Who Should I Start? Courtland Sutton or Ladd McConkey

Saturday, January 24, 10:35 AM

Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton recorded four catches for 53 yards on a team-high nine targets in Denver's AFC Divisional Round win over the Buffalo Bills. Sutton played 85% of the Broncos' offensive snaps against Buffalo, and he should play a lead pass-catching role once again in the AFC Championship Game against the New England Patriots. However, Denver's offense will be led by backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who is filling in for the injured Bo Nix (ankle). The Broncos are also facing an uphill battle against a Patriots defense that has held each of its first two postseason opponents under 200 passing yards. In Stidham's most recent start for Denver, which came at the end of the 2023 regular season, Sutton recorded one catch for two yards on four targets. While much has changed for the Broncos' offense overall since that game, Sutton may struggle against a tough opponent in the AFC Championship Game, given the less-than-ideal circumstances around him.

Tuesday, January 27, 12:20 PM

After an excellent rookie season in 2024, Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey posted a relatively disappointing sophomore campaign in 2025. Across 16 games played, the 24-year-old recorded 66 receptions for 789 yards and six touchdowns on 106 targets. McConkey's production fell off sharply down the stretch of the season, as he recorded just one game with more than 40 receiving yards after Week 10. After losing in the AFC Wild Card Round to the New England Patriots, the Chargers decided to move on from offensive coordinator Greg Roman, replacing him with former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel. While McDaniel's tenure in Miami went downhill over the last couple of seasons, he coached the Dolphins to top-five offenses by measure of total passing yardage in both 2022 and 2023. By contrast, Roman-coached teams have never finished better than 13th in passing yardage in any of his 12 seasons as an NFL offensive coordinator. Given the change in offensive infrastructure around him, McConkey could be in line for a bounce-back season in 2026.