Who Should I Start? J.J. McCarthy or Cameron Ward

Tuesday, January 13, 2:54 PM

Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell said he wants a competitive situation at quarterback going into next season, according to Alec Lewis of The Athletic. O'Connell said McCarthy "is going to be a major emphasis," but "the competition in that room will only enhance the entire team." The Vikings want McCarthy to seize the starting job, but he's going to have to earn it and play better than he did in 2026, and the Vikings are fully expected to add to their QB room to push McCarthy this offseason. The 22-year-old former first-round signal-caller missed his entire rookie season in 2024 due to a knee injury that required surgery. McCarthy missed time with multiple injuries in 2025 and struggled with turnovers and efficiency when he was on the field, completing 57.6% of his pass attempts for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions in 10 starts. Fantasy managers will want to see improvement from the Michigan product before considering him as anything more than a low-end QB2 option with upside.

Friday, January 30, 12:52 PM

The Tennessee Titans are hoping that new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll will help young quarterback Cam Ward, who struggled in his first year in the NFL after the Titans took him first overall in the 2025 NFL Draft. During Daboll's time in New England under Bill Belichick, he learned the Erhardt-Perkins system, which employs a concept-based passing scheme and runs to set up the pass. ESPN's Turron Davenport points out that Daboll has also used play-action, with vertical passing concepts, which match Ward's skill set. Ward had plenty of success using run-pass-option plays in college, and the Giants used RPOs at a 12.6% rate last year under Daboll, the fourth-highest rate in the league. The 23-year-old plans to clean up his mechanics after throwing for 3,169 yards, 15 touchdowns, and seven interceptions in his first 17 games. Ward must fix his accuracy issues to take the next step, but he should be in good hands with Daboll.