Fantasy Football Today: It might be time to bench, trade or … gulp … drop Patrick Mahomes and Kirk Cousins

Prior to this year’s Fantasy drafts, Patrick Mahomes was touted as a top-five quarterback in most leagues. Many were excited about the addition of Hollywood Brown and Xavier Worthy, who the Chiefs selected with the No. 28 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. It was all supposed to be smooth sailing for the Chiefs, who seemingly upgraded its wide receiver corps in the offseason, but injuries have since taken their toll. 

Hollywood Brown injured his shoulder on the first play of the Team’s preseason matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and Rashee Rice, who had been averaging 12 Fantasy points per game, was lost for the season with a knee injury he sustained in Week 4 against the Los Angeles Chargers. This has prevented Mahomes from being able to spread the ball around as much as we all might have thought, and his current situation has caused Jamey Eisenberg to sour on his Fantasy prospects moving forward.

When asked who is more droppable between Patrick Mahomes and Kirk Cousins moving forward, Jamey provided what many would believe to be a very shocking answer. “I think it’s Mahomes, especially if Juju [Smith-Schuster] is out for an extended period of time,” Jamey said. “Can you trust this receiving corps? They’re a running team. They’re just about stacking wins, and he’s just not a good statistical Fantasy option. At some point, we’re going to get a stretch of some good performances here, but how do you buy it?”

Jamey has every right to be concerned. Mahomes has yet to turn in a single performance worth over 20 Fantasy points in PPR leagues this season. He’s averaging just 14.8 Fantasy points per game, which places him 19th among all NFL quarterbacks. Though he’s rostered in 100% of all leagues, concerns certainly remain. Many Fantasy managers are contemplating dropping him for younger QBs such as Drake Maye and others who could potentially be found on the waiver wire.

If I did have Mahomes on my roster, I’d hold onto him because great players tend to not just win games but eventually put up the numbers everyone covets. While the Chiefs have begun to lean on the run a bit more after losing their top two receivers to injury, Mahomes is mobile enough to make plays with his legs, and he’ll likely take more risks running the ball moving forward. 

When asked who is more droppable between Patrick Mahomes and Kirk Cousins moving forward, Jamey provided what many would believe to be a very shocking answer. “I think it’s Mahomes, especially if Juju [Smith-Schuster] is out for an extended period of time,” Jamey said. “Can you trust this receiving corps? They’re a running team. They’re just about stacking wins, and he’s just not a good statistical Fantasy option. At some point, we’re going to get a stretch of some good performances here, but how do you buy it?”

Jamey has every right to be concerned. Mahomes has yet to turn in a single performance worth over 20 Fantasy points in PPR leagues this season. He’s averaging just 14.8 Fantasy points per game, which places him 19th among all NFL quarterbacks. Though he’s rostered in 100% of all leagues, concerns certainly remain. Many Fantasy managers are contemplating dropping him for younger QBs such as Drake Maye and others who could potentially be found on the waiver wire.

If I did have Mahomes on my roster, I’d hold onto him because great players have a tendency to not just win games but eventually put up the numbers everyone covets. While the Chiefs have begun to lean on the run a bit more after losing their top two receivers to injury, Mahomes is mobile enough to make plays with his legs, and he’ll likely take more risks running the ball moving forward.

We won’t see any designed runs with Mahomes, but when receivers are covered, look for Mahomes to tuck it and run more than he has in previous years. Mahomes posted 39 yards and a touchdown on five carries this past Sunday, and he’ll likely continue to make more plays with his legs as the season goes along. Not only will an increased willingness to run help him bolster his Fantasy relevancy, but it will also benefit the passing game.

Defenders will have to play a “vision defense” or more zone to keep their eyes on the quarterback. Man coverage ceases to be an option for defenses when facing quarterbacks who are willing to leave the pocket. As a result, look for receivers to find soft spots in zones, which will eventually improve the numbers in the pass game. Look for a high-low shell game between Travis Kelce and Xavier Worthy to be utilized frequently in the coming weeks. 

Though Kirk Cousins had a less-than-stellar Week 7 outing, he had an explosive performance in Week 5 where he lit up the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for 509 passing yards and four touchdowns. While that performance will tempt anyone to hold on to him and hope for the best, he’s still averaging just 16.4 PPR points per game through seven weeks. While we’d all love to see better numbers, he’s still the ninth-ranked Fantasy quarterback and Jamey isn’t quite ready to give up on him. 

“[This week’s] matchup couldn’t have been any better, looking at how Seattle has performed and the injuries that they’ve been dealing with and dealt with today,” Jamey said. “He [Kirk Cousins] just didn’t get the job done… Cousins missed on some throws early and just couldn’t get going… I still will trust him as a low-end starter when he has a favorable matchup”

Cousins has plenty of weapons to get the ball to, and when there’s not much of a pass rush, he’s able to carve up any secondary. With that said, his lack of mobility is concerning, and this may be the time for Fantasy managers to see what they can get now for Cousins. The book appears to be out on Cousins, and if you can get pressure on him with your front four (which Seattle was successful with) while dropping seven, he’ll eventually make a mistake. He also struggles with double mug pressures, which force him off the spot and force him to play off-schedule.

This is not to say that Cousins won’t go on to have another game similar to the 42-point Fantasy outing he had in Week 5, but history suggests those performances will be too far and few in between to keep him as a starter. As it stands, Cousins is rostered in 95% of all leagues and is a starter in 65% of all leagues. Consider the likes of Geno Smith, Justin Herbert, Russell Wilson, Trevor Lawrence, and Matthew Stafford if available in your league.  

For more Fantasy insight, be sure to check out the entire Week 7 Fantasy recap – or watch (and subscribe) on Youtube.