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Dave examines several quarterback strategies for 2025 dynasty fantasy football superflex startup drafts. He discusses whether a QB-QB start is still a viable startup draft strategy
NFL OTAs are underway, which means the start of the 2025 NFL season is drawing near. While the beginning of the season is still a few months away, this is a very popular time of year for dynasty startup drafts. If you’ve never played dynasty football before, now is a great time to start. There are several different types of leagues you can join if you’re willing to give dynasty football a try. Superflex dynasty leagues have gained popularity in recent years. The main appeal in superflex leagues is the ability to start multiple quarterbacks. It makes the position more relevant compared to single-quarterback leagues and elevates the importance of quarterbacks closer to what’s seen in the NFL.
What also makes a superflex league so appealing to dynasty managers is the variety of strategies they can take when it comes to roster building. A very popular strategy is going QB-QB with your first two startup picks. It’s a pretty straightforward approach and allows you to lock up two quarterbacks right off the bat. However, there are some flaws with this build. It’s certainly worth discussing whether or not a QB-QB start is the preferred approach to team building in today’s dynasty football landscape.
Make sure you’re following RotoBaller on X and check out RotoBaller.com for all your fantasy football needs. Let’s discuss if a QB-QB start is still the preferred strategy in 2025 superflex dynasty startup drafts.
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Pros of a QB-QB Start
The biggest pro when you go this route is that you lock up (in theory) two high-end starting quarterbacks. With that out of the way, it allows you to focus on filling out the rest of your roster for the remainder of the startup. It also safely insulates you from reaching for any low-end starting quarterbacks should a position run occur in the middle of the draft.
Being stuck with subpar quarterbacks is a less-than-ideal position for superflex dynasty managers. If you get stuck with bad quarterbacks, it then becomes incredibly difficult to find better options. That’s because the rest of the league is all too aware of your situation and will likely force you to pay a high premium to upgrade the position.
In theory, going QB-QB allows you to avoid this scenario and leave feeling satisfied with your quarterback room for the immediate future. It’s for these reasons that many managers prefer a QB-QB start.
Cons of a QB-QB Start
One of the main drawbacks with this approach is that you are often forced to pass on high-end skill position talent (RB/WR/TE) for unproven and high-risk quarterbacks. This puts a lot of stress on your roster and means the quarterbacks you select MUST hit. Otherwise, you’ve just wasted your best two startup picks on players who don’t help your team.
In recent years, we’ve seen managers elevate the likes of Trey Lance, Justin Fields, and Anthony Richardson into the first round of superflex startup drafts. This was understandable given their upside, but proved to be a huge mistake. In 2023 drafts, some managers may have been unfortunate enough to use their top two startup picks on this trio of signal-callers. Ouch.
Scenarios like this occur when risky and less proven options get pushed up draft boards solely because they are quarterbacks. This leads to inefficiencies in the market, and some players wind up mispriced. That’s exactly what can make a QB-QB start more risky than it appears. So if you’re going to start QB-QB in your draft by taking several high-risk options, you’d better be darn certain of your evaluations.
Alternative Strategies
Wait On QB
This approach means exactly what it says. You begin your startup draft by filling out your roster with good, young, established skill players using your first three to four picks (waiting any longer to take a quarterback is potential suicide) to do so. Then you add quarterbacks in the following rounds. If executed correctly, this strategy can be a fantastic way to build a strong contender for both the short and long term.
Personally, I’ve had some great success building teams in this manner. Four years ago, when speculation about his future was circulating, I was able to secure Jalen Hurts in the fourth round of a superflex startup. It was a big-time gamble as he was my team’s QB1. However, it would pay off in a big way.
That team wound up making the championship game each of the first three years of the league (sadly, just one title to show for it) thanks to the value I got with Hurts.
JALEN HURTS TO AJ BROWN ON 4TH DOWN. 41-YARD TD.
📺: #PHIvsNYG on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/H2S70NsOda— NFL (@NFL) October 20, 2024
I also have a team from the 2023 offseason, where I loaded up on running backs and wide receivers early in the draft and gambled on Jordan Love and Brock Purdy in the mid rounds of the startup. That team has also aged quite well.
Jordan Love with a fade away missile in between 3 defenders to Romeo Doubs for the touchdown. Put it on loop 🔃 #GoPackGo pic.twitter.com/uqYMXc56jR
— Packerfan Total Access- Clayton (@packers_access) January 16, 2024
Brock 🎯 BA @brockpurdy13 | @THE2ERA#SFvsSEA on @SNFonNBC
NFL+ // https://t.co/KTh0i4oaLh pic.twitter.com/s6HiWpwNeg— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) November 24, 2023
There are several options available to managers this year if they decide to wait a few rounds before selecting quarterbacks. Dak Prescott is a fantastic buy in startups right now. He can be had in the fifth round of some drafts. Despite his injuries, Prescott provides a nice floor with the potential for spike weeks.
