There’s now a full week of football behind us to help with the strategy for Week 2 fantasy football, and in this article we’re looking at the quarterbacks.
In particular the games that are a little more complex at the position this week, including rookies Anthony Richardson, Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud, the Jets shocking situation, and much more.
Here are four games with complicated circumstances surrounding the quarterbacks, and recommendations on whether you should start, or sit, each guy.
Detroit Lions vs Seattle Seahawks
Jared Goff – Start (Projection 17.6 Points)
I’d struggle to find a reason to sit Jared Goff right now. He’s always going to give you 35+ drop backs, and the Lions push the football down the field no matter who they’re playing against.
Goff connected with Amon-Ra St. Brown on six catches for 71 yards, contributing to the Lions quarterback’s totals at 251 passing yards, two touchdowns and an interception against the Super Bowl defending champion Chiefs.
The Lions QB offers good volume, and he’s now playing at home against a Seattle Seahawks secondary that has no answers for Matt Stafford all afternoon in Week 1. Stafford put up 340 passing yards on 24 completions despite the absence of All-Pro Cooper Kupp, so I’m going to battle with Jared Goff this week.
Geno Smith – Sit (Projection 17.4 Points)
These two are expected to be pretty close in Week 2 of the season, with 0.2 points between their projections according to Fantasy Nerds.
Geno found DK Metcalf for a touchdown in the first half against the Rams, but considering the addition of Jaxon Smith-Njigba paired with both Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, the production on the offensive side was disappointing.
With the two being so close together and the Detroit Lions having an impressive pass rush against an already wounded offensive line, I’d rather start Goff this week and let Geno ride the bench.
Houston Texans vs Indianapolis Colts
C.J. Stroud – Sit (Projection 13.8 Points)
Week 1 was always going to be an extremely difficult test for C.J. Stroud in his first regular season game. The Baltimore Ravens defense is one of the most complex in football and playing them on the road in your NFL debut is a little rough, but in fairness to the former Buckeye rookie, he still found his way to 242 passing yards and didn’t turn the ball over.
Stroud’s passing total was one more than that of Trevor Lawrence against the Colts defense in Week 1, but he has better weapons and found the end zone twice, while Stroud didn’t find it at all.
There’s no need to force a start here for the rookie. It’s going to take some time to develop and we are yet to see who the true top targets are in Houston. Once the offense starts to gel a little better, maybe we revisit it, but right now there are many more viable options.
Anthony Richardson – Start (Projection 17.4)
I’m just one game behind the Colts organization with this, but I think it’s entirely plausible to get Anthony Richardson out there early.
He did take way too many hits, which worries me in dynasty leagues a little, and I found it interesting that Trevor Lawrence apparently gave him a little veteran advice in suggesting he protect himself rather than taking so many body blows.
Richardson had 223 passing yards, one touchdown and one pick, but also scampered for 40 rushing yards and a touchdown on the ground. He was spreading the ball nicely and finding his receivers, and you just have to love the upside of an athletic QB who could go to work against one of the league’s most blatant rebuilds.
It’s certainly one of the riskier moves of the week, but starting Richardson offers far more upside to your lineup than starting the likes of Geno Smith, and their projections are exactly the same.
Carolina Panthers vs New Orleans Saints
Bryce Young – Sit (Projection 12.8 Points)
Bryce Young struggled in Week 1, throwing two picks and getting caught out multiple times by the Atlanta Falcons defense. Jessie Bates baited him twice, with Bryce getting the ball out way too late and staring down his receivers on multiple occasions.
It was a relatively uncomfortable situation for Bryce on his debut, and while he had a few nice plays, the lack of separation and energy in the wide receiver room could result in a complicated season for the Panthers offense.
They now face the division rival New Orleans Saints, who just forced Ryan Tannehill into three interceptions and the league’s lowest QBR rating coming out of Week 1. They’ve got a great front that could really slow down the Panthers offense, and I’d expect to see several drives cut short resulting in punt situations.
Derek Carr – Sit (Projection 14.7 Points)
This is a difficult one, but I don’t love the matchup for Carr against a talented Carolina Panthers defense on the road.
In his Saints debut Carr threw for 305 yards, one touchdown and one pick, and managed to salvage a win in a tight game against the Tennessee Titans. While the numbers look strong, his performance was average, and he threw the ball into trouble too often for my liking.
It was a pretty typical Derek Carr performance. Some good, some not so much. A turnover always seems to be right around the corner, and while it’s still early in the season it’s going to be far less stressful just to sit him down and play somebody else.
Dallas Cowboys vs New York Jets
Dak Prescott – Sit (Projection 16.2 Points)
I don’t like this matchup for Dak Prescott at all. The New York Jets defense just made Josh Allen uncomfortable all night long and forced him into throwing into coverage, resulting in three interceptions.
Dak is a troublemaker when it comes to throwing picks, and we don’t yet know what the Cowboys offense looks like this season since they barely needed to do anything in a routing of the New York Giants.
While Prescott has a great group of weapons at his disposal and can sometimes be a superb volume option when it comes to fantasy football, I’d find it tough to start just about anybody against the New York Jets defense right now. It’s high praise for Robert Saleh’s men, but they’ve got so many great pieces on that side of the ball and with Rodgers out, the defense is going to need to carry the franchise.
Zach Wilson – Sit (Projection 11.1 Points)
What a brutal situation for the Jets to have found themselves in on the very first drive of the Aaron Rodgers era. The Hall of Fame quarterback is now out for the season with a torn achilles, not even throwing a completed pass for the organization.
So for the Jets it’s back to Zach Wilson, who had to come straight into the game against the Bills. He did an okay job, but it wasn’t close to what Rodgers might have done, and the Dallas Cowboys defense is perhaps the best in the league.
This is a defense that just sacked Daniel Jones seven times, forced him into two picks and shut out the New York Giants completely in Week 1. Zero points allowed. That doesn’t bode well for Wilson, even if he does look more comfortable and composed here in 2023.
He’s certainly learned a lot from Rodgers, but he’s not a fantasy option yet, especially against Dallas.
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