McLaurin
WR · WAS vs IND
Proj pts
14.6pts
market
Williams
WR · DET vs CAR
Proj pts
13.6pts
market
Jameson Williams or Terry McLaurin: who should I start in Week 4?
Start Terry McLaurin. Bench Jameson Williams. Terry McLaurin leads at 14.6. Jameson Williams is the first one out, 1.0 short.
Crowd: started McLaurin 81% · Williams 55%
Highlights
Pros
- Favorable matchupFavorable · A vs WR
Pros
- Every-down role90% of snaps
- High-scoring spot27.0 team total
- Spike upside23.2 ceiling
Cons
- Tough matchupTough · D vs WR
- Boom-or-bust35% bust weeks
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 Terry McLaurin
Start Terry McLaurin — projects 14.6, a favorable matchup vs IND, but the role is cooling.
Terry McLaurin projects 14.6 points on a 8.2–18.4 range. The matchup grades as favorable against IND. Usage: targets / game at 6.0. Net: Terry McLaurin is start this week.
Working for McLaurin: Favorable matchup (Favorable · A vs WR).
Where McLaurin leads the head-to-head: Projection (14.6 vs 13.6); Floor (8.2 vs 7.7); Target share (23% vs 18%); Matchup grade (recency weighted) (A vs D); Last 3 avg (10.0 vs 7.6); Last 5 avg (10.2 vs 8.4); vs season (-1.8 vs -4.0); Consistency (59% vs 33%); Bust rate (10% vs 35%); Grade vs WR (recency weighted) (A vs D).
Why Jameson Williams
Sit Jameson Williams — projects 13.6, a tough matchup vs CAR, but the role is cooling.
Jameson Williams projects 13.6 points on a 7.7–23.2 range. The matchup grades as tough against CAR. Usage: targets / game at 6.0. Net: Jameson Williams is a bench this week.
Working for Williams: Every-down role (90% of snaps), High-scoring spot (27.0 team total), Spike upside (23.2 ceiling).
Working against Williams: Tough matchup (Tough · D vs WR), Boom-or-bust (35% bust weeks).
Where Williams leads the head-to-head: Ceiling (23.2 vs 18.4); Implied team total (27.0 vs 22.0); Boom rate (24% vs 10%); Snap share (90% vs 70%); Red zone targets (9 vs 8); Implied total (27.0 vs 22.0).
Recent form
Terry McLaurin's last 5 games: PPR points 11.3, 9.7, 3.4, 7, 19.7 (oldest to newest).
Jameson Williams's last 5 games: PPR points 5.7, 13.4, 8.5, 5.3, 8.9 (oldest to newest).
McLaurin has already beaten Williams's 13.6 projection in 1 of his 5; Williams has beaten McLaurin's 14.6 in 0 of his 5.
At least 1 of these 5 were played before the 2026 season — the card does not date them.
Matchup
Terry McLaurin (WAS) faces IND, kickoff Sun 9:30 AM ET. The matchup is rated favorable. Betting line: implied team total 22.0, spread +3.5.
Jameson Williams (DET) faces CAR, kickoff Sun 8:20 PM ET. The matchup is rated tough. Betting line: implied team total 27.0, spread -3.5.
What flips it
McLaurin's edge is 1 points (14.6 to 13.6). Williams's ceiling (23.2) clears McLaurin's projection, so a big game from Williams flips it. McLaurin's floor (8.2) sits under Williams's projection, so a quiet game from McLaurin 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.