As expected, the opening week saw a lot of firepower from the quarterback position. Many, but not all, of the studs performed as we expected, and some sleepers with nice matchups outdid expectations. Since we only have a one-game sample size, it’s important not to overreact to what we saw last week, but it’s inevitably going to happen. Moving forward, we’ll have more stats that will help up with our projections, both for QBs and, more important, for defenses. For now, we have to combine impressions from last week with some of the stuff we knew (or thought we knew) coming into the year As always this early, we use a mix of everything when putting together our Week 2 fantasy QB rankings.
Studs like Justin Herbert (vs. Cowboys), Russell Wilson (vs. Titans), Aaron Rodgers (vs. Lions), and Tom Brady (vs. Falcons) are always going to start, and it looks like they all could be in for explosive weeks against defenses that once again look susceptible to the passing game. Rodgers was really the only one of the four who really struggled last week, but he gets as good of a “get-right” matchup as he could hope for on Monday, so there’s no need to consider benching him.
WEEK 2 STANDARD RANKINGS:
Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | D/ST | Kicker
Lower down in our rankings, Mac Jones (@ Jets) has a nice matchup, but he’s still just for the superflex/two-QB crowd. Jameis Winston (@ Panthers) might have graduated to the starting tier after his five-TD game. He faces the Panthers in Carolina, and although the Panthers’ defense looked decent last week, it was against a rookie QB with a lot of young players around him. The Saints looked crisp despite Winston not needing to throw for many yards. The Jaguars defense looked atrocious against the Texans’ bland offense, so perhaps Teddy Bridgewater (vs. Jaguars) is also a viable play despite losing Jerry Jeudy (ankle) for a few weeks.
WEEK 2 PPR RANKINGS:
Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | D/ST | Kicker
One of our favorite preseason sleeper QBs, Tua Tagovailoa, faces another tough matchup. It might be tough to start him this week once again, but brighter days are ahead. The same goes for Trevor Lawrence (vs. Broncos), who might have a decent day thanks to volume but is far too risky to really consider. On the flip side Joe Burrow (@ Bears) showed no signs of rust against Minnesota, and the Bears looked especially vulnerable against the pass. Burrow is on the start-sit bubble as a result.
Again, let’s remember we still don’t have a ton of information to go off of, as we’ve only seen one game from each team. The best you can do is take all available factors at your disposal and view Week 1 with a grain of salt to make your start/sit decisions.
Note: We’ll be updating these QB rankings as needed throughout the week, so check back for the latest changes and analysis.
Fantasy QB Rankings Week 2: Who to start at quarterback
Rankings are based on standard, four-point passing TD scoring formats.
Rank | Player |
1 | Kyler Murray, ARI vs. MIN |
2 | Lamar Jackson, BAL vs. KC |
3 | Patrick Mahomes, KC @ BAL |
4 | Tom Brady, TB vs. ATL |
5 | Russell Wilson, SEA vs. TEN |
6 | Aaron Rodgers, GB vs. DET |
7 | Jalen Hurts, PHI vs. SF |
8 | Justin Herbert, LAC vs. DAL |
9 | Dak Prescott, DAL @ LAC |
10 | Baker Mayfield, CLE vs. HOU |
11 | Josh Allen, BUF @ MIA |
12 | Kirk Cousins, MIN @ ARI |
13 | Teddy Bridgewater, DEN @ JAX |
14 | Matthew Stafford, LAR @ IND |
15 | Joe Burrow, CIN @ CHI |
16 | Jameis Winston, NO @ CAR |
17 | Ryan Tannehill, TEN vs. @ SEA |
18 | Ben Roethlisberger, PIT vs. LV |
19 | Trevor Lawrence, JAX vs. DEN |
20 | Matt Ryan, ATL @ TB |
21 | Jimmy Garoppolo, SF @ PHI |
22 | Tyrod Taylor, HOU @ CLE |
23 | Andy Dalton, CHI vs. CIN |
24 | Carson Wentz, PHI vs. SF |
25 | Tua Tagovailoa, MIA vs. BUF |
26 | Derek Carr, LV @ PIT |
27 | Jared Goff, DET @ GB |
28 | Taylor Heinicke, WAS vs. NYG |
29 | Sam Darnold, CAR vs. NO |
30 | Daniel Jones, NYG @ WAS |
31 | Mac Jones, NE @ NYJ |
32 | Zach Wilson, NYJ vs. NE |