Who Should I Start? Trevor Lawrence or Michael Penix Jr.

Tuesday, October 28, 3:54 PM

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence only led the team to one touchdown in their 35-7 blowout loss to the Los Angeles Rams in London in Week 7, but he also threw for a season-high 296 yards on 23-for-48 passing with one touchdown. The Jags were on bye last week, but now head into a favorable Week 9 matchup on the road against the Las Vegas Raiders this Sunday. The 26-year-old former first overall pick probably won't see as much volume this weekend as he did against the Rams in a positive game script, but he deserves streaming consideration at the QB position in fantasy against a Raiders defense that has been a top-15 matchup for opposing signal-callers this year. Lawrence's overall numbers don't jump off the page so far in his fifth NFL season, but his arrow could be pointing up in the second half of the season if he begins to start targeting rookie receiver Travis Hunter more often.

Saturday, November 1, 12:11 PM

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (knee) will return from a one-week absence to face the Patriots on Sunday. The 25-year-old was a full participant on Friday and heads into the contest without an injury designation. The left-handed QB has thrown just five touchdown passes in six games played this season (three interceptions), and will face a New England defense that is yielding the ninth-fewest passing yards per game (194.7) over their last three and the fourth-fewest points allowed per game on the season (18.3 PPG; 15.0 PPG last three). The second-year pro owns a 1:2 TD:INT in three road games this season, averaging just around 183 yards passing in those contests. The Falcons have an implied point total of under 20 points for Sunday's matchup, which does not foretell great things from Penix, leaving him as a low-end QB2 option in Week 9.