Start Baker Mayfield vs. Tyson Bagent vs. Sam Howell vs. Gardner Minshew vs. Sam Darnold | Fantasy Football Week 8 QB Start Decision

It’s crazy to think, but the eighth week of the NFL season is almost underway. That means it’s time to start diving into some of the trending decisions on the FantasySP start/sit tool.

Let’s start with the sports most prominent position, quarterback. We’ll pit Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Baker Mayfield - who plays Thursday night - up against Chicago Bears’ Tyson Bagent, Washington Commanders’ Sam Howell, Indianapolis Colts’ Gardner Minshew and San Francisco 49ers’ Sam Darnold.

Mayfield was only a part of trending decisions against Bagent and Howell as of the time this article was published, but I decided to throw in Minshew and Darnold as they are in a similar tier. 

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Why You Should Start Baker Mayfield

Mayfield has been OK this season, throwing for 1,363 yards, eight touchdowns and four interceptions across six games. He’s topped 200 yards in four games, and has at least one touchdown in all but one game. Mayfield has thrown a pick in the last four contests.

Mayfield isn’t much of a runner, but does have two games over 30 yards, including last week. He hasn’t run for a score.

The Bucs’ quarterback is dealing with a knee injury and is questionable against the Buffalo Bills, but should be able to play. He should have most of his offensive starters around him, as wideout Chris Godwin is expected to play.

Mayfield seems like a pretty solid choice among this group of quarterbacks, but is facing a Bills’ defense that’s the second best in the league, allowing just 11 fantasy points to quarterbacks. 

Mayfield slots in 27th in our weekly projections.

Why You Should Start Tyson Bagent

Bagent is expected to start again for Chicago as Justin Fields works his way back from a right thumb injury. The undrafted rookie led the Bears to a win over the Las Vegas Raiders in week 7.

Bagent completed 21-of-29 passes for 162 yards and a touchdown in the win over the Raiders. He wasn’t intercepted and was sacked only once. Bagent added 24 rushing yards on three attempts.

The rookie QB has a favorable matchup ahead, as the team takes on the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday night. LA is the worst defense against opposing quarterbacks, allowing 24 fantasy points a week. 

The easy matchup doesn’t help Bagent’s stock all that much, as he’s still ranked 24th in our weekly projections.

Why You Should Start Sam Howell

Howell has been up and down all season for the Commanders. He’s thrown for 1,749 yards and nine touchdowns, but’s been picked off seven times and sacked 40 times.

Howell has passed for 200+ yards in five of the team’s seven games. He’s also thrown a touchdown in five games, with three games with multiple TDs. A four-interception game hurts that statistic, but he’s also thrown one pick in three other contests.

The second-year QB adds a bit as a rusher, with over 10 yards in all but one contest. He’s scored once on the ground, but that was back in week 1.

Washington squares off with the Philadelphia Eagles for a second time already this weekend. In the first contest, Howell threw for 290 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions, while adding a season-high 40 rushing yards on six attempts.

Overall, Philly’s defense is below average against quarterbacks, allowing 17 fantasy points per contest. 

Howell is ranked 18th in the weekly projections.

Why You Should Start Gardner Minshew

Minshew shook off a poor week 6 showing with a solid week 7 performance. He threw for 300+ yards in both games, but had two touchdowns to one pick in week 7 after throwing one touchdown and three picks the week before. Minshew added 29 yards and two scores on three rushing attempts in week 7.

The Colts aren’t afraid to turn Minshew loose, and I’d expect Minshew to keep being a fantasy asset, as Indy is either trailing and needing to catch up or trying to keep pace with their opponent.

This week, Minshew will face a New Orleans Saints’ defense that is above average in slowing quarterbacks, with just 14 fantasy points allowed a game.

The tough matchup has Minshew as the 29th-ranked QB this week.

Why You Should Start Sam Darnold

Darnold is expected to get the start for the 49ers, as regular starter Brock Purdy is in the concussion protocol. He’ll likely be without wideout Deebo Samuel, but the San Fran offense still has Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk for Darnold to lean on.

This will be Darnold’s first meaningful snaps with San Fran this season. He’s not the typical backup, as he’s started for two teams over his NFL career. He’s been turnover prone, which is part of the reason why he didn’t have a starting job coming into the year.

Darnold will face a Cincinnati Bengals’ defense that’s a bit better than average against quarterbacks, allowing 15 fantasy points per week.

Darnold is currently the 23rd-ranked quarterback for week 8, although that could jump up when Purdy is ruled out.

The Recommended Start

These quarterbacks are possible waiver wire starters in standard leagues, so the start/sit numbers don’t really apply to this kind of story like they normally would. These guys are better starting options in deeper leagues. So instead, we’ll focus on their current projections for the favorite starting options.

Howell is currently the only quarterback of this discussion not ranked in the 20s. You also have a previous game against the same opponent to look back on, and it was a pretty solid outing for Howell. Seeing as to who the other options are, I’d take Howell as the top option of this group.

I’m going to buck the projections for my next pick and go with Minshew. The Saints’ defense is no joke and I like to avoid them when possible, but Minshew has been on fire the last couple weeks, and with this game being in Indy, I think he puts together another solid performance. I actually almost took Minshew as my top option, so he and Howell are basically a coin flip for me.

I’d go with Bagent next. He isn’t likely to put up a historic performance, but his matchup is simply too favorable to pass on any longer. As long as he can avoid turnovers and negative plays, he’s got a chance to score as an average quarterback in week 8. I think he'll have to pass a lot to simply keep Chicago in the contest, so that should work to his benefit.

Give me Mayfield over Darnold for the last spot. I like Mayfield’s chances of outscoring Darnold simply for the thought that the 49ers might let McCaffrey carry the team. Mayfield will be tasked with keeping the Bucs close against the Bills, and that will lead to better numbers than Darnold, as long as Mayfield can avoid too many turnovers. 

I think Darnold will be solid if he does indeed make a spot start, but he’ll likely have a couple touchdowns taken away by McCaffrey, which will keep him from a good fantasy showing. I also think Darnold is the most likely QB in this discussion to have a turnover or two.