NFL Preseason Takeaways: Gardner Minshew, Drake Maye, Jacoby Brissett (Fantasy Football)

A lot of you have fantasy football drafts coming up this week. Which of the developments from the second week of the NFL preseason warrant your attention if you’re in the final stages of fantasy football draft prep? Read on, my friend.

And in case you missed the first installment in this series, these were my top fantasy football takeaways from Week 1 of the preseason.

Fantasy Football Draft Advice: NFL Preseason Takeaways

Quarterback

The Raiders on Sunday named Gardner Minshew their Week 1 starter. The decision seemed somewhat arbitrary considering how little separation there seemed to be between Minshew and second-year man Aidan O’Connell in the Raiders’ QB derby. After O’Connell started the team’s first preseason game, Minshew started the second and completed 10-of-21 passes for 95 yards with no TDs or INTs. O’Connell was 14-of-20 for 96 yards against Dallas on Saturday with one TD and one INT. Minshew becomes the preferred Las Vegas QB target in superflex drafts, but his hold on the starting job is tenuous.

If I had to set an over/under number on how many games Jacoby Brissett starts for the Patriots early this season before giving way to first-round pick Drake Maye, I’d go with 2.5. The idea that this was going to be something close to a redshirt year for Maye was always silly. Brissett is an average QB on a good day — and last Thursday wasn’t a good day (er, night) for him. Brissett was 3-of-7 for 17 yards in three series with no TDs and one INT. He also took a sack. Maye’s passing numbers weren’t dazzling either (6-of-11 for 47 yards with no TDs or INTs), but he showed off his big arm and his mobility, rushing four times for 15 yards and a touchdown. The Patriots need to get Maye ample seasoning this year so that he’ll be ready to win games for them in 2025. If you’re in a superflex league or an ultra-deep league where it makes sense to draft multiple quarterbacks, Maye should be one of the first 30 QBs drafted.