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Week 4 Fantasy Football Quarterback Preview

Let's get to the writeups for the fantasy-relevant QBs ahead of Week 4...

New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons

Derek Carr, Saints

Carr came back to earth last week, ending as the QB27 on the week against the Eagles. He struggled against pressure, but the Falcons are much worse at pressuring the QB than the Eagles. He has the potential to be a mid-QB2 this week.

Kirk Cousins, Falcons

Cousins has gotten comfortable being more under center the last two weeks. He has three TDs over the last two weeks, but has a tough match-up against the Saints who held both Dak Prescott and Jalen Hurts under 13 fantasy points over the last two games. He is a low-end QB2 this week.

Cincinnati Bengals at Carolina Panthers

Joe Burrow, Bengals

Burrow lit up the weak Commanders secondary for 324 yards and three passing TDs last week and has another easy match-up against the Panthers this week. He has top five potential again.

Andy Dalton, Panthers

Dalton finished as QB8 overall last week throwing for 319 yards and 3 TDs, finally unlocking Diontae Johnson, Chuba Hubbard and this offense. The Bengals were just destroyed on the ground and through the air by rookie Jayden Daniels. Dalton is a QB2 with upside.

Los Angeles Rams at Chicago Bears

Caleb Williams, Bears

Williams should get Keenan Allen back for Sunday’s game vs. a struggling Rams defense. Through three weeks, the Rams have allowed 9.0 yards per attempt.

Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers

Jordan Love, Packers

Here’s Love on his current status. “I feel like I’m getting better every day, moving around, getting out there practicing and feeling better,” he said. That judgment “comes down to running in practice, doing the drill work in practice, things like that, and just having a feel for my body.”

We might not know for sure if he suits up until Sunday. If he does, he’ll face one of the hottest defenses in the league in Minnesota. The Vikings are allowing only 6.6 YPA.

Sam Darnold, Vikings

Let’s give Darnold credit. Through three weeks, he sits top-15 in yards per attempt, completion rate, completion rate over expected, and EPA per dropback. Now, it looks like Jordan Addison has a real shot to return from an ankle injury.

Jacksonville Jaguars at Houston Texans

Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars

Lawrence looks lost right now, completing just 53% of his passes at 6.3 yards per attempt. Those marks rank 30th and 23rd league-wide. It's tough to bank on a turnaround this weekend on the road against a talented Texans defense ranked eighth in pass defense DVOA. Jacksonville's 19,5-point implied total is tied for ninth-lowest on the week.

C.J. Stroud, Texans

This is a plus matchup for Stroud at home for a Jaguars defense that just gave up 47 to the Bills on Monday night. Jacksonville ranks 30th in pass defense DVOA and 31st in adjusted fantasy points allowed to QBs through three weeks. WR Tank Dell is not expected to play in this one, though, while WR Nico Collins was added to Thursday's injury report with a hamstring. That dings Stroud's Week 4 outlook, but he remains a solid QB1 with his Texans sporting a 26-point implied total.

Pittsburgh Steelers at Indianapolis Colts

Justin Fields, Steelers

Fields sits near the bottom of QB2 territory in fantasy scoring so far, thanks in large part to surprisingly low rushing efficiency. He ranks just eighth among QBs in rushing yards on the fourth-most carries. But he has also improbably thrown just 1 INT, at a 1.3% INT rate vs. 3.0% for his career. Fields’ 7.4% sack rate also marks a steep drop from his 12% career number. So he doesn’t present much downside risk. And now comes a Colts D that ranks just 16th in DVOA, 21st against the pass.

Anthony Richardson, Colts

Not only is Richardson coming off two straight poor fantasy performances. His team seems to obe showing a lack of willingness to put the ball in his hands. The Colts rank 29th in pass rate vs. expectation, while Richardson also sits tied for just sixth among QBs in rushing attempts. That’s even with Bo Nix and behind Daniel Jones. And three of those “rushes” were kneel-downs to seal the win over Chicago. The 1-2 Colts seem to be limiting the exposure of their second-year QB. And now they host the No. 4 defense in DVOA. See if you have a better option at QB this week.

Denver Broncos at New York Jets

Aaron Rodgers, Jets

Rodgers dominated the Patriots and ended as a QB1 in each of the last two weeks. He still has the juice, but the Broncos defense has been tough, shutting down Baker Mayfield last week. Rodgers is a QB2 with upside this week.

