Week 4: Nate Gets a Win, Daniel Gets Even

Nacua returned to the scoresheet after two scoreless weeks in Nate's starting lineup, and he had company. Eight of Nate's 11 starters reached double figures, including Lamar Jackson with 22.88 and Rhamondre Stevenson with 16.90. Nate posted the week's third-highest score and his largest winning margin against Kevin in 20 meetings.

Kevin's receivers gave him little chance to keep up. They fell from 56.00 points in Week 3 to 19.70, with DJ Moore scoring 2.20 in 23 snaps and Ja'Marr Chase adding 4.20 in 15. DK Metcalf scored 14.00 on the bench, alongside Ollie Gordon's 17.00.

Those omissions made the loss worse, but neither caused it. Even Kevin's best legal lineup would have scored 128.60, still 17.78 short of Nate. Kevin fell to 2-2 with his lowest score since last season's fifth-place game, also against Nate. Nate now leads the series 11-9.

At 1-3, Nate has more reason for encouragement than the standings suggest. Brian Robinson scored 25.20 on his bench, and his roster could have produced 180.78 with perfect lineup choices. That would have edged Daniel's league-leading score by 0.12. Nate can save that particular complaint for a week when he loses.

Kenneth Walker scored 30.40 and Chuba Hubbard added 25.40 as Tony survived the week's closest game. His four starting running backs combined for 75.80, enough to keep him unbeaten despite another tight-end misfire.

Tony started Dalton Kincaid and got 1.20. Colston Loveland scored 8.70 on the bench. In all four weeks, Tony's reserve tight end has outscored his starter, and he has tried it both ways. At this point, the unused roster spot deserves a game ball.

Kyle Monangai's 27.50 on the bench also exceeded David Montgomery's 4.30. Tony finished 34.06 points below his best possible lineup for the week. Through four games, that gap totals a league-high 106.36 points. These are points available through legal lineup changes, not the sum of everything his reserves scored.

Andrew came much closer to getting the most out of his roster. He promoted Tyler Shough after watching him outscore Jalen Hurts from the bench by 4.22 and then 19.18 in the previous two weeks. This time Shough scored 17.94 to Hurts' 17.52. Andrew made the switch in time to collect 42 hundredths of a point.

Carnell Tate and Devaughn Vele added 17.00 and 14.40 after promotions of their own. Andrew reached 97.4% of his maximum possible score, the league's best mark. Even a perfect lineup would have lost by 6.28.

Tony moved to 4-0 and took a 13-9 series lead. Andrew fell to 1-3. Our advice department would like to refer all complaints to Kenneth Walker.

Tetairoa McMillan scored 38.20, CeeDee Lamb added 32.80, and Daniel more than doubled his Week 3 total of 87.84. A week after finishing last in scoring, he beat every team in the league and posted the second-highest score of his career.

His receivers accounted for 84.20 points, up from 28.00. Daniel also got 25.50 from newly promoted Emanuel Wilson and 25.46 from Bryce Young, whose start over Dak Prescott added 5.36 points. Those moves helped Daniel reach 97% of his maximum possible score. He still left 5.50 available through Tank Bigsby, so the afternoon fell short of perfect. Jonathan would have accepted considerably less.

Jonathan got 31.70 from Kyren Williams, but his receivers combined for 22.40 and Kenyon Sadiq scored zero at tight end. Tucker Kraft's 13.50 on the bench would have helped; it would not have rescued him. Jonathan's optimal lineup would still have lost by 26.26.

Daniel improved to 2-2 and evened the series at 3-3. The managers have alternated wins across all six meetings without playing one closer than 25.88 points. They take turns, but they do not share suspense.

Thinh handed Patrick his first loss with eight double-digit starters and 71.30 points from his running backs. Jonathan Taylor led that group with 22.20, while Zay Flowers and Tee Higgins each topped 21. Thinh's 177.62 ranks 11th among the 261 weekly scores in his team history.

He also got a small return on a quarterback switch that looked bold after Week 3. Brock Purdy had scored 39.28, but Thinh started Joe Burrow, who finished with 25.72 to Purdy's 23.62. The gain was 2.10. The rest of the lineup supplied plenty of room for error.

Patrick got 27.30 from Nico Collins and 27.20 from Bijan Robinson. Elsewhere, he lost much of the production behind his 184.86-point Week 3: Sam Darnold dropped from 35.66 to 17.32, and his kicker and defense combined for three points after supplying 25 the week before.

Patrick still leads the league in season-long lineup efficiency at 94%, a tenth of a percentage point ahead of Thinh. He had only 9.60 more points available on his roster this week, far short of the 47.60-point margin. Thinh moved to 4-0, leads the league with 640.54 points, and has beaten Patrick three straight times.

