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 now that we’ve reached the fantasy playoffs. Let’s look at our Week 15 start/sit plays for the QB position.
Which QBs Should You Start in Fantasy This Week?
Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams (vs. WAS)
I don’t regret the process that led me to put Matthew Stafford on the other side of this column last week. It just didn’t work out. That happens.
Stafford is playing at an extremely high level right now. It’s the best he’s played since 2021. This week, we are not chasing last week’s production. From the moment I saw this matchup on the schedule, I knew Stafford would be one of the ‘starts’ of the week.
After failing to reach 17.5 fantasy points over the first 11 weeks of the season, Stafford has now scored 22.9 fantasy points in three straight weeks.
This week, he gets a Washington Commanders defense allowing 22.0 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, the second most in the league. Stafford is easily a top-eight QB this week.
Which QBs Should You Sit in Fantasy This Week?
Jake Browning, Cincinnati Bengals (vs. MIN)
Backup Jake Browning has been far better than I ever could’ve anticipated since replacing Joe Burrow. Over the past two weeks, he’s not only been a fantasy QB1, he’s been an elite QB1, scoring 22.6 and 24.7 fantasy points.
On the surface, this week’s home matchup against the Minnesota Vikings doesn’t look too bad. The Vikings allow the 11th-fewest PPG to quarterbacks.
MORE: Week 15 Start/Sit Options — RB | WR | TE
Recently, the Vikings have been playing at an All-World level defensively. DC Brian Flores has turned this defense into one that opposing offenses don’t want to face. Accordingly, neither do fantasy managers.
Given the weapons at Browning’s disposal, he shouldn’t be a total disaster, but a 20-point upside almost certainly doesn’t exist. If you’ve been streaming Browning, look elsewhere in the first round of the fantasy playoffs.
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, so we’ve jotted some of them down here to help provide some clarity.
Should You Start Stafford or Jordan Love
Jordan Love has been playing well. He also has a great matchup against the Bucs pass-funnel defense allowing 19.1 PPG to quarterbacks, the fourth most in the league. Love should be in for a big-time bounce-back performance after last week’s disaster. You can’t go wrong starting Love.
MORE: PFN’s FREE NFL Playoff Predictor
With that said, I couldn’t be more in on Stafford this week. As good as Love’s matchup is, Stafford’s is better. For as well as Love has played overall over the past month or so, Stafford has been better.
The Start/Sit Optimizer has Stafford projected for 17.6 points against 15.3 from Love. That’s a sizable difference. Start Stafford.
Should You Start Browning or Derek Carr
Derek Carr has displayed absolutely no ceiling whatsoever this season. His 18.44 points against the Jaguars in Week 7 remains his best outing of the season. If you need a big-time performance, Carr has proven incapable of providing it. Over the past two weeks, Browning has.
I think Browning is in for a very difficult time against the Vikings. Carr may very well outscore him. However, I can’t justify recommending Carr in any matchup.
Between Carr’s below-average performance, the state of the Saints’ pass catchers, and Carr coming off the field for Taysom Hill near the goal line, he lacks the upside to move the needle in fantasy matchups. Stick with Browning.
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!
