Fantasy Football Week 6 Quarterback Who Should I Start? Baker Mayfield, Drake Maye, Justin Herbert, and More

Sunday morning means fantasy decision time! It's often the most time-crunching, stress-inducing stretch of the weekend; I thought it was supposed to be easy like Sunday morning?

Baker Mayfield is one of the names showing up all over our FantasySP start/sit tool in the lead up to Sunday's games. He has overcome injuries to his offensive line, wide receivers, and running backs, so fantasy owners are wondering if the Tampa Bay quarterback can keep it up as things somehow get worse.

Let's compare Mayfield to four other quarterbacks who he has been matched up with often on the start/sit tool. We'll do a head-to-head quick-hit exercise to choose the best starter in each situation. Most stats are from NFL.com

Check out FantasySP's Who Should I Start? tool to compare players and help make your toughest lineup decisions each week!

Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. San Francisco 49ers

This is a tougher matchup, as the 49ers have allowed the seventh-fewest yards per pass attempt and the ninth-fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. I have written recently about how the loss of Nick Bosa is likely to lower their ceiling, but San Francisco has still found success in the short time without him.

Mayfield has also been good even in tough matchups. He was slowed down against Atlanta and Houston in the first two weeks, but the Bucs' QB had 289 yards and two touchdowns against Philadelphia in Week 4 and topped it last week with 379 yards and two more scores against Seattle. Mayfield completed 88% of his passes for 11.5 yards per attempt in that game, both outrageous numbers.

I'm done betting against Mayfield figuring things out; he just keeps doing it. Even with the tough matchup here, he stays on the fantasy radar because of the sheer will he is showing in keeping a functional offense running.

For a streaming option to be better than Mayfield, that guy must have a really good outlook. I'm not looking at Bryce Young against Dallas today as a better player than Mayfield simply because of the matchup. We need a strong player who also has a positive matchup to recommend a start over the Tampa Bay quarterback.

Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers @ Miami Dolphins

This is one of those few players that I was just talking about above: Miami has allowed the second-most yards per pass attempt and third-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. The Dolphins are one of THE teams to go after with fantasy players at all positions.

Herbert started better, but injuries to his offensive line (and now running backs) have made things tougher up front. After ranking tied for QB6 after three weeks, Herbert was just QB18 over Weeks 4 and 5, and even that included 84 rushing yards.

He is still averaging nearly 250 yards in the air and over 30 yards on the ground, but things have been tougher for Herbert and his team the last two games. Maybe a nicer matchup will help them get back on track.

Advice: Start Justin Herbert over Baker Mayfield. This is a top-line player who has about as good a matchup as we can hope for, giving Herbert a chance at a bounce back.

Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers vs. Cincinnati Bengals

I like the matchup here more than anything else. The Bengals have allowed the seventh-most yards per pass attempt and the 11th-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. Cincinnati has also given up the third-most points per game, showing the same low-level play on defense that plagued them last season.

Love is a moderate fantasy quarterback, capable of big games but also with his share of quieter performances. He has been very effective this season, averaging 250 passing yards per game on 8.3 per attempt with eight touchdowns and just one interception in four games (they had a bye last week).

He is hurt a little by missing receivers, but this passing game usually counts on finding the open man rather than forcing the ball to any one player, so they can still succeed when a WR or two is out. Romeo Doubs and rookie Matthew Golden are leading the way right now along with tight end Tucker Kraft (another positive fantasy player this week).

Advice: Start Jordan Love over Baker Mayfield. This is a close one, and Mayfield's running is pushing me his way a bit, but Love has the pristine matchup in this one, and I'll give him the slightest advantage over Mayfield.

Drake Maye, New England Patriots @ New Orleans Saints

Another guy ranked in the top 10, Maye was QB7 after Week 5. Maye is averaging 252.2 passing yards per game with seven touchdowns and two interceptions; he uses his legs almost every week also, adding 22 rushing yards per game with two more scores. That type of production can be expected moving forward.

The Saints offer a good matchup, giving up the 11th-most yards per pass attempt and ninth-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. They have also given up at least 38 QB rushing yards in three of their five games, looking susceptible against runners like Kyler Murray, Josh Allen, and Jaxson Dart.

Advice: Start Drake Maye over Baker Mayfield. This is an interesting one, as Maye isn't necessarily up to that same level as Mayfield, but he has been a strong fantasy player pretty much every game and earned his spot among the top 10 in fantasy points after five weeks.

Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears @ Washington Commanders

There were high hopes for Williams coming into his second season. The first overall pick from 2024 had a rough rookie season, but now he had a revamped offensive line, good skill players at each position, and a savant play caller in Ben Johnson signed on as his head coach.

Williams has been fine: 231.8 passing yards per game on 7.1 per attempt with eight touchdowns and two interceptions and 27.5 rushing yards per game on the ground and another score. His fantasy scores look better because of that running, as Williams was sitting at QB6 before Chicago's Week 5 bye.

Washington has allowed the fourth-most yards per pass attempt and the 13th-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. Their better fantasy performance is driven by fewer touchdown passes allowed (eight in five games) and because the Commanders limit QB running, holding the position to 26.8 yards per game with no touchdowns.

Advice: Start Baker Mayfield over Caleb Williams. The latter has a decent outlook here, but I trust the veteran more. Williams still has a good outlook today and is a decent starting option.