Ranking The Best And Worst Fantasy Football Quarterbacks For Week 1

The fantasy football season is officially underway, and it kicked off with a thriller as the Philadelphia Eagles narrowly slipped past the Dallas Cowboys in a heavyweight NFC East showdown. Each week, we’ll be rolling out positional rankings to give you the inside edge and help you take down your leaguemates—starting at the top with quarterbacks. Last night, our QB2 Jalen Hurts came through in prime time (money), while QB11 Dak Prescott sputtered and may wind up among the week’s biggest duds after failing to find the end zone (though that wasn't entirely his fault). CeeDee Lamb's drops didn't help Prescott's prospects.

Now, let’s dive into how the rest of the quarterback landscape shapes up heading into Week 1.

The Top Tier: Lamar Jackson Vs. Josh Allen Vs. Jalen Hurts Vs. Jayden Daniels

While most experts have Lamar Jackson pegged as the QB1 in Week 1 as he squares off against reigning MVP Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills, we see things a little differently. We think Allen will outduel Jackson, which is why he claims the top spot on the opening slate. Jackson doesn’t even land at QB2 in our rankings—Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts edges him out thanks to a juicy primetime matchup against the Dallas Cowboys. Now we know Hurts delivered after scoring two rushing touchdowns in the season opener.

Kyler Murray's Favorable Matchup Against The New Orleans Saints

We are really high on Arizona’s Kyler Murray in Week 1 due to a cupcake matchup against arguably the worst team in the NFL, the New Orleans Saints. Murray’s rushing ability gives him a rock-solid fantasy floor, and with Trey McBride and rookie phenom Marvin Harrison Jr. at his disposal, the Cardinals have plenty of firepower in the passing game. The Saints’ defense showed cracks last year—leaky against the run and surrendering the sixth-most passing yards in the league (4,295). If New Orleans can keep pace on the scoreboard, Murray’s ceiling only climbs higher. Either way, pencil him in for a top-10 fantasy performance in Week 1.

Three Quarterback Sleepers

All that being said about Murray, the three quarterbacks we are highest on versus the consensus on FantasyPros are J.J. McCarthy, Caleb Williams, and Daniel Jones.

J.J. McCarthy, Minnesota Vikings

McCarthy has a chance to set a strong precedent in his NFL debut. With Justin Jefferson and T.J. Hockenson at his disposal, plus a decent running game featuring Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason, McCarthy has top-10 season-long upside. He will have a learning curve, but his skill set and potential opportunity suggest 4,500 combined yards with over 30 scores (Sam Darnold had 4,531 combined yards with 36 touchdowns). Against the Chicago Bears, it may be a tough battle in this NFC North clash but we expect McCarthy to prove the Vikings right in investing so much draft capital in him.

Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears

On the other side of the ball, we love Caleb Williams this week. On opening weekend, Williams is just one spot behind McCarthy in the quarterback rankings, with both second-year signal callers cracking the top 15. Oddsmakers have this game pegged as a lower-scoring affair (over/under 43.5), projecting somewhere in the neighborhood of five touchdowns and a trio of field goals. However, I expect this to be a high-scoring affair and for the passing games to anchor both offensive units. I don't buy into Chicago’s defense, which means the Bears will need to open things up through the air if they want any shot at pulling this one out. With so much talent in that wide receiver room and first-round pick Colston Loveland now lining up at the tight end position, Williams has absolutely zero excuses.

Daniel Jones, Indianapolis Colts

Lastly, although Daniel Jones isn’t a very good real-life quarterback, he actually has some value in fantasy football due to his mobility. The Dolphins don’t have the best secondary in the world and although the Colts’ wide receivers leave a bit to be desired with Michael Pittman and Josh Downs leading the way, Tyler Warren could have Brock Bowers-like numbers in his rookie campaign. If you are in a SuperFlex league, you could do far worse than Jones as your QB2.