Honorable mention Start: Josh Allen (BUF), Joe Burrow (CIN), Sam Darnold (MIN)
Honorable mention Sit: Aaron Rodgers (NYJ). Derek Carr (NO), Bryce Young (CAR
Start: Cooper Rush, Dallas Cowboys
What has the world come to? Here, I am recommending Cooper Rush this week, and I don’t know how to feel about that. But hear me out. He’s dropped nearly 25 points in two of the past three games, his next three games are soft as hell (Cincinnati, Carolina, Tampa Bay), and he has solid pass-catcher talent around him. I won’t say he’s going to win your league for you, but I will say he can for sure help you get closer to it. The Bengals last three weeks v. QBs – 43.8, 31.3, 42.7. Even if he only gives us 25. Cooper is top 12 this week.
Start: Aidan O’Connell, Las Vegas Raiders
Yep. It’s O’Connell Time, baby! (Please don’t close the article). In his first game back, Aidan dropped 30 on the Chiefs on Black Friday – 340 yards and two tuddys. Chef’s kiss! And we love him this week also, right? It’s the Buccaneers, who are next to last against the position season-long with several games above 30 points allowed (about half their games, in fact). Tampa’s offense is high octane, so the Raiders – like every other team playing the Bucs – will have to throw to keep up (last five games pass attempts v. TB – 46, 32, 36, 44, 29).
Sit: Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
It seems silly to recommend Tua as a sit while he’s on such a heater, but I’m playing my gut here. The Jets have been susceptible to the position over the last four games (seven, really), and yes, they have been gouged by good QBs. I really don’t have a logical reason to sit him, but here we are. My gut tells me this week Sauce & Co. have a get-right game, and maybe that’s because they graded so well against the Seahawks this past Sunday – Sauce (81.8%), Reed (62.5%) and Williams (42.8%) were among the best in lockdown rate, per PFF. Did they straighten out over the bye week? Possibly. My gut says yes, and I’m betting Tua will be outside the top QB finishes for the week as a result.
Sit: Kirk Cousins, Atlanta Falcons
I don’t know what’s wrong with Kirk Cousins. If I did, I wouldn’t be writing start/sit articles. I just know something is wrong. Four interceptions against the Chargers. FOUR. And this has been ongoing all season long. If you take out his 50-point game against the Bucs and his 40-point performance against, well, the Bucs, Cousins has been terrible for us this season. For their part, I do think the Chargers played a fantastic game against Cousins. But even in games where he does well for us (and there have only been four of those), he’s looked off. And that team is stacked with offensive talent, so there’s really no excuse. Minnesota is just average against QBs, but I bet they look like world-beaters on Sunday against Kirkers.
