Here are quarterbacks I’m avoiding ahead of the 2023 NFL season. These fantasy football signal callers are best left for others to draft. Check out my full quarterback fantasy football rankings below for players I’m higher on that should be targeted instead of these QBs.
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Fantasy Football Draft Players to Avoid
The 2022 version of Deshaun Watson was a far cry from the early-career Watson who finished top five in QB fantasy scoring in each of his first three seasons as a starter. Amid allegations of sexual assault, Watson didn’t play in 2021 and served an 11-game suspension in 2022 before making a Week 13 debut for the Browns against his old team, the Texans. Watson was predictably rusty, producing numbers befitting a fantasy backup over a small sample size. It’s reasonable to assume that Watson will look at least a little more like the dynamic dual-threat QB he used to be in 2023, but it would be a leap of faith to assume that he’ll be as effective as he was from 2018 to 2020.
It will be strange to see Aaron Rodgers wearing a different shade of green now that he’s moved from the Packers to the Jets. The 39-year-old Rodgers still makes some dazzling throws, but he experienced some statistical slippage in 2022. He threw only 26 TD passes, and his 12 interceptions were the most he’d thrown in a season since 2008. He averaged 6.8 yards per pass attempt, the second-lowest mark of his 15 years as a starter. Rodgers’ days as a QB1 may be over. He finished QB13 in fantasy scoring last season, but he was QB21 in fantasy points per game among QBs who played at least 10 games. Don’t make the mistake of buying Rodgers based solely on the name brand. It’s possible the change of venue will rekindle interest in Favre, but the Jets’ defense is one of the best in the league, so Rodgers isn’t going to be involved in a lot of shootouts and may end up being a glorified game manager in 2023.
Plagued by subpar QB play for years, the Broncos viewed Russell Wilson as a potential savior and gave up a bevy of draft capital to acquire him. Wilson’s first year in Denver was bitterly disappointing, as he turned in the worst season of his 11-year career, with career lows in completion percentage (60.5%), passer rating (84.4) and touchdown passes (16), and a career high in sacks (55). Once a dangerous runner, Wilson doesn’t run as much these days, and he doesn’t escape pressure as easily. It’s possible that this accomplished passer has a bounce-back season in 2023 under the tutelage of Sean Payton, but we can’t assume that the 34-year-old Wilson will return to something close to vintage form. Approach with caution.
After leading the Rams to a championship two seasons ago, Matthew Stafford struggled through the first nine games of 2022 before a spinal cord contusion ended his season. In 2021, Stafford averaged 287.4 passing yards per game and threw for 41 touchdowns. Last year, he averaged 231.9 passing yards and threw for 10 touchdowns. Stafford has become increasingly interception-prone in his twilight years, with 25 INTs in his last 26 regular-season games. The 35-year-old Stafford might have fuel left in the tank, but the red flags in his statistical profile make him a low-end QB2 for 2023.
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ADP – Average Draft Position
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