- Start Rico Dowdle: While his matchup against the Los Angeles Rams isn’t ideal, Dowdle should receive enough volume to remain a fantasy starter.
- Sit the Minnesota Vikings‘ receivers, outside of Justin Jefferson: The Vikings are likely starting undrafted rookie Max Brosmer at quarterback, which isn’t great news for Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson, who have struggled to produce fantasy value in recent weeks.
- Get PFF+ for 40% off: Use promo code BLACKFRIDAY to unlock the PFF Player Prop Tool, Premium Stats, fantasy dashboards, the PFF Mock Draft Simulator, industry-leading fantasy rankings and much more — everything you need to win your season.
Estimated Reading Time: 25minutes
I asked fantasy managers on the PFF Discord and Bluesky which players they are least sure about this week, and I compiled that list and ranked them against one another. If you have multiple players mentioned, you should start with the player ranked highest. At the bottom of each position, you’ll find players to start in place of the featured players and those to sit in favor of them.
If a player isn’t mentioned, that means they are very close to those with blurbs, and factors such as injuries on the opposing defenses or weather could influence the rankings. Situations involving injuries are also generally avoided because things typically don’t become clearer until closer to kickoff. As always, check the weekly PFF fantasy rankings for the most up-to-date information to help you make all start-sit decisions.
RUNNING BACKS
Dowdle broke out in Weeks 5 and 6, running 53 times for 389 yards and scoring two touchdowns while Chuba Hubbard was injured. The Panthers went back to a two-man rotation for two weeks before giving Dowdle control of the backfield. He handled at least 20 touches in each game from Weeks 9-11, averaging 19.5 PPR points per outing during that stretch (eighth best among running backs).
Last week, Carolina turned Chuba Hubbard into its passing-game back. The Panthers ran only 43 offensive plays, and they were playing from behind for all of them. Dowdle ran six times for 38 yards and caught four passes for 36 yards.
The Panthers play the Los Angeles Rams this week, leading some fantasy managers to be concerned that Dowdle could see a similar decline in touches while Carolina plays from behind. The Rams have allowed the third-fewest fantasy points to running backs this season. They’ve surrendered 102.7 rushing yards per game, which isn’t too far from the league average, but they’ve allowed the fewest rushing touchdowns in the NFL (four).
However, it’s unlikely the Panthers will be held to so few plays again. Three of their first six drives in Week 12 were quickly derailed by penalties, and an interception ended another. By that point, they were down by 14 points with less than 20 minutes remaining. Even though the Panthers will likely fall behind again this week, they should run enough plays for Dowdle to finish near 15-20 touches.
That should be good enough for him to be a high-end RB2 this week and remain in most fantasy starting lineups.
