Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 1: Opening Fantasy Football Lineup Decisions to Consider

Selecting the optimal fantasy football lineup in Week 1 of the NFL season is more difficult than other weeks. 

With only numbers from past seasons to base your decisions off of, not every player in your lineup will have success on opening weekend. 

Not every choice will be difficult, as there are some favorable matchups in Week 1, but there are also some difficult positional battles that could sway your decision-making up to the kickoff of the 1 p.m. ET games. 

In order to have the most success in Week 1, reliable options from past years should be counted on, but there's also room to take some risks.

Quarterback

Matchup Comparisons (Better pick in bold)

Aaron Rodgers (Green Bay, vs. Chicago) vs. Tom Brady (New England, vs. Houston) 

Matthew Stafford (Detroit, vs. New York Jets) vs. Drew Brees (New Orleans, vs. Tampa Bay) 

Patrick Mahomes (Kansas City, at LA Chargers) vs. Alex Smith (Washington, at Arizona) 

Ben Roethlisberger (Pittsburgh, at Cleveland) vs. Russell Wilson (Seattle, at Denver) 

Start: Jared Goff, Los Angeles Rams (at Oakland) 

There's plenty of reason to believe the Los Angeles Rams will tear up the Oakland Raiders defense in Monday's second game. 

Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press

The high-powered Rams offense led by Jared Goff is poised to break down an Oakland defense with a gaping hole in the middle of the field left open by the Khalil Mack trade. 

In his career against AFC opposition, Goff is 4-2 with 10 touchdowns and two interceptions and an average of 230 passing yards. 

If he totals right around that average in passing yards and throws a few touchdowns, Goff will produce one of the top fantasy quarterback scores of Week 1. 

If you're a Raiders fan, there isn't much hope the defense will stop Goff, as they conceded 4,046 passing yards and 24 touchdown passes in 2017. 

Sit: Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco (at Minnesota) 

Jimmy Garoppolo is the sexy name in NFL circles after his impressive end-of-season run with the San Francisco 49ers. 

Eric Christian Smith/Associated Press

While Garoppolo will be successful in 2018, he won't have a great Week 1, as he goes up against Minnesota's treacherous defense at U.S. Bank Stadium. 

During the 49ers' five-game winning streak in December, Garoppolo didn't face a tough road test, as he defeated Chicago, Houston and the Rams when they benched their starters in Week 17. 

The Vikings ranked second in passing defense a season ago, and they return most of the core that took them to the NFC Championship Game. 

Garoppolo will deliver a few completions that look appealing and give fantasy owners hope for the 2018 season, but we'd suggest being patient on making him your starting quarterback. 

Running Back

Matchup Comparison

Todd Gurley (LA Rams, at Oakland) vs. Alvin Kamara (New Orleans, vs. Tampa Bay) 

Ezekiel Elliott (Dallas, at Carolina) vs. Leonard Fournette (Jacksonville, at New York Giants) 

Kareem Hunt (Kansas City, at LA Chargers) vs. Joe Mixon (Cincinnati, at Indianapolis) 

Start: James Conner, Pittsburgh (at Cleveland) 

If everything went to plan between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Le'Veon Bell, we wouldn't even be mentioning James Conner in a fantasy conversation.

Keith Srakocic/Associated Press

But since the two sides aren't on the best of terms, Conner is the starting running back while both camps try to get Bell back into the mix. 

It's easy to be skeptical of Conner's Week 1 production because he's carried the ball 32 times for 144 yards in his young NFL career. 

However, he's worth the risk because of how well versed the Pittsburgh offense is with Ben Roethlisberger picking out Antonio Brown and Juju Smith-Schuster through the air.

Cleveland won't be able to commit extra bodies in the box for the entire game because of the threat the Pittsburgh passing game possesses. 

Look for Conner to take advantage of his opportunity and exploit the holes in the Browns' defense as they try to limit the big plays in the passing game. 

Sit: LeSean McCoy, Buffalo (at Baltimore)

There aren't many positive things you could say about the Buffalo Bills offense coming into Sunday's clash with the Baltimore Ravens. 

