Start Sam Darnold or Jameis Winston? Week 7

Updated Oct 19, 2:16 PM ET. Locks at kickoff, graded after. Week 8 answer posts Tuesday.

Start Sam Darnold over Jameis Winston

Start

Sam Darnold

QB · SEA · vs KC

Market projects: 15.0; recent weeks avg
KC D vs QB: 13.4; 3rd fewest to QBs (2026)
Snap share: 86%; Through Week 6

Sit

Jameis Winston

QB · NYG · at HOU

Market projects: 13.5; recent weeks avg
HOU D vs QB: 17.0; 15th fewest to QBs (2026)
Snap share: 96%; Through Week 6

Should I drop Jameis Winston for Sam Darnold?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Sam Darnold projects 151 market-implied PPR points from Week 7 through Week 17 (15.1 a game over 10 games), Jameis Winston 138 (13.8 a game over 10 games). For Week 7 the call starts Sam Darnold over Jameis Winston.

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Our Week 7 call

Start Sam Darnold over Jameis Winston in Week 7.

Market-based projections have Sam Darnold at 15.0 points and Jameis Winston at 13.5, a gap of 1.5. No player market is posted for Sam Darnold this week yet, so his 15.0 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 4 and 5 (14.5 and 15.5); the call is rebuilt when his market posts. No player market is posted for Jameis Winston this week yet, so his 13.5 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 4 and 5 (14.1 and 12.9); the call is rebuilt when his market posts.

What the market projects

No Week 7 player market is posted for Sam Darnold yet. His market-based projections were 14.5 and 15.5 points in Weeks 4 and 5, an average of 15.0, which stands in until his Week 7 market posts.

No Week 7 player market is posted for Jameis Winston yet. His market-based projections were 14.1 and 12.9 points in Weeks 4 and 5, an average of 13.5, which stands in until his Week 7 market posts.

That puts Sam Darnold 1.5 points ahead of Jameis Winston on these projections.

Week 7 matchups

Sam Darnold and SEA host KC on Sunday at 8:20 PM ET.

KC allowed 13.4 fantasy points a game to QBs this season over 4 games, the 3rd fewest in the league.

Quarterbacks threw for 229 yards and a touchdown a game against KC, with an interception.

Jameis Winston and NYG visit HOU on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

HOU allowed 17.0 fantasy points a game to QBs this season over 5 games, the 15th fewest in the league.

Quarterbacks threw for 256 yards and 1.2 touchdowns a game against HOU, with 0.4 interceptions.

By points allowed to the position, Jameis Winston has the softer matchup.

Injury status

Sam Darnold is not on the injury report.

Jameis Winston is not on the injury report.

Usage before Week 7

Through Week 6, Sam Darnold played 86 percent of SEA snaps, dropped back 166 times and threw an average of 7.3 air yards per attempt.

Sam Darnold, Week 3 against WAS: 67 of 67 snaps, 31 of 45 passes for 379 yards, 4 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, 1 carry for 5 yards.

Sam Darnold, Week 4 against LAC: 60 of 60 snaps, 13 of 22 passes for 168 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception, 1 carry for 8 yards.

Sam Darnold, Week 5 against SF: 63 of 63 snaps, 18 of 29 passes for 195 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions, 1 carry for 5 yards.

Sam Darnold, Week 6 against DEN: 85 of 85 snaps, 27 of 49 passes for 278 yards, 0 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, 2 carries for 19 yards.

Through Week 6, Jameis Winston played 96 percent of NYG snaps, dropped back 178 times and threw an average of 9.2 air yards per attempt.

Jameis Winston, Week 3 against TEN: 64 of 64 snaps, 14 of 22 passes for 118 yards, 0 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 1 carry for 15 yards.

Jameis Winston, Week 4 against ARI: 67 of 67 snaps, 18 of 29 passes for 250 yards, 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.

Jameis Winston, Week 5 against WAS: 84 of 89 snaps, 33 of 54 passes for 326 yards, 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 4 carries for 28 yards.

Jameis Winston, Week 6 against NO: 14 of 26 passes for 152 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions, 2 carries for 5 yards.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, Sam Darnold played 17 games for SEA and scored 249.4 PPR points, 14.7 a game, finishing QB13.

He completed 323 of 477 passes for 4048 yards, 25 touchdowns and 14 interceptions, and ran 35 times for 95 yards and 0 touchdowns.

He was on the field for 96 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

In 2025, Jameis Winston played 3 games for NYG and scored 45.3 PPR points, 15.1 a game, finishing QB46.

He completed 37 of 66 passes for 567 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, and ran 7 times for 23 yards and 1 touchdown.

He was on the field for 39 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

Their other Week 7 calls

Locks at kickoff, graded after. When the start/sit engine grades week 7, the call and the result appear on the public record, wrong ones included.

Drop or keep

Should I drop Jameis Winston for Sam Darnold?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Sam Darnold projects 151 market-implied PPR points from Week 7 through Week 17 (15.1 a game over 10 games), Jameis Winston 138 (13.8 a game over 10 games). For Week 7 the call starts Sam Darnold over Jameis Winston.
Should I drop Sam Darnold for Jameis Winston?
No. Keep Sam Darnold: he projects 151 market-implied PPR points from Week 7 through Week 17 (15.1 a game over 10 games), Jameis Winston 138 (13.8 a game over 10 games). For Week 7 the call starts Sam Darnold over Jameis Winston.