Who Should I Start? Justin Fields or Kenny Pickett

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.

Monday, April 28, 4:10 PM

Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com reports that the Cleveland Browns will not pick up quarterback Kenny Pickett's fifth-year option. It isn't a surprise, considering Pickett hasn't exactly shown out when given the chance. The 26-year-old is on his fourth team in four seasons after the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted him No. 20 overall in the 2022 NFL Draft. Pickett played second fiddle to Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts last season, appearing in five games, though he only attempted a pass in three of them. In two seasons with the Steelers, the Pittsburgh product put together an underwhelming 4,474-yard line on a 63% completion percentage with a 13:13 TD:INT ratio in 25 games (24 starts). He may get a shot at some in-game action this season, but it's difficult to tell when (or if) that may be due to the presence of veteran Joe Flacco and recently acquired draftees Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel.