4 Fantasy Football Busts to Avoid (2023)

The NFL preseason has started, and fantasy drafts will come fast and furiously throughout August.

One position many drafters can often put on the back burner is the quarterback position because of that positional value.

However, sometimes we take too long to draft one, and we end up with less-than-ideal options. So, there’s a bit of a sweet spot.

Here, we’ll look at quarterbacks you should outright avoid in drafts for 2023, regardless of where you can get them.

Let’s dive in.

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Quarterbacks to Avoid in 2023

Matthew Stafford (LAR)

Coming off of a Super Bowl season, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford played in nine games last year. He threw for just ten touchdowns and eight interceptions.

He suffered a neck injury that didn’t require surgery. Still, there were questions about his availability for 2023 and potential retirement talks.

While Stafford plans to play, he’s 35 years old now, has a long injury history, and is playing on a Rams team far that is from the Super Bowl-winning squad they were a couple seasons ago.

Stafford still has wide receiver Cooper Kupp, but Stafford is incredibly unreliable until we have a large sample size of his injuries, mainly his neck, and can determine that it’s not a cause for concern.

Russell Wilson (DEN)

After last season, it’s reasonable to wonder if Russell Wilson is finished as a competent NFL quarterback. Sure, you can chalk it up to the coaching staff — just ask new head coach Sean Payton — but Wilson struggled mightily en route to just four wins last season.

He completed only 60.5% of his passes for 16 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Compared to 2021, he had a boost in rushing statistics (55 carries, 277 yards, three touchdowns).

Under Payton, sure, we can assume the offense will be set up better, but his 7.3 yards per attempt (lowest since 2017), 16 turnover-worthy plays, and 51.9% completion rate on passes between 10-19 yards leave a lot to be desired for the veteran passer.

The Broncos defense is strong and Wilson has the weapons, but it’s impossible to blame all of Wilson’s struggles last year on coaching.

Avoid Wilson.

Jared Goff (DET)

Averaging 17.1 points per game last season, Goff finished as the QB10. He’s on an offense with plenty of weapons that scored the fifth-most points per game at 26.6.

Everything is set up for Goff to be productive again, especially after passing for 4,438 yards and 29 touchdowns.

However, when you look into Goff’s “luck,” something stands out; his turnover-worthy plays.

He threw just seven interceptions but had 24 turnover-worthy plays, demonstrating a massive amount of luck for the former No. 1 overall pick.

His ADP is QB17, so the value could be there, but overall, you can avoid Goff unless you wait until the end of the draft and still need a solid starter.

Also, Goff has almost no rushing ability, so you’re limited to his passing alone.

All San Francisco 49ers QBs

We’ve got a lot of clarity on this situation, as Brock Purdy appears ready to go and is getting in some throwing sessions. However, we have to remember that Purdy had a small sample size last year. As cliché as it sounds, teams will have more time to prepare for him, no matter how valuable the Shanahan offense is.

Behind Purdy are Trey Lance and Sam Darnold. While these quarterbacks will have some inherent value because of this offense, this seems like a lose-lose situation. Could Purdy struggle and get benched? Could his injury come back up? If Lance starts, do we know if he’s any good?

As for Darnold, he’s proven time and time again to be untrustworthy.

This is a room you want no part of.