Who Should I Start? Sam Darnold or Tyler Shough

Friday, October 31, 6:33 PM

Hopefully, you rostered Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (chest) through his bye week because he draws a great matchup with the Washington Commanders on Sunday. The Commanders' defense has had trouble stopping opposing passing offenses with a leaky secondary. Darnold should have no issues spreading the ball around to his various wide receivers all day. Prior to a tough matchup with the Texans in Week 7, Darnold had notched five straight games with at least 16.08 fantasy points. While those are no world-beating numbers, they are enough to anchor your fantasy team at the quarterback position. Darnold's superpower this year has been his lack of turnovers. The Commanders have had difficulty forcing turnovers all season long. They only have four interceptions in eight games. Darnold should be rostered for the rest of the season as a QB2 with upside. However, he should absolutely be in lineups in a week in which the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Philadelphia Eagles, and their respective quarterbacks, are on a bye. Darnold was dealing with a chest injury all week, but he logged three full practice days. The injury should be of no concern.

Wednesday, October 29, 5:06 PM

New Orleans Saints head coach Kellen Moore announced on Wednesday that rookie quarterback Tyler Shough will start for the team for the rest of the season. Moore said that he feels Shough is ready and that he is "really excited for him." The Saints benched Spencer Rattler in last week's loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Shough went 17-for-30 passing for 128 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception in relief in just his second NFL appearance. The second-rounder out of Louisville will now lead the Saints offense for the rest of the year, and he'll get a tough matchup on the road against the Los Angeles Rams this weekend in his first career start. Shough has a strong arm and good size at 6-foot-5, 219 pounds, but he won't give fantasy managers any additional upside with his legs in what has been a very inconsistent Saints offense. Expect plenty of growing pains. Shough should remain on the waiver wire in single-QB, 12-team redraft leagues.