NFL Fantasy 2022 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 9: Quarterbacks

Tagovailoa is quickly becoming a regular in this column. After finishing as the top scoring fantasy QB last week (little humble brag!), this is Tagovailoa’s third straight week as a start. Eventually he will become a must-start if he keeps putting up numbers like this. Tagovailoa was able to take advantage of the matchup against the Lions, throwing for 382 yards and three touchdowns to go with 19 rushing yards. Next up he faces the Bears, who have been better against the pass than the run this season. But when it comes to Tagovailoa and Miami's offense, it does not matter. The run game is only there to help the pass game. This offense will go as far as its QB and, mainly, its two dynamic playmakers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle take it. With six QBs on bye and even more struggling to find consistency, this is not the week or matchup to get away from Tagovailoa. Continue to ride with him and the best receiver duo in the NFL.

Herbert has been far from the elite QB that we thought we would get this season. Part of that is because of the rib injury he suffered in Week 2 against the Chiefs. In the first two weeks of the season, Herbert was averaging over 23 fantasy PPG. He has failed to reach that number since and has only once topped 19 fantasy points. Hopefully the bye week presented an opportunity for Herbert to heal up a bit. The other cause for a down season so far has been the lack of speed on the outside for the Chargers. But not sure any of that will matter this week against the Falcons. Atlanta has allowed the fourth-most fantasy PPG to QBs this season (20.9), which includes giving up the most passing yards and fourth-most touchdowns. P.J. Walker just got them for nearly 17 fantasy points. Herbert may not be the elite option we thought he would be, but he remains very much in play in a great matchup this week.  

Fields is a potential league-winner. The Bears offense has changed in recent weeks, and it's allowing Fields to highlight his strengths. He is at his best when he is on the move. Whether that is throwing on the run or straight-up using his legs to scramble and pick up yards, Fields has just looked more comfortable and explosive than when they were trying to peg him in as a pocket passer. Fields has rushed for at least 60 yards in three straight weeks. He has a red-zone rushing touchdown in two straight games. His fantasy points have increased now in five straight weeks, but the last month is really what gets you excited. He has topped 17 fantasy points in all four, including over 23 in two straight games. Fields has the capability of being a similar asset to what Jalen Hurts was last year. What I mean by that is that he can give so much with his legs, that something like 150 passing yards and a touchdown is enough. He has not topped 180 passing yards in three straight games and no fantasy football manager even cares. If he's running, Fields is helping people win fantasy weeks. And if you are still not sold, he has a great matchup this week against the Dolphins, who have struggled against the pass, as well. Miami has allowed 19.7 fantasy PPG to QBs, the seventh-most in the NFL. That includes allowing the fifth-most rushing yards to the position (192). Get Fields in those lineups this week.  

Rodgers has been a sit far more often than a start, and that has been the correct way to handle him this season. He was a sit last week, and he finished as a low-end QB2. However, if he is not in play this week, I am not sure why he is even rostered. The Lions have allowed 22 fantasy PPG to QBs, the second-most in the NFL. Tua Tagovailoa just finished as the top scoring QB against them. I know a lot has changed in the past couple years, but in his last four times against Detroit, Rodgers has averaged 25 fantasy PPG, throwing just under three touchdowns per game. This is a great matchup and a team Rodgers knows well and has a history of success against. That puts him in play for fantasy this week.  

Stafford is coming off his second-best fantasy game of the season in which he scored 17.4 fantasy PPG. Not only is it super concerning that a borderline top-15 QB finish is his second-best game of the season, but it gets worse when you realize that is largely because of his rushing touchdown. Stafford threw for just 187 yards and a touchdown against the Niners in Week 8. He still has just one game all year with multiple passing touchdowns and still has more interceptions (eight) than TDs (seven). This week, he will head to Tampa Bay and face another struggling veteran QB in Tom Brady. The Bucs defense ranks exactly middle of the pack against QBs, allowing just 15.9 fantasy PPG to QBs. Add in that Cooper Kupp is dealing with an ankle injury, and even in a week with six teams on bye, it’s a week to get away from Stafford.  

Goff has been a tough one to peg this fantasy season. He has two huge games this season, but in each of those he threw four touchdown passes. That is not going to happen weekly, and in the rest of his games this season, he is averaging just 9.9 fantasy PPG. He has two games this year with less than six fantasy points, showing that while he brings a high ceiling, he brings a super low floor as well. This week, he faces a Packers defense that hasn’t been as good as expected, but still has limited QBs to just 13.1 fantasy PPG, the seventh-lowest in the NFL. They just held Josh Allen to a season-low 17.6 fantasy points last week. This is a week to get away from Goff.  

Walker has been playing really good ball for the Panthers and it may have led some fantasy managers to consider streaming him given the byes and the state of the QB position. I would recommend going in another direction. Despite playing well in real life, it has not translated to a ton of fantasy success for Walker. He has scored 15.1 and 16.7 fantasy points in his two starts for the Panthers. Those are respectable numbers, although they have not been enough to finish top-12 at the position in either week. Plus, it has come in far better matchups, especially last week when he faced the Falcons. This week he faces the Bengals, who have been tough on QBs. Cincinnati has allowed 12.6 fantasy PPG to QBs, the fifth-fewest in the NFL. There are better options out there than Walker. 

Jones may be a QB who seems appealing to stream if you are in a pinch this week. But that would be what we call a trap! Jones has yet to throw multiple touchdowns in a game this season. He has just three passing touchdowns on the year, compared to seven interceptions. He has managed to top 15 fantasy points just once. He does not bring much upside, but at least last year he had a safe floor. That seems to have vanished this season. This week, he faces the Colts who have allowed just 13.1 fantasy PPG to QBs in the past month, the ninth-lowest in that span. There is far too much that could go wrong streaming Jones, like Bill Belichick feeling like putting Bailey Zappe in for some drives, and not nearly enough upside to justify it. When it comes to Mac, Miller yes, Jones no.