Fantasy Football Week 4 Rankings: Flex and PPR Outlook for Each Position

As the NFL season progresses, fantasy football can get more challenging. Whether injuries or underperforming players have impacted you, you may find yourself trying to scrape together a worthwhile lineup on a given week.

But there are also advantages to this happening at least a few weeks into the season. Now that we've gotten three weeks of action, it's clear how offenses like to operate and which defenses may struggle to stop a particular position. There's data to analyze, and you can play the matchups when looking for fill-in players either on your bench or from the waiver wire.

Before setting your lineup for Week 4, make sure to do your research so you're starting the players who will give you the best chance to win.

To help with those decisions, here are points-per-reception rankings for each of the flex positions in Week 4.

1. Tennessee Titans RB Derrick Henry (at NYJ)

2. New Orleans Saints RB Alvin Kamara (vs. NYG)

3. Minnesota Vikings RB Dalvin Cook (vs. CLE)

4. Los Angeles Chargers RB Austin Ekeler (vs. LV)

5. Dallas Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott (vs. CAR)

6. Cleveland Browns RB Nick Chubb (at MIN)

7. Green Bay Packers RB Aaron Jones (vs. PIT)

8. Indianapolis Colts RB Jonathan Taylor (at MIA)

9. New York Giants RB Saquon Barkley (at NO)

10. Pittsburgh Steelers RB Najee Harris (at GB)

11. Washington Football Team RB Antonio Gibson (at ATL)

12. Chicago Bears RB David Montgomery (vs. DET)

13. Detroit Lions RB D'Andre Swift (at CHI)

14. Carolina Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard (at DAL)

15. Seattle Seahawks RB Chris Carson (at SF)

16. Kansas City Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire (at PHI)

17. Buffalo Bills RB Zack Moss (vs. HOU)

18. Cleveland Browns RB Kareem Hunt (at MIN)

19. Philadelphia Eagles RB Miles Sanders (vs. KC)

20. Miami Dolphins RB Myles Gaskin (vs. IND)

One player on this list who could be on the cusp of a breakout is D'Andre Swift, who already has gotten off to a strong start through the first three weeks of the season. The Lions running back has two touchdowns and has tallied at least 78 yards in each of the past two games.

Swift is already involved in both the running and passing games, but Detroit head coach Dan Campbell indicated this week that he may get even more touches out of the backfield moving forward.

"I certainly think you're going to see a lot more Swift and he could very easily be out there first play," Campbell said, per Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. "He's done enough to earn that if that's what you're asking, for sure."

So expect a solid performance from Swift, who may end up as one of the top fantasy running backs in the league by the end of 2021.

1. Kansas City Chiefs WR Tyreek Hill (at PHI)

2. Green Bay Packers WR Davante Adams (vs. PIT)

3. Los Angeles Rams WR Cooper Kupp (vs. ARI)

4. Buffalo Bills WR Stefon Diggs (vs. HOU)

5. Los Angeles Chargers WR Mike Williams (vs. LV)

6. Washington Football Team WR Terry McLaurin (at ATL)

7. Minnesota Vikings WR Justin Jefferson (vs. CLE)

8. Los Angeles Chargers WR Keenan Allen (vs. LV)

9. Carolina Panthers WR DJ Moore (at DAL)

10. Seattle Seahawks WR DK Metcalf (at SF)

11. Atlanta Falcons WR Calvin Ridley (vs. WAS)

12. Dallas Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb (vs. CAR)

13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin (at NE)

14. Minnesota Vikings WR Adam Thielen (vs. CLE)

15. Dallas Cowboys WR Amari Cooper (vs. CAR)

16. Seattle Seahawks WR Tyler Lockett (at SF)

17. Arizona Cardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins (at LAR)

18. Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Mike Evans (at NE)

19. San Francisco 49ers WR Deebo Samuel (vs. SEA)

20. Houston Texans WR Brandin Cooks (at BUF)

Can Cooper Kupp continue the level of production he's shown through three weeks? He's showing no signs of slowing down at this point, as he has 25 catches for 367 yards and five touchdowns.

Maybe Kupp will slow down a bit. But there's a good chance that more huge performances are on the way for the Rams wide receiver, who has quickly developed a connection with quarterback Matthew Stafford. And with Sunday's game against the Cardinals likely to be a high-scoring matchup, it's hard to imagine that Kupp won't get in on the action.

Fantasy managers can't bench Kupp at this point because of his success, but they also shouldn't want to. Even if he doesn't score two touchdowns again in Week 4, he should put up solid numbers.

1. Kansas City Chiefs TE Travis Kelce (at PHI)

2. Las Vegas Raiders TE Darren Waller (at LAC)

3. San Francisco 49ers TE George Kittle (vs. SEA)

4. Washington Football Team TE Logan Thomas (at ATL)

5. Detroit Lions TE T.J. Hockenson (at CHI)

6. Baltimore Ravens TE Mark Andrews (at DEN)

7. Los Angeles Chargers TE Jared Cook (vs. LV)

8. Green Bay Packers TE Robert Tonyan (vs. PIT)

9. Los Angeles Rams TE Tyler Higbee (vs. ARI)

10. Philadelphia Eagles TE Dallas Goedert (vs. KC)

Logan Thomas is clearly a big part of Washington's offense, considering he's played every snap through the first three weeks of the season. That's rare for a tight end, but the team doesn't have enough playmakers to afford not to play Thomas at a high rate.

Since Taylor Heinicke has taken over as Washington's quarterback, Thomas has continued to be the same reliable fantasy tight end. He's scored a touchdown in two of the team's first three games, and he's had between 30 and 45 yards every week.

With a favorable matchup against Atlanta, Thomas may be poised for his best showing yet. Expect him to get into the end zone again and perhaps have even more passes come his way.