Who Should I Start? Joe Flacco or Justin Fields

Friday, May 30, 10:54 PM

While the Cleveland Browns haven't made any announcements on their quarterback competition, The Athletic's Zac Jackson writes that 18-year veteran Joe Flacco should be well ahead of rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders, and he's also probably ahead of Kenny Pickett. Flacco throws the ball better than the others in a practice setting, and his overall experience makes him the clear favorite to win the job. It's possible that Pickett will outplay Flacco in the coming months, though. Flacco and Pickett alternated turns with the No. 1 offense in practice at OTAs on Wednesday, with Gabriel out-repping Sanders in the second OTA practice. Jackson thinks it's almost a certainty that the QB battle is between Flacco and Pickett. Although Flacco had a nice little run with Cleveland at the end of 2023, he'll be a low-end QB2 option in two-QB fantasy leagues if he wins the starting gig over Pickett this year.

Wednesday, May 21, 2:28 PM

New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields was "late on throws" during Wednesday's practice session, according to team reporter Nick Faria. While early offseason practice reports should be taken with a grain of salt, this is not a promising sign, as Fields has struggled with accuracy and processing during his young NFL career. In 50 career games, Fields has completed just over 61% of his passing attempts for 7,780 yards, 45 touchdowns, and 31 interceptions. His inability to develop into a high-level passer ultimately caused the Chicago Bears to move on from him, and he was benched for Russell Wilson early last season with the Steelers. That said, Fields is one of just three quarterbacks (Lamar Jackson, Michael Vick) in NFL history to rack up 1,000 rushing yards in a single season, so he could be a value at his QB2 cost in fantasy drafts. As long as Fields remains the starter in New York, his rushing floor and ceiling will keep him on the fantasy radar and in contention for a QB1 finish. At the same time, New York's pass-catching group is weak behind Garrett Wilson, and Fields could limit the overall ceiling of the passing attack.