Who Should I Start? Jared Goff or Michael Penix Jr.

Wednesday, January 28, 5:09 PM

Many fantasy managers were worried about Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff going into the 2025 season since he'd be without offensive coordinator Ben Johnson. The Lions took a slight step back offensively with Johnson gone and failed to make the playoffs, but it was still a successful fantasy campaign for Goff, who completed 68% of his passes for 4,564 yards, 34 touchdowns, and only eight interceptions in 17 starts. It was Goff's fourth straight season playing in all 17 games and his fourth straight year with over 4,000 passing yards. The 31-year-old veteran signal-caller has had at least 30 touchdown passes in each of the last three years and in four of his 10 NFL seasons. Goff was the QB6 in fantasy scoring, and should have QB1 upside again in 2026 with Drew Petzing as the new OC. Petzing had a pass-happy approach in Arizona and could be a great fit for Goff.

Friday, February 20, 6:18 AM

Atlanta Falcons president of football Matt Ryan and new general manager Ian Cunningham are non-committal on whether quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (knee) will be the guaranteed starter when he returns from the torn left ACL he suffered last November, according to Marc Raimondi of ESPN. "I've been up at the facility the last three weeks, and Michael's been in there attacking that, and he's in a good space right now, so we're excited about where he is. But certainly, a lot of discussions for us about the entire roster," Ryan said. The previous front office and coaching staff were adamant that Penix was their guy. But after a serious knee injury and poor results in 2025 prior to his injury, the new front office is taking more of a wait-and-see approach. The 25-year-old says he expects to be ready for Week 1 and is eager to prove he's the guy, but time will tell if Atlanta brings in serious competition for him via a trade, free agency, or the draft. Questions about Penix's durability have significantly lowered his dynasty stock.