Javonte Williams supplied 28.80 points, and Sam LaPorta and George Kittle combined for 33.40 as John won his second straight game. Even with Breece Hall and Justin Jefferson unavailable on his bench, John had enough production to beat Dashon by 48.30 and return to .500.

Dashon got 20.30 from Alvin Kamara and 20.20 from Malik Nabers. Three other starters combined for 1.50. Terry McLaurin did not play, Rashee Rice played six snaps without scoring a fantasy point, and Saquon Barkley managed four snaps and 1.50 points. All three carried hamstring designations in the weekly data.

Malachi Fields' 12.20 and Wan'Dale Robinson's 9.50 on the bench would have softened the damage. Dashon scored 70.6% of his maximum possible total, the week's lowest efficiency, but even perfect selections would have left him 13.52 short. He fell to 0-4 with his lowest score since 2023.

John's own lineup change offered little help. He promoted Kalif Raymond after an 18.00-point week and got 1.60. John has learned that he can change his lineup badly and still win.

Dashon's search for a first win meets Kevin's attempt to recover from a 102.90-point week. Dashon ranks last in season scoring and Kevin third from the bottom. Dashon's biggest immediate concern is availability after McLaurin, Rice, and Barkley combined for 1.50. Kevin needs his receivers to recover from their 19.70-point outing.

The rivalry has seen better standings. In 2011, 2012, and 2013, these two met in the semifinals three years running. Kevin won the first on his way to the title; Dashon won the next two. They enter this meeting tied 18-18, with Kevin having won the last two.

Dashon has yet to score more than 122.40 this season. Kevin reached 150.22 in Week 3 before dropping 47.32 points last week. There is an opening here for Dashon, but he needs enough healthy production to use it.

Patrick brings the better record at 3-1. John, at 2-2, has scored 9.40 more points through four weeks and enters on a two-game winning streak. A win would pull John level on record with the defending champion.

Patrick's Collins-Robinson pairing supplied 54.50 points in Week 4. John countered with 62.20 from Javonte Williams, LaPorta, and Kittle. Both have productive cores; John will want more from his receivers, who totaled 22.50 last week, while Patrick needs a rebound from Darnold after his 18.34-point decline.

John leads the series 20-11 and has won four of the last five, including his career-best 214.00 in 2023. Patrick has enough current production to make this competitive. He could use a little less of the usual history.

Andrew has lost three straight despite extracting a league-best 97.4% of his available points in Week 4. His next opponent is 4-0 Thinh, who has scored 112.90 more points through four games.

That is a production gap Andrew cannot assume a better lineup choice will fix. Tate and Vele gave him 31.40 points after entering the lineup last week; he needs that help to continue against a team coming off 177.62. Thinh's four starting backs alone outscored Andrew's three by 40.30 in Week 4.

The all-time series is tied 18-18. Andrew won both regular-season meetings last year before Thinh took their third-place game. Thinh also owns the rivalry's biggest performance, a 215.82-point semifinal in 2019 on his way to the title. Andrew would settle for keeping this one out of the record book.

Daniel follows his 180.66-point week with a test against 4-0 Tony, the league's second-highest scorer. McMillan and Lamb supplied 71.00 points in Daniel's win. Tony's starting running backs supplied 75.80 in his. A repeat from either group would put considerable pressure on the other lineup.

Tony has more room to improve his selections after finishing 34.06 points below his Week 4 maximum. The Monangai-Montgomery choice and the weekly Kincaid-Loveland torment merit attention against an opponent who just outscored him by 38.14.

Tony leads the series 5-3 and has won the last three. His career-best 189.10 came against Daniel last year in an 86.12-point win. Daniel has an 85.00-point win of his own in this matchup; none of their eight meetings has finished closer than 20.00. Both have experience making the other manager's weekend unpleasant.

Both teams are 1-3, but Nate arrives off his first win and Jonathan off two straight losses. Jonathan has scored 107.72 more points this season. Nate outscored him by 21.58 last week, with Nacua back among his contributors.

Nate's depth gives him choices: Brian Robinson scored 25.20 and T.J. Hockenson 18.40 on the bench in Week 4. Jonathan has a tight-end decision after Kraft's 13.50 went unused behind Sadiq's zero. Jonathan has finished 88.84 points below his combined optimal lineups this season, the league's third-largest gap.

Jonathan leads the series 13-10 and has won the last two meetings. Nate needs another productive week to turn one win into a recovery. We recommend starting the players who will score the most points and look forward to learning their identities afterward.