Who Should I Start? Gardner Minshew or Tyler Shough

Friday, June 6, 3:50 PM

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Gardner Minshew II (collarbone) has been throwing during voluntary organized team activities. Minshew broke his collarbone in 2024 while with the Las Vegas Raiders and was limited to 10 games (nine starts), in which he threw for 2,013 yards, nine touchdowns and 10 interceptions in his only year in the desert. Now that he's recovered from the injury, the 29-year-old signal-caller is expected to open the 2025 season as the backup to starter Patrick Mahomes, with Bailey Zappe likely being named the third-stringer. Minshew was a first-time Pro Bowler in 2023 with the Indianapolis Colts, but he'll be off the fantasy radar completely in his seventh season in the NFL as long as Mahomes stays healthy.

Thursday, June 26, 2:37 PM

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough was selected in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, and veteran signal-caller Derek Carr (shoulder) announced his retirement shortly after. This leaves Shough as the favorite to win the QB1 job in his rookie season, though he is competing with sophomore Spencer Rattler. After a long college football career full of adversity, Shough is ready for the growing pains and downs of his first year in the NFL. "I think for me and what I've been through: I've been carted off the field, I've been booed, I've been an MVP, I've been a starter, I've been a backup to [Justin] Herbert," Shough said. "You're not going to faze me if we start off 0-2 or I suck. It's going to be fine." The former Oregon Duck, Texas Tech Red Raider, and Louisville Cardinal acknowledge that while he's an older first-year player, he's still a rookie who will have to learn. Even if Shough pans out, he likely won't be a fantasy football contributor in single-QB leagues this season since he does not have much of a rushing skill set. That said, he could be a QB2 sleeper for Superflex and two-QB leagues while throwing passes to Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, Alvin Kamara, Juwan Johnson, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling.