Week 2 of the NFL season has arrived! After hitting both of my QB start/sit picks in Week 1, it’s time to take a deeper dive into the position.
Let’s break down my Week 2 start ’em, sit ’em fantasy football quarterback picks.
Start ‘Em: Baker Mayfield (Buccaneers) at Lions
Mayfield somewhat quietly finished last season as QB10, and he certainly wasn’t highly-touted from a fantasy perspective heading into the 2024 season, which was reflected in his ADP of QB21.
Baker responded to those doubters by absolutely torching the Commanders in Week 1, finishing with a ridiculous 29.7 fantasy points on 289 passing yards and four touchdowns. That performance earned him the current QB2 ranking, only behind reigning 2023 QB1 Josh Allen. The Commanders have arguably the worst pass defense in the league, but it’s still impossible not to put some weight in Baker’s numbers.
This week, the Buccaneers will travel to Detroit to take on a Lions secondary that just gave up 317 yards to Matthew Stafford, who was operating for most of that contest without Puka Nacua. The Lions are expected to win this game, but Baker and company should put on another offensive show.
Sit ‘Em: Joe Burrow (Bengals) at Chiefs
In case you haven’t already read my Week 2 running back start/sit picks, I’m expecting Zack Moss to struggle mightily in this contest, and the same goes for the rest of Cincinnati’s offense.
There’s no way to sugarcoat it, the Bengals were flat-out embarrassed in Week 1 by a definitively inferior Patriots team. Now, you can make excuses for Burrow, such as Ja’Marr Chase being rusty after holding out, or Tee Higgins being sidelined by a hamstring injury. Unfortunately for Cincy’s quarterback, those issues will still apply this week, only he’ll be facing a much better team in Kansas City. I’m not going to put too much stock into the water bottle/wrist incident, but if Burrow isn’t 100% as has often been the case, that’s another reason to bench him.
Quite frankly, I don’t believe the Bengals will keep Sunday’s game close, and as a result it should be an underwhelming fantasy outing for Burrow. There are better options out there this week, including a few guys who are likely on your waiver wire.
Fantasy Advice Twitter Takeover
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Start ‘Em: Jayden Daniels (Commanders) vs. Giants
Is it cheating to go right back to my Week 1 start ’em pick? I don’t really care. If Daniels is on your roster, he needs to be in your lineup on Sunday. Also, as I pointed out in last week’s article, the No. 2 overall pick has been “my guy” the entire offseason for fantasy, so I’m allowed to roll with him for one more week.
Daniels finished as QB3 in Week 1 despite only racking up 184 passing yards and no touchdowns through the air. The LSU product scored his points on the ground, rushing 16 times for 88 yards and a pair of touchdowns against Tampa Bay. This week, Washington will host the Giants, who just let Sam Darnold absolutely pick their defense apart. With all due respect to Minnesota’s quarterback, if he put up those numbers, Daniels could be in for a 30-point fantasy outing.
Sit ‘Em: Trevor Lawrence (Jaguars) vs. Browns
The talent is there with Trevor Lawrence. I think most people see that.
The production, on the other hand, hasn’t been since he entered the league. To be fair to the former No. 1 overall pick, their offense runs through Travis Etienne on the ground, but it just feels like Lawrence’s fantasy ceiling is capped. Jacksonville’s quarterback has plenty of weapons at his disposal, but they weren’t on the same page often on Sunday against Miami.
This week, the Jaguars play host to Cleveland. Don’t be fooled by their result against Dallas, Kevin Stefanski’s squad still boasts one of the best defenses in the league. Dak Prescott was held to just 11.5 fantasy points on 179 passing yards against the Browns, and I expect a similarly underwhelming outing for Lawrence this time around.
Those are my start ’em, sit ’em Week 2 fantasy football quarterback picks! Stay tuned for more fantasy advice next week.
All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
