Who Should I Start? Sam Darnold or Kyler Murray

Friday, September 5, 2:19 PM

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold is not worth starting in Week 1 against the San Francisco 49ers. The 49ers project to have a solid defense with coordinator Robert Saleh back in the fold, and it remains to be seen if Darnold's breakout season in 2024 was a mirage. However, Darnold's level of play is worth monitoring in Week 1. He is joining an offense coordinated by Klint Kubiak with ties back to Darnold's year in San Francisco as a backup quarterback. The offense is going to play to Darnold's strengths, and he could very well succeed at a high level this season. Darnold is coming off a season in which he was the QB9 in Minnesota. While we certainly do not expect that of Darnold without wide receiver Justin Jefferson in 2025, he could still be an excellent streamer or QB2. Watch Darnold closely in Week 1. Even solid success against the 49ers' defense would suggest that we are in for another season of fantasy fun with the eight-year veteran.

Monday, September 8, 7:50 PM

The Arizona Republic's Theo Mackie writes that the Arizona Cardinals "tweaked some of their pass-protection schematics in an attempt to open up more scrambling lanes" for quarterback Kyler Murray up the middle this year. In the 20-13 Week 1 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, Murray went 21-for-29 for 163 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions while running the ball seven times for 38 yards. "I did think there were some high-leverage snaps in that game where he used his legs for our advantage and that's what you want to see," head coach Jonathan Gannon said. The 28-year-old ranked eighth among QBs in 2024 with 78 carries and finished fourth with 572 yards on the ground and five touchdowns. It sounds like Arizona might prefer Murray run the ball even more in 2025, which would only raise his ceiling and floor as a weekly low-end QB1 in fantasy.