Start or Sit'em in Fantasy Football: Bears vs. Packers |
Fantasy owners had a rough outing this past Sunday against the Jets. David Montgomery was the lone bright spot with 79 rushing yards, along with three receptions for 34 yards. However, the only Chicago touchdown belonged to receiver Byron Pringle; according to Yahoo!, he is rostered in 0% of their leagues, so that touchdown truly helped no one because no one has Siemian rostered either.
With Justin Fields expected to return, who is ranked No. 6 overall by Yahoo!, things should be trending upwards not just in fantasy but on the field as well for Chicago going against their long-time rivals, the Green Bay Packers, this Sunday (12 p.m./FOX). Justin Fields - Start Despite missing a week, he is still No. 7 in the NFL in rushing yards with 834 yards. In fact, he has 13 more yards than Packers’ running back, Aaron Jones, on 33 less attempts than Jones. This is part of why Fields is leading the NFL in yards per attempt with 6.8. With the Packers second-to-last in rushing defense, and having just given up 157 rushing yards to Eagles’ quarterback, Jalen Hurts, even if Fields is not at 100%, he will surely get a lot of rushing yards against this defense. The Packers also have the fourth-best passing defense, meaning that the Bears will need to rely more on their run game than usual to put points up on the board. David Montgomery - Start The Packers horrible run defense will also serve to benefit Montgomery since he is now the primary running back with rookie Khalil Herbert still on injured reserve (IR). Furthermore, Montgomery has been getting involved more in the passing game. He has six receptions for 88 yards over the past two games and with the Bears’ top receiver Darnell Mooney going on IR, Chicago now has a hole to fill in the passing game. This serves to help Montgomery’s numbers even more, particularly in points per reception (PPR) leagues. Cole Kmet - Start Given the fluctuations at tight end this season, it has been difficult to find a consistent tight end not named Travis Kelce. Mooney’s injury impacts the entire offense, but this could serve to help Kmet. Among active players on the Bears’ roster, Kmet is the leading receiver with 336 yards. He is also leading the team in receiving touchdowns with five. While the Packers may have one of the best passing offenses, the Bears are still going to have to throw the ball. Even though the Packers don’t give up a lot of points to tight ends, this is probably the receiver Fields has the most comfort throwing to that is available in this game. The Bears are also a completely different team than they were when they faced the Packers in Lambeau. So, unless you have Travis Kelce (or perhaps a handful of other tight ends if they have better matchups), Kmet should be started. Chicago Bears Defense - Sit Given the Packers are No. 23 in scoring offense, it may be a consideration to start the Bears defense for some. However, they have not been able to put up fantasy points this year. They are giving up an average of 350 yards per game, as well as giving up 25.4 points per game. Furthermore, All-Pro safety, Eddie Jackson, who was leading the team in tackles (80) and interceptions (4), was put on IR this week after suffering a foot injury against the Jets. The Bears are more depleted at defense now than they were the first time they faced the Packers. If the Bears are going to beat the Packers this Sunday, it is most likely going to be in an offensive shoot-out. Chase Claypool - Start in Some Leagues Odds are that some fantasy owners are in need of someone to replace Mooney in their starting lineups. While Montgomery and Kmet are probably going to get a good deal more attention from Fields, they are also probably going to get more attention from defenses, particularly a highly ranked passing defense like the Packers. This has the chance to open up some opportunities for other receivers, like Claypool. While he has only had seven receptions for 83 yards, he has been getting more yards with his receptions which will perhaps lead to an increase in his catching volume. There are other players that could be picked up to replace Mooney, particularly in an 8- or 10-person league. But if you are in a league with 12 people (or more), then Claypool is more likely to be an available receiver and he could get more targets now. Cairo Santos - Sit While the Bears tend to score a lot of points, Santos does not. He has only had three games this season where he has scored 10 points or more, and has not had one of those games since Week 7 against the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football. In every game he has played this season (he missed Week 4 against the New York Giants), he has scored points. He just doesn’t score as many points because the Bears tend to score touchdowns instead of field goals. So, if you need a kicker just for this week who will put up a few points, Santos will do that. But there are probably other kickers who will put up more points than Santos will.
