Should I start Baker Mayfield or Sam Darnold in Week 8?
Updated Nov 3, 4:36 AM ET. Week 9 answers post Tuesday.
Week 8 verdict
Start Baker Mayfield over Sam Darnold
Wrong: 1.4 to 18.5
- Market projected
- 16.0
- pre-game
- ATL D vs QB
- 18.0
- 13th most to QBs (2026)
- Scored
- 1.4
- PPR pts
- Market projected
- 15.8
- pre-game
- CHI D vs QB
- 19.9
- 10th most to QBs (2026)
- Snap share
- 89%
- Through Week 7
- Scored
- 18.5
- PPR pts
Week 8 result: the call to start Baker Mayfield over Sam Darnold was wrong. Mayfield scored 1.4 PPR points to 18.5 for Darnold. Projected 16.0 to 15.8 before kickoff.
Should I drop Sam Darnold for Baker Mayfield?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Baker Mayfield projects 129 market-implied PPR points from Week 9 through Week 17 (16.1 a game over 8 games), Sam Darnold 122 (15.3 a game over 8 games).
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Your next move
More fantasy football tools and rankings, all built from the same board.
Neither man carries a season projection right now, so this is their usage this season and their last full season's numbers, side by side.
QB9 · TB · bye 10
2026 vs pass yds line 1-4
- Market-based projection
- 16.0 pts a game Wk 8 price
- Overall rank
- 14
QB10 · SEA · bye 11
2026 vs pass yds line 3-4
- Market-based projection
- 15.8 pts a game Wk 8 price
- Overall rank
- 15
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The gap
- Board size297 draftable players
Draft data is not current for these two, so the figures that depend on it are left out. The call above comes from each player's usage.
Where the draft room stands
Live drafts hold no current pick on Baker Mayfield, and the board ranks him 14th overall on the rest of his evidence.
In 2QB drafts he goes at ADP 20.
Live drafts hold no current pick on Sam Darnold, and the board ranks him 15th overall on the rest of his evidence.
In 2QB drafts he goes at ADP 26.
The market-based projections
No season market is posted for Baker Mayfield, so the only market valuing him on this page is the draft room.
No season market is posted for Sam Darnold, so the only market valuing him on this page is the draft room.
Neither carries a posted market, so this page rests on the draft room and on what the two have already done.
This season so far
Through Week 8, Baker Mayfield has been on the field for 96 percent of TB snaps, dropped back 134 times and thrown 8.4 air yards an attempt.
He has been sacked or hit on 23 of 134 dropbacks and scrambled 10 times.
In Week 3 against MIN he completed 17 of 34 passes for 217 yards, threw 1 touchdown and 1 interception and ran 2 times for 6 yards.
In Week 7 against CAR he completed 7 of 11 passes for 64 yards, threw 1 touchdown and 0 interceptions and ran 1 time for 1 yards.
In Week 8 against ATL he completed 0 of 3 passes for 0 yards, threw 0 touchdowns and 0 interceptions and ran 3 times for 15 yards.
Through Week 7, Sam Darnold has been on the field for 89 percent of SEA snaps, dropped back 196 times and thrown 7.0 air yards an attempt.
He has been sacked or hit on 39 of 196 dropbacks and scrambled 7 times.
In Week 5 against SF he completed 18 of 29 passes for 195 yards, threw 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions and ran 1 time for 5 yards.
In Week 6 against DEN he completed 27 of 49 passes for 278 yards, threw 0 touchdowns and 2 interceptions and ran 2 times for 19 yards.
In Week 7 against KC he completed 20 of 28 passes for 257 yards, threw 1 touchdown and 1 interception and ran 2 times for 17 yards.
Their 2025 seasons
In 2025 Baker Mayfield played 17 games and scored 282.9 PPR points, 16.6 a game, finishing QB12.
He threw for 3693 yards on 543 attempts with 26 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, and ran for 382 yards and 1 touchdown.
That came to 31.9 attempts a game at 6.8 yards an attempt.
He was on the field for 97 percent of the snaps in the games he played.
In 2025 Sam Darnold played 17 games and scored 249.4 PPR points, 14.7 a game, finishing QB13.
He threw for 4048 yards on 477 attempts with 25 touchdowns and 14 interceptions, and ran for 95 yards and 0 touchdowns.
That came to 28.1 attempts a game at 9 yards an attempt.
He was on the field for 96 percent of the snaps in the games he played.
Both were available for 17 games that season.
Head to head
In 2025 Baker Mayfield scored 16.6 PPR points a game and Sam Darnold 14.7, 2.0 a game between them.
Baker Mayfield finished QB12 that year and Sam Darnold QB13.
Baker Mayfield had 66 more pass attempts than Sam Darnold, 543 to 477.
Sam Darnold had 355 more passing yards than Baker Mayfield, 4048 to 3693.
This season Baker Mayfield holds the bigger snap share, 96 percent against 89 percent.
Their target share this season is the same, 0 percent each.
Byes and availability
Baker Mayfield is off in Week 10 and Sam Darnold in Week 11, so either can cover the other's bye.
Drop or keep
Should I drop Sam Darnold for Baker Mayfield?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Baker Mayfield projects 129 market-implied PPR points from Week 9 through Week 17 (16.1 a game over 8 games), Sam Darnold 122 (15.3 a game over 8 games).
Should I drop Baker Mayfield for Sam Darnold?
No. Keep Baker Mayfield: he projects 129 market-implied PPR points from Week 9 through Week 17 (16.1 a game over 8 games), Sam Darnold 122 (15.3 a game over 8 games).
Both players in full
Week 8 on the board
- Is Baker Mayfield playing Week 8?
- Is Sam Darnold playing Week 8?
- Buccaneers depth chart
- Seahawks depth chart
- Week 8 QB rankings
- Week 8 fantasy rankings
- Week 8 start or sit
- Week 9 waiver wire
- Week 9 trade value chart
- Trade deadline buy low, sell high
- Fantasy football rankings
- Start 'em sit 'em Week 8
- Waiver wire pickups
- Fantasy sleepers
- Rest of season rankings
- Week 8 kicker rankings
- Week 8 defense rankings