Philadelphia Eagles at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Jalen Hurts, Eagles

Hurts faces a challenge this week, with WRs A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith both looking unlikely to play. The good news: He faces a Bucs D that has allowed the league’s fifth-most yardage so far. That most notably includes yielding 352 yards last week in a home loss to the Bo Nix-led Broncos.

Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers

We know the upside’s there with Mayfield. He finished among the top 5 fantasy QBs each of the first two weeks this season. And he lit up the Eagles at home in last year’s playoffs (337 yards, 3 TDs). But we also saw the downside last week, with just 163 passing yards on a 3.4-yard aDOT against the Broncos. That ultimately makes Mayfield a fringe starting option for 1-QB leagues. He’s far more interesting for DFS purposes, where betting on the upside and ignoring risk makes more sense.

Washington Commanders at Arizona Cardinals

Kyler Murray, Cardinals

Murray squares off against a Washington squad that's 31st in pressure rate (24.8%). Unfortunately, it looks like Murray will be without stud TE Trey McBride (concussion).

Jayden Daniels, Commanders

There’s no reason to bench Daniels now. Coming off a breakout Week 3, the rookie now ranks first among QBs in rush attempts and rush TDs. He draws a Cardinals defense that sits 30th in Pro Football Focus’ coverage grades.

New England Patriots at San Francisco 49ers

Brock Purdy, 49ers

Purdy ranks second league-wide in passing yards, despite slotting 13th in attempts. Deebo Samuel is expected to remain out, but George Kittle has a chance to return from a one-week absence. While the Patriots boast a top-end CB in Christian Gonzalez, they’re not a unit to avoid overall.

Kansas City Chiefs at Los Angeles Chargers

Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs

Mahomes has his Chiefs at 3-0 but has been underwhelming in fantasy. He ranks 13th among QBs in total fantasy points and hasn't finished as a top-12 QB in any of the first three weeks. There's nothing particularly scary about Sunday's matchup against the Chargers. But with QB Justin Herbert battling a high-ankle sprain and the Chargers missing both of their starting OTs, Mahomes might not need to do a whole lot to get out of Los Angeles with a win. His Chiefs are currently 7-point favorites.

Cleveland Browns at Las Vegas Raiders

Deshaun Watson, Browns

Watson has been reliable over the past few weeks due to his rushing upside, despite not throwing for over 200 yards in a game yet this season. He had 48 rushing yards last week and may need to do so again with the Browns Offensive Line is all over the injury report for this week. He is a solid QB2 this week.

Buffalo Bills at Baltimore Ravens

Josh Allen, Bills

Allen was the QB1 overall last week throwing for 263 yards, four TDs and adding another 44 rushing yards. He currently resides as the overall QB1 for the season as well. If the Ravens defense can’t pressure him, it could be another huge game for Allen.

Lamar Jackson, Ravens

Jackson’s rushing continues to prop up his fantasy numbers. He had 87 yards on the ground last week with a rushing TD. He has been a QB1 every week so far this year. The Bills have been a tough defense, but keeping him contained the whole game is unlikely. Jackson is a top five QB option this week.

Tennessee Titans at Miami Dolphins

As of this writing, the Dolphins haven't announced a Week 4 starter. Will Levis isn't a reliable fantasy option.

Seattle Seahawks at Detroit Lions

Geno Smith, Seahawks

The Vegas numbers have Smith tied for fourth-highest passing-yardage line among the post-Thursday QBs. That makes sense. He ranks third in passing yards through three weeks and heads to Detroit as a 3.5-point underdog. The Lions have been a pass-funnel defense so far, seeing the third-highest pass rate over expected. Smith carries attractive upside into Week 4.

Jared Goff, Lions

Goff’s OK if you don’t have a stronger option. But he carries some risk. He ranks just 30th in Pro Football Focus passing grade so far, with 3 TDs vs. 4 INTs through three games. Detroit hits Week 4 as the eighth-most run-heavy offense vs. expectation. And Seattle’s defense arrives as the No. 1 rated pass defense by DVOA.

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Kevin English, Senior Analyst

Kevin brings 15 years of experience as a fantasy analyst and mid-stakes competitor across various formats (redraft, best ball, dynasty, DFS). His work has been featured on The Mercury News, Rotoworld, and FantasyPros.