keep an eye on emerging runner Emanuel Wilson after an uptick in usage last week. Wilson passes the eye test, and some of his metrics are promising, including 3.1 yards after contact and a 24% broken-tackle rate.

Jess Bryant: Jayden Reed can have some nice games regardless of who is at quarterback. In Week 3, he had 8.90 HalfPPR points from 19 rush yards and 4 receptions for 50 yards. That's likely where he'll end up in most games with Willis under center. Josh Jacobs can do well in any offense and will be heavily used with Willis, but Jacobs may have more room to run with Love at quarterback. I think Christian Watson would be the biggest beneficiary if Love played. He's Love's endzone target and still has a chance to break out this season.

QUESTION #6: Pop-Culture

  • Which popular sports series have you watched or are interested in watching, and which is your favorite?

Peter Overzet: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez looks awful. Like, what are we doing here? When I watch TV, I prefer to shut my brain off from football and sports. Season 4 of Slow Horses is my jam right now.

Cooterdoodle: Hard Knocks is one of the best sports-related guilty pleasures known to man. How else will I find out that some of my favorite teams' players don't believe dinosaurs exist?! But while we're on the topic of TV shows about games … I still haven't gotten over Game of Thrones, Season 8.

Paul Charchian: Is pinball a sport?  There's a terrific (mostly true) movie about the man who returned pinball to New York 40 years after it was outlawed as gambling. Predictably, it's called Pinball: The Man Who Saved The Game.

Jess Bryant: I am an avid tennis player because injuries have kept me out of other sports, like rugby and softball. So, I'm a massive fan of Breakpoint, which offers an exploration into the mental side of tennis more than anything. Sprint caught me off guard as one of my favorites, and it features mostly United States sprinters but those worldwide as well. Finally, I highly recommend Simone Biles Rising, which covers Simone Biles' 2020 Olympics, where she couldn't perform due to a mental block, and her road back to the 2024 Olympics. The show also covers her personal life, including her relationship with NFL player Jonathan Owens and the trauma she has from working with condemned coach Larry Nassar.