Packers Fantasy Outlook in Week 4: Should You Start Jordan Love, Aaron Jones, Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson, Jayden Reed, Luke Musgrave and More
The Green Bay Packers host the Detroit Lions to kick off the fourth week of the NFL season on Thursday. The winning team will hold the NFC North lead outright.
Both teams roster several solid fantasy options for the upcoming week. Let’s look into the players from the Packers and determine whether or not you can start them.
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Jordan Love Fantasy Outlook
We’ll get the conversation started with Love, who has looked solid through three weeks.
Love doesn’t boast super great stats, having completed just 51 of his 96 attempts so far for 655 yards. He’s done a good job of taking care of the ball, throwing seven touchdowns and just one interception.
Love isn’t a huge running threat, but he’s shown he can also be effective running if he needs to. He’s gained 74 yards and scored once on 14 attempts. He’s not lost a fumble yet.
His passing stats aren’t all that impressive, but if he can continue to take care of the ball, he’s a possible streaming option every week.
The Packers are pretty banged up going into the Thursday matchup. A positive is that Love should get both running back Aaron Jones and wide receiver Christian Watson back. Jones hasn’t played since week 1 and Watson will be making his season debut.
Love is the 16th-ranked quarterback in our week 4 projections.
Aaron Jones, AJ Dillon Fantasy Outlook
Jones' return to the team would be a huge boost to the Packers’ offense. He was the focal point in the team’s season-opening win, going for 127 total yards and two touchdowns.
Jones rushed for 41 yards and a touchdown on nine carries that week. He caught two of the four passes thrown his way, going for 86 yards and a score.
Green Bay struggled without Jones the last two weeks, with the team’s running backs totaling just 69 yards in week 2 and 74 yards last week. Jones should be the focal point of the offense when on the field. He might be limited in his snaps, but he’ll be involved when he plays.
Jones was held in check in two games against Detroit a season ago. Jones went for 45 total yards on 11 touches in game one and 68 total yards on 15 touches in game two.
Dillon is looked to as a big, bruising back that’s supposed to complement Jones, but he’s struggled to get going. Dillon is averaging just 2.7 yards a carry, with 107 yards on 39 carries. He’s added three catches for 25 yards.
Dillon went for 67 rushing yards in two games against the Lions a year ago, with 34 in the first contest and 33 in the second.
Last week, Dillon lost snaps to Patrick Taylor and Emanuel Wilson, so he might not even be a true No. 2 option behind Jones any longer.
Jones is the 20th-ranked back, while Dillon comes in at 37th.
Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson, Jayden Reed Fantasy Outlook
With Watson out so far, Doubs and Reed have led the team’s receivers.
Doubs has 11 receptions on 20 targets, going for 129 yards and a team-leading three touchdowns. He’s played the second most snaps among pass catchers and has five red zone targets.
Doubs was limited to one catch on three targets in two games against Detroit last year. He played just one snap in the first game before an injury, and then just 23 snaps in the other game.
Reed has nine grabs on 20 targets this season, going for 148 yards and two scores. He has a team-leading seven red zone targets.
Watson will provide the Packers with a deep threat if he returns this Thursday. He caught 41 of the 66 passes thrown his way last season, going for 611 yards and seven touchdowns.
Watson caught two passes for 24 in the team’s first game against Detroit last year. He went for 104 yards on five grabs in the season finale.
Dontayvion Wicks is worth a mention as he’s played 114 snaps already. He’s caught six of the 12 passes thrown his way for 85 yards and a score. He’ll likely have a reduced role if Watson plays.
Doubs is the team’s top-ranked receiver at 26th. Watson is 36th and Reed is 42nd.
Luke Musgrave Fantasy Outlook
Musgrave is the team’s leader in snaps (157) among pass catchers. The rookie tight end has caught 11 passes on 15 targets.
Musgrave is up to 124 receiving yards, but has not scored. He has been targeted three times in the red zone, making two grabs.
The Green Bay rookie is the 17th-ranked tight end heading into the week.
Anders Carlson Fantasy Outlook
Carlson has gotten off to a strong start to his rookie season, making all three of his field goal attempts and all nine extra points. He’s made one kick over 50 yards.
His low usage on field goals so far has him as the 28th-ranked kicker in our projections.
Packers’ Defense Fantasy Outlook
The Packers’ defense is the 18th-ranked unit for week 4.
Green Bay is ranked in the middle of the league when it comes to slowing opposing quarterbacks and tight ends. They rank in the bottom 10 spots in stopping running backs, but are in the top 10 against wide receivers.
Who Should You Start?
Let’s start with Musgrave then. His targets and usage might dip with Jones and Watson back in the picture, but Musgrave is still a solid starting option given the Lions’ struggles against the run. If you are looking to stream a starter at TE this week, Musgrave is one of the better options available most likely.
Detroit has done a good job of slowing running backs on the ground, but have allowed them to find some success as pass catchers. That’s exactly what Jones excels at, so if he plays, I’m starting him, even if he might be limited. I’d avoid Dillon, even if Jones doesn’t play. I just can’t trust him after his slow start to the year, and he is a better runner than receiver, so he could struggle against Detroit.
The Lions are in the top half of the league in slowing opposing receivers. It’s hard to guess how things might shake out on a weekly basis with Watson, Doubs and Reed all vying for targets.
I think Watson will be on a pitch count for snaps, and I’d avoid him because of that. A good fantasy showing will be dependent on a big play or two, or a touchdown, and that’s too risky a play for me. If I was going to start a Packers’ receiver, I’d go with Doubs as he leads the team in touchdowns. However, I’d avoid starting Doubs and Reed simply because I think the production will be split pretty evenly amongst them all.
While Love is a solid streaming option that takes care of the ball, I’d also be against starting him this week. If Jones is back, the team will rely a bit more on the running game, which will make it difficult for Love to reach his projected numbers. I’d sit Love for that reason, unless your other streaming options are going against elite defenses.
I see the Green Bay, Detroit game as a low-scoring contest, so I think Carlson could get at least two field goal attempts. I wouldn’t add him to your team though, as there’s better options available out there.
The Lions’ offense has already turned the ball over five times through three weeks. With that in mind, and behind my thinking that it’ll be a low-scoring game, I think the Packers’ defense is a solid streaming option for week 4. Check out our weekly rankings to see if there's any better options available.
