Week 2 Fantasy Football QB Rankings & Tiers: Show Brock Purdy Some Respect!

Week 2 is here! Time to overreact to 60 minutes of football!

I'll break down my weekly QB rankings and tiers each and every week *with* some bigger-picture questions sprinkled in along the way. This week's additional topics feature:

• Who has the best and worst on-paper matchups this week?
• Who have been the NFL's best fantasy QBs during the last half season?
• What new schemes showed the most and least promise in Week 1?
• What teams might have BAD offensive lines?
• What offenses are implied to score the most points this week?

As always: It's a great day to be great.

Tier 1: Easy 20+ Fantasy Point Upside

• QB1: Josh Allen (vs. DET on TNF). Fresh off posting the second-best single-game performance in EPA per dropback against the Texans since 2023, the all-time QB1 in fantasy points per game now gets a banged-up Lions defense that allowed 410 big ones through the air to Tyler Shough and company last week.
• QB2: Lamar Jackson (vs. NO). Lamar managed to throw for 324 yards and rush for 40 last week. I'd say he's healthy! Sadly, Zay Flowers (hamstring, hopefully minor) and Ja'Kobi Lane (wrist, not minor) aren't healthy. Either way: The Declan Doyle offense was fun in Week 1 (12th in motion, 5th in play-action, 4th in percentage of snaps under center), and only the 49ers and Bills are implied to score more points than the Ravens this week.
• QB3: Jalen Hurts (at TEN). Looked healthy on his way to racking up 24.7 fantasy points in Week 1. Sadly, the Eagles' offensive line did not: Longtime stalwart G Landon Dickerson (knee, IR) is out, leaving this once formidable offensive line suddenly looking awfully mortal. Good news: They get to play the worst team in the NFL this week.
• QB4: Brock Purdy (vs. MIA). Ranks first in career yards per attempt (8.6, 1st) and passer rating (104.0) among all QBs to play 50 games in the Super Bowl era. Up next is a Dolphins defense that made the Raiders offense look good in Week 1.
• QB5: Caleb Williams (vs. MIN). The overall QB1 (37.3 fantasy points!) looked like an MVP candidate in Week 1. Seriously. Watch this mixtape. Of course, it was the Panthers. Williams has been up (340-2-0 passing) and more meh (191-1-0, 210-1-0, 193-0-0) in three career matchups against Brian Flores' blitz-happy defense. Still, the NFL's fastest QB has arguably earned matchup-proof upside QB1 treatment at this point. Note that Williams went 7/11 for 118 yards (10.7 YPA) with two TD and zero INT against the blitz in Week 1.
• QB6: Jayden Daniels (at DAL). Eked out 17.7 fantasy points in the Commanders' ill-fated comeback attempt against the Eagles. Now gets a Cowboys defense that literally allowed the Giants to swing pass their way down the field. This brings us to this tier's main topic …

Key question: Who has the best and worst on-paper matchups this week?

The following chart denotes every defense's performance in terms of EPA per dropback and fantasy points per game allowed to QBs over the past 12 months:

The three biggest beneficiaries this week: Daniels, Dak Prescott and Jordan Love. The biggest loser: Caleb Williams … but I have a hard time betting too much against the man after what we just saw in Week 1.

Tier 2: We Believe in You … But there's Just One Problem

• QB7: Justin Herbert (vs. LV). Was Week 1 rough for the Chargers offense (268 yards, 14 points against the lowly Cardinals) as a whole? Yes. Am I at least a little bit shaken after predicting the Chargers would lead the NFL in scoring this season? Also yes. Can we back down in Week 2 against a Raiders defense that continues to lack blue-chip talent outside of Maxx Crosby? Absolutely not. But hey, come on now, man: Herbert has passed for at least 250 yards in just two of his last 10 games. That's the same as backup Texans QB Davis Mills.
• QB8: Trevor Lawrence (at DEN). We're going to fully quantify just how good T-Law has been during his last 10-game stretch of football shortly. He's only ranked this low because of the tough on-paper matchup against a pissed-off and motivated Broncos at Mile High … a spot where Lawrence managed to post 279-3-0 passing and 6-20-1 rushing lines last season.
• QB9: Drake Maye (vs. PIT). His 9.8 fantasy points marked his fewest in a game in the last two seasons. Each interception was more horrible than the last. A.J. Brown (ankle, IR) is out of the picture. Why is Maye even ranked this high against T.J. Watt and company? Well, he's the QB7 in fantasy points from purely rushing production since the beginning of last season — something that helped him overcome a meh real-life performance against this very defense  in Week 3, 2025 (19.2 fantasy points, QB7).
• QB10: Jordan Love (at NYJ). The ending wasn't pretty, but Love ultimately threw for 387 yards and a pair of scores (9.2 YPA!) against the Vikings in Week 1. His 42 pass attempts were good for his fourth most in 50 career starts! This talented pass-heavy offense now gets a Sauce Gardner-less Jets secondary that ranks *checks notes* dead last in EPA allowed per dropback since the beginning of last season.
• QB11: Dak Prescott (vs. WAS). Not the most compelling season-opening performance from an offense widely viewed as a threat to lead the league in scoring this season … but then again Dak posted 264-3-0 and 307-2-0 passing lines against his former defensive coordinator last season. It was intriguing to see Washington blitz at the league's second-highest rate (50.9%!) under new DC Daronte Jones (obviously a Brian Flores disciple). Note that Dak is the QB10 in EPA per dropback and passer rating against the blitz among 45 qualified QBs the last two seasons.
• QB12: Joe Burrow (at HOU). Will the Bengals offense be just fine this season barring health? Absolutely. Should we really expect THAT big of a boom to a defense that has only been meaningfully diced up in fantasy land by Mr. Josh Allen during the last 12 months? That's where I'm out.

