For starters, the first thing that I want to say on this fantasy football Thanksgiving starts/sits edition is Happy Thanksgiving to one and all! Everyone have a great and safe holiday! As we know, the NFL puts on a premium show every Thanksgiving with football from noon to night. For many years, there were two games on this holiday, but in recent years, that number has risen to three. This season, the games are Green Bay at Detroit, Washington at Dallas and San Francisco at Seattle.

Certainly, these are big games, as all three pit divisional foes against each other. Clearly, fantasy football enthusiasts will want to pay close attention to the players in all three contests. Make the wrong calls on who to start on Thanksgiving can set up a losing week in fantasy. No Worries, we here at Belly Up Fantasy Sports are here to help, as usual.

As always, discussion and debate are highly encouraged. Do you disagree with the conclusions in the article? Have questions on other players in the three games? Let’s talk about it!

Running Back Start

Tony Pollard, Dallas Cowboys

Without question, Tony Pollard has been one of the biggest fantasy disappointments of the season. Recently, he went through a three-game stretch where he didn’t score more than nine fantasy points. However, it looks like he has turned things around after his performance against Carolina.

In that game, he rushed 12 times for 61 yards with a touchdown. The yards were his most since week three and the TD was his first since week one. Additionally, he caught four of five targets for 19 yards. True, that was against the sorry Carolina defense. Even so, did you happen to notice what the Giants did to Washington (the Cowboys opponent) this past Sunday? They put 31 on the Commanders.

This from a team that couldn’t do anything right against the Cowboys one week earlier. Currently, Washington ranks exactly middle of the road fantasy wise against running backs at number 15. That ranking will be much worse after they finish playing the Cowboys. Forget what Pollard has done earlier in the season. He is a must start on Thanksgiving.

Running Back Sits

Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet, Seattle Seahawks

As a Seahawk fan, it pains me to write the following words. However, I have to be honest when evaluating players for fantasy. Frankly, the matchup against the 49ers isn’t a good one for Seattle. Further, it is difficult to get a read on just which running back will receive the most touches right now.

Because that is the case, both Seahawks runners find themselves on the sit list on this fantasy football Thanksgiving starts/sits edition. Of course, those running backs are Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet. In Walker’s case, he has been fighting injuries and inconsistency of late. Against the 49ers, he only received four carries for 18 yards and caught just a single pass.

Walker then left due to an injury and didn’t return. Only once in the last four games has Walker scored more than seven fantasy points. That game was against Washington, giving even more credibility to my recommendation of starting Pollard above. As of now, it is being reported that Walker will most likely miss more time and almost certainly not to play Thursday.

As for Charbonnet, he rushed 15 times for just 47 yards against the Rams on Sunday. He did catch six of six targets, but for only 22 yards. Add in the fact that the 49ers’ defense has turned things around since their three-game losing streak and this isn’t going to be a great game for Seattle’s runners. Conclusion: sit both this week.

Wide Receiver Starts

D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, Seattle Seahawks

While you want to sit the Seattle running backs against the 49ers, starting their receiver combo is the way to go. Despite their better defense of late, San Fran ranks just 24th against WRs in fantasy. Thus, get both D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett into your starting lineup on Thursday.

As for Metcalf, he’s had two big games in a row, finishing with 12 catches for 192 yards. He is also a highly targeted receiver, with nine or more in three of his last four games. Of course, Metcalf has a knack for the big play, having a 50-yard reception in two of his last three. In my opinion, he is set for a big game Thanksgiving evening.

Meanwhile, Lockett keeps doing what Lockett does. Many have been waiting for him to slow down for some time. Fortunately, it has yet to occur. Even with him dealing with injury concerns the past two weeks, Lockett has racked up 13 catches on 17 targets. In fact, in his last four games, he has 34 targets. Further, he has had at least seven targets in all but three games this season. He is the model of consistency. Both he and Metcalf need to be in starting lineups this week.

