Who Should I Start? Marcus Mariota or Mason Rudolph

Friday, January 2, 12:26 PM

Washington Commanders quarterback Marcus Mariota (hand) has officially been ruled out for Sunday's Week 18 regular-season finale against the division-rival Philadelphia Eagles, according to Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic. Mariota was a stretch to make it back to play in the final game of the year after injuring his hand in the Week 16 loss to the Eagles. The 32-year-old veteran was held out of the Christmas Day loss to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 17 and will now miss a second straight game to end the year. Journeyman QB Josh Johnson will make a second straight start for the Commanders. Mariota ended up playing in 11 games (eight starts) this year while filling in for the injured Jayden Daniels, and he held his own, throwing for 1,695 yards, 10 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. He added 297 yards on the ground and a TD.

Sunday, November 23, 10:56 AM

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph will earn the start against the Chicago Bears in Week 12 after Aaron Rodgers (wrist) was ruled out pregame, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Rodgers was pushing to play, but the team decided to hold him out. This will be Rudolph's first start of the season, but he also earned significant snaps after Rodgers exited last Sunday. In that game, he completed 12 of 16 pass attempts for 127 yards, one touchdown, and zero interceptions. This week, the veteran will face off against a Bears defense that leads the league in interceptions but has also allowed the eighth-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks in 2025. He's a low-end QB2 for fantasy purposes.