Who Should I Start? Brock Purdy or C.J. Stroud

Wednesday, October 22, 6:56 PM

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (toe) will be limited in practice again on Wednesday, but head coach Kyle Shanahan said that "he's steadily getting better every week," according to Vic Tafur of The Athletic. Purdy suffered a turf-toe injury in the season opener, missed two games, and then aggravated it in Week 4. He has not played since and is questionable to return in the Week 8 game on the road in Houston against the Texans this Sunday. While Purdy is making slow progress, he's going to need to upgrade to a full practice session to be cleared to return under center on Sunday. Backup Mac Jones has played a very respectable QB in Purdy's absence this year, which has afforded the Niners the luxury of slow-playing Purdy's recovery. Fantasy managers should consider Purdy to be on the wrong side of questionable this week, but Week 9 versus the New York Giants could be much more realistic if he continues to make progress.

Tuesday, October 21, 11:20 AM

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud had one of the least efficient games of his career in his team's 27-19 Week 7 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Stroud completed just 23 of 49 pass attempts for 229 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Across six games this season, the 24-year-old has completed 64.8% of his pass attempts for 1,305 yards, nine touchdowns, and four interceptions. Houston struggled mightily to run the ball in Week 7, as Stroud was the team's leading rusher with just 25 yards. The Texans' overall offensive inefficiency makes Stroud tough for fantasy managers in single-QB formats to trust. Stroud will likely profile as a mid-tier fantasy QB2 in Week 8 against the San Francisco 49ers.