Who Should I Start? Justin Herbert or J.J. McCarthy

Tuesday, January 27, 4:11 PM

The Los Angeles Chargers fired offensive coordinator Greg Roman after another early playoff exit and hired former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel to take over. The Chargers need to get healthy on the offensive line first and foremost, but the move to McDaniel should be great news for the fantasy outlook of quarterback Justin Herbert in 2026. One of the first things that McDaniel hopes to do is to craft an offense that doesn't rely as much on Herbert's individual talents, such as scrambling and making miraculous plays outside of the pocket. "I think not relying too heavily on Justin's ability to do above and beyond, I think is critical to maximize those types of opportunities," McDaniel said. "That'll be one of the first things that we'll try to do is take a little off his plate so that he is free to do that when his greatness is required." Herbert went over 4,000 passing yards in each of his first three seasons, but he hasn't been able to do it the last three years. He finished as the QB10 in overall fantasy points in 2025. With McDaniel in the fold, Herbert should have more upside to reach his true ceiling.

Tuesday, January 13, 2:54 PM

Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell said he wants a competitive situation at quarterback going into next season, according to Alec Lewis of The Athletic. O'Connell said McCarthy "is going to be a major emphasis," but "the competition in that room will only enhance the entire team." The Vikings want McCarthy to seize the starting job, but he's going to have to earn it and play better than he did in 2026, and the Vikings are fully expected to add to their QB room to push McCarthy this offseason. The 22-year-old former first-round signal-caller missed his entire rookie season in 2024 due to a knee injury that required surgery. McCarthy missed time with multiple injuries in 2025 and struggled with turnovers and efficiency when he was on the field, completing 57.6% of his pass attempts for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions in 10 starts. Fantasy managers will want to see improvement from the Michigan product before considering him as anything more than a low-end QB2 option with upside.