Who Should I Start? Justin Fields or Dillon Gabriel

Tuesday, August 19, 3:52 PM

ESPN's Rich Cimini writes that it appears that New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields will not play in the preseason finale on Friday against the Philadelphia Eagles. Head coach Aaron Glenn said "a good amount" of starters will not play, but didn't give specifics. Fields was active for the team's first two preseason games, but the 26-year-old only played three offensive possessions. The former first-rounder by the Chicago Bears in 2021 out of Ohio State showed improvement last year with the Pittsburgh Steelers before being benched in favor of Russell Wilson, and the Jets are now hoping he can take another step forward as their unquestioned starter in 2025. So far during training camp, Fields has mostly just been dumping the ball off in th short and intermediate areas, but his rushing upside is what makes him a low-end QB1 target in fantasy.

Saturday, August 30, 7:40 PM

Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel has "gained a lot of trust from the coaching staff just in terms of how he worked, and we feel good about it," assistant general manager Glenn Cook said. After setting a college football record with 63 starts over six seasons divided among Central Florida, Oklahoma, and Oregon, the third-round pick impressed the Browns' coaches enough to beat out fifth-round rookie Shedeur Sanders and now-Las Vegas Raider Kenny Pickett for the backup QB job. The new role doesn't faze Gabriel, who told Zac Jackson of The Athletic: "It's not daunting. I have ultimate confidence in myself and who I am." Gabriel looked decent in two preseason games, going 25-for-37 for 272 yards, a touchdown, and an interception, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see him starting at some point in 2025. The only real roadblock is 40-year-old starter Joe Flacco, a stopgap who has played in nine or fewer games in seven straight seasons.