Who Should I Start? Lamar Jackson or Tua Tagovailoa

Thursday, December 18, 1:59 PM

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (illness) returned to practice on Thursday after missing Wednesday's session with an illness, according to Jamison Hensley of ESPN. Jackson continued an ongoing trend of missing Wednesday practices, but this time it was due to an illness and not a nagging ankle injury. He should be ready to go for Sunday Night Football against the New England Patriots, and there is hope for his fantasy managers that he can be more productive as he puts his nagging lower-body injuries in the rearview mirror. Jackson has not looked like a two-time MVP in 2025, throwing for 2,210 yards, 18 touchdowns, and six interceptions in 11 games played while adding only two rushing touchdowns. The 28-year-old has multiple touchdown passes just once in the last six games, although the good news is that the one instance came last week. Treat Jackson as a low-end QB1 in Week 16.

Wednesday, December 17, 10:40 AM

The Miami Dolphins are benching quarterback Tua Tagovailoa for rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers in Week 16, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. After struggling in Week 15 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, head coach Mike McDaniel mentioned the idea of making a change at quarterback, stating, "all options are on the table." Tagovailoa is benched after having a career-worst season, leading the NFL in interceptions (15) and ranking near the bottom of the league in QBR (88.5). The former first-round pick received a massive contract extension that will make it difficult for him to be traded during the offseason. This is a situation to monitor closely as free agency approaches, while fantasy managers can safely drop Tagovailoa in all leagues.