Week 3 Fantasy Football Quarterback Rankings: Baker Mayfield Drops

The quarterback position has been decimated via injury through the first two weeks of the season. Joe Burrow will undergo surgery for his turf toe and miss approximately three months of the season, resulting in Jake Browning taking the reins. Minnesota Vikings signal caller J.J. McCarthy suffered a sprained ankle and is expected to miss 2-4 weeks of action. Brock Purdy is sidelined until Week 5 meanwhile Justin Fields exited New York’s Week 2 loss has been ruled out for Week 3. Tyrod Taylor will start for the Jets. Meanwhile, Jayden Daniels is now dealing with a knee injury that just knocked him out for his matchup against the Raiders, resulting in Marcus Mariota stepping into the lineup.

Fantasy managers have been scrambling to the waiver wire to pick up replacements, and there’s been a ton of options given the surprising early-season surges we’ve seen from guys like Daniel Jones, Aaron Rodgers, and Russell Wilson. If I told you before the season began that Wilson and Jones would be top-tier fantasy football options and lead the way in passing yards through the first two weeks of the season, you’d have called me crazy. And I wouldn’t have blamed you. But here we are…

With Week 3 underway, it's time to take a look at where every signal caller in the NFL stacks up in our rankings. Josh Allen finished Thursday Night Football with just over 23 fantasy points while Tua Tagovailoa tallied roughly 14 fantasy points. Allen was our QB2 while Tua was our QB25.

Lamar Jackson Leads Week 3 Quarterbacks Heading Into A Primetime Clash With The Detroit Lions

Jackson, the No. 1 QB thus far this season, has put together a spectacular two weeks of football. The Ravens choked a two-possession lead away to the Buffalo Bills in Week 1, but Lamar led the Ravens to a sweat-free, easy win over the Cleveland Browns in Week 2. Jackson has completed just under 70% of his passes for 434 yards, six touchdown passes, and zero interceptions. Meanwhile, he’s also accumulated 83 rushing yards and an additional trip to the end zone on 10 carries.

In Week 2, Jackson will need to continue to light up the scoreboard against a Detroit Lions team that just exploded for 52 points against the Chicago Bears. Jackson seems to have finally found a real WR1 in Zay Flowers, which should help the passing game significantly. And DeAndre Hopkins has shown flashes of what he was like in his prime, emerging as a solid deep-ball specialist in this scorching hot offense. If Jackson can get some production from the tight end position, this offense could be even scarer than it has been. Nonetheless, he’s the top quarterback heading into Week 3.

Drake Maye Back In The Top 10

Week 3 Top-10 Fantasy Football Quarterback: New England Patriots' Drake Maye — New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) looks to pass against the Miami Dolphins in the second quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Maye is coming off a career-high 26.3-fantasy-point eruption in New England’s Week 2 victory over the Miami Dolphins. He finished with 230 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, and one rushing touchdown, while protecting the ball and committing zero turnovers.

Last week, he cracked the QB1 conversation and he remains firmly entrenched as a top-10 signal caller heading into a Week 3 showdown against what is typically a stingy Pittsburgh Steelers defense. This season, the Steelers’ defense hasn’t been the same unit they’ve been in years past. Pittsburgh is currently allowing the fifth-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks, including two rushing touchdowns in two games. Maye could carve up this secondary in Week 3 and we've already witnessed his dual-threat mobility. Don't be surprised if he produces another gem in Foxborough.

The Streaming Quarterback Of The Week: Carson Wentz

The sneakiest Week 3 streamer might just be Carson Wentz. If you think Sam Darnold’s 2024 breakout was more about Kevin O’Connell and Wes Phillips than Darnold himself, Wentz is your guy. The 32-year-old journeyman is now on his sixth team in six years, and while nobody’s expecting a throwback to his 2017 MVP-caliber run (21.7 fantasy PPG before Nick Foles took over for the “Philly Special”), he’s in a spot to give you short-term value.

With Justin Jefferson at his disposal and Jordan Addison returning from suspension in Week 4, Wentz should have weapons. While Addison won’t be on the field in Week 3, Wentz is taking on a Bengals defense that was widely expected to be one of the worst defenses in the entire NFL heading into the season. J.J. McCarthy will be back soon enough, but if you’re looking for a dirt-cheap FAAB play or a $1 waiver claim, Wentz is exactly that—a sneaky rental who could pop for a week or two.

Honorable Mention: Jake Browning

On the other side of the ball, waiver wire gem Jake Browning is an excellent streamer filling in for the injured Joe Burrow. With Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins at his disposal, perhaps he can make this Minnesota Vikings secondary look vulnerable. That being said, the Vikings have allowed the sixth-fewest fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks. But if the Bengals fall behind early, Cincinnati does seem to trust Browning enough to let him sling it.

Baker Mayfield Falls Outside Top 10

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Quarterback Baker Mayfield Is Not The Fantasy Football Stud You Think He Is In Week 3 — Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) throws a pass during the first quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

While I own more Mayfield shares than I care to admit, this may be the week to bench him. Although he has a QB6 ECR (Expert Consensus Ranking) on FantasyPros, he has officially dropped outside of the top 10 passers in our Week 3 rankings.

Tampa faces a New York Jets team that is now without Justin Fields, meaning that the Bucs could take an early lead and then rely on Bucky Irving and Rachaad White to chew the clock. I expect Mayfield to have a serviceable first half against a Jets secondary that has yielded 32 points per game through the first two weeks of the season. But I'm anticipating a big game from Tampa Bay's run game rather than the aerial attack.

Jayden Daniels Officially Ruled Out For Week 3

Jayden Daniels has officially been ruled out, which means Mariota will start Week 3 against the Las Vegas Raiders. Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel see their stock drop significantly and only the neediest of fantasy football managers should consider Mariota in Week 3.

Let’s take a look at where the rest of the NFL’s quarterbacks stack up in our Week 3 rankings.