It seems like the fantasy quarterback landscape has never been more packed. With 13 guys (well… 12—one of them is Dak Prescott) averaging over 20 points a game in half PPR scoring, there’s not much of an excuse for not having a strong performer at QB this season.
There has actually been so much consistent production coming from the position that sometimes you have to make some tough choices when deciding who to start. Well, thanks to a couple of rookies who are blowing up, the field just got even more crowded.
Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert have been fantasy monsters as of late, and with them both performing on this level as rookies, you have to wonder what their ceilings are for the future.
Burrow put up insane numbers in Week 7 against the Browns. This year’s No. 1 overall pick threw for 406 yards and 3 touchdowns, and he ran for another. That performance netted him 35 fantasy points, good enough to make him the QB4 for the week. With a schedule moving forward that includes matchups with suspect defenses from Tennessee, Washington, Dallas, and Houston (in what would probably be your league’s fantasy Super Bowl), Burrow, who is somehow only owned in about two-thirds of ESPN leagues, is a must stash if you love your current QB—and maybe a must-start if you don’t.
Not to be outdone by a fellow rookie, Herbert went absolutely ballistic last week, too. Herbert shredded the Jaguars for 347 yards and 3 touchdowns through the air, while adding 66 yards rushing and another score. That workmanlike effort was good for 38 fantasy points and left him sitting as the (ho-hum) QB1 for the week.
Through the 5 games he’s played, Herbert averages fewer points a game than only Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray at the position. That’s right, Herbert averages more points per game than Patrick Mahomes. And his rest of season schedule has some juicy matchups, too. He’s getting Vegas twice, Atlanta, the Jets, and Denver twice (including the Week 16 fantasy Super Bowl), just to name a few. It’s kind of starting to feel like the sky is the limit for this guy; it kind of seems like that quack who punctured Tyrod Taylor’s lung may have accidentally done the Chargers a big favor.
The Wolf has Burrow as his QB13 on his Rest of Season Rankings, which is right where the ECR has him. Herbert, however, is ranked as his QB6, 5 spots above where the so-called experts have him for the remainder of the season.
