Who Should I Start? Geno Smith or Spencer Rattler

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.

Sunday, October 26, 6:14 PM

New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler has been benched during Sunday's Week 8 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Rattler threw three interceptions last week and wasn't having much more success this weekend. He completed 15-of-21 passing attempts for 136 yards with an interception before being pulled in the second half of this game. Tyler Shough has taken over under center for at least the rest of this game. Given the Saints record, it wouldn't be shocking if Shough got a chance at the starting gig in the second half of the season.