Who Should I Start? Justin Herbert or Michael Penix Jr.

Friday, December 12, 4:18 PM

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (hand) was cleared from the injury report Friday and is good to go for Sunday's game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Herbert broke his left hand during the Chargers' Week 13 win over the Raiders and played through the injury last week against the Eagles. The team will continue to manage his reps during practice, but he isn't expected to miss any game action. The 27-year-old signal-caller wasn't at his best in the overtime win over the Eagles, completing just 12 of 26 passes for 139 yards, one touchdown, and one interception while adding 10 carries for 66 yards. He took a career-high seven sacks as he continues to operate behind a makeshift offensive line. Herbert's fantasy upside is capped due to his injury while working with poor protection from his offensive line. He profiles more as a QB2 in the Week 15 divisional matchup against the Chiefs on the road.

Wednesday, November 26, 1:06 PM

Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said on Wednesday that quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (knee) had successful surgery on his knee on Tuesday, according to D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Penix had full reconstructive surgery to fix a partially torn ACL in his left knee, which will keep him out for the rest of this season and possibly for the start of the 2026 season next fall. The 25-year-old second-year signal-caller is facing a nine-month recovery, which will force Atlanta to rethink its long-term plan at the QB position this offseason. This is Penix's third ACL reconstruction in his career after he had two knee surgeries in college. Kirk Cousins will start the rest of the year under center for the Falcons, but depending on how he finishes the season, the Falcons could opt out of the final two seasons of his four-year deal.