Should I start C.J. Stroud or Sam Darnold in Week 9?
Updated Nov 3, 3:41 PM ET. Week 10 answers post Tuesday.
C.J. Stroud and Sam Darnold are too close to call on usage: 100 percent of the snaps and 0 percent of the targets against 100 percent of the snaps and 0 percent of the targets over their last 3 games. No market projection is posted on either of them this week, so this is a usage call, and a lower confidence one than a call made on a projection. What follows is what each of them has done.
Should I drop Sam Darnold for C.J. Stroud?
Yes, on the rest of the season. C.J. Stroud projects 152 market-implied PPR points from Week 9 through Week 17 (16.9 a game over 9 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.
Both players' season market-based projection, their usage this season and their last full season's numbers.
QB5 · HOU · bye 8
2026 vs pass yds line 5-2
- Market-based projection
- 17.1 pts a game
QB26 · SEA · bye 11
2026 vs pass yds line 3-4
- Market-based projection
- 15.8 pts a game Wk 8 price
- Overall rank
- 212
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The gap
- Board size302 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 C.J. Stroud, and the board ranks him 59th overall on the rest of his evidence.
In 2QB drafts he goes at ADP 30.
Live drafts hold no current pick on Sam Darnold, and the board ranks him 212th overall on the rest of his evidence.
In 2QB drafts he goes at ADP 26.
The market-based projections
C.J. Stroud's market-based projection is 17.1 PPR points a game, built from 5 markets across 7 market sources. That is the 5th highest figure of the 213 players with a market-based projection.
The market-based projection for Sam Darnold is 1.0 PPR points a game off 1 market across 1 market source. That is 0 percent of what a quarterback's projection needs, so it is a fragment of one rather than a projection.
Sam Darnold's projection is not complete, so the two figures are not set against each other here.
This season so far
Through Week 7, C.J. Stroud has been on the field for 100 percent of HOU snaps, dropped back 266 times and thrown 9.3 air yards an attempt.
He has been sacked or hit on 35 of 266 dropbacks and scrambled 8 times.
In Week 5 against TEN he completed 26 of 34 passes for 261 yards, threw 1 touchdown and 0 interceptions and ran 4 times for 7 yards.
In Week 6 against JAX he completed 24 of 34 passes for 312 yards, threw 3 touchdowns and 1 interception and ran 1 time for 5 yards.
In Week 7 against NYG he completed 17 of 28 passes for 153 yards, threw 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions and ran 2 times for 4 yards.
Through Week 8, Sam Darnold has been on the field for 89 percent of SEA snaps, dropped back 235 times and thrown 6.9 air yards an attempt.
He has been sacked or hit on 45 of 235 dropbacks and scrambled 9 times.
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.
In Week 8 against CHI he completed 17 of 34 passes for 188 yards, threw 2 touchdowns and 1 interception and ran 2 times for 20 yards.
Their 2025 seasons
In 2025 C.J. Stroud played 14 games and scored 216.5 PPR points, 15.5 a game, finishing QB21.
He threw for 3041 yards on 423 attempts with 19 touchdowns and 8 interceptions, and ran for 209 yards and 1 touchdown.
That came to 30.2 attempts a game at 7.2 yards an attempt.
He was on the field for 93 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.
Sam Darnold was available for 3 games more.
Head to head
In 2025 C.J. Stroud scored 15.5 PPR points a game and Sam Darnold 14.7, 0.8 a game between them.
C.J. Stroud finished QB21 that year and Sam Darnold QB13.
Sam Darnold had 54 more pass attempts than C.J. Stroud, 477 to 423.
Sam Darnold had 1007 more passing yards than C.J. Stroud, 4048 to 3041.
This season C.J. Stroud holds the bigger snap share, 100 percent against 89 percent.
Their target share this season is the same, 0 percent each.
Byes and availability
C.J. Stroud is off in Week 8 and Sam Darnold in Week 11, so either can cover the other's bye.
What would change the answer
Sam Darnold has only a partial projection, so the market half of this page is whole for only one of them.
Drop or keep
Should I drop Sam Darnold for C.J. Stroud?
Yes, on the rest of the season. C.J. Stroud projects 152 market-implied PPR points from Week 9 through Week 17 (16.9 a game over 9 games), Sam Darnold 122 (15.3 a game over 8 games).
Should I drop C.J. Stroud for Sam Darnold?
No. Keep C.J. Stroud: he projects 152 market-implied PPR points from Week 9 through Week 17 (16.9 a game over 9 games), Sam Darnold 122 (15.3 a game over 8 games).
Both players in full
Week 9 on the board
- Is C.J. Stroud playing Week 9?
- Is Sam Darnold playing Week 9?
- Texans depth chart
- Seahawks depth chart
- Week 9 QB rankings
- Week 9 fantasy rankings
- Week 9 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 9
- Waiver wire pickups
- Fantasy sleepers
- Rest of season rankings
- Week 9 kicker rankings
- Week 9 defense rankings
