Who Should I Start? Mason Rudolph or Michael Penix Jr.
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Mason Rudolph News
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.
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8.3 | 3.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Michael Penix Jr. News
Friday, July 31, 2:01 PM
It's unclear as of right now if either Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (knee) or Tua Tagovailoa (back) will play in any preseason games, according to Tori McElhaney of the team's official website. Head coach Kevin Stefanski said a decision will be made at a later date, and with Penix, it will depend on where he's at in his recovery from a torn ACL in 2025. Penix was at training camp on Friday, but he continued to be held out of full team drills. However, he did get all of the high red-zone snaps in 7-on-7 work. The 26-year-old former eighth overall pick in 2024 from the University of Washington had surgery last November on his knee, and it might be several more weeks before he's fully cleared for team work in training camp. While nothing will be settled in terms of the QB competition for a while, Penix's extended rehab has opened the door for Tagovailoa to become the favorite in the competition under center this summer. Penix's fantasy stock in both redraft and dynasty leagues is way down entering 2026, and he could be an injury liability for the rest of his career.
Mason Rudolph vs. Michael Penix Jr.
Still trying to decide between Rudolph and Penix Jr.? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Mason Rudolph is projected to score 1.0 points this week while Michael Penix Jr. is projected to score 8.3 points.
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