Fantasy Football Starting Quarterback Rankings: Jalen Hurts Leads the Way, Baker Mayfield Inside the Top 20 and More

If you’ve been a frequent visitor to FantasySP over the past couple weeks, you’ve probably seen the fantasy team previews I wrote up, or the stories analyzing average draft positions. Those can all be found under the 2024 Fantasy Football Draft Kit.

I offered a lot of opinions on fantasy players, but wanted to put together stories where all the players are organized by position. These rankings are my official ones for the season after some minor changes and readjusting. We’ll start with the quarterback position, and cover who I think will start for each team.

Get ready for draft season! Practice Mock Drafts, check out ADPs and get advice for trades with our trade analyzer. Also be sure to check out the 2024 Fantasy Football Draft Kit.

1. Jalen Hurts

I’ve settled on Hurts as my QB1 for this season. He’s got a great offense around him and could easily be the top option if he just cuts down on a couple turnovers.

2. Patrick Mahomes

I see Mahomes having a big bounceback season and have him second. He’s got some decent receivers around him, still has Travis Kelce and also has a good RB in Isiah Pacheco. Mahomes is one of my favorites for NFL MVP.

3. Josh Allen

I’m not as high on Allen as others. Yes, he’s a dual-threat fantasy option, but the lack of proven receivers on the team is likely going to mean an adjustment period at the start of the season. I think a slow start will be just enough to hold him back from being first or second at the position.

4. Lamar Jackson

Jackson is the reigning MVP, but isn’t the top-end fantasy dual-thrat talent that Hurts or Allen are. He never passes for a ton of yards, and that’ll hold him back from passing any of the top three.

5. Anthony Richardson

Richardson is another dual-threat option, but injury concerns have him outside the top four. I wouldn’t wait any longer on a talent like Richardson.

6. Joe Burrow

I feel like Burrow is falling under the radar a bit. Now hopefully fully healthy, Burrow can easily be a top-five fantasy quarterback. Again, injury concerns have him going later than he probably should be.

7. C.J. Stroud

On the other side of things, I think fantasy owners are hyping up Stroud too much. He missed some action last season, but wasn’t really close to being a top-five quarterback. I’d feel much better taking him as QB7.

8. Dak Prescott

Prescott has a chance for another monster fantasy season with the offense the Cowboys have assembled. If he can limit his turnovers, he could be a top-five option.

9. Jordan Love

I actually like Love more than Prescott, but Green Bay actually has some running backs to utilize, so I think Prescott is the better fantasy option. If the Love that showed up in the second half of last season is back for this season, Love has top-five fantasy potential.

10. Brock Purdy

I’m a bit confused why everyone is a bit down on Purdy, but think he’s still a fantasy QB1. His offense is loaded, and I think Purdy delivers another big season.

11. Kyler Murray

The only reason I don’t have Murray higher is because of his injury history. He looked solid in his return last season and has enough offensive weapons around him to be a weekly fantasy starter, even if he runs less than early in his career.

12. Jayden Daniels

Daniels is my top-ranked rookie quarterback, and could be another weekly starter. The trade the team made Thursday is a bit confusing to me, but because Daniels can also beat you with his legs, I think he’s going to become a big-time fantasy asset.

13. Jared Goff

Goff is another fantasy QB that’s getting slept on. His offense is pretty much the same, and there’s no reason to believe Goff falls off from his numbers last season. More often than not, he should be a good fantasy option.

14. Tua Tagovailoa 

Tagovailoa is another good weekly starter who you can get in a later round, so he presents good fantasy value. If he can cut down on the turnovers, he could be a massive draft steal.

15. Justin Herbert

Herbert is being overlooked because of an injury and because of a lack of proven pass catchers around him. I think Herbert is good enough to overcome both things, but I conservatively rank him 15th until we’ve seen it.

16. Caleb Williams

The situation Williams is in as a rookie is fantastic, and he’s really primed to be a top-end fantasy option if he can just be average in his QB play. Again, it’s more of a: I need to see it before I believe it, kind of thing.

17. Kirk Cousins

The Achilles injury scares me, but Cousins’ potential in this offense is really high. He doesn’t cost an early pick, so why not take a gamble?

18. Baker Mayfield

I’m higher on Mayfield than most. In year two in the Tampa Bay offense, I expect Mayfield to improve on last season’s strong finish.

19. Matthew Stafford

Stafford has dealt with injuries over the years, and is on the back part of his career, but he’s still a decent option every time he takes the field. He’s a higher end streaming option, and someone who really should be rostered in most standard leagues as a backup.

20. Aaron Rodgers

The same thing we said about Stafford could be said about Rodgers - except Rodgers is coming off a major injury. He deserves to be rostered as a fantasy backup, but may be available as a streaming option throughout the season - that’s really weird to write.

21. Deshaun Watson

Watson just hasn’t put things together since becoming a Brown. The pieces are there for him to succeed, but I don’t trust him right now.

22. Geno Smith

Smith is a serviceable starter, but it doesn’t translate to fantasy that well. He’s another weekly streaming option to begin the season.

23. Trevor Lawrence

I think Lawrence is being overhyped this season. He’s got upside over a lot of the players we just mentioned, but he’s just another streaming option to me right now.

24. Russell Wilson

I think Wilson is the starter in Pittsburgh, and I think he will keep the job most, if not all, of the season. He’s another streaming option, and I think will surprise a lot of people this season.

25. Derek Carr

Carr hasn’t exactly delivered much in New Orleans, but all the pieces are in place for him to do so. At the start of the season though, he’s just a streaming option in standard leagues.

26. Sam Darnold

Darnold gets the Minnesota starting gig after the injury to McCarthy. He’s got enough playmakers around him to be a streaming option, but I don’t think he’ll be a weekly starting option outside deeper leagues.

27. Will Levis

I had a hard time ranking Levis. I think he’s talented enough to make it in the NFL, but he hasn’t put it together yet. The team around him isn’t that great, but he’ll still have some weeks where he’s a streaming option.

28. Bo Nix

Nix has been really good in the leadup to the season, and a lot of optimism is starting to surround him. He’s been named the starter now, and should be a streaming option throughout the season.

29. Drake Maye

Maye has struggled a bit this preseason, but I still think he gets the starting nod. The team just doesn’t have enough playmakers for him to be ranked any higher, but I like his potential over the final few guys.

30. Gardner Minshew

Minshew is a streaming option, and showed last season he’s not that bad of an option. He ranks this low because the offense in Vegas isn’t that good outside a couple players. 

31. Bryce Young

Young has a better offense around him now than he did in his rookie season, but I still need to see some positive results before ranking him any higher. Let’s see if Young can prove me wrong.

32. Daniel Jones

I hate to put a dual-threat guy like Jones last, but outside one season, he simply hasn’t been that good. The Giants’ offense is really weak, which makes him the easy choice as the worst fantasy option out of the fantasy QBs. On a week-to-week basis (when he’s making starts), he’ll rank higher, but I don’t think he keeps the job, while the guys ahead of him will (or at least make more starts).