Wide Receiver Sit

Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders

Truthfully, it doesn’t really matter what Terry McLaurin or any Washington receiver did coming into the game against Dallas. The Cowboys rank second in all of fantasy against WRs. In the game with the Giants, McLaurin was targeted seven times and caught five of them. That sounds positive, right? The problem was he turned those catches into only 43 yards.

As mentioned above, the Giants came out of their game against Dallas a complete mess. Their defense against receivers is ranked a lowly 29th. If McLaurin could only generate 43 yards at home against that hapless defense, what will he produce against the Cowboys? Answer: not enough to justify a starting spot, that’s for sure. The recommendation on this fantasy football Thanksgiving starts/sits edition is bench him.

Quarterback Start

Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers

Frankly, there are more than one quarterback taking the field Thursday that could be started in fantasy. You know who they are. Along those same lines, Brock Purdy’s name belongs in the same class. Many began to question his capabilities when SF went on their three-game losing streak. Prior to that, everything was coming up roses for Purdy, except when he was injured in the NFC Title Game.

However, during that losing stretch, Purdy threw five interceptions. The good news? He didn’t throw any before those three games and he hasn’t thrown any since. In his last two games, Purdy has thrown for 629 yards and six TDs. Even more impressive, he has completed 84 and 73.1 percent of his passes.

All quarterbacks have to endure bad stretches, even the best of them. Obviously, Purdy has left all negative vibes far behind him. As for the Seahawks, it pains me to say that they only rank 25th against QBs in fantasy. To be sure, it is a matchup made in Heaven for Purdy. He is a no doubt must start.

Quarterback Sit

Geno Smith, Seattle Seahawks

When it comes to Thanksgiving games, I don’t think that there has ever been a stronger class of quarterbacks ever. When the worst of them is Geno Smith, you know there are quality players taking the field. Unfortunately for Smith, he is going up against the 49er defense, which ranks 11th against fantasy QBs. Smith’s last opponent, the Rams rank a little lower (16th) and he didn’t put a good game together.

After passing for 369 yards and two touchdowns against Washington, Smith was held to 233 yards by the Rams. He did throw for a TD, but that was the only positive for him in this game. Smith did suffer an injury in the game, but did return. He should play Thursday, but the injury does require monitoring as the game approaches.

In their game Sunday against Tampa Bay, the 49ers held Baker Mayfield to 246 yards with a TD and an interception. If Smith plays, as expected, fantasy managers can expect the same kind of game out of Smith against SF Thursday. With the QB starters the other teams have available on Thanksgiving, Smith ranks behind all of them. With no teams on bye this week, there should be a quarterback with a better matchup that the one Smith has. Find that player and start him.

Tight End Start

Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys

Of course, when it comes to tight ends, most of us would rather slam our heads into a stone wall than have to play one in fantasy. Unfortunately, it is a requirement, and should be, that a tight end be on starting rosters. Without doubt, it doesn’t take a recommendation from me to play George Kittle against any opponent. He’s an obvious start. I will not waste time discussing him further.

Other than Kittle, of the TE players taking the field on Thanksgiving, Jake Ferguson is the list. Against the Panthers Sunday, Ferguson didn’t have a good game, catching just three of five target for only 32 yards. However, in his previous two games, he caught 11 of 17 targets for 117 yards.

Even more impressive, Ferguson had a touchdown in three straight games coming into the Carolina contest. The Panthers rank in the middle of the pact against TEs, but it is the prediction on this fantasy football Thanksgiving starts/sits edition that Ferguson will have a big game against them. Start him.

Tight End Sits

 Let’s be honest here. Except for the two discussed above, there isn’t another Thanksgiving tight end worth being in the starting lineup. Every healthy TE is available this week, as no teams are on bye. Start one of them and leave the turkey players firmly planted on the bench.

The Final Word

Thank you for joining me for this fantasy football Thanksgiving starts/sits edition! As always, I welcome suggestions, comments and input from all my readers. Let’s discuss!

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