No connection quite like @dak and @_CeeDeeThree 🎯
📺: #DALvsWAS on FOX
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/X0vcyHUoyR pic.twitter.com/B3aYD0l9hf— NFL (@NFL) January 7, 2024
There are also several unproven young quarterbacks available in the fourth-to-fifth-round range as well. J.J. McCarthy and Michael Penix Jr. are fine options for managers to pair with Prescott. Both are unproven and may not offer much rushing upside. However, they could emerge as low-end QB1s and mesh well with any skill players taken in the early rounds of your startup draft.
Fields is also a highly intriguing player to consider if you wait on quarterback. He has been selected in rounds seven through nine of startup drafts, depending on the league. Fields offers arguably the highest ceiling of any quarterback at this stage of the draft.
Questions about his Jets future have lowered his price, but the new regime has recently indicated they don’t plan on giving Fields a short leash. If the Jets win enough games, Fields could survive the 2026 offseason and remain New York’s QB1.
JUSTIN FIELDS. INCREDIBLE RUN.
📺: #PHIvsCHI on FOX
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/mzMHAEtgdH pic.twitter.com/lNhAJ8eAWk— NFL (@NFL) December 18, 2022
Richardson also falls into this category as a player to target. However, he has major injury concerns, and the organization seems to have soured on him after concerns about his professionalism emerged last year. So while he profiles as an ideal target for this draft approach, it feels like he carries the most risk.
However, waiting on a quarterback does have some drawbacks. You have to nail your quarterback picks if you go this route. Full stop. If you whiff, you will be playing catch-up at the position for the foreseeable future, and it will put you at a severe disadvantage when discussing trades.
Unlike when you whiff going QB-QB, though, you will conceivably have high-end skill players, and this can help you climb out of the no-QB hole you dug.
If you are an experienced dynasty manager who has a sound process when it comes to identifying undervalued and potential breakout quarterbacks, then waiting on quarterbacks can be a very fruitful approach.
No QB
This is an approach that’s seldom taken in superflex leagues and for good reason. The idea here is that you build a significant edge at the skill positions and flex spots, and can get by with several backend QB2s as your starters.
That can work for a one to two-year window in which you’re trying to win the league. However, it comes with a significant downside as you’ll eventually be stuck chasing quarterbacks. Some argue no-QB is worth the risk if it brings you a title. But even with the skill talent you acquire using this approach, there’s no guarantee you’ll win anything.
This is not a recommended strategy in superflex dynasty leagues. It’s more of a kamikaze approach to team building that has worked for a few extremely lucky managers.
Anchor QB
Here we have an approach very similar to anchor RB, which is used in both redraft and dynasty leagues alike. You lock in your QB1 by taking an elite signal-caller with your first pick. Then you target other areas of your roster and then fill out your QB2 and QB3 slots with mid-range/backend starters. The idea here is that there is not much of a difference in scoring when it comes to most QB2s, so why not wait to address the position?
The ideal QB2s you want to target if you take this approach are those with high upside but come at a discount. (See Fields and Richardson from Wait on QB)
You can even target backup quarterbacks who are likely to overtake their team’s current QB1 and replace them as the starter. Ryan Tannehill was a great target for this approach when he joined the Tennessee Titans in 2019 and eventually overtook Marcus Mariota. This year, Daniel Jones is a player who fits that mold and is likely to overtake Richardson as the Colts' starter.
The risk with this approach is that you are possibly left with no long-term option at QB2. While that’s not ideal, it is certainly better than being left with no startable quarterbacks. Still, if you prefer the security at the quarterback position, then this is probably not the ideal approach for you.
Verdict
QB-QB remains 100% viable as a strategy in dynasty startup drafts. There is no denying the edge it can give you if you lock up two top signal-callers. However, we’d be remiss if we didn't at least recognize the conundrum that often comes with a QB-QB start.
Oftentimes, managers who wish to take this approach are forced to elevate either one or both of their quarterback picks on draft boards to lock up the position. This leads to unproven quarterbacks being drafted earlier than they should. As a result, we’ve seen some massive mistakes by managers selecting toward the back of round one in startup drafts because they immediately want to secure two quarterbacks.
So, while the QB-QB approach undoubtedly has its merits, managers should still exercise it judiciously and recognize that it is not a failsafe mechanism. With that said, QB-QB is a fine strategy to utilize if you can pair a firmly established QB1 (Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, etc) with another quarterback who offers similar upside in round two.
Drake Maye and Caleb Williams are good examples in 2025 startup drafts.
Just recognize that while you are investing significant draft capital in these quarterbacks, there is no guarantee. If you’re picking toward the end of the first round in your startup draft, recognize there is even more risk in starting QB-QB because all the high-end options will likely be gone by the time you’re on the clock.
Whichever method you choose to build your team, one thing remains constant. You have to hit on your quarterbacks in the startup draft, or you’re going to face an uphill battle.
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