The fantasy football landscape shifts dramatically after Week 3, as unexpected performances and emerging storylines reshape our expectations for the season ahead. Some players are exceeding projections, while others leave managers scratching their heads, wondering if early concerns were justified or simply growing pains.
Thursday night’s Seattle Seahawks-Arizona Cardinals matchup could provide crucial clarity on several key start/sit situations for both NFC West squads. Get ready to dive deep into the developments that could make or break your fantasy team’s Week 4 performance.
Seattle Seahawks
Sam Darnold, QB
Sam Darnold orchestrated his first top-20 finish of the season last week (QB9 against the lowly Saints). While I’m not exactly buying the numbers produced against arguably the worst team in the league as sticky, we could see back-to-back productive weeks for the former Panther.
Like the rest of the world, I’ve got my questions about Darnold when under duress. That gets talked about a lot, and we love to pick apart the negatives, but he’s been pretty good for 13 months now when not under pressure.
Since the beginning of last season, the Cardinals rank 25th in total pressure rate and 26th when they blitz. They struggle to make opponents uncomfortable, and if that means Jaxon Smith-Njigba (22-323-1) can get loose, then we are in business. If Cooper Kupp finds the fountain of youth for a second straight week? Fuhgeddaboudit.
I’m not saying you start him in season-long leagues, but in a week-long sort of contest that includes all prime-time games? At cost, I’m interested.
Kenneth Walker III, RB
With Zach Charbonnet sidelined, Kenneth Walker ran for as many touchdowns in the first half as he had totaled in his nine games prior. He also set a season-high with 16 carries as the Seahawks absolutely steamrolled the Saints.
Wouldn’t that lead you to believe that we are in a ‘wheels-up’ situation for a back we all view as ultra talented? He carried 16 times for 138 yards and averaged more than 8 feet per attempt before contact.
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The range of outcomes on a per-carry basis might be as broad for Walker as they are for any player in the league, and I’m not sure the matchup even matters. With a profile like that, I need volume to be comfortable, which is obviously easier to achieve if his backup/committee member is out.
I’ll rank Walker over Charbonnet most weeks because in that flex conversation, I don’t mind taking on some risk if it means access to top-15 upside. Still, there’s no denying that this is a committee where both backs are talented, but neither is especially valuable.
Zach Charbonnet, RB
Zach Charbonnet missed the second game of his career on Sunday with a foot injury, a contest he nearly took part in after reportedly getting a good pre-game workout in.
Kenneth Walker III was featured in a great spot against the Saints on Sunday, a golden opportunity for him to assume the lead role moving forward. No dice. He scored twice, but 16 carries for 38 yards against maybe the worst team in the league?
The Seattle coaching staff has made it clear that they want to operate in a committee, and that has me ranking both of their running backs as viable flex plays with a wide range of outcomes.
I do have Walker ranked ahead of Charbonnet this week, and that will likely be the case more often than not. Charbonnet was RB26 in Week 1 thanks to a short touchdown, but he doesn’t yet have a target or a rush gaining more than seven yards.
Monitor this situation, but I’m actively making excuses not to play Charbonnet at less than full strength against a Cardinals defense that held Christian McCaffrey to 52 yards on 17 attempts over the weekend.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR
I’d never lie to you guys. When I was updating my rest of the season rankings after the dust settled on Week 3, the thought of Jaxon Smith-Njigba being a top-five receiver crossed my mind. The developing star has finished as a top-15 performer at the position in all three weeks this season and is pacing for a cool 124-catch, 1,830-yard season.
And that doesn’t even include the idea that his connection with Sam Darnold will improve with reps as this season progresses!
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He was the only Seahawk to catch a pass on their first drive last week (41 yards and a score), and until the league figures out how to slow him down, I’ll continue to assume it can’t be done.
“JSN” caught 11 of 12 targets while scoring in both Cardinals games a season ago. Get your popcorn ready and continue to enjoy the profits you’re getting from Smith-Njigba this season — the price will get expensive ahead of 2026.
Cooper Kupp, WR
Fantasy football is complicated enough, so there’s no need to overthink this one. Don’t do it.
Cooper Kupp was productive in Week 2 against a Steelers defense that isn’t as stout as we thought, but that’s it. In the two games sandwiching that Pittsburgh game (7-90-0), he failed to reach 25 air yards and finished under 6.0 PPR points.
We aren’t getting New York Jets Sam Darnold these days, and we also aren’t getting the Minnesota version, so two pass catchers won’t be coming along for the ride every week.
You’re playing Jaxon Smith-Njigba every week without a second thought. If you want to roll the dice on one of Seattle’s running backs, be my guest, but that’s all the interest I have in this team.
Tory Horton, WR
We are seeing rookies like Pat Bryant in Denver struggle to earn playing time, while others, such as Tetairoa McMillan, get on the field and thrive right away. Development is a non-linear process with a million moving pieces — never forget that.
The first piece in most equations is talent, followed closely by opportunity. Tory Horton has the former and is proving deserving of the latter.
