NFL Week 3 DFS: Matchups, Slates & Lineup Strategy
Week 3 is the first fully normal week of the season: no Wednesday opener, no international game, just a Thursday-to-Monday schedule with two weeks of real usage data behind every player-pool decision.
Atlanta at Green Bay opens the week Thursday night. The other 15 teams' games spread across the standard early, late, and primetime windows, with nine games in the early window this week instead of the usual eight.
Full Week 3 schedule
| Matchup | Date | Kickoff | DFS window |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Falcons at Green Bay Packers | Thursday, September 24 | 8:15 PM ET | Thursday Night — Thursday Night Football |
| Arizona Cardinals at San Francisco 49ers | Sunday, September 27 | 4:05 PM ET | Late afternoon |
| Baltimore Ravens at Dallas Cowboys | Sunday, September 27 | 4:25 PM ET | Late afternoon |
| Carolina Panthers at Cleveland Browns | Sunday, September 27 | 1:00 PM ET | Early window |
| Cincinnati Bengals at Pittsburgh Steelers | Sunday, September 27 | 1:00 PM ET | Early window |
| Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts | Sunday, September 27 | 1:00 PM ET | Early window |
| Kansas City Chiefs at Miami Dolphins | Sunday, September 27 | 1:00 PM ET | Early window |
| Los Angeles Chargers at Buffalo Bills | Sunday, September 27 | 1:00 PM ET | Early window |
| Los Angeles Rams at Denver Broncos | Sunday, September 27 | 8:20 PM ET | Sunday Night — Sunday Night Football |
| Las Vegas Raiders at New Orleans Saints | Sunday, September 27 | 4:25 PM ET | Late afternoon |
| Minnesota Vikings at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Sunday, September 27 | 4:05 PM ET | Late afternoon |
| New England Patriots at Jacksonville Jaguars | Sunday, September 27 | 1:00 PM ET | Early window |
| New York Jets at Detroit Lions | Sunday, September 27 | 1:00 PM ET | Early window |
| Seattle Seahawks at Washington Commanders | Sunday, September 27 | 1:00 PM ET | Early window |
| Tennessee Titans at New York Giants | Sunday, September 27 | 1:00 PM ET | Early window |
| Philadelphia Eagles at Chicago Bears | Monday, September 28 | 8:15 PM ET | Monday Night — Monday Night Football |
How the Week 3 slates break down
Early slate — nine games, 1:00 PM ET
Carolina at Cleveland, Cincinnati at Pittsburgh, Houston at Indianapolis, Kansas City at Miami, the Chargers at Buffalo, New England at Jacksonville, the Jets at Detroit, Seattle at Washington, and Tennessee at the Giants.
Afternoon slate — four games, 4:05 and 4:25 PM ET
Arizona at San Francisco and Minnesota at Tampa Bay both kick at 4:05 PM ET. Baltimore at Dallas and Las Vegas at New Orleans kick at 4:25 PM ET.
Primetime and showdown options
Atlanta at Green Bay opened the week Thursday night, the Rams at Denver close Sunday on Sunday Night Football, and Philadelphia at Chicago play Monday Night Football — each runs as its own single-game showdown slate.
Lineup strategy for Week 3
Two weeks of usage data changes who the trap plays are
By Week 3, a role that held steady across two games is a real signal, not a small sample. Players who spiked once in Week 1 or 2 and then faded are the field's chalk traps — check target share and snap percentage across both weeks, not just the more recent one.
Bye weeks haven't started yet, so player pools are still full
Every team is still active — the first byes land in Week 5. Week 3 is one of the last weeks with the full 32-team player pool available, which matters most for tournament roster construction, where a deeper pool means more room to differentiate.
Weather is still a small factor, but check wind for the late games
Late-September weather is still mild almost everywhere, but a handful of stadiums start seeing wind pick up this time of year. It's a smaller edge than it becomes in November, but worth a five-minute check on the late-window outdoor games before you lock a passing-game stack.
Vegas totals are the sharpest they've been all season
Three weeks of results give the market its clearest read yet on which offenses and defenses are for real. High-total games are still the cleanest path to stacking value, and by Week 3 the number is a lot more trustworthy than it was in Week 1.
Build your Week 3 lineup
Take these matchups into the NFL lineup builder to lock in players and build for DraftKings or FanDuel, check this week's projections before you lock anyone in, and scan the injury report for status changes that land after this page publishes.
Common Week 3 DFS questions
- What's the Week 3 NFL DFS schedule?
- Sixteen games: Atlanta at Green Bay on Thursday night, nine games in the 1:00 PM ET window, four in the 4:05-4:25 PM ET window, the Rams at Denver on Sunday Night, and Philadelphia at Chicago on Monday Night.
- How many games are on the Week 3 main slate?
- Thirteen: the nine 1:00 PM ET games and the four games in the 4:05-4:25 PM ET window. Thursday, Sunday, and Monday night each run as separate showdown slates.
- Does Week 3 have any bye weeks?
- No. The first byes land in Week 5, so Week 3 still has the full 32-team player pool in play.
- What changes about lineup strategy by Week 3?
- Two full weeks of usage data means role-based signal is a lot more reliable than it was in Week 1 — a spike-then-fade player is now an obvious trap, and Vegas totals are sharper than they've been all season.