Fantasy Football Week 3 Outlooks for Backup Quarterbacks in Action: Marcus Mariota, Carson Wentz, and More

Injuries have already started piling up in the NFL. One of the things that most inhibits a team's chance at contending is losing their quarterback, and five teams are going to start their backup in Week 3. At this rate, we'll be out of starting QBs by Week 12!

Let's look at the five backup quarterbacks who are starting in Week 3 to determine if any of them have fantasy relevance and should maybe even be started this week. Most stats are from NFL.com.

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Jake Browning, Cincinnati Bengals @ Minnesota Vikings

Joe Burrow has a turf toe injury that will cause him to miss around three months, so Browning is the guy who will make or break Cincinnati's season. He took over and played around two-and-a-half quarters in Week 2, throwing for 241 yards on 7.5 yards per attempt with two touchdowns and three interceptions. Browning also scored a rushing touchdown on a QB sneak.

While the team would surely like him to turn it over less, that's solid work in relief, and it took the Bengals to a 31-27 victory. That game was against a Jaguars team that is hard to analyze on defense right now because they had a very good game against Bryce Young in Week 1; essentially Young's entire career has been a struggle, though, so there's a helping of salt to take with that result.

Burrow wasn't having a great game against Jacksonville, but it was only the second quarter when he went down, and I'm not going to base anything off a sample that small. Last year, the Jaguars were one of the worst pass defenses in football, allowing more yards per pass attempt than any other team. They're among the 10 best in that category this season, but I mentioned the major caveat above.

Minnesota is also a top-10 team in least yards per attempt allowed, a level they were at last year as well. The Vikings have a defense full of good, capable players at every level who make things tough. Caleb Williams only averaged 6.0 yards per attempt in Week 1, and that was after a hot start; Michael Penix was at 6.4 last week, even as the Falcons were controlling much of the game.

Browning has some intrigue in the right matchups because of his star pass catchers, but I'm skipping him against the Vikings. Stepping in for his first start of the season on the road against a tough defense isn't the right time to take a fantasy leap of faith.

Mac Jones, San Francisco 49ers vs. Arizona Cardinals

This is Brock Purdy's second straight missed game with a toe injury of his own. His status is up in the air, though he could return for Week 4 according to reports. Jones filled in admirably in his stead, throwing for 279 yards on 7.2 per attempt with three touchdowns and no interceptions, as the 49ers beat the Saints 26-21.

Jones had a good rookie season with the Patriots but regressed badly after that, falling out of favor before being traded to the Jaguars for a late-round pick last offseason. He's in about as good a situation as any QB could ask for in San Francisco, so if we're going to see him prove himself, this is the place.

Where some backups can use their legs more to help move the ball when the passing game isn't on, Jones isn't that player. He doesn't run much, and when he does, he doesn't pick up many yards. We have also seen him as a below-average quarterback much more than at that average level; there's a low floor here.

The Saints are a bad team, but the Cardinals are 2-0 and will probably offer a tougher test. While Arizona had a middling defense last year, they've added a ton of talent of the span of a few offseasons to put together a good, deep unit. It has paid off so far, as the Cardinals are allowing the fourth-least yards per pass attempt (they were very close to average last season).

They stifled Spencer Rattler in Week 1, and though Carolina's Young ended up with 328 yards last week, it took 55 attempts to get there, just 6.0 yards per attempt. Arizona has the makings of an above-average defense.

I'm staying away from Jones this week. He could put up some decent numbers in a Kyle Shanahan offense, but that comes with the lower floor, no running, and a potentially tough matchup; you can find a better fantasy option.

Marcus Mariota, Washington Commanders vs. Las Vegas Raiders

Word of Jayden Daniels' knee injury wasn't immediately reported after Washington's Thursday night game against Green Bay last week, but he showed up on the injury report at the beginning of this week and has now been ruled out. It could just be a one-week absence, but there aren't a ton of details on that yet.

