Who Should I Start? Jared Goff or Sam Darnold

Sunday, January 19, 12:06 AM

Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff completed 23 of his 40 pass attempts for 313 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions during Saturday's loss to the Washington Commanders. He also rushed for seven yards, took two sacks, and lost a fumble. It was an eventful day for Goff, whose first and only playoff game of the year ultimately resulted in an upset loss. He delivered four turnovers in the defeat, and he also missed a drive while being evaluated for concussion. Immediately upon being cleared to play, Goff didn't quite look like himself. Even when he started to find his groove again, he wasn't able to lead the Lions over the Commanders. He finished as the overall QB6 in fantasy football during the regular season, but his lone playoff appearance was one to forget. The veteran signal-caller could face some adversity this offseason if the Lions lose offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and have to implement a new offensive scheme. Still, he should rank as a low-end QB1 in 2025, largely thanks to his bevy of weapons.

Tuesday, January 14, 4:51 PM

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold resurrected his career by leading the Vikings to 14 wins in 2024 while posting career-highs in passing yards (4,319) and touchdowns (35), but he came crashing down hard in losses to the Detroit Lions in Week 18 and the Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round in which he had a combined 23 off-target throws and took 11 sacks. Darnold's future is now as unsettled as ever as he heads toward free agency in March, but ESPN's Jeremy Fowler writes that Darnold is still the top free-agent QB. The teams that Fowler has spoken with recently forecasted Darnold in the Geno Smith/Baker Mayfield weight class of contracts. Mayfield got a three-year, $100 million deal last offseason with Tampa, while Smith signed a three-year, $75 million deal before the 2023 season. Darnold tanked to end the year, but he did enough to find work as a starter somewhere else if Minnesota doesn't want him back.