Winners Club: Starts, Sits, Props and Picks for NFL Week 4
Thursday night in Green Bay, it was the Lions, not the Packers, who Lambeau leaped to victory.
Detroit took a commanding lead in the NFC North with a 34–20 triumph against Green Bay to improve to 3–1. Jared Goff played well enough and connected with Amon-Ra St. Brown for a score, but it was David Montgomery who punched in three touchdowns in his return from injury.
That was the first of several key division games taking place around the NFL this week.
In today’s Winners Club you’ll find:
- Fantasy football players to start, sit
- Best NFL games to bet for Week 4
- College football betting breakdown
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Fantasy Football Lineup Decisions
This is already shaping up to be a better week for injuries with Montgomery, Aaron Jones and Christian Watson all making returns on Thursday. Things are also looking up for Austin Ekeler (ankle), Jaylen Waddle (concussion) and Brandon Aiyuk (shoulder), all of whom were out last week, and it sounds like there’s an outside chance Saquon Barkley (ankle) suits up on Monday.
Alvin Kamara is also returning from his three-game suspension Sunday, which could be a boost for RB-needy teams.
With a few stars set to return to lineups, let’s check in on Michael Fabiano’s positional rankings and find out who he recommends you start and sit this week.
Start ’Em, Sit ’Em: QB | RB | WR | TE | K & D/ST
Player Rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE | FLEX | K | D&ST
Brad Rempel/USA TODAY Sports
As always, Jen Piacenti chimed in with DFS picks for the Week 4 slate, and she’s targeting a pair of quarterback-wide receiver stacks in the game with the highest over/under of the week: Dolphins vs. Bills, which has a total set at 53.5 points. Piacenti also has some DFS dart throw recommendations to round out your lineup.
And in case you hadn’t already heard, Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have been taking the NFL (and the world) by storm. The pop superstar was at Arrowhead Stadium last weekend to cheer on Kelce and the Chiefs as they drubbed the Bears and she’s expected to be at Metlife Stadium on Sunday when Kansas City takes on the Jets.
Claire Kuwana came up with 50 Taylor Swift-themed fantasy football team names for the casual followers (Getaway Carr, Shake It Goff, Breece Hall Too Well) to the most passionate Swifties (Tua Is Better Than One, The Zay I Loved You, Bigger Than the Whole Skyy).
It might be too late to join a league, but it’s never too late to change your team name!
NFL Week 4 Picks and Lines
This week’s NFL schedule differs from the last two in that there’s no Monday Night Football doubleheader and the first London game of the year kicks off bright and early Sunday morning, so make sure your lineup is set in advance if you have any Jaguars or Falcons you plan to play.
The aforementioned meeting between Miami and Buffalo is among the top five games to bet this week. Matt Verderame, Gilberto Manzano and I ranked the five best and shared our score predictions, over/under and against the spread picks.
If you’re only interested in betting totals, consult Manzano’s Week 4 over/under guide, which includes betting advice for some projected shootouts and slugfests.
For props, Piacenti has you covered with two bets for the Broncos-Bears game as well as a few others to tail.
The MMQB team also shared straight up picks for the remaining 15 games this week. The two most popular upset picks are the Ravens in Cleveland and Seahawks in New York.
9:30 a.m. ET (ESPN+): Falcons vs. Jaguars (-2.5) | Total: 43.5
1 p.m. ET (CBS): Dolphins vs. Bills (-2.5) | Total: 53.5
1 p.m. ET (CBS): Broncos (-3.5) vs. Bears | Total: 45.5
1 p.m. ET (CBS): Ravens vs. Browns (-2.5) | Total: 40.5
1 p.m. ET (FOX): Bengals (-2.5) vs. Titans | Total: 40.5
1 p.m. ET (FOX): Rams vs. Colts (PK) | Total: 46.5
1 p.m. ET (FOX): Buccaneers vs. Saints (-3.5) | Total: 39.5
1 p.m. ET (FOX): Commanders vs. Eagles (-9.5) | Total: 43.5
1 p.m. ET (FOX): Vikings (-4.5) vs. Panthers | Total: 46.5
1 p.m. ET (CBS): Steelers (-2.5) vs. Texans | Total: 42.5
4:05 p.m. ET (CBS): Raiders vs. Chargers (-5.5) | Total: 48.5
4:25 p.m. ET (FOX): Patriots vs. Cowboys (-6.5) | Total: 43.5
4:25 p.m. ET (FOX): Cardinals vs. 49ers (-13.5) | Total: 44.5
8:20 p.m. ET (NBC): Chiefs (-8.5) vs. Jets | Total: 41.5
8:15 p.m ET (ABC, ESPN): Seahawks (-0.5) vs. Giants | Total: 46.5*
*Monday Night Football
Notre Dame Looks to Bounce Back Against Duke
The schedule for the Fighting Irish doesn’t let up all that much after their loss to Ohio State last week. No. 11 Notre Dame is on the road this week against No. 17 Duke and Marcus Freeman’s squad was installed as a 5.5-point road favorite. Sam Hartman lost his last start against the Blue Devils when he was at Wake Forest and now he gets another shot at an old ACC foe.
Find out the best bet for this Saturday night showdown.
No. 13 LSU barely escaped Arkansas’ upset bid a week ago while No. 20 Ole Miss suffered its first loss of the season at Alabama. Now, two of the highest-scoring offenses in the FBS will meet in Oxford, MS. The Tigers won going away in Baton Rouge last year. Can the Rebels keep up?
Matt Pendleton/USA TODAY Sports
Top 25 Action
9 p.m. ET (FS1): No. 10 Utah vs. No. 19 Oregon State (-4.5) | Total: 44.5*
3:30 p.m. ET (ABC): No. 24 Kansas vs. No. 3 Texas (-16.5) | Total: 60.5
*Game will be played Friday night, all others are on Saturday
Other Games for Your Consideration
12 p.m. ET (ESPN): No. 22 Florida vs. Kentucky (-1.5) | Total: 44.5
12 p.m. ET (FOX): No. 8 USC (-21.5) vs. Colorado | Total: 73.5
10 p.m. ET (Pac-12 Network): No. 7 Washington (-18.5) vs. Arizona | Total: 65.5
In Other News
Damian Lillard Trade Shakes Up NBA Landscape: After months of being tied to the Heat, the Trail Blazers’ star was sent to the Bucks to team up with Giannis Antetokounmpo in a three-team deal. Rohan Nadkarni doled out grades for Milwaukee, Portland and Phoenix.
Tua Tagovailoa’s Quarterback Ranking Improves: The Dolphins’ signal-caller has cracked the top five in SI’s latest quarterback rankings. See who’s ahead of him and just how much Texas rookie C.J. Stroud climbed this week.
What Air Yard Data is Telling Us Ahead of Week 4: Dan Falkenheim is projecting a bounce back for Calvin Ridley and warns against playing receivers against a fearsome Browns defense in the latest installment of his air yards series.
As always, thanks for reading and remember to follow @SI_Betting and @SI_Fantasy! The next edition of Winners Club will be delivered to your inbox Sunday morning. Until then.
