FFT Express - LAST-MINUTE Week 2 Fantasy Football Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Advice! Actives/Inactives & Q&A (09/20 Fantasy Football Podcast)

This episode of Fantasy Football Today Express is a rapid pregame rundown ahead of Week 2's early slate, working through a wave of questionable and out designations at wide receiver and quarterback before closing with a machine-gun listener Q&A. The hosts' central argument is that this is an unusually risk-heavy week for elite pass-catchers — Nico Collins, Zay Flowers, Puka Nakua, Chris Olave, Michael Pittman, and Joe Burrow are all compromised — and managers need to lean on situational history and risk tolerance rather than gut feel to make lineup calls.

The arguments

The Texans and Ravens wide receiver rooms are barely startable even with their stars out. With Nico Collins out, the hosts say they won't start any Texans skill player besides David Montgomery and Dalton Schultz, and while Xavier Hutchinson is mentioned as a name to watch given his production in games Collins missed last year, confidence in him is described as very low. On the Ravens side, Zay Flowers and possibly left tackle Ronnie Stanley are out, prompting a slight downgrade of Lamar Jackson to a low-end QB1 rather than a top-six option; Mark Andrews is the exception, still graded a top-eight tight end and worth starting. Rashad Bateman gets a specific data point in his favor — in five games with at least seven targets since his rookie year, he's hit 50 yards and a touchdown in all five — but the hosts note he barely factored into the second-half game plan last week once Flowers got hurt.

Puka Nakua's questionable status is the week's toughest call, and the hosts land on different sides. One host says he'd need a top-20 receiver already rostered to justify sitting Puka without more news, and in a deeper league picked up Kanata Mumfield purely as an emergency plug-in. The other admits he's rostering both Nico Collins and Puka in the same lineup and plans to just bench Casey Concepcion for Puka anyway, arguing you have to chase points even in an unclear situation. Historical replacement data is offered for context: in six games without Puka in 2024, Tutu Atwell drew close to six targets a game (332 yards, no touchdowns), Colby Parkinson had 29 targets, and in three games without Deebo... rather Davante Adams last year, Puka himself vacuumed 37 targets while Parkinson got 18 and Mumfield 14, with Terrence Ferguson scoring two touchdowns on just eight targets — making Ferguson the preferred speculative flex play over Mumfield if Puka sits.

Ladd McConkie should start despite his questionable tag, but that decision creates a real conflict with Tee Higgins. The hosts note a positive overnight report suggesting McConkie is trending toward playing, which is enough for both hosts to greenlight him. But this collides with Joe Burrow's questionable back injury and the Bengals elevating a practice-squad quarterback — one host says he's starting McConkie over Higgins regardless, citing his own hesitation about Higgins even independent of Burrow's status, while the other host has Higgins ranked as his WR11 and would still start him over McConkie unless Burrow is ruled out entirely.

Joe Burrow's back injury is being treated as more than a formality, but backup Joe Flacco offers real insurance. One host says he hadn't even considered Burrow sitting as a real possibility on Friday but now thinks it's slightly more likely; he's carrying a lot of Ja'Marr Chase and didn't love how Week 1 without Higgins went. Both hosts note Flacco threw over 41 passes in each of his six Bengals starts last year, and cite that Chase was on a 245-target full-season pace and Higgins on pace for 77-1,182-14 during that stretch — meaning both hosts say they'd still start Chase and Higgins even if Burrow sits, with Flacco himself worth stashing as an emergency streamer.

DK Metcalf is a fringe start despite Joey Porter's absence for Pittsburgh. One host says he's struggled with the call and settles on framing Metcalf as a low-end WR2 or high-end WR3 — with real upside given the corner situation but real risk that Christian Gonzalez shadows him regardless.

Several other absences flip streaming value: Devon Vele/Juwan Johnson if Olave sits, Jonah Coleman if RJ Harvey sits, and Brock Bowers is a firm bench (doubtful). Chigoziem Okonkwo is also out, and Cooper Rush starts for the Falcons opponent, nudging J.K. Dobbins up modestly (roughly RB32 to RB27) if Kalon Black also sits.

What it means for your roster

• Sit Brock Bowers entirely this week — he's doubtful, not a game-time gamble.
• Start Ladd McConkie off the positive report, but if you also roster Tee Higgins, know the hosts split on which one sits — lean Higgins unless Burrow is formally ruled out.
• Grab Kanata Mumfield or Terrence Ferguson as speculative flex adds if you're rostering Puka Nakua in deeper leagues; Ferguson is the preferred name given his touchdown efficiency in a comparable absence last year.
• Avoid Texans skill players beyond David Montgomery and Dalton Schultz, and keep Ravens pass-catcher expectations low outside of Mark Andrews, who remains a top-eight tight end start.
• Stash Joe Flacco in Superflex/deep leagues as Burrow insurance; both hosts still start Chase and Higgins even in a Flacco scenario.
• Grade DK Metcalf as a low-WR2/high-WR3 this week, not an auto-start upgrade despite Porter's absence.