Start ’em, sit ’em is the ultimate look at the best and worst matchups in any given week in fantasy football. This column isn’t about elite players like Josh Allen, Jalen Hurts or Patrick Mahomes. Instead, I’m looking at the quarterbacks you have questions about and who could or might not meet expectations.
For your final lineup decision, be sure to check out my weekly fantasy player rankings, updated daily!
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1. Josh Allen vs Cardinals
2. Jalen Hurts vs. Packers (Fr.)
3. Patrick Mahomes vs. Ravens (Thu.)
4. Anthony Richardson vs Texans
5. Lamar Jackson at Chiefs (Thursday)
6. CJ Stroud at the Colts
7. Joe Burrow vs Patriots
8. Kyler Murray at Bills
9. Jordan Love at the Eagles (Fr.)
10. Jared Goff vs Rams
Full Week 1 quarterback rankings coming soon!
Be sure to also review the selection of starting and sitting players for other positions: Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End
Start of the week
Anthony Richardson vs. Texans (1:00 p.m. ET, CBS): This may be an easy one, but it’s Week 1, folks! You start the players you drafted as starters! And this happens to be a great matchup for Richardson. The Texans allowed the fourth-most points to visiting quarterbacks last season, conceding 19.4 points per game. In total, five opposing field generals beat them by at least 17.7 points, including three who scored more than 21 points.
Start it
Jordan Love vs. Eagles (Fri. 8:15 p.m. ET, Peacock): Love was one of the best fielders in fantasy last season and has a great matchup to kick off the 2024 season. In a rare Friday game, he faces an Eagles defense that was overrun by quarterbacks last year. In fact, only the Washington Commanders allowed more points. With a high over/under of 48.5, Vegas believes this will be a high-scoring affair. I tend to agree, so let Love start.
Jared Goff vs. Rams (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC): Revenge! Goff is a solid option this week as he faces the team that traded him a few years ago, the Rams. In 2023, Los Angeles gave up the ninth-most points per game (19.9) to home quarterbacks. Speaking of home games, Goff has averaged 19.4 points in his 25 regular season games as a Lion at Ford Field.
Tua Tagovailoa vs. Jaguars (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Tagovailoa wasn’t very reliable last season, but he averaged 17 points per game at home. Fortunately, he’s starting in South Florida in a home game against the Jaguars. In 2023, no away defense gave up more points to opposing quarterbacks than Jacksonville (22.3 PPG). That’s good news for Tagovailoa, assuming his best wideouts are healthy, in a game where the point total is over/under 49.5.
Baker Mayfield vs. Commanders (4:25 p.m. ET, Fox): Mayfield surprisingly finished in the top 10 in fantasy points among quarterbacks last season, and a first home game against the Commanders makes him a low-end QB1. Washington’s defense will have a new face under head coach Dan Quinn, but that unit allowed 19 touchdown passes and an average of more than 20 fantasy points per game to home team quarterbacks last season.
Other QBs with good matchups
Sit of the week
Justin Herbert vs. Raiders (4:05 p.m. ET, CBS): Herbert’s fantasy value is already in question, with a new run-based offense and no real high-end options in the passing attack. Add to that a bad matchup against the Raiders, and Herbert is a risk this week. Las Vegas was unremarkably tough on quarterbacks last season, allowing an average of 14.6 points per game at the position. Vegas has an over/under of a low 41.5 points, which is also a concern.
sit down
Kirk Cousins vs. Steelers (1 p.m. ET, Fox): Cousins is playing his first game since tearing his Achilles midway through last season, and he has a new offense and new characters around him. Those facts could mean a slow start for the veteran, not to mention a bad matchup against the Steelers. Their defense allowed an average of less than 15 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks last season, so you might want to bench Cousins.
Brock Purdy vs. Jets (Mon. 8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN): Brock was Purdy-strong last season, ranking sixth among quarterbacks in scoring. He was also strong at home, averaging 19.5 points. The concern this week, however, is against the Jets and their strong defense. No team allowed fewer fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks last season, and home team playmakers averaged the fourth-fewest points (14.5 PPG) against them.
Deshaun Watson vs. Cowboys (4:25 p.m. ET, Fox): Watson hasn’t been a reliable option for fantasy managers since his time in Houston, and this week’s game against Dallas is a tough one. Last season, their defense allowed the seventh-fewest fantasy points to opposing home quarterbacks. This could also be a defensive battle, as Vegas has the over/under at 42, so I’d be wary of starting Watson in any league other than a superflex league.
Aaron Rodgers at the 49ers (Mon. 8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN): Rodgers is playing for the first time since tearing his Achilles four snaps into the game last season, and the matchup is brutal (at least on paper). In 2023, the 49ers defense allowed an average of just 206.9 passing yards and 290.1 yards on offense at home. This could be more of a defensive battle than a high-scoring affair, so I’d be wary of Rodgers (and Purdy).
Other QBs with bad matchups
Don’t forget to check out the top starters and sit-em picks for other positions as you make your Week 1 fantasy football lineup decisions! Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End
