Who Should I Start? Matthew Stafford or J.J. McCarthy
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26.1 | 4.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Matthew Stafford News
Thursday, September 10, 9:12 PM
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford completed 15 of his 25 pass attempts (60% completion rate) for 155 passing yards, zero touchdowns, and one interception. He didn't take a sack in the contest. That stat line would be subpar for any quarterback, but it's especially frustrating for a veteran passer who won the league MVP award last season while having Puka Nacua and Davante Adams at his disposal. Stafford was unable to keep the Rams in this game for long, and he ended up getting replaced by Stetson Bennett once the score got out of hand. There's no real excuse for this performance, but if it's any consolation, managers should expect him to play a little better once he's not traveling to Australia and turning around to play a football game less than 24 hours later. The Rams will return to the United States soon, giving Stafford 11 days to get back on track before his next game against the New York Giants in Week 1. Largely thanks to his supporting cast, Stafford remains a fringe top-12 fantasy quarterback for the time being.
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
J.J. McCarthy News
Wednesday, September 9, 10:51 AM
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell told reporters on Wednesday that veteran quarterback Carson Wentz is the backup to starter Kyler Murray and that J.J. McCarthy is the third-stringer to open the 2026 season, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network. It will be a week-to-week evaluation. "This gives us the best chance to win," O'Connell said. The writing was on the wall for the 23-year-old former first-rounder from Michigan when the Vikings signed Murray to a one-year deal this offseason in free agency. McCarthy lost out in the training camp QB battle to Murray, and after struggling in the preseason and getting banged up, he will enter his third year in the NFL as the team's QB3. In his first full season as the Vikings' starter in 2025, McCarthy only played in 10 games due to various injuries and struggled with his accuracy, completing 140 of his 243 pass attempts for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. McCarthy's best path back to fantasy relevance in dynasty/keeper leagues might be a trade out of Minnesota at this point.
Matthew Stafford vs. J.J. McCarthy
Still trying to decide between Stafford and McCarthy? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Matthew Stafford is projected to score 26.1 points this week while J.J. McCarthy is projected to score 0.0 points.
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