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 will only get more difficult from here on out, so let’s look at our Week 9 start/sit plays for the QB position.
Which QBs Should You Start in Fantasy This Week?
C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans (vs. TB)
Between the dismal state of quarterbacking the NFL (and, as a result, fantasy) and three fantasy starters on bye this week, it’s rough out there for managers without an elite QB. That leaves someone like Stroud firmly ranked inside the top 12 for Week 9.
Stroud has cooled off since his three straight weeks of 20+ fantasy points in Weeks 2-4. His best outing since then has been 15.16 points. Last week, in a plum matchup against the Panthers, he threw for 140 scoreless yards. Here’s to hoping things get better against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ pass-funnel defense.
MORE: Week 9 Start/Sit Options — TE | WR | RB
The Buccaneers are elite against the run but below average against the pass. They allow 18.1 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks — the 11th-most in the league.
Given the inability of the Texans to run the ball against literally anyone, it’s difficult to imagine them having any success against a team that stifles opposing running games. That should lead to more volume for Stroud, giving him a good shot at a QB1 finish.
Which QBs Should You Sit in Fantasy This Week?
Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers (vs. LAR)
If you read the writeup on Stroud, you know how difficult it is to find quarterbacks to recommend as sits this week. It’s a very difficult week. So if you need to start Love, I get it. There are far worse options.
With that said, he’s not a good quarterback. Love’s fantasy success early in the season was a mirage predicated on an unsustainable touchdown rate. His underlying metrics were concerning, and we’re seeing regression hit him hard.
After at least 19 fantasy points in his first four games, Love hasn’t topped 16 since. In those games, Love is averaging fewer than 200 passing yards per game.
The Los Angeles Rams aren’t a bad matchup by any stretch. They’re allowing the ninth-most points per game to QBs. A big part of that is due to them getting torched by Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott and WR CeeDee Lamb last week. Forgive me for not believing Love can do the same thing.
This one is more about the player than the matchup. Love is an uninspiring option at the QB position this week.
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, allowing 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.
Should You Start C.J. Stroud or Sam Howell?
Washington Commanders QB Sam Howell has been the far better fantasy asset this season. But when you dig into why, the Commanders have had a really soft schedule of opponents. Things are about to get a lot more difficult.
The New England Patriots are certainly tougher than some of his recent matchups, but they have struggled against the pass. That keeps Howell in the streaming conversation this week.
MORE: 2023 QB Fantasy Football Rankings
With that said, I really like Stroud this week. The way to beat the Bucs is through the air, and he is long overdue for a big-time performance.
The Start/Sit Optimizer has Stroud projected for 17.9 points, compared to 16.0 for Howell. I agree. I have Stroud three spots higher in my Week 9 rankings and would start him over Howell this week.
Should You Start Bryce Young or Jordan Love?
I’m fairly confident only one of these guys will be a starting quarterback next year. That’s the guy I want to start this week.
The Start/Sit Optimizer has Bryce Young projected for 15.1 fantasy points, which is 0.6 more than Love. For what it’s worth, Love has still been solid in fantasy, despite being not so solid for the Packers. He’s scored at least 15 fantasy points in all but one game this season.
Nevertheless, I want to chase a higher ceiling. Young has a great matchup against a Colts defense allowing the 14th-most fantasy points to quarterbacks. In reality, the matchup is actually better because the Colts have allowed an inordinate number of rushing touchdowns. If that regresses to the mean, we could see Young go for 250 and two this week, which would put him firmly in QB1 territory.
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