Who Should I Start? Joe Flacco or Jordan Love

Saturday, November 1, 12:19 PM

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco (shoulder) is planning to play in his team's Week 9 matchup against the Chicago Bears, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Flacco has an AC joint sprain in his right shoulder, which could certainly impact his performance, but the veteran is at least going to give it a go in Week 9. In three starts for Cincinnati this season, Flacco has completed 64.3% of his pass attempts for 784 yards, seven touchdowns, and zero interceptions. He's also averaging over 40 pass attempts per start with the Bengals, which makes him an appealing high-volume fantasy option. Cincinnati may opt for a more run-heavy game plan in Week 9 to try to protect Flacco. Still, he profiles as a solid fantasy QB2 in a favorable matchup against Chicago. If Flacco is unable to finish the game, the Bengals would likely be forced to turn to backup quarterback Jake Browning.

Friday, October 31, 4:11 PM

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love is coming off his best fantasy outing of the season against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and he looks to carry that over in Week 9 as the Packers host the Carolina Panthers. Love was the overall QB1 last week, throwing for 360 yards and three touchdowns in their Sunday Night Football win in Pittsburgh. Despite that huge game, it's hard to imagine Love stringing together multiple fantasy-worthy games, as his last two back-to-back top-12 games came in Week 4 and Week 5 of the 2024 season. But we know Love has the potential to put up yards and fantasy points each week. It's also possible the Packers lean more on the run as the Panthers' defense is one week removed from letting Buffalo's James Cook run wild for 215 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. In this matchup at home against Carolina, consider Love a low-end QB1 with some boom-or-bust potential.