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Who Should I Start for Week 1? Fantasy Football outlooks for Drake Maye, Jared Goff, Baker Mayfield, Justin Fields, Brock Purdy, Bo Nix, Kyler Murray, Jordan Love, Tua Tagovailoa, Caleb Williams, C.J. Stroud, Daniel Jones.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 1 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Drake Maye, Jared Goff, Baker Mayfield, Justin Fields, Brock Purdy, Bo Nix, Kyler Murray, Jordan Love, Tua Tagovailoa, Caleb Williams, C.J. Stroud, Daniel Jones. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 1. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Fantasy Football Matchup Outlooks
Below are some fantasy football outlooks written by our NFL team here at RotoBaller, bringing you their fantasy football analysis and advice on which players to consider starting in Week 1:
Drake Maye, QB, New England Patriots
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye will open his second pro season against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. Maye showed several flashes of potential last year, and there's optimism that his accurate passing skills and mobility could make him a fringe top-12 quarterback this year.
He definitely has top-12 upside in Week 1 against the Raiders, who allowed the eighth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks last year. It also helps that Maye is playing with the best receiver group of his career, headlined by veteran Stefon Diggs.
Maye should be started in all two-quarterback formats, and he's even a strong option in deeper single-quarterback leagues.
Jared Goff, QB, Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff put up the best numbers of his career in 2024, posting career highs in yards per pass attempt (8.6), passing touchdowns (37), and quarterback rating (111.8). Goff profiles as a fringe QB1 in fantasy this season, but there may be reason to believe that his road matchup in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers won't be his best game.
In the four games he's played at Lambeau Field with the Lions, Goff has averaged just 206.5 passing yards and one touchdown per contest. Additionally, the Packers just acquired All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons (back) from the Dallas Cowboys, trading away run-stuffing defensive tackle Kenny Clark in the process.
Parsons is battling a back injury but is expected to play, so the Lions could be motivated to try and pound the ball between the tackles rather than having Goff drop back and face the Green Bay pass rush. Goff is worth starting as a QB2 in Superflex leagues, but managers in single-QB formats may want to look elsewhere.
Baker Mayfield, QB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield looks to build upon his unbelievable performance from 2024. Last season, Mayfield threw for 4,500 passing yards with 41 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in 17 games with the Bucs. The 30-year-old will look to keep the good times rolling against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1.
The Bucs are going to be playing shorthanded at wide receiver with both Chris Godwin (ankle) and Jalen McMillan (neck) sidelined. However, Mike Evans is one of the most consistent wideouts in the league. The Bucs also have Emeka Egbuka who figures to slot right alongside Evans as the No. 2 option.
There were games last season that Mayfield didn't have Godwin or Evans and still posted QB1 numbers. Fantasy managers need to keep rolling with Mayfield who should be valued as a top 7-8 quarterback coming into the season.
Bo Nix, QB, Denver Broncos
Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix played well above expectations in his rookie season in 2024, throwing for 3,775 yards and 29 touchdowns while leading the franchise to the postseason for the first time since 2016. He also had 430 rushing yards and four touchdowns. There is plenty of room for growth in his sophomore campaign, especially after Denver boosted the RB and TE positions through the draft and free agency.
With a better running game behind him and a much better pass-catching TE in Evan Engram at his disposal, Nix should have every opportunity to improve in 2025 in head coach Sean Payton's system. In this year's season opener, Nix and the Broncos are currently eight-point favorites at home against the visiting Titans.
Tennessee allowed the second-fewest passing yards per game a year ago, but that shouldn't stop fantasy managers from using the Oregon alum as a low-end QB1.
Kyler Murray, QB, Arizona Cardinals
Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is entering his seventh season in the NFL with only one playoff appearance under his belt and a total record of 36-45-1. The two-time Pro Bowler has only led the league in any stat one time, and that was in his rookie year when he led in sacks taken.
With those negatives out of the way, Murray has still amassed at least 3,700 yards and 20 touchdowns through the air in each season that he was healthy. He's also compiled 400+ yards and 4+ touchdowns on the ground in four of his six seasons.
With that being said, Murray faces off against the New Orleans Saints, who are ranked as the 23rd D/ST in RotoBaller's defense rankings. More time to build chemistry with Marvin Harrison Jr. should pay off this past offseason, so Murray heads into this game with QB1 upside, especially due to his dual-threat abilities.
Who Should I Start Tool
You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.
Week 1 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Drake Maye, Jared Goff, Baker Mayfield, Justin Fields, Brock Purdy, Bo Nix, Kyler Murray, Jordan Love, Tua Tagovailoa, Caleb Williams, C.J. Stroud, Daniel Jones. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 1.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed, our Who Should I Start? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, players news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players that are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do, is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 1 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 1 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 1 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 1 for Drake Maye, Jared Goff, Baker Mayfield, Justin Fields, Brock Purdy, Bo Nix, Kyler Murray, Jordan Love, Tua Tagovailoa, Caleb Williams, C.J. Stroud, Daniel Jones:
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