Andrews
TE · BAL vs TEN
Proj pts
12.9pts
market
Strange
TE · JAX vs CIN
Proj pts
11.4pts
market
Brenton Strange or Mark Andrews: who should I start in Week 4?
Start Mark Andrews. Bench Brenton Strange. Mark Andrews leads at 12.9. Brenton Strange is the first one out, 1.5 short.
Crowd: started Andrews 42%
Highlights
Pros
- High-scoring spot27.5 team total
- Spike upside16.8 ceiling
Cons
- Rotational role62% of snaps
- Shaky floor3.7 floor
Pros
- Favorable matchupFavorable · A+ vs TE
- Spike upside14.7 ceiling
Cons
- Below your start line1.5 pts short
Some recent form, opportunity and matchup figures still lean on the 2025 season (not enough games played this season yet).
Week 4 · Updated Tue 6:00 AM ET
Why Mark Andrews
Start Mark Andrews — projects 12.9, an even matchup vs TEN, with a rising role.
Mark Andrews projects 12.9 points on a 3.7–16.8 range. The matchup grades as neutral against TEN. Usage: targets / game at 4.1. Net: Mark Andrews is start this week.
Working for Andrews: High-scoring spot (27.5 team total), Spike upside (16.8 ceiling).
Working against Andrews: Rotational role (62% of snaps), Shaky floor (3.7 floor).
Where Andrews leads the head-to-head: Projection (12.9 vs 11.4); Ceiling (16.8 vs 14.7); Target share (17% vs 16%); Implied team total (27.5 vs 24.5); Last 3 avg (8.4 vs 6.7); vs season (+1.5 vs -0.6); Boom rate (18% vs 17%); Red zone targets (15 vs 11); Touchdown dependence (23% vs 15%); Implied total (27.5 vs 24.5).
Why Brenton Strange
Sit Brenton Strange — projects 11.4, a favorable matchup vs CIN, but the role is cooling.
Brenton Strange projects 11.4 points on a 6.2–14.7 range. The matchup grades as favorable against CIN. Usage: targets / game at 5.0. Net: Brenton Strange is a bench this week.
Working for Strange: Favorable matchup (Favorable · A+ vs TE), Spike upside (14.7 ceiling).
Working against Strange: Below your start line (1.5 pts short).
Where Strange leads the head-to-head: Floor (6.2 vs 3.7); Matchup grade (recency weighted) (A+ vs B); Last 5 avg (9.2 vs 7.1); Consistency (54% vs 16%); Bust rate (25% vs 35%); Targets / game (5.0 vs 4.1); Snap share (75% vs 62%); Grade vs TE (recency weighted) (A+ vs B).
Recent form
Mark Andrews's last 5 games: PPR points 6.8, 3.4, 8.9, 10.9, 5.4 (oldest to newest).
Brenton Strange's last 5 games: PPR points 8.4, 17.2, 10.3, 3.7, 6.2 (oldest to newest).
Andrews has already beaten Strange's 11.4 projection in 0 of his 5; Strange has beaten Andrews's 12.9 in 1 of his 5.
At least 1 of these 5 were played before the 2026 season — the card does not date them.
Matchup
Mark Andrews (BAL) faces TEN, kickoff Sun 1:00 PM ET. The matchup is rated neutral. Betting line: implied team total 27.5, spread -11.5.
Brenton Strange (JAX) faces CIN, kickoff Sun 1:00 PM ET. The matchup is rated favorable. Betting line: implied team total 24.5, spread +2.5.
What flips it
Andrews's edge is 1.5 points (12.9 to 11.4). Strange's ceiling (14.7) clears Andrews's projection, so a big game from Strange flips it. Andrews's floor (3.7) sits under Strange's projection, so a quiet game from Andrews flips it too. Confidence in the call: moderate.
How to read these numbers
- Confidence in the call
- How clear-cut this start/sit call is — how decisively the player beats the alternative he competes with (for a starter, the best player on your bench; for a bench player, the last one in your lineup), on both projected points and the overlap of their likely ranges. A clear play reads high; a genuine toss-up reads lower. It rates the decision, not the player’s own volatility, and is not a measured accuracy rate.
- Floor
- The 20th percentile of the same simulated distribution.
- Ceiling
- The 90th percentile of the same simulated distribution.
- Matchup grade
- The opponent’s points allowed to this position per game, weighted toward recent games, then graded on a curve across the 32 defenses.
- Implied team total
- The points the betting market expects this team to score, derived from the game total and the spread. Market-derived, not modelled by Nuvela.
- Trend
- The direction of his scoring across the trailing window, classified as heating, steady or cooling.
- Consistency
- The share of his games that landed within a set band of his own per-game average.
- Boom rate
- The share of his games that finished inside the top 12 scorers at his position for that week.
- Bust rate
- The share of his games that came in under half of what he was projected for that week.
- Defense funnel
- Whether the opponent’s rush defense and pass defense are far enough apart to push offenses one way. A gap inside the band reads Neutral.
- Game script projection
- The expected state of the game for his team — favoured, level or trailing — taken from the closing spread.
More start/sit comparisons from this week's PPR projections. Open a pair for the call and the reasoning.