Jakobi Meyers or Josh Palmer Start 'Em Sit 'Em: WR projections for Chargers vs. Raiders in fantasy football Week 4

Jakobi Meyers and Josh Palmer will enter Week 4 of the 2023 NFL season in relatively similar fantasy football situations. They each serve as the WR2 for their teams and play behind a dominant WR1. They have both still found plenty of ways to be solid fantasy contributors, as demonstrated by their recent history of production.

While Meyers has always been in his WR2 role for the 2023 season, Palmer has been elevated there because Mike Williams got injured. He will try to capitalize on the new opportunity like he did last year. Both wide receivers have upside in their Week 4 matchup against each other, making it fair to debate which is the better fantasy football option.

Is Jakobi Meyers a good pick in fantasy football Week 4?

Jakobi Meyers

In his first year with his new team, Jakobi Meyers has immediately made a major impact for the Las Vegas Raiders. His fantasy football value came into question prior to the start of the season, after going from a WR1 with the New England Patriots to the WR2 for the Raiders. He would also need to compete with Davante Adams, one of the most-productive wide receivers in the NFL, for target share.

Meyers had little compeition for targets in New England last year, partially accounting for his breakout season. He immediately demonstrated in Week 1 this year that he can still be a fantasy football assett, despite his relatively demoted role. He exploded in his first game in Las Vegas, posting nine receptions on ten targets for 81 yards and two touchdowns, finishing as the WR3 in PPR leagues.

After missing Week 2 with an injury, Jakobi Meyers was back at it again in Week 3, recording seven receptions on 12 targets for 85 yards, posting another strong WR25 finish in fantasy football. This brings his season averages up to eight receptions on 11 targets for 83 yards and a touchdown. This currently makes him a WR2 on most fantasy rosters, based on his output so far. This is much better than he was expected to do prior to the start of the season, though it has only been two games so far.

Up next for Meyers is an extremely favorable matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. They are currently allowing the most fantasy points per game to opposing wide receivers. The only major concern when considering Meyers for fantasy lineups this week is that quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has been officially ruled out after failing to clear the concussion protocols.

This means that Aidan O'Connell will be making the first start of his career. The rookie quarterback had an excellent preseason with the Raiders, which is why they decided to start him, instead of their usual backup, Brian Hoyer. As long as O'Connell is able to have a competent game passing the ball, Meyers should, once again, be a strong option for Week 4 lineups in fantasy football.

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Is Josh Palmer a good pick in fantasy football Week 4?

Josh Palmer

The Los Angeles Chargers received terrible news during the Week 3 victory against the Minnesota Vikings when Mike Williams suffered a season-ending injury. This means that Josh Palmer and Quentin Johnston are likely in line to see a significant increase in playing time alongside WR1 Keenan Allen. The two wide receivers had been splitting time as the WR3, but should both be on the field for the majority of their offensive snaps for the rest of the season.

Palmer will reportedly be the one elevated into Williams' role, making him the better fantasy football option than Johnston, for now at least. He was the one who saw the biggest uptick in production in Week 3 for the remainder of the game after Williams was removed. He posted his best game of the season so far, recording four receptions on seven targets for 66 yards and a touchdown, finishing among the top 30 wide receivers in fantasy football.

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Palmer has been no stranger to top 30 finishes, as he recorded six of them during the 2022 NFL season last year when filling in for Allen and Williams for injuries at various different times. Him doing so makes his fantasy football outlook relatively bright for the rest of the 2023 NFL season. He already has chemistry with quarterback Justin Herbert in one of the most high-powered passing offenses in the entire league.

Week 4 offers Josh Palmer an excellent opportunity to get his role as a starter for the remainder of the year off to a good start. The Las Vegas Raiders are one of only 12 teams allowing more than 30 fantasy points per game to opposing wide receivers. This is despite two of their games being against the Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers, two of the worst offenses in the NFL so far this year.

The Chargers represent a much more dangerous offense, which could have given the Raiders serious issues. The last time they played a top-tier offense, the Buffalo Bills scored 38 points against them. This suggests that the Chargers' offense should have little issue moving the ball against them. Pair that with Palmer's proven success as a fill-in wide receiver, and he could be in store for a breakout game in fantasy football.

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To acquire any of these wide receiver options, make sure to reference the fantasy football trade analyzer first.

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Jakobi Meyers vs. Josh Palmer: Who should I start in Week 4?

Meyers vs. Palmer in Week 4

According to Sportskeeda's Start/Sit Optimizer, Jakobi Meyers makes for a better fantasy football wide receiver than Josh Palmer in Week 4 of the 2023 NFL season. While they are projected to have similar volume this week, Meyers' higher yardage projection, as well as his higher likelihodd to score a touchdown, give him more upside than Palmer in this particular week.

This situation is an example of how important matchups can be when making fantasy football projections. With how much the Chargers have struggled to defend opposing wide receivers so far this year, Meyers theoretically has an edge. Also contributing to his higher fantasy projection could be that Aidan O'Connell is set to be the Raiders starting quarterback.

It's entirely possible that with the rookie quarterback making his first start, they could potentially be playing from behind for much of the game. If this is the case, game script would suggest that the Raiders will have to pass the ball often. This could be beneficial to Meyers' fantasy output in this game, especially after O'Connell demonstrated a preference for pushing the ball downfield during his preseason appearances.