Mariota appeared in three games in relief of Daniels last season, looking good in limited time, but it was a super small sample. He even came in to run the ball a few times when Daniels was healthy and playing.

And that's going to be the way he finds fantasy success: moving the ball with his legs. Mariota was very average for the most part as a passer when he was a starter with Tennessee, but he ran for close to 400 yards per 17 games in those four years as the Titans' primary guy. He then set a career high with 438 rushing yards in 13 games for Atlanta in 2022.

Daniels is a great runner, and Mariota is a good backup for Washington because they don't necessarily have to change a lot when Mariota takes over. That should allow the rest of the offense to operate in a familiar way, helping the backup QB.

The Raiders have a middling defense; Maxx Crosby is great, but no one else really stands out regularly as a true impact player. Mariota will have a chance to make plays against this team.

I'm mildly optimistic about Mariota's chances of having a good game, seeing him as a deeper streamer. He can hold you over for one week if you need a guy, especially if you are a Daniels owner and just need something short term.

Tyrod Taylor, New York Jets @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Justin Fields suffered a concussion in Week 2 against the Bills after struggling during his time on the field. He threw just 11 passes for 27 yards before exiting, though his 49 rushing yards were a nice little boost. Taylor fared better but not much, gaining 56 yards on his own 11 attempts (5.1 per throw) with a touchdown. Taylor also ran for 21 yards.

Fields is the high-upside fantasy player under center for the Jets and a guy I have been high on all offseason. Week 1 was a great start, but this looks like more of the same Fields, showing inconsistency and injuries woes. His return is uncertain but could come as soon as next week.

Taylor is mostly a career backup who is seen to have a decent floor for that spot on the roster but doesn't provide much of a ceiling. He has appeared in double-digit games just four times in 14 years, most recently with the Giants in 2023. Taylor adds a little value with his legs, but that was more of a factor earlier in his career; he's not tearing up defenses the same way at 36 years old.

Tampa Bay is susceptible to the pass. While they were right in the middle last year, the Bucs have allowed the seventh-most yards per pass attempt in 2025. Tampa let Penix throw for nearly 300 yards in Week 1 (though at just 7.1 per attempt), and C.J. Stroud bounced back last week after a rough opener to average 8.6 yards per attempt (for 207 yards on low volume).

Taylor is a good backup player, and the matchup here is OK, giving the QB a little intrigue. I'm still staying away because he doesn't have a high ceiling, and the floor could also fall out given the relative dearth of skill-player talent on the Jets. Taylor can be considered as a super-deep-league streamer, but you can probably find someone better also.

Carson Wentz, Minnesota Vikings vs. Cincinnati Bengals

We'll finish with Wentz, who went from being Philadelphia's franchise QB to bouncing around a couple different teams with less-than-stellar results to sitting out most of 2023, and now he is Minnesota's backup after signing late in the preseason.

There's no use talking about his best days, as we haven't seen those since 2018. Instead, it's likely we get a version of the player Wentz has been since a major knee injury during that 2018 season, which is a guy who is a little below average throwing the ball but can make enough plays at times and runs a little bit.

At his best, Wentz was running for between 250 and 300 yards per season. That's not great, but it's something, especially if he's not making the mark simply as a passer. I am more worried about the matchup when evaluating what Wentz could do.

Cincinnati finished right in the middle in yards per pass attempt allowed last season, and they are in the same area through two weeks. Both Joe Flacco and Trevor Lawrence had numbers a little bit below average against the Bengals while racking up some volume, going for 561 yards (but on just 6.4 yards per attempt).

While the Bengals have an OK defense, I'm not scared of them and would be OK targeting them at the right times. I don't want to count on Wentz because there's probably a lower floor here; I also wouldn't be surprised to see him finish among the top half of fantasy quarterbacks. He's worth consideration in deep leagues.

Week 3 Backup Fantasy Rankings

1. Marcus Mariota, WAS
2. Carson Wentz, MIN
3. Jake Browning, CIN
4. Tyrod Taylor, NYJ
5. Mac Jones, SF