Who Should I Start? Matthew Stafford or Taylor Heinicke

Friday, December 20, 9:24 PM

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is coming off a rough showing, throwing for only 160 yards and completing 59.3% of his attempts in the Thursday night win over the 49ers. He also failed to throw a touchdown after hurling two in each of his previous three games heading into Week 15. The Rams are clinging to the top spot in the NFC West, although the team will need a win over the New York Jets to enhance their chances of making the postseason. Unfortunately, Stafford will have his work cut out for him, with the Jets allowing only 13 passing touchdowns this season. Granted, the signal-caller still has some value, at least in multi-quarterback fantasy formats. However, fantasy managers shouldn't expect a big day out of Stafford in Week 16.

Wednesday, August 28, 8:22 PM

The Los Angeles Chargers are acquiring quarterback Taylor Heinicke from the Atlanta Falcons on Wednesday in exchange for a conditional sixth-round draft pick. Not only is starting quarterback Justin Herbert (foot) recovering from plantar fasciitis in his foot, but backup Easton Stick regressed in training camp and the preseason. The 31-year-old Heinicke will be an upgrade at the QB position behind Herbert entering the regular season next week. In Atlanta, the Falcons were expected all along to try and trade Heinicke after taking rookie Michael Penix Jr. in the first round in April. Heinicke made his NFL debut back in 2017 with the Houston Texans and has appeared in 38 games (29 starts) since then with four different teams. His best year came in 2021 with Washington, when he threw for 3,419 yards, 20 touchdowns and 15 picks on 321 pass attempts over 16 games (15 starts).