Who Should I Start? Jared Goff or Sam Darnold

Friday, January 17, 1:03 AM

Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff remains an appealing fantasy option as he prepares for the Divisional Round of the playoffs against the Washington Commanders. The veteran quarterback has never been a very mobile player, but he has been able to maintain high upside thanks to his sharp passing skills and strong group of weapons. Throwing passes to players like Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Sam LaPorta, and Jahmyr Gibbs in 2024, Goff was able to rank as the overall QB6. This week, he should crack the top five fantasy quarterbacks as he takes on a suspect Washington Commanders defense. The Commanders have shown real potential, allowing the seventh-fewest fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks this year. However, their defense is typically regarded as mediocre at best, and they just surrendered two passing touchdowns to Baker Mayfield in the Wild Card Round. Furthermore, they failed to pick off Mayfield, despite the Buccaneers' quarterback leading the NFL in interceptions during the regular season. Goff may not post an absurdly high yardage total, but he should still be relied upon for a couple of touchdowns and potentially turnover-free football. He continues to be a top option for fantasy and betting purposes.

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.