With three weeks in the books, it’s a good time to revisit the Shuffle Up series. This is how I would attack a position if I were drafting from scratch today. Everything that’s happened to this point is merely an audition — the idea is to skate to where the puck is headed, not where it’s been.
The prices are unscientific in nature and meant to show where talent clusters and drops off. Players at the same price are considered even.
Use the Shuffle Up page to consider transactions, self-scout, work on trades, that sort of thing. It’s up to you.
The Big Tickets
$26 Josh Allen
$21 Lamar Jackson
$19 Brock Purdy
$19 Trevor Lawrence
The depth of the position had me avoiding the vanity picks this summer, but Allen’s making a case for a justified early ticket. He’s been QB1 or QB2 for a ridiculous six straight seasons, and given how much goal-line equity he keeps on the ground, he’ll easily get there again in 2026 if he stays healthy. And with DJ Moore around, Dalton Kincaid ascending and Joe Brady clicking with the play sheet, Allen’s off to the best passing start of his career (9.1 YPA, 14.0 yards per completion).
Purdy has been too good to be true through three weeks, with a 133.1 rating, just one pick, zero sacks and a juicy 9.5 YPA. He has value as a runner, too. The schedule isn’t great, but Purdy can continue to beat the slate through his decision-making, accuracy, athleticism and the creative schemes of Kyle Shanahan. It would be nice if the Niners could add one more receiver — they’ve already run into a slew of injuries in that room, and Mike Evans is a risky bet to stay healthy all year. But I’d follow Purdy into a burning building.
Legitimate Building Blocks
$17 Patrick Mahomes
$17 Joe Burrow
$16 Jalen Hurts
$15 Dak Prescott
$15 Jared Goff
$15 Tyler Shough
Shough was a fantasy hero in December last year, and that’s carried over to the fresh season (QB6, QB8, QB6). The setup is perfect — impact receivers, a spotty RB room, a leaky defense, a sharp play-caller, an indoor-heavy schedule. Shough also has the ability to run for 300-400 yards. Imagine if the Saints get anything out of WR Jordyn Tyson in the second half. Shough has earned Circle of Trust privileges.
Goff offers nothing as a runner but everything else is here — a dreamy schedule, a bunch of indoor games, a slew of talented teammates to work with. The Detroit defense is also giving it away weekly, in part because the secondary is down multiple starters since the spring. Pinball football is alive and well in Detroit, and Goff offers both floor and ceiling every week.
Talk Them Up, Talk Them Down
$13 Matthew Stafford
$13 Drake Maye
$12 Bo Nix
$11 Jordan Love
$10 Bryce Young
$10 Justin Herbert
Maye’s shocking slump to open the year is partially explained by the A.J. Brown injury — and the Patriots probably screwed up giving away Kayshon Boutte before the year — but there’s more at play here. Maye’s struggled with pocket movement and decision-making, leading to a slew of sacks and turnovers. He’s been less proactive running this year, and OC Josh McDaniels hasn’t been creative with answers. It’s frustrating to bench Maye given what you paid for him in August, but it’s possible you might have landed a decent backup option who’s now ostensibly your starter. We need a prove-it game from Maye before he comes off the restricted list, and it’s possible the comeback might not happen until Brown is ready to contribute again.
There have been hits and misses with Love — his receivers have the most drops this year, but Love also has the most off-target throws. But the most important thing to consider is the shape of the Green Bay team — bad defense, awful offensive line. Love is going to have plenty of games where he pays the fantasy bills through volume, no matter how efficient he is. I’ll leave the light on for him.
Some Plausible Upside
$9 Kyler Murray
Enjoying this article? Support our work with a small crypto donation.$9 Sam Darnold
$8 Daniel Jones
$8 Geno Smith
$7 Malik Willis
$7 Jacoby Brissett
$6 C.J. Stroud
$6 Michael Penix Jr.
Smith’s final three years in Seattle offered fantasy utility (QB5, QB19, QB14), but he seemed to lose the plot in his one Las Vegas season. His first three games back with the Jets have been excellent, though Smith is still taking too many sacks. Otherwise, his decision-making has