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Who Should I Start for Week 3? Fantasy Football outlooks for Juwan Johnson, Oronde Gadsden II, Michael Mayer, Cade Otton, Trey McBride, Greg Dulcich, Evan Engram, Zach Ertz, Cole Kmet.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 3 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Juwan Johnson, Oronde Gadsden II, Michael Mayer, Cade Otton, Trey McBride, Greg Dulcich, Evan Engram, Zach Ertz, and Cole Kmet. However, don't worry, we are here to help you make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 3. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 3 of the 2026 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
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Week 3 Fantasy Football Outlooks
Below are some fantasy football outlooks written by our NFL team here at RotoBaller, bringing you their fantasy football analysis and advice on which players to consider starting in Week 3:
Michael Mayer, Las Vegas Raiders
Las Vegas Raiders tight end Michael Mayer is coming off a quiet Week 2 performance, and his impact in Week 3 greatly hinges on whether Brock Bowers (knee) makes his season debut. Mayer was a solid fill-in for Bowers in Week 1 when he caught six of seven targets for 32 yards against the Miami Dolphins, then saw less action in Week 2 and tallied just three receptions on four targets for 23 yards.
It isn't readily clear who new quarterback Kirk Cousins' preferred targets are, though receivers like Tre Tucker and Jack Bech will likely get more looks if Bowers stays out another week. Mayers' status as a streaming option is strongly tied to whether Bowers plays, which fantasy managers need to keep an eye on ahead of Sunday's road battle against the New Orleans Saints.
Cade Otton, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Cade Otton is coming off a decent performance against the Cleveland Browns last week. The 27-year-old hauled in five of his six targets for 38 yards in the loss. He led the team with his five catches, but he was third on the team in receiving yards.
The expectation is that his role as a pass-catcher will be reduced this week. The Minnesota Vikings come to town this weekend for a tough Week 3 matchup. Otton is likely to be used more as a pass-blocker against the blitz-happy Vikings defensive line. He should offer low-end TE2 value, but most fantasy managers can find a more reliable option for this weekend.
Oronde Gadsden II, Los Angeles Chargers
Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh said that tight end Oronde Gadsden "had a very good week" and is "ready to step up" in Week 3 against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday with both Charlie Kolar (forearm) and David Njoku (leg) out, according to Alex Insdorf. Harbaugh added that he thinks Gadsden has improved as a blocker.
The 23-year-old should have been one of the more intriguing tight end pickups off the waiver wire after both Kolar and Njoku were injured in the team's Week 2 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders. Njoku is on Injured Reserve, and Kolar could miss several weeks with his injury. Gadsden only had two catches for 18 yards on Sunday against the Raiders, but he did manage to find the end zone for his first touchdown of the 2026 season.
The Bills have been vulnerable against tight ends early this season, so this could be the perfect storm for Gadsden to be an excellent streamer at the TE position. As a rookie last year, Gadsden caught 49 of his 69 targets for 664 yards and three touchdowns in 15 regular-season games.
Greg Dulcich, Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins tight end Greg Dulcich has played 77% and 61% of snaps in the first two weeks of the season for the Dolphins. However, he has just two catches in each game and hasn't reached 20 receiving yards in either contest.
The Dolphins are expected to remain a run-heavy attack, and Dulcich's 10% target share is too small to make him a fantasy option even in two-TE formats. This week at home against the Chiefs, Dulcich is the TE33 in RotoBaller's rankings, keeping him firmly off the fantasy radar at this point despite his starting role in Miami.
Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet caught a touchdown pass in Week 1, but he wasn't able to build on that season-opening performance. Instead, he finished Week 2 with one target and zero catches on a 69% snap share. It's been a weird year for Bears tight ends, as Kmet was held without a catch last week, and teammate Colston Loveland has just one catch this season despite playing more than 86% of the offensive snaps.
So far, the Bears have relied on their rushing attack, leading to reduced production from the tight ends and several wide receivers. To make matters worse, Kmet will have a quarterback downgrade in Week 3, as third-string quarterback Case Keenum is expected to make a start with Caleb Williams (hamstring) and Tyson Bagent (concussion) sidelined.
Being the No. 2 tight end in a run-heavy offense with a third-string quarterback is absolutely not a recipe for success. Kmet can be dropped to waivers in most redraft fantasy football leagues.
Who Should I Start Tool
You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.
Week 3 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Juwan Johnson, Oronde Gadsden II, Michael Mayer, Cade Otton, Trey McBride, Greg Dulcich, Evan Engram, Zach Ertz, Cole Kmet. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 3.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, players news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do, is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 3 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 3 (2026)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 3 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 3 for Juwan Johnson, Oronde Gadsden II, Michael Mayer, Cade Otton, Trey McBride, Greg Dulcich, Evan Engram, Zach Ertz, Cole Kmet.
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