Each Friday during the 2022 NFL and fantasy football season, Eric Karabell will bring his always-reasonable perspective to highlight the biggest fantasy football storylines heading into the weekend's games.
Matthew Stafford and Jared Goff were officially traded for each other on March 18, 2021, and their debut seasons with their new teams couldn't have been more different. Stafford won a Super Bowl with the Los Angeles Rams, while Goff went 3-10-1 in his 14 starts with the Detroit Lions. Pretty clear winner there, without question, and fantasy football managers made the former a borderline fantasy starter for 2022 and, of course, ignored the latter. A month into the season, however, things changed, and now a month after that, fantasy managers are losing interest in both quarterbacks.
Stafford is the third-most-dropped quarterback in ESPN standard leagues, behind Washington Commanders flop Carson Wentz and even bigger Denver Broncos flop Russell Wilson, and both of them are injured. Perhaps Stafford isn't healthy, either. Statistically, which is what matters to us, he certainly is not healthy. Stafford has six touchdown passes in six games, but half came in Week 2 against the Atlanta Falcons. It's his lone performance with as many as 12 fantasy points! He has eight interceptions. He's not likely to get benched anytime soon, but for fantasy purposes, he's on the hot seat.
For sad perspective, Wilson, one of the noted busts of the season, averages three more fantasy points per game than Stafford does. Matt Ryan, just demoted from starting for the Indianapolis Colts so an unknown sixth-round draft pick from 2021 can throw his first NFL passes, averages more. Stafford has been terrible, and he faces what normally is a strong San Francisco 49ers defense in a critical Week 8 game this week. The Rams lost at San Francisco a few weeks ago, scoring nine points on three field goals. The NFC West remains up for grabs for Stafford and his colleagues.
Meanwhile, few wanted Goff in drafts, but they quickly pivoted in his direction after he led all passers with 33 points in Week 4. He also scored 26 points in Week 2. Goff became the most-added quarterback! Now he joins Stafford on the most-dropped list. Things change quickly in the NFL. Goff scored 5.86 points in Week 5, and then coming off his bye week, he scored a paltry 1.52 points in Sunday's quiet, feeble loss to the Dallas Cowboys. This week, the Lions host the Miami Dolphins.
Dump 'em both, right?