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

Expectations are remarkably low with Nathan Peterman under center, and if the Ravens are smart, they'll focus in on LeSean McCoy and make him an ineffective safety valve for the quarterback. 

In his career, McCoy's played 69 road games and 64 home games, and despite playing more on the road, he has 22 fewer touchdowns than he's had in home stadiums. 

Between the above statistics and rain in the forecast for Sunday, McCoy isn't the best option to start in Week 1. 

Of course, there are some owners who are going to have to roll the dice with McCoy because he is one of their two trusted running backs, but if you have depth at the position, try to use your other running backs. 

Wide Receiver

Matchup Comparison

Antonio Brown (Pittsburgh, at Cleveland) vs. DeAndre Hopkins (Houston, at New England) 

Larry Fitzgerald (Arizona, vs. Washington) vs. Chris Hogan (New England, vs. Houston) 

Stefon Diggs (Minnesota, vs. San Francisco) vs. Davante Adams (Green Bay, vs. Chicago) 

Start: Golden Tate, Detroit (vs. New York Jets) 

If you started Golden Tate in Week 1 a year ago, you were rewarded with quite a haul of fantasy points, as he totaled 107 receiving yards on 10 receptions. 

Rick Osentoski/Associated Press

Expect similar production out of Tate in the first of two Monday games, as he faces the New York Jets, who were 21st in passing defense in 2017. 

Tate had three 100-yard receiving games in 2017, and he had two others in which he eclipsed the 90-yard mark, but the one concerning factor is his lack of touchdowns. 

However, you can look past the five touchdown catches Tate had last season because of the connection he's built with quarterback Matthew Stafford. 

If the Lions dissect the Jets' secondary like they're expected to, Tate will hit double-digit fantasy points with ease. 

Sit: Sammy Watkins, Kansas City (at Los Angeles Chargers) 

Sammy Watkins was one of the most disappointing players in preseason, and there's no sign of him putting it all together for the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1. 

Charlie Riedel/Associated Press

The 25-year-old, who is playing for his third NFL team since entering the league in 2014, hasn't performed well in September. 

In 12 September games, Watkins has been targeted on 70 occasions, but he's only come up with 43 receptions. 

Watkins also faces a tough matchup in Week 1, as he goes up against a Los Angeles Chargers secondary that had the third-best passing defense in the NFL in 2017. 

Combine those factors with Patrick Mahomes making his first-career start and Watkins becomes a must-bench player Sunday. 

Tight End

Matchup Comparison 

Rob Gronkowski (New England, vs. Houston) vs. Jimmy Graham (Green Bay, vs. Chicago) 

Delanie Walker (Tennessee, at Miami) vs. Trey Burton (Chicago, at Green Bay) 

Travis Kelce (Kansas City, at LA Chargers) vs. Kyle Rudolph (Minnesota, vs. San Francisco) 

Start: Tyler Eifert, Cincinnati (at Indianapolis) 

When healthy, Tyler Eifert is a valuable asset for Andy Dalton in the Cincinnati Bengals offense.

Gail Burton/Associated Press

Eifert enters the Week 1 matchup with the Indianapolis Colts with a point to prove after missing the majority of the last two seasons with injuries. 

In 2017, the Colts gave up eight touchdowns to tight ends, which tied for the fourth-highest mark in the NFL. 

Helping Eifert's case further is Andy Dalton's career numbers against the Colts, as the Bengals quarterback has 908 passing yards and six touchdowns with zero interceptions in four games versus Indianapolis. 

Sit: Evan Engram, New York Giants (vs. Jacksonville) 

Facing the Jacksonville secondary, led by Jalen Ramsey, in Week 1 was never to going to suit Evan Engram's potential fantasy numbers. 

But that isn't the only thing going against the New York Giants Sunday, as the offense will revolve around two stars. 

With Sunday's game being the first since Odell Beckham Jr.'s new contract was signed, the three-time Pro Bowler is going to demand the ball in most key situations. 

Engram will be denied opportunities in short-yardage scenarios as well, as the Giants put trust in rookie running back Saquon Barkley to pick up first downs and score in the red zone. 

Over the course of the season, Engram will run into favorable matchups, but there's too much going against him in Week 1. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90

Statistics obtained from Pro Football Reference