Key question: Who have been the NFL's best fantasy QBs during the last half season?

The NFL is a "what have you done lately for me" sort of league … so let's ask that very question! The below chart denotes the top-32 fantasy QBs since Week 10 of last season (including playoffs):

Main takeaways:

• Shoutout T-Law! The man has truly been on one helluva heater.
• Brock Purdy is a problem when he and the 49ers unc-playmakers are healthy.
• Caleb Williams and Jaxson Dart have been racking up fantasy points for a minute.
• Tyler Shough has been a consistent low-end QB1 for the entirety of his tenure as Saints QB1.
• Bryce Young QB13! OK!
• We need more: Jalen Hurts, Bo Nix, Justin Herbert.
• The Lamar Jackson numbers are obviously very impacted by him playing through pain in 2025.

Tier 3: There's Definitely a Chance

• QB13: Jaxson Dart (at LAR on MNF). Scored 19-plus fantasy points in all but three of his 13 career starts. It was also good to see the rushing volume go nowhere in Week 1 (11-54-0). The only reason why Dart is this low is due to a matchup against the formidable Rams defense, though losing that Myles Garrett (knee, IR) certainly helps matters.
• QB14: Jared Goff (at BUF on TNF). These teams combined to score 90 points the last time they faced off in Week 15, 2024.
• QB15: Bo Nix (vs. JAX). I'm most inclined to give the Broncos and Chargers a pass for their respective porous Week 1 performances. In Denver's case, though: Yikes! Nix's 4.7 yards per attempt bested only Cam Ward among Week 1 QBs.
• QB16: Baker Mayfield (vs. CLE). Mayfield and the Bucs largely moved the ball up and down the field in Week 1 against the Bengals; the problem was Baker losing not one, not two, but three fumbles. He has eight more than any other player since 2024. Only Geno Smith has more interceptions. Not great! Still, wouldn't it be fitting for Baker to be the man to finally put an end to the Deshaun Watson experience in Cleveland?
• QB17: Tyler Shough (at BAL). Looked BAD during the opening ~40 minutes of the season … before finishing with 410 yards and a trio of scores in a one-point overtime loss. The Ravens are going to be tougher to move the football on late than the banged-up Lions.

Key question: What new schemes showed the most and least promise in Week 1?

Pre-snap shift/motion and play-action rate are two common signs of a smart offense. These "easy buttons" have regularly, not always, gone hand-in-hand with some of the league's highest-scoring groups — so who optimized these schemes the most in Week 1?

From our relevant QBs in this tier: Meh results from the Giants and Broncos, but look at Zac Robinson and the Bucs up there with Mike McDaniel's Chargers!

While 20 offensive points isn't anything to write home about, Baker Mayfield and company really did move the ball well … outside of losing *four* fumbles. This offense ranked fifth in overall success rate and joined the 49ers and Jaguars as the only offenses to rank inside the top 10 in both passing and rushing success rate. As we know: Ball security, job security, but a promising first week as a whole for the Bucs and new OC Zac Robinson.

Tier 4: Feels Too Low … But is it Really?

• QB18: Matthew Stafford (vs. NYG on MNF). Hopefully Stafford's arm just looked a little wonky last Thursday night because of the jet lag. The Giants overachieved against the Cowboys and have a LOT of talent in their front seven.
• QB19: Bryce Young (at ATL). Posted two of the best passing performances of his career against this group (448-3-0, 251-3-0), though his other three games featured less than 170 pass yards and just one score. That's the problem here: Bryce looked GOOD against the Bears (361-3-1 passing, 2-10-1 rushing), but was that a typical flash-in-the-pan performance against a BAD defense, or a sign of things to come?
• QB20: Malik Willis (at SF). Dodged, ducked, dipped, dived and dodged his way to 39 yards and a score on the ground in Week 1. Best of luck with doing so again against Fred Warner, Nick Bosa and a 49ers defense that just made the reigning league MVP look awfully mortal in Week 1.
• QB21: Carson Wentz (at CHI). We probably won't see Kyler Murray (concussion) for at least another week. Wentz hasn't exactly been a world-beater in six extended appearances during the last two seasons — his 5.5 adjusted net yards per attempt ranks 30th among 40 qualified QBs — but he's generally been fine in fantasy land and has 21.2 and 19.2 point performances to his name. This Bears defense might be BAD bad.
• QB22: Patrick Mahomes (vs. IND on SNF). Ran for back-to-back touchdowns (one was nullified by a penalty) on his first drive of the season. Yeah, I'm thinking he's back. The problem: Mahomes' 27 pass attempts were tied for his fewest in any game since 2023.

