We’ve passed the halfway point of the 2023 fantasy football season. Fantasy players can now see which of their draft picks were an excellent selection and which they were better off leaving for someone else in the league.
This week, four teams are on a bye, leaving fantasy players with some difficult decisions, especially at the wide receiver position. One of those decisions could be between starting Arizona Cardinals WR Marquise Brown or Kansas City Chiefs WR Rashee Rice. Let’s dive into it.
Should You Start Marquise Brown or Rashee Rice This Week?
According to the Pro Football Network Start/Sit Optimizer, PFN’s Consensus Rankings say Brown is the player to start. He is projected to score 9.3 half-point PPR fantasy points, with projections that include five receptions for 53.7 receiving yards and 0.2 touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Rice’s projection is for 9.2 fantasy points with 3.9 receptions for 52.4 receiving yards and 0.3 touchdowns this week.
I agree with the optimizer. Brown was a plug-and-play WR2 to start the year. However, poor QB play caused the star wide receiver to struggle. Nevertheless, he saw at least seven targets in all but one game over the first nine weeks this season.
While the veteran only saw four targets in Week 10, Brown nearly scored double-digit fantasy points against the Atlanta Falcons.
Meanwhile, Rice has been the Chiefs’ top wide receiver in 2023. But unfortunately, he hasn’t received the expanded workload fantasy players had hoped for. Instead, the former SMU star had only two targets in the Chiefs’ last game before the bye. Hopefully, things turn around in the back half of the year.
Brown’s Fantasy Outlook This Week
Despite playing with multiple quarterbacks this season, Brown is the WR29 for the year. He has averaged 9.5 half-point PPR fantasy points per game, scoring 12.3 or more in half of the contests.
Unfortunately, the Arizona WR has scored fewer than 6.5 fantasy points in four of the other five matchups. Thankfully, Kyler Murray made his season debut in Week 10 and looked like his old self.
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This week, Brown and the Cardinals take on the Houston Texans. They have held wide receivers to 25.4 fantasy points per game, slightly below the league average. However, Houston had no answers for the Bengals WRs in Week 10, giving up nearly 300 receiving yards, two touchdowns, and 49 fantasy points in the win.
Rice’s Fantasy Outlook This Week
While many had high hopes for Skyy Moore or Kadarius Toney to start the year, Rice has been the top Kansas City WR in 2023. The rookie is the WR43 for the year, averaging 8.6 half-point PPR fantasy ppg.
Rice has scored double-digit fantasy points in a third of the games this season. Furthermore, the former SMU star is second on the team in receptions (32), targets (41), and receiving yards (378). More importantly, he’s first in receiving touchdowns (four).
Following the team’s bye, the Chiefs will face the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night. Philadelphia has surrendered 39.1 fantasy points per game to wide receivers, the most in the NFL.
Furthermore, receivers have averaged 279.5 receiving yards, 2.5 touchdowns, and 52.5 fantasy points on average against the Eagles over the past two weeks. Hopefully, Rice sees his target share increase after having only two targets in Week 9.
Looking to make a trade in your fantasy league? Having trouble deciding who to start and who to sit? Setting DFS lineups? Check out PFN’s Free Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer and DFS Lineup Optimizer to help you make the right decision!