Fantasy Football Week 13 Quarterback Preview: Starts, sits, projections, DFS plays, and more

The theme of Week 13 Fantasy Football ranking is good news: No one is on bye! At quarterback, the news is even better. We are projecting Joe Burrow, Aaron Rodgers, and Jasxon Dart to return. There is a possibility we get C.J. Stroud back as well. One takeaway is that the waiver wire is pretty thin and for most teams, should be pretty irrelevant. But first, we have to decide whether we are starting these QBs coming off of injury. In my early Week 13 projections, Dart comes out at QB11 with Burrow at QB12. So these are not easy decisions. 

We have a much larger sample size of Dart being good in 2025, and obviously, a much larger sample size of Burrow being elite over his career. Dart started seven games earlier this year, and scored at least 19.8 PPR Fantasy points in all of them. He's facing a Patriots defense that has been league average against QBs but has given up at least 20 points to a passer in three of their last four games. We will see if Dart's run tendency changes after his injury, that could be the key to whether he's a quality start.

Burrow was not good in his first game and a half, but he did throw for 4,918 yards and 43 touchdowns just last year. I would probably have him ranked as a must-start option, but Tee Higgins is out, so Burrow only has one elite wide receiver. And the Ravens haven't let a QB score 20 Fantasy points against them since Week 5. That's not quite as daunting as it sounds because the last four QBs they have faced are Tua Tagovailoa, J.J. McCarthy, Dillon Gabriel, and Tyrod Taylor.

As of Tuesday I am starting Jacoby Brissett over both Dart and Burrow. But I would start Dart and Burrow over Daniel Jones, Brock Purdy, and Caleb Williams. As for Stroud and Rodgers, I would prefer to sit them in their return, but I would start Stroud over Purdy if Stroud is able to go.

Let's get to the rest of the Week 13 preview:

Week 13 QB Preview

• 50.2 -- Since Week 7 Jacoby Brissett leads the NFL with 50.2 dropbacks per game.
• 2.8 -- Patrick Mahomes is averaging just 2.8 rushes. He was running 6.3 times per game without Rice.
• 0.21 -- Matthew Stafford is averaging 0.21 EPA/DB, the highest mark in the league.
• 6.1% -- Brock Purdy's 6.1% turnover-worthy throw rate is the second-highest amongst QBs with at least dropbacks this season.
• 25.8% -- Jalen Hurts' 25.8% rush share leads all quarterbacks.
• 10.52 -- Jaxson Dart has averaged 10.5 FPPG with his rushing in his seven starts. We'll see if he's more cautious coming off of his concussion.
• 11.3 -- The Texans are giving up a league low 11.27 FPPG to QBs. They face Daniel Jones this week.
• 22.82 -- The Commanders are giving up 22.82 FPPG to QBs, four of the last five QBs they have faced have scored at least 28 points. They face Bo Nix this week.

Adds/Streamers (QB Preview)

C.J. Stroud QB HOU Houston • #7 Age: 24 • Experience: 3 yrs. Weekly Breakdown MATCHUP @ IND IND -4.5 O/U 44.5 OPP VS QB 14th QB RNK 19th ROSTERED 47% YTD Stats PAYDS 1702 RUYDS 189 TD 11 INT 5 FPTS/G 17.8 There is no QB ranked in my top 15 that is available on the waiver wire. But if you're desperate, or have been starting Brock Purdy, then C.J. Stroud is the best option, assuming he clears the concussion protocol. Stroud threw for 318 yards and two touchdowns in his most recent full game and has multiple touchdown passes in three of his last four full games. Playing at Indianapolis I think it's possible the Texans have to throw a little more than they are comfortable with, especially with how ineffective their run game has been.

Top DFS Play

Projections powered by Sportsline

Matthew Stafford QB LAR L.A. Rams • #9 Age: 37 • Experience: 17 yrs. Weekly Breakdown MATCHUP @ CAR LAR -10.5 O/U 45 OPP VS QB 8th PROJ PTS 23.9 QB RNK 1st YTD Stats PAYDS 2830 RUYDS -9 TD 30 INT 2 FPTS/G 26 Stafford is our consensus number one QB this week, but he still has just the fourth-highest price on the main slate on FanDuel. I have heard some people concerned about touchdown regression. That makes sense, but not if the Rams remain so pass-heavy in the red zone. He leads the league in red zone pass attempts and has 20 passing touchdowns from inside the 10-yard line. I don't expect that to change against the Panthers.

Contrarian DFS Play

Projections powered by Sportsline

Tua Tagovailoa QB MIA Miami • #1 Age: 27 • Experience: 6 yrs. I have no interest in starting Tagovailoa in redraft, but he's a fun contrarian play. Two times already this year he has topped 28 Fantasy points and he's at home coming off a bye week against a Saints team that already has nothing to play for. He's also dirt cheap.

My full set of Week 13 Fantasy football projections for every position is now available on SportsLine. Find out which of my favorite plays are projected to score higher than consensus rankings and which don't live up to their draft hype, at least in Week 13. Projected stats for all starting quarterbacks are available, so be sure to check out the full set of projections at SportsLine.