Key question: What teams might have BAD offensive lines?

Answer: The Chiefs, Chargers, Vikings, Cardinals, Patriots and Eagles!

Meanwhile, the 49ers, Rams, Bears, Jets and Raiders stood out as having the best combination of run and pass blocking in Week 1.

Will this stick during the course of an entire season? Who knows! For now, I'm a bit worried about expecting any level of meaningful bounce-back from Mahomes in particular. The Chiefs were VERY willing to simply lean on their defense and run game in Week 1. Tough matchup against the Broncos, absolutely, but man: There was NOTHING going for this passing game outside of two nice YAC plays from Rashee Rice and Travis Kelce.

Tier 5: Superflex Only

• QB23: C.J. Stroud (vs. CIN). Put some nice throws on tape in the Texans' last-minute loss to the Bills. Maybe we'll see Houston's dominant (on paper) defense inexplicably roped into another shootout; if not, we shouldn't expect to see the necessary weekly passing volume here for preferred treatment in fantasy land.
• QB24: Jacoby Brissett (vs. SEA). The Cardinals are implied to score the sixth-fewest points in Week 2 against the reigning Super Bowl champs. Brissett did find a way to throw for 258 yards and a pair of scores against this group last season … after being down 38-7 at halftime.
• QB25: Daniel Jones (at KC on SNF). It was just one game … but it wasn't a good one. Jones' average of 5.4 yards per attempt was his lowest in a game with the Colts, and he didn't look all the way there physically in his first game back from last season's torn Achilles. A road matchup in Arrowhead against a Chiefs defense that played some inspired football against the Broncos in Week 1? Pass.
• QB26: Geno Smith (vs. GB). Didn't face much resistance against the lowly Titans in Week 1, but hey, credit to the 35-year-old veteran for accordingly moving the ball efficiently (9 YPA, 79% completion rate). Vegas isn't too sold: The Jets' 20.5-point implied team total is tied for the eighth-lowest mark in Week 1.
• QB27: Aaron Rodgers (at NE). Was SLINGING the ball around the yard in Week 1: Rodgers' 11.1 average target depth (including DPIs) was his highest in a game with the Steelers. He only reached double digits once last season! And yet, that still produced just 221 yards and a TD on 40 pass attempts. Don't expect a boom against Christian Gonzalez and company.

Key question: What offenses are implied to score the most points this week?

We can calculate every team's implied points by Vegas' spread and game totals.

The folks in the desert seem to be buying the Bears breakout and aren't too concerned about the Chargers or Broncos' respective Week 1 let-downs. Meanwhile, the Bengals and Jaguars are down quite a bit ahead of their tough respective matchups, and the Titans, Browns and Dolphins profile as the three worst offenses in the league (makes sense).

Tier 6: Drew Lock and Some Bums

• QB28: Drew Lock (at ARI). Put some NICEY throws on tape on his way to leading the Seahawks back against the Patriots in Week 1. Lock knows his job: Get the snap, and then get the ball to JSN. Don't count on that process leading to too many fantasy points in a matchup that should feature the Seahawks playing with a run-friendly lead for most of the afternoon.
• QB29: Cam Ward (vs. PHI). Had some ROUGH reps in Week 1. This Titans offense has looked broken pretty much every time we've seen them in the year 2026. Up next is one of the more feisty front sevens in the NFL. Best of luck, Cam.
• QB30: Kirk Cousins (at LAC). Kudos to Ashton Jeanty and company for getting the Week 1 dub, but Cousins looked his age (38) on his way to throwing two INTs and averaging just 5.3 yards per attempt. Don't expect things to get much better in a tougher matchup if Brock Bowers (knee) isn't ready to return and save the passing game.
• QB31: Deshaun Watson (at TB). Threw the best ball of his Browns career to cut the Jaguars' lead to 24 late in Week 1. Being in a good enough place physically to make that throw (and run for 38 yards) is a step in the right direction, but before that, we saw the usual bad decision-making and mediocre overall performance that has largely defined his time in Cleveland.
• QB32: Cooper Rush (vs. CAR). Week 1 performance was insultingly bad. Rush only targeted Drake London four times in 60 minutes, while Kyle Pitts' lone pass-game opportunity was an underthrow that prevented a 30-plus yard gain. It's tough to see a path to upside here that doesn't involve Bijan Robinson simply putting his Superman cape on and housing some short checkdowns. FREE JACK STRAND.