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Who Should I Start for Week 1? Fantasy Football outlooks for D'Andre Swift, DK Metcalf, Chris Olave, Tucker Kraft, Jordan Mason, Keon Coleman, Trevor Lawrence, Josh Downs, Rashod Bateman, Ollie Gordon, Mike Evans.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 1 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like D'Andre Swift, DK Metcalf, Chris Olave, Tucker Kraft, Jordan Mason, Keon Coleman, Trevor Lawrence, Josh Downs, Rashod Bateman, Ollie Gordon, Mike Evans. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 1. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 1 of the 2025 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.
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Fantasy Football Matchup 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 1:
D'Andre Swift, RB, Chicago Bears
Dan Wiederer of The Athletic believes Chicago Bears running back D'Andre Swift could surpass 1,500 yards from scrimmage this season. While that mark may not be realistic, there are more than a few reasons to believe Swift might be in line for his best year to date. Ben Johnson, the former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator and new Bears head coach, was instrumental in the success of Jamaal Williams, David Montgomery, and Jahmyr Gibbs.
With Johnson "devoted" to the run and the Bears lacking proven depth in the backfield, the door is open for Swift to thrive. The 26-year-old has bounced around the National Football League since being selected in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. In 73 regular-season contests with the Lions, Eagles, and Bears, he's accumulated 3,688 yards and 29 touchdowns off 846 carries, adding eight more scores as a pass-catcher.
Quarterback Caleb Williams will certainly get his opportunities to run in 2025. However, Swift should remain atop the depth chart as long as he's productive. If not, rookie Kyle Monangai could be the favorite to take over in the backfield.
DK Metcalf, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver DK Metcalf will get his first game action with the team in a Week 1 road matchup against the New York Jets. Metcalf is coming off his least productive campaign since his rookie season, though he still averaged an impressive 15 yards per catch in 2024.
Now with a new contract and a new quarterback, Metcalf will hope to re-establish himself as a true WR1. This won't be an easy task, however, against a New York defense that ranked top-10 last season in receptions, yards, touchdowns, and fantasy points allowed to receivers.
Still, Metcalf's potential target volume is tough to overlook given Pittsburgh's lack of depth at the position. While an explosive outing is relatively unlikely, Metcalf is a viable WR2 or flex play in most fantasy leagues this week.
Chris Olave, WR, New Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints wide receiver Chris Olave caught all three of his targets for 29 yards in Saturday's 28-19 loss to the Broncos. He and second-year quarterback Spencer Rattler showed early chemistry, connecting on a 12-yard gain during the Saints' first drive, which was an encouraging sign for fans.
Still, shaky quarterback play remains a concern and will likely cap Olave's ceiling in fantasy. Currently going off the board as WR34, he's worth a mid-to-late round pick thanks to his reliable target share.
As long as he stays healthy, Olave should remain the clear top pass-catching option in Kellen Moore's new-look offense.
Jordan Mason, RB, Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings running back Jordan Mason was viewed as a "massive" part of Minnesota's offseason plan, according to head coach Kevin O'Connell. During the spring, the Vikings acquired Mason via a trade. During the 2024 campaign, Mason emerged as a key contributor to the San Francisco rushing attack when Christian McCaffrey was sidelined.
On a career-high 153 carries, Mason tallied 789 yards and three scores. During the first seven weeks, Mason flashed RB1 upside as he averaged a strong 14.8 PPR points per game and averaged 95.3 yards per game during this stretch. In addition, reports from Vikings camp suggest the team views him and veteran Aaron Jones as "Co-RB1s."
While Jones will likely see the slight majority of carries, Mason possesses much higher upside given his age and speed. He is worth viewing as a standalone flex option and a high-upside handcuff if Jones were to miss time.
Keon Coleman, WR, Buffalo Bills
Buffalo Bills wide receiver Keon Coleman (groin) enters his second NFL season as a breakout candidate. The 2024 second-round pick only caught 29 of 57 targets in 13 games last season, but he averaged 19.2 yards per grab and found the end zone four times. Coleman's stock appeared to be on the rise before he suffered a wrist injury in Week 9. He sat out for over a month as a result, and he was a non-factor upon his return.
Despite ending 2024 on a sour note, Coleman has drawn rave reviews this summer for his performance in practice. It's anyone's guess if that will translate in the regular season, which begins Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens.
The 6-foot-4, 215-pounder has been limited in practice with a groin injury, but it shouldn't prevent him from playing. While Coleman may still carry too much risk for fantasy managers to trust this week, it'll be a positive sign if he's productive against an imposing Baltimore secondary
Who Should I Start Tool
You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.
Week 1 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - D'Andre Swift, DK Metcalf, Chris Olave, Tucker Kraft, Jordan Mason, Keon Coleman, Trevor Lawrence, Josh Downs, Rashod Bateman, Ollie Gordon, Mike Evans. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 1.
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, 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 that 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 1 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 1 (2025)? 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 1 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 1 for D'Andre Swift, DK Metcalf, Chris Olave, Tucker Kraft, Jordan Mason, Keon Coleman, Trevor Lawrence, Josh Downs, Rashod Bateman, Ollie Gordon, Mike Evans:
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