Fantasy Football Week 2 Quarterback Preview: Sitting Ryan Tannehill?

When it comes to the elite quarterbacks, I’m mostly just ignoring their Week 1 struggles. I presume Aaron Rodgers and the entire Packers offense will get right in primetime against the lowly Lions. I expect Lamar Jackson to play much better at home against the Chiefs in a far less hostile environment. And while Josh Allen has a more difficult matchup, at Miami, he’s still in my top five as well. 

The one exception to this rule is Ryan Tannehill, and it’s probably not fair.

Tannehill has been a must-start quarterback ever since he wrestled the starting job away from Marcus Mariota. While he has done so with unbelievable efficiency, I hoped that the addition of Julio Jones would give Tannehill the ability to maintain that efficiency, or something close. In Week 1, it looked like the Titans should have traded for an offensive lineman instead.

Chandler Jones and J.J. Watt terrorized Tannehill, and his response was lackluster. He was sacked six times and threw for just 212 yards on 35 attempts. This was just the second time in Tannehill’s Titans tenure that he’d been sacked six times, and the first since 2019. If you want a reason for optimism, he threw for 391 yards and three touchdowns the week after the last time this happened.

It’s not just the offensive line that has me worried. It was also their first game without Arthur Smith. While Smith didn’t exactly look like an offensive genius in his debut with the Falcons, it is certainly possible the Titans won’t be as good without him. 

All that’s to say, I don’t view Tannehill as a must start quarterback in Week 2. He’s not a must-sit either, but I would start Ben Roethlisberger and Teddy Bridgewater over him. 

Let’s get to the rest of the preview:

Week 2 QB Preview

• 20 — Pass attempts in Week 1 for Jameis Winston. I don’t believe that’s any more predictive than his five passing touchdowns, but I do worry about the Saints being run-heavy in Week 2 against Carolina. I want to add Winston, but not start him.
• 57 — Pass attempts for Jared Goff in Week 1; only Dak Prescott threw more. 
• 46 — Taylor Heinicke ran for 46 yards and a touchdown against Tampa Bay in the playoffs last year. His mobility could make him a startable QB2.
• 156.1 — Matthew Stafford’s quarterback rating in his first game with the Rams. No quarterback was better in Week 1.
• 5,852 — Dak Prescott has thrown for 5,852 yards in his last 17 complete games.

• 194 — Trevor Lawrence threw for 194 yards and two of his three touchdowns after the Texans had built a 34-7 lead against his Jaguars.