He was held without a target on 17 routes in his NFL debut but has logged eight targets on 34 routes since, scoring in both games. Oh yes, and he pulled a reverse Kaleb Johnson and scored for the right team on special teams via a 95-yard punt return during their throttling of the Saints on Sunday.
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I’m not here to say that Horton is the next big thing. Kupp signed a three-year $45 million deal in March, and that alone will suppress Horton’s playing time. Still, if he shows the type of juice he did over the weekend consistently and the Kupp experience follows the trajectory from 2024, we could be looking at a late-season flex who is earning a handful of targets per game.
Those looks aren’t a lock to be valuable if you believe Darnold was more the creation of Kevin O’Connell than anything last season. Still, there is certainly a way for this to play out, where Horton faces a tapped-out Panthers team in sunny Carolina in Week 17, making a difference in your most crucial fantasy matchup of the season.
Arizona Cardinals
Kyler Murray, QB
It truly feels like we are an unlocked Harrison away from Kyler Murray being labeled as a top-five QB every week. Even with his presumed WR1 struggling, Murray has both a 30-plus yard completion and 30-plus yards rushing in all three games this season, showcasing the type of floor we love to have access to.
The quality of competition in Weeks 1-2 certainly does factor into his production, especially with a divisional opponent that has traditionally given him fits in the past on the schedule.
Murray hasn’t cleared 19 fantasy points against the Seahawks since Week 11, 2020, when he tallied five passing touchdowns to four interceptions in their past five meetings with just 58 rushing yards over the past three.
I’m more optimistic than that, but not completely sold. He’ll take the field on Thursday night ranked just outside of my top 10 at the position.
James Conner, RB
If you’re squeamish, I’d advise you just to trust me — the James Conner injury over the weekend was brutal.
His foot needs season-ending surgery to repair, and the 2023 conversation will be an interesting one with time. Despite “Father Time” looming, Conner was one of four running backs to enter this season with 1,000 rushing yards and seven rushing TDs in each of the two previous seasons (others: Derrick Henry, Joe Mixon, and Kyren Williams).
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Conner turns 31 in May, and it’s fair to wonder if we’ve seen the end of Conner’s fantasy career.
Trey Benson, RB
James Conner’s season is over, opening the door for Trey Benson, a 2024 third-round pick who averaged 6.1 yards per carry in college and scored on 7.6% of his rush attempts.
The Cardinals believe in this player and want him to be the running back of the future, which gives me confidence that we are looking at him picking up around 85% of Conner’s role.
This is a tough spot to debut as the lead man — the Seahawks are allowing the second-fewest yards allowed per carry after contact to opposing running backs this season — but I think the versatility can save the day for fantasy purposes.
Benson is currently my RB25 for the week, ranking ahead of Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Quinshon Judkins, Tony Pollard, and David Montgomery if you are forced into making a decision.
Marvin Harrison Jr., WR
“Frustratingly close.” I don’t know how else to say it. We’ve seen some route development from Marvin Harrison Jr. this season, and his big-play making ability is something he’s got in his DNA, but we are having trouble getting that breakout game.
In San Francisco last week, it was a penalty that cost him big yardage before the mental lapse. I’m not sure if he can spin and accelerate fast enough, but he got behind the defense, and Kyler Murray noticed it.
Sitting wide open, Harrison had the ball coming his way. He wasn’t running fast, hardly moving at all. The ball was just floating toward him, like one of those slow-motion movie moments where the underdog is in the midst of pulling off some dramatic play.
Bobble. Grass. Incomplete. If he catches it with confidence and can finish the play, we are looking at a 14.6-point play. At the very least, it should have been a 30-plus yard gain that helps the 3-44-0 save what turned out to be a 3-44-0 day at the office.
There are problems with high-end receivers across this league, but I don’t think that’s the case here. He’s a talented player with a healthy QB1 and has recently become increasingly important to the team with the Conner injury.
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I’ve ranked Tee Higgins and Brian Thomas types in my rankings this week, but that’s not the case for Harrison on Thursday night. Despite a tough matchup, I still have him as a top-20 player, thinking that we get the opportunity and talent combination to pay off sooner rather than later.
Seattle ranks 30th in blitz rate this season, giving “MHJ” time to work and cash in on some of the opportunities he’s missed through three weeks this season.
Trey McBride, TE
Trey McBride has been a top-12 tight end in all three weeks this season and now has the second-longest active streak of five-plus reception games, with five in a row (Meanwhile, Puka Nacua is playing a different sport, with 11 straight).
The volume is as safe as it gets. While the TD equity is traditionally low, it was nice to see a Kyler Murray rollout touchdown pass to McBride on the sideline over the weekend — his first career touchdown coming before late October.
Harrison hasn’t lived up to the hype, which puts McBride in a position to challenge Brock Bowers for the tight end throne. In fact, he’s overtaken him in my rest-of-season rankings, with the thought being that he has the better quarterback and, at this point, less target competition.
