Who Should I Start? Patrick Mahomes or Trevor Lawrence

Monday, September 16, 4:54 AM

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes completed 18 of 25 passes (72%) for 151 yards and two touchdowns in the 26-25 win against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2. Mahomes passed for less than 300 yards for the second straight game and had at least one interception. The Chiefs quarterback was picked off twice in this contest, and the team narrowly escaped with the victory through a game-winning field goal from Harrison Butker. It was a disappointing performance from Mahomes, who passed for under 200 yards for just the ninth time in his career. Despite having field-stretching playmakers, Kansas City could not find a rhythm on offense in this contest. Mahomes will look to improve his output next week on the road against the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons allowed the eighth-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks in 2023, so Mahomes should have no issues dicing up the Atlanta secondary. Despite being a disappointing starter in fantasy, it will be difficult to bench an MVP-caliber quarterback like Mahomes. Mahomes will still land within the QB1 conversation until proven otherwise.

Monday, September 16, 2:30 AM

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence had a decent day yardage-wise, but couldn't find the end zone in an 18-13 loss to the Cleveland Browns. He finished with 14 completions and 220 yards on 30 attempts, and 45 rushing yards on two attempts. Lawrence has just one passing touchdown through two games, which is not ideal for both real and fantasy football. The Clemson product has not looked great through two weeks, and he is not getting much fantasy production out of his weapons either. The Browns have a great defense going back to last year, especially against the pass, so it is not that surprising Lawrence had a subpar performance, but his fantasy floor needs to be higher than this to be starting caliber. The former top pick seems like a potential cut candidate for fantasy managers in Week 3, especially with his matchups remaining difficult in the coming weeks. The Jaguars face the Buffalo Bills next Monday night, a defense that should pose another challenge for the Jacksonville offense.