Who Should I Start? Geno Smith or Cameron Ward

Wednesday, December 17, 4:06 PM

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll said on Sirius XM NFL Radio on Wednesday that there's "a good chance" that quarterback Geno Smith (shoulder, back) returns to start this Sunday against the Houston Texans in Week 16, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Smith suffered a right-shoulder injury in the Week 14 loss to the Denver Broncos and did not play in Sunday's loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Backup Kenny Pickett couldn't lead the Raiders to any points, and thus the 35-year-old Smith will get his starting gig back this weekend in an extremely difficult matchup on the road against the Texans, who have the best defense in the NFL. It's good news for the Raiders' offensive skill players, but for fantasy football, Smith will be a low-end QB2, at best, in superflex leagues in Week 16 if he returns. Smith has led one of the worst offenses in the league in 2025 in his first year in Vegas, throwing for 2,648 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions in his 13 starts. UPDATE: Smith returned to Wednesday's practice.

Saturday, December 13, 10:21 AM

Tennessee Titans quarterback Cameron Ward remains off the fantasy radar heading into Sunday's Week 15 contest against the San Francisco 49ers. Ward has been very disappointing in his first pro season after being selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The Miami product has 10 touchdowns and 13 touchdowns this season with a poor 59.1% completion rate. He also ranks as just the QB27 in fantasy leagues this year despite playing every offensive snap through 13 games. On a promising note, Ward has scored two touchdowns in two of his last three games. However, he's still struggling to accrue yardage, and the completion rate and turnover problems persist. Ward ranks as the overall QB30 in this week's RotoBaller fantasy rankings and can be benched in all fantasy leagues.