Making lineup decisions can be the most frustrating or most rewarding part of fantasy football. Here to help you make those decisions are our positional start ’em and sit ’em picks.
Fantasy decisions are more important than ever with playoff spots and positioning on the line, so let’s look at our Week 13 start/sit plays for the QB position.
Which QBs Should You Start in Fantasy This Week?
Sam Howell, Washington Commanders (vs. MIA)
Every quarterback has duds, but seldom few do it as rarely as Sam Howell. I would argue he has just two all season.
Howell has scored at least 18 fantasy points in eight of his last nine games. While his true ceiling games come against bad defenses, the pass-happy nature of the Commanders offense keeps Howell’s fantasy value afloat even against good ones.
MORE: Week 13 Start/Sit Options — TE | RB | WR
The Miami Dolphins have been average against quarterbacks this season, allowing 17.0 fantasy points per game. In a game where the Dolphins are likely to jump ahead early and mostly score at will, Slingin’ Sammy will be slingin’ all over the place. There may be turnovers, but there should be at least two touchdowns.
Which QBs Should You Sit in Fantasy This Week?
Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers (vs. KC)
Jordan Love has enjoyed a resurgence since his midseason lull. He’s now topped 18 fantasy points in three straight games. Of course, two of those came against bottom-10 pass defenses.
This week, Love gets the Kansas City Chiefs. They are quite the formidable pass defense, allowing the eighth-fewest PPG to quarterbacks.
Love has thrown a touchdown in all but one game this season. He’s thrown multiple touchdowns in three straight. The latter streak is almost certainly coming to an end. The former might as well. Love is a very risky start in Week 13.
Trending Searches for QB Start/Sit
Did you know that we have a Start/Sit Optimizer here at Pro Football Network?! It’s completely free to use, and it allows you to enter up to six players to find the best option to plug into your starting lineup!
It also allows us to see the most popular trending searches, and we’ve jotted some of them down here to help provide some clarity on!
Should You Start Sam Howell or Justin Herbert?
On the season, Justin Herbert has been clearly superior to Howell as a fantasy asset. But Howell has been a reliable QB1. Additionally, we’ve seen Herbert flop in tough matchups. This one is not as straightforward as it may seem.
Herbert gets a Patriots defense allowing 14.7 PPG to quarterbacks, the eighth-fewest in the league. It’s also a game in which the Chargers should be able to control throughout, thus limiting how much they have to throw.
MORE: Kyle Soppe’s Week 13 Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet
Meanwhile, Howell is likely to be trailing and playing catch-up against a middle-of-the-road Dolphins pass defense allowing 17.0 PPG to quarterbacks. Howell is by no means a bad start.
The PFN Start/Sit Optimizer projections Herbert for 18.6 points against Howell at 17.6. That’s closer than most weeks, but still firmly in favor of Herbert. Despite the tougher matchup, Herbert is the better player. Thus, I agree and would start Herbert.
Should You Start Jordan Love or Baker Mayfield?
This is as close as it gets. The Start/Sit Optimizer has Baker Mayfield projected for 15.1 points and Love at 15.0 points. While we certainly trust the optimizer, a difference of 0.1 points is meaningless. It’s a true toss-up.
Love has the tougher overall opponent in the Chiefs. But believe it or not, the Panthers have actually been better at shutting down opposing quarterbacks. They’ve surrendered just 13.3 PPG to QBs, the fourth-lowest in the league, and fewer than the Chiefs.
With that said, the Bucs should have no trouble running on the Panthers, as the Panthers are the ultimate run-funnel defense. That will limit what Mayfield has to do through the air but should create scoring opportunities. The hope for Mayfield managers is he happens to throw two touchdowns.
Even so, Love has been the better fantasy quarterback. While his matchup is also difficult, it’s not as if the Chiefs defense is this impenetrable force. I worry about both of their upsides this week, but Love gets the edge for me by the slimmest of margins.
Looking to make a trade in your fantasy league? Having trouble deciding who to start and who to sit? Setting DFS lineups? Check out PFN’s Free Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer, Start/Sit Optimizer, and DFS Lineup Optimizer to help you make the right decision!
