Who Should I Start? Sam Darnold or Jake Browning

Wednesday, May 8, 11:20 PM

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold could be named the team's Week 1 starter over first-round pick J.J. McCarthy. As Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com writes, "It's only a matter of time before McCarthy becomes the Vikings' starting quarterback [...] but it is not likely to happen as quickly as some fans might hope, and if anything, the Vikings are poised to err on the side of methodical caution." Such a scenario could see Minnesota let Darnold, whom they signed this past offseason when Kirk Cousins left for Atlanta, start a few games before transitioning to McCarthy. Darnold has struggled to support major fantasy production from his playmakers at previous stops, including the Jets and Panthers, so fantasy managers might want to temper expectations with players like Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson to start the year. Darnold himself falls to the low-end QB3 tier in fantasy football drafts.

Tuesday, April 23, 2:06 PM

The Cincinnati Bengals re-signed exclusive-rights free-agent quarterback Jake Browning to an undisclosed two-year deal on Tuesday on a contract through the 2025 season. Browning got his first real shot in the NFL last year with the Bengals when he was forced to replace Joe Burrow (wrist) after his season-ending injury. In his first nine games (seven starts) played in the NFL, he held his own and kept the Bengals competitive despite not making the playoffs, posting a league-best 70.4 completion percentage, 1,936 yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions. The 28-year-old will return to being the primary backup to Burrow in 2024, so he won't have any real fantasy appeal unless Burrow misses time with another injury.