Start or Sit’em in Fantasy Football: Bears vs. Lions

Brian Fluharty - USA Today Sports

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Fri Dec 30 10:00:08 GMT-04:00 2022

There are few people who are still playing in fantasy football, most likely for the championship or a consolation game at this point. While Justin Fields currently did not put up the numbers fantasy owners were hoping for, David Montgomery still had a decent showing, seeing action in the running game and the passing game.

Justin Fields - Start

The lack of rushing yards from Fields this past week was most likely from his injury to his foot. The Bears, despite not having anything to play for except their draft position, are not shutting down Fields. So, he’s still available for fantasy owners to start. Detroit ranks No. 28 in rushing defense, which currently plays to his advantage. They are also last in scoring defense, meaning that Fields will have a lot of opportunities to generate touchdowns whether it’s through the air or on the ground. Despite the down week, he is still someone that is worthy of starting in all fantasy formats.

David Montgomery - Start

The return of Khalil Herbert didn’t seem to have much of an effect on David Montgomery. He rushed for 62 yards. Montgomery also helped out anyone in points per reception (PPR) leagues with four receptions for 22 yards. Dante Pettis, Chase Claypool, and Equanimeous St. Brown are all listed on the injury report. The less wide receivers in the game, the more Montgomery seems to get targeted. The injuries at running back keep adding up and with a first-rounder like Derrick Henry being out, Montgomery is someone that could easily fill his place. He is someone that should be started in all fantasy formats.

Cole Kmet - Start in PPR Leagues

Kmet seems to have a habit of getting a decent volume of receptions without getting a lot of yards off of them. He is still touchdown-dependent, as that is when he gets his best scores. However, Kmet’s reception volume makes him someone who should easily be started in PPR leagues. Against the Bills last week, he had five receptions for 27 yards. Detroit ranks No. 30 in the NFL in passing defense and if Justin is not able to be as mobile as he otherwise would be, this probably means that Kmet will get more targets and since Detroit has the worst scoring defense in the NFL, Kmet may even get into the endzone for the first time since Week 10 last time the Bears played Detroit.

Khalil Herbert - Sit

Herbert was not productive at all in his return from injured reserve (IR). He had six rushes for seven yards, along with two receptions for -4 yards. While Buffalo has a superior defense to Detroit’s, Herbert still isn’t worth starting. There are plenty of other options to start at running back, particularly when you are playing in fantasy this week, it is probably for high stakes.

Byron Pringle - Sit

With Claypool, St. Brown, and Pettis all questionable while Darnell Mooney is on IR, the Bears are as thin as they could possibly be at wide receiver. Pringle is in line to be the starter if none of these wide receivers are able to play. Given how bad the Lions’ defense is against the pass, Pringle should get some opportunities and possibly in the endzone since they also have the worst scoring defense in the NFL.

Cairo Santos - Sit

With how many points the Detroit Lions give up, you would think that Santos could get a lot of points out of this game. Maybe he will, but his numbers just haven’t been high enough to start under any circumstances. He also only scored six points the last time the Bears played Detroit.