2025 Week 2 Fantasy Football Rankings: QB

Joe Burrow looks to bounce back from a typically shaky opener, Patrick Mahomes returns stateside to face the Eagles, and Mac Jones fills in for Brock Purdy in San Francisco.

Other positions: Running Back | Receiver | Tight End/Kickers/Defense

Week 2 Quarterbacks

QB Notes: For whatever reason the bank examiner’s best friend when it comes to season openers, Joe Burrow had his usual Week 1 stink bomb. He will need to snap out of it fast against a Jaguars defense that wasn’t tested by the Panthers but remains vulnerable on paper. Unsurprisingly, the books have slapped Jags/Bengals with the week’s second highest game total. You have no choice but to go back to the Burrow well despite last Sunday’s unpleasantness. … I was skeptical of the Commanders’ skill corp upgrades or lack thereof, but Jayden Daniels struck up an immediate Week 1 connection with Deebo Samuel, who spent far more time in the slot than he did in San Francisco. Daniels also eclipsed 10 carries, something he did “just” six times during the 2024 regular season. All of this is the long way of saying, at least for one game, Daniels showed the things we needed to see to believe he can repeat last year’s instant superstar campaign. … Dak Prescott made nearly all the Week 1 throws but didn’t get the results thanks to drops and other miscues. Back home against a solid but hardly stay-away Giants defense, Prescott should scare up a score or three.

Even with Xavier Worthy literally instantly joining Rashee Rice on the shelf, Patrick Mahomes put up 26 fantasy points against the Chargers. That’s a number he reached just four times all last regular season. Mahomes was running more and hunting further down the field. His average intended air yards was (a still modest) 7.0 after that number was 6.3 in 2024. Worthy’s absence would hurt, but Mahomes can be fired up against an Eagles defense that sometimes appeared as if it forgot to take the field in Week 1. … Kyler Murray hardly set the world ablaze in his Week 1 smash spot, but he at least had the decency to finish on the QB1/2 borderline. It would have been much, much higher had he not missed a *checks notes* 97-yard touchdown pass to Marvin Harrison Jr. So it goes with fantasy’s most frustrating quarterback. He gets another chance in the top eight vs. a Panthers defense that appeared dismal and downtrodden in its Jacksonville road opener. … Drake Maye was awful on 50 Week 1 dropbacks. Coach Mike Vrabel is understandably calling for a more balanced Week 2 approach. Even against the horrid Dolphins, Maye is best left in superflex spots for the time being.

He had to go all the way to Brazil to do so, but Justin Herbert posted the 10th most fantasy points of his career against the Chiefs in Week 1. His 318 yards were 173 more than he averaged in four games last September. Playing with a deeper supporting cast this season, it would appear Herbert has been handed the keys to Jim Harbaugh’s kingdom. The Raiders are an unimposing Week 2 matchup for the Bolts’ home opener. … Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars were mostly just screwing around in their home opener. A lengthy weather delay and non-competitive Panthers opponent lent the game an air of extended preseason. Unfortunate if you started Jags pass catchers in fantasy, though also in many ways a good sign — this team was good enough to make Week 1 a laugh. Week 2 on the road against the Bengals will be a much stiffer test, but a likely shootout that keeps Lawrence in the low-end QB1 mix with his new coach and supporting cast. … It’s too early to declare J.J. McCarthy a legit streamer option, but his immaculate fourth quarter in Chicago keeps him in the top 24 mix for Week 2.

Justin Fields blew all the way up in Week 1. I didn’t see it coming. One game, etc. but it was against what should still be a solid Steelers defense this season. It was also Fields’ preseason bull case come to life. He ran like the wind and locked onto Garrett Wilson. That’s a repeatable enough formula, especially against a Bills defense that had its worst performance in ages in Week 1. … Jared Goff put on a Week 1 disasterclass. We’re onto Detroit. Back home in the Lions’ dome, Goff will be facing a Bears defense that fell apart late in Week 1. Chicago will also be on the road on a short week. Although the Lions could be tempted to recommit to the run as they try to get their bearings after the previous Sunday’s fiasco, we usually like Goff as a tidy dome favorite. … The Lions weren’t competitive in Week 1 so the Packers took the air out of the ball. Matt LaFleur will do that 10 times out of 10. The Commanders shouldn’t be so obliging, even on a short week at Lambeau Field. We might actually get 30 Jordan Love pass attempts in this one.

Bo Nix was a Week 1 concern. He posted a terrible box score vs. an ordinary Titans D. His rushing was ineffective, and he turned the ball over three times. Also a slow starter in 2024, perhaps Nix needs a few weeks for his enhanced supporting cast to gel. … Caleb Williams’ Week 1 went beyond concern. It was a five-alarm fire of an awful performance. All of Williams’ 2024 foibles seemed to remain, most perniciously his blindfolded-level accuracy. We would like to be able to fire Williams up in places like Ford Field’s fast track, but he lost all QB1 benefit of the doubt in the opener. … Bryce Young had a far worse day than even Williams. His nearly-nonexistent supporting cast has him outside the top 24 looking in for the time being. … Michael Penix Jr. looked the streamer part in the opener. Hopefully Drake London (shoulder) is healthy enough to make something happen vs. the Vikes. … Daniel Jones comes off one of the very best starts of his career to a daunting home matchup with a Broncos defense that erased Cam Ward in his NFL debut. Although we expect The Dimesman to fare better than rookie Ward, there is very little reason to hit on 17 with last week’s streaming sensation.

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