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Who Should I Start for Week 4? Fantasy Football outlooks for Bryce Young, Jacoby Brissett, Jalen Hurts, Jared Goff, Tyler Shough, Brock Purdy, Malik Willis, Patrick Mahomes, Michael Penix Jr., Cam Ward.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 4 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Bryce Young, Jacoby Brissett, Jalen Hurts, Jared Goff, Tyler Shough, Brock Purdy, Malik Willis, Patrick Mahomes, Michael Penix Jr., and Cam Ward. However, don't worry, we are here to help you make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 4. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 4 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 4 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 4:
Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young has a shot at a bounce-back performance when his team faces the Detroit Lions on Sunday night. The former first-overall draft pick led the league with 939 passing yards after Week 3, but also completed just 54.2% of his passes for 291 yards with one touchdown and one interception in a 21-18 loss to the Cleveland Browns. He was also nursing a knee injury following the loss, but was a full participant at Friday's practice.
Week 4 offers a golden opportunity to right the ship, given the Lions have allowed the most passing yards per game (299.3) and the second-most passing touchdowns (9) to start the 2026 season. Young is QB10 in RotoBaller's position ranking, and the upcoming matchup makes him a must-start for Week 4.
Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
Through three weeks, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy leads the NFL in touchdown passes and EPA per play, and he trails only Josh Allen in current MVP odds. Even as injuries mount for the 49ers offense, Purdy has remained unfazed, throwing nine touchdowns to only one interception while adding 93 yards and a rushing touchdown to make him the fantasy QB2 to this point, again behind only Allen.
The potential absence of free agent acquisition Mike Evans (ribs), who is dealing with a rib strain, could lower Purdy's ceiling in a Week 4 matchup with the Broncos, but he remains the perfect quarterback to operate Kyle Shanahan's high-level offense, and he is RotoBaller's QB7 for the week.
Tyler Shough, New Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough showed flashes of elite fantasy upside after taking over as starter midway through his 2025 rookie season, and he has rewarded fantasy managers who bought in as a 2026 sleeper. Through three weeks, Shough ranks third in the league with 912 passing yards, while his eight passing touchdowns trail only Brock Purdy and Kirk Cousins, making him the fantasy QB3 to begin the year.
Operating Kellen Moore's up-tempo offense, no player has seen more dropbacks or attempted more passes than Shough, and his surrounding cast, currently led by Chris Olave and tight end Juwan Johnson, should only grow stronger with 2026 first-round pick Jordyn Tyson (hamstring) nearing a return from the hamstring injury that landed him on injured reserve to begin the season.
Shough is RotoBaller's QB8 ahead of a Monday night tilt with the Falcons, and he is a player who can be trusted as a long-term QB1.
Jared Goff, Detroit Lions
Three games into his 2026 season, Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff has completed 70.6% of his pass attempts for 806 yards, eight touchdowns, and zero interceptions. With the Lions' defense struggling, Goff is averaging 36.3 pass attempts per game and has led the Detroit offense to three straight 30-plus-point performances. In Week 4, Goff and the Lions could find themselves in another high-scoring affair against the Carolina Panthers.
Carolina has been fairly stingy against the pass so far this season, allowing the fifth-fewest yards per pass attempt (6.1) in the NFL.
However, the Panthers placed starting cornerbacks Jaycee Horn (quad) and Mike Jackson (groin) on Injured Reserve on Wednesday. If Carolina's offense torches Detroit's 32nd-ranked pass defense, Goff could turn to the air early and often against the Panthers' banged-up secondary. Fantasy managers should view Goff as a solid QB1 option in Week 4.
Michael Penix Jr., Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (knee) made his first start in over 10 months in his team's Thursday night win over the Packers, and while he had obvious rust to work through early, he ended the night with 256 yards and a touchdown.
With the strange scheduling quirk of going from Thursday to Monday, the Falcons now have four extra days of rest and preparation ahead of a divisional clash with the Saints. After finishing as the fantasy QB21 in his return to action, Penix is a viable streaming option in a Week 4 matchup with one of the week's highest projected scores, and he is readily available on most waiver wires after going largely undrafted in single-quarterback leagues.
Who Should I Start Tool
You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.
Week 4 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Bryce Young, Jacoby Brissett, Jalen Hurts, Jared Goff, Tyler Shough, Brock Purdy, Malik Willis, Patrick Mahomes, Michael Penix, Cam Ward. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 4.
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 4 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 4 (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 4 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 4 for Bryce Young, Jacoby Brissett, Jalen Hurts, Jared Goff, Tyler Shough, Brock Purdy, Malik Willis, Patrick Mahomes, Michael Penix, Cam Ward.
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