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Who should I start for Week 1? Fantasy football outlooks for Brandon Aubrey, Jake Elliott, Eagles D/ST. Our expert fantasy football start 'em, sit 'em picks.
The 2025 NFL season is almost here, and it will kick off with a Thursday Night matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles. Of course, both teams have high-powered offenses and maintained most of their offensive roster makeup, with the Cowboys in particular making key additions.
Thus, the matchup projects to be highly fantasy-relevant, with most leagues having managers intending on starting multiple players from each offense as some of their key players in their lineups. Additionally, each squad has defenses that have been great producers in recent years.
Both teams' kickers, and the Eagles' defense in particular, have the potential to put up solid numbers this weekend. Key details about each team's makeup and how the game should go will factor in here, so should you start Brandon Aubrey, Jake Elliott, and the Eagles D/ST in Week 1?
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Should I Start Brandon Aubrey for Fantasy Football Week 1?
Aubrey finished as the No. 1 kicker in fantasy football in 2023, his first season as a pro, and followed that up by finishing as the No. 2 overall kicker in 2024. So there's little reason not to start him. In fact, there's plenty of reason to believe that, as long as he doesn't randomly start missing kicks, he could easily finish top-2 yet again.
The Cowboys have one of the NFL's best regular-season offenses. They led the league in scoring in 2023 with a healthy Prescott, scoring 29.9 points per game, and finished fourth in 2022, with 27.5 points per contest. All this scoring gives Aubrey a healthy dose of scoring opportunities.
Probably the most obvious thing ever, but the Cowboys offense should allow Brandon Aubrey plenty of opportunities to score, so even if his accuracy regresses a bit he'll still be a great fantasy play and a must-start kicker. pic.twitter.com/H1zL7EIrZI
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) August 31, 2025
There isn't much reason to doubt Aubrey at this point. He's 30 years old, but kickers can remain highly accurate and valuable fantasy assets well into their 30s. The bodily demands, high level of injuries, and youthful explosiveness required aren't nearly as massive as they are for players at other positions.
Instead, an extreme level of control over their muscles, as well as an ability to concentrate and confidence, take a front seat here. Aubrey clearly doesn't lack any of these things, as he's played on the biggest stages for two seasons now and hasn't skipped a beat. Against any team, he's a must-start, so lock him into your lineups for Week 1.
Should I Start Jake Elliott for Fantasy Football Week 1?
After finishing as the No. 3 overall kicker in fantasy football in 2023, Elliott regressed markedly. It's not like he had a lot fewer attempts, though. In fact, he logged 36 field goal attempts in 2024 after making just 32 such kicks in 2023. However, it was on long field goals that he suffered accuracy issues.
After making seven of eight field goals from 50 or more yards out in 2023, he attempted seven such kicks in 2024 and made just one. Those six misses accounted for negative six fantasy points in leagues with normal kicking scoring settings. His overall accuracy plummeted from 93.8 percent to just 77.8 percent.
Jake Elliott's 4 misses in the last 3 games all look the same. pic.twitter.com/bLMWckO4gT
— Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) January 21, 2025
His accuracy on the remainder of the lengths of his kicks was roughly the same. He missed just two kicks from inside 40 yards in 2024, one more than in the previous season, and just one more extra point. Still, in a potential shootout with the Cowboys, he's a good start based on potential scoring alone.
He was likely one of the late kickers selected in drafts, so it's not like you were reaching for the position if you drafted him, or maybe you did if you're an Eagles fan, and that's fine too.
Should I Start Eagles D/ST for Fantasy Football Week 1?
This is a tough question to answer. The Eagles had one of the league's best defenses last season. They finished as the No. 5 overall defense, scoring nine points per game, by recovering 12 fumbles, intercepting 13 passes, scoring a defensive touchdown, and allowing just 17.8 points per game, the fewest in the league.
However, even the best of defenses are vulnerable to high-powered, explosive offenses. That's exactly what the Cowboys have, and the Eagles lost plenty of talent on defense, with two of their key pass-rushers and a very good defensive tackle now no longer on their roster after playing a year ago.
Eagles defense over the last 6 games:
12.6 points per game
211.3 yards per game
6 total offensive touchdowns
1st in EPA/playVic Fangio, take a bow. pic.twitter.com/NYn1hfz1b4
— Brenden Deeg (@BrendenDeeg_) November 15, 2024
Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio remains, though, and he's one of the league's best and most well-respected coordinators on either side of the ball in the league. And the Eagles massively bolstered their secondary in the 2024 NFL Draft, taking both cornerback Quinyon Mitchell and safety Cooper DeJean. Both immediately had great rookie seasons.
They have talented players set to step into the gaps vacated by the departing starters, and selected linebacker Jihaad Campbell in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. So they're worth starting, but know that there's plenty of risk in doing so.
While their run defense could take a hit without defensive tackle Milton Williams, the Cowboys haven't invested much in their backfield. It consists of two non-explosive veterans and two rookies now. So the Eagles should lean into the strength of their secondary heavily and come out on top.
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Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 1 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Brandon Aubrey, Jake Elliott, and Eagles D/ST Outlooks. 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.
Week 1 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Brandon Aubrey, Jake Elliott, Eagles D/ST. 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's name. In the second box, search for the second player's 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, enhanced search results with data to compare, and 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 circles), 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 Week 1 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Brandon Aubrey, Jake Elliott, Eagles D/ST compared to others:
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