Welcome to the first edition of “Start/Sit with Oliver Fox,” a brand so iconic it is sure to soon displace Dancing with the Stars and Survivor as America’s most anticipated weekend event. I didn’t do one last week or in Week 1 because … well, I didn’t do them! Justin did, and Justin is awesome.
But we’re all in for fantasy football Week 3, ready to answer your fringiest questions with a hailstorm of blurbs. The process: I scrolled through my 10-man, PPR-scoring league and plucked most of the players I think anyone even considered starting or sitting this week and wrote a blurb below. It’s not going to cover everyone, but I think you’ll be surprised at how much we do get through here. It’s a blurb barrage; a blurbicane, a blurbquake and a blurbnado all rolled into one: a blurbpocalypse, if you will. Let’s rock!
Start: QB Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
One of the best-kept secrets in fantasy football is that Brock Purdy has literally always been good when healthy, and he’s been owning so far in 2026. He plays in a system that manufactures points with all these little screen passes, dump off and run-after-catch opportunities. Even in a game where Christian McCaffrey scored two touchdowns on the ground, Purdy still got it done in a real way with over 28 fantasy points.
It just works. The San Francisco 49ers have been an unassailable fantasy football factory for so many years in a row I’m losing count — if you waited on quarterback in the draft and wound up with Purdy and another late-round quarterback, Purdy is the start, 100 percent.
Sit: WR Luther Burden III, WR Rome Odunze and TE Colston Loveland, Chicago Bears
That’s right: every single Chicago Bears pass catcher is hitting the bench this week with Case Keenum looking like the starter with both Caleb Williams and Tyson Bagent banged up. I’m sure someone will be productive, but I wouldn’t recommend to subject your brain to deciding which one nor would I suggest subjecting your eyeballs to needing 11 points from Rome Odunze on Monday Night Football before the Bears have 45 total passing yards at halftime.
Colston Loveland is a screaming buy low to me, and the guy with Loveland in my league has already had enough and slotted in Mark Andrews, which is definitely the right move this week. But Loveland might be playable with Bagent and definitely will be eventually when Williams returns; I just don’t accept that he’s going to average 0.65 points per game the whole season — he’s too talented to never get the ball.
Sit: WR Jordan Addison, Minnesota Vikings
I’m kinda just out on Jordan Addison as a fantasy asset. He’s had flashes of usability in previous years and is evidently skilled, but his target volume has never been enough to justify week-in, week-out trust. His quarterback situation, like with Justin Jefferson, has been in flux for his entire career, but when one of the most talented wide receivers of the century can’t always eat in this offense, Addison can’t be expected to be your guy.
I think of Addison as a sort of Kirkland-brand Tee Higgins in fantasy; both immensely talented players, fun to have in theory but always sort of … annoying since they just aren’t Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase. You’ll always wind up frustrated that your guy isn’t that guy, and that’s my official Jordan Addison platform.
Start: RB Quinshon Judkins, Cleveland Browns
If you have Judkins, you’re not having the best year. Okay, you’re actually having a bad year … fine, you’re having a terrible year — Judkins has 54 total yards on 24 carries this year, which is awful efficiency. But Carolina’s run defense got posterized by the Chicago Bears and I know for a fact Judkins is talented. He’s going to be involved in the passing game, too, and if the Browns can just run some plays in the red zone at any point this decade Judkins will do good things for you. He has zero backfield competition.
Start: QB Tyler Shough, New Orleans Saints
Shough is balling, and my main argument for why you should trust that he will continue to ball is that nobody is going to ask him to stop. The best thing the Saints have done all year is push the ball downfield, and Shough clearly understands his bread is buttered by Chris Olave, Devaughn Vele and Juwan Johnson. And he is going to chuck it to them all day against the not-too-scary Las Vegas Raiders defense.
I remember Danny Kelly at The Ringer saying once that “if you suck, throw the ball downfield!” and it really struck a chord. I don’t think the Saints suck, necessarily, but they lack the sort of Death Star construction to create a multifaceted attack. Throw the ball downfield and give yourself a chance to score points. And start Tyler Shough as long as he’s still doing that.
Sit: RB Jacory Crosky-Merritt, Washington Commanders
The Commanders might be done with 2026, they might be done with their quarterback getting injured, they might be done with all this suffering and despair. But I think they’re also done with Jacory Crosky-Merritt, who saw his snap share decline 12 percent from Week 1 to Week 2 and appears to be losing out to Rachaad White as the lead back. He’s made a couple of costly mistakes and doesn’t look all that dynamic in 2026. He’ll play for the Commanders, but you should not play him going forward.
Start: WR Romeo Doubs, New England Patriots
Maybe I’m just a contrarian, but Doubs is somehow the best WR on the New England Patriots and it’s not remotely a discussion. He’s the only guy capable of beating man coverage consistently, he’s effective at finding space and can even get you working downfield like he did for Drake Maye against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Drop issues can blind you to obvious opportunity, and as long as A.J. Brown is sidelined, Doubs can be in your lineup.
Sit: WR Denzel Boston, Cleveland Browns
“Wow SOMEONE hates fun” and I know, I know, Boston is 1. named after the greatest city in the world 2. super young, cool and exciting and 3. clearly a potent deep-threat for the Browns with two long touchdowns in two weeks. But there is one warning you musn’t ignore: do not fall for Marquez Valdes-Scantling types.
For a couple of Aaron Rodgers seasons, MVS was such a tantalizing option who always had air yards and never won anyone a week. He would score a long touchdown, everyone would slot him in the lineup and then he’d have two catches for 15 yards. Chasing deep scores in fantasy football is like betting on a coin flip being heads because the last one was heads. Think about it.
Start: TE Dalton Schultz, Houston Texans
Just call me “Dalton Schultz Guy” because this is the third column I’ve recommended starting him in in two weeks. Without Nico Collins, the list of receivers that Nico Collins even knows the name of is thinner than you think, and Schultz went nuclear last week with 12 catches and 140 yards I mean what else do you want? Collins is out again in Week 3, so just don’t overthink this. Schultz. In your lineup. Thank me later.
Sit: WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Arizona Cardinals
You probably don’t need much help sitting MHJ, but I’m here to make sure you feel fine about it. He is squarely behind Michael Wilson on the depth chart in terms of snap share and is making absolutely nothing out of it. He had one target and zero catches last week in a game the Cardinals were passing in the whole time. You can drop MHJ if you want.
Sit: WR DK Metcalf, Pittsburgh Steelers
I was at Patriots/Steelers last week and the DK Metcalf performance was jarringly terrible. He didn’t look like he was attacking catches like usual, Christian Gonzalez had him boxed like a Chirstmas present and it was generally a bad time for him all around. Aaron Rodgers looked totally ineffective, and I’m not doing anything with this passing offense unless I’m legally required to.
Start: WR Josh Downs, Indianapolis Colts
Josh Downs continues to impress me, and with Alec Pierce on Injured Reserve and already reduced target competition from Michael Pittman Jr. being on … the Steelers, it might be Downs’ time to shine. He is far and away the number one target on this team now.
Daniel Jones looked confident and capable on Monday Night Football, and the people Downs is competing with for targets are, like … Keenan Allen and Laquon Treadwell. How are either of those people even still in the NFL?
Start: RB Jaylen Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers
Simplest start/sit in history. Rico Dowdle is out, Jaylen Warren is in your lineup. None of the other running backs on the team even play, so this could be an 85 percent+ snap share for Warren in Week 3. I don’t care if he’s on the Montreal Alouettes; we play guys with that kind of projected volume.
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