Who Should I Start? Michael Penix Jr. or Bryce Young

Friday, February 6, 7:48 AM

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (knee) said on the Up & Adams Show on Friday that his recovery from knee surgery is a "little bit" ahead of schedule. Penix suffered a torn left ACL in Week 11 against the Carolina Panthers, but he's hoping he'll be ready to roll for Week 1 of the 2026 regular season this fall. The 25-year-old has already recovered from two ACL tears in his right knee in college, so he's pretty familiar with the rehab process. He's been attacking his rehab diligently since having surgery on Nov. 25, but there's no guarantee that Penix will be ready for Week 1, making him an extremely volatile QB2 target in fantasy football drafts this fall. Before his knee injury, the former eighth overall pick out of Washington was extremely inconsistent in nine starts in his first year as the full-time starter, completing 60.1% of his passes for 1,982 yards, nine TDs, and three picks.

Friday, February 13, 4:01 PM

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young may never fully live up to his prospect pedigree as the number one overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft. However, the 24-year-old made definite strides in his third NFL season in 2025 and led Carolina to its first playoff berth since 2017. Across 16 games, Young completed 63.6% of his pass attempts for 3,011 yards, 23 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions while also adding 216 yards and two scores as a rusher. While Young averaged a middling 6.3 yards per pass attempt for the season as a whole, that number improved to a much more respectable 7.2 yards per attempt over his final seven games played of the regular season. While the Panthers are reportedly not expected to push to sign Young to an extension this offseason, the team is likely to pick up the fifth-year option on his rookie contract after his successful 2025 campaign. As such, Young should have a bit more runway in Carolina to continue to develop and establish himself as the organization's long-term answer under center. Young is far from a high-end fantasy quarterback, but his stock in dynasty formats is moderately improved following his 2025 output.