Who Should I Start? Matthew Stafford or Patrick Mahomes
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23.3 | 3.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Matthew Stafford News
Monday, July 6, 11:52 AM
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford had a historic season in 2025, throwing for 4,707 yards, 46 touchdowns, and eight interceptions across 17 games and being named the NFL's MVP. Stafford was an elite fantasy QB last season, particularly in leagues that award six points per passing touchdown. Still, there are multiple reasons to expect regression from Stafford in 2026. For one, the veteran quarterback is entering his age-38 season and has a history of back and neck issues. Stafford also posted a 7.7% touchdown rate as a passer in 2025, which is well above his career mark of 4.8%. By measure of per-game scoring, Stafford finished outside the top-24 at the quarterback position in 2024. However, he's currently being valued as a low-end QB1/high-end QB2 by average draft position in redraft formats. Unless his price continues to come down, Stafford may be a player for redraft managers to avoid in 2026.
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23.8 | 16.6 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Patrick Mahomes News
Wednesday, July 15, 8:00 PM
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (knee) told Caroline Fenton on Yahoo Sports Daily on Wednesday that he's still aiming to be ready for the Week 1 regular-season opener on Monday Night Football against the division-rival Denver Broncos on Sept. 14. "That's my goal," Mahomes said. "I've said that since the beginning is being ready to go Week 1. I can't predict the future, and I know that it's a long process. It's not just my decision, but at the same time I'm going to give the doctors and the coaches every single opportunity I can to let me be out there Week 1." The 30-year-old two-time MVP and six-time Pro Bowler tore his ACL in Week 15 of last year, but he remains on schedule to be ready for the start of the 2026 season and took part in the offseason program on a limited basis. We should get a better read on Mahomes' availability for the start of the regular season when training camp kicks off in a couple of weeks. Even if Mahomes is ready to roll for Week 1, fantasy managers should temper expectations for a signal-caller entering his age-31 season coming off a major knee injury. RotoBaller has Mahomes ranked as the QB13 as he heads into his 10th year in the league.
Matthew Stafford vs. Patrick Mahomes
Still trying to decide between Stafford and Mahomes? 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 23.3 points this week while Patrick Mahomes is projected to score 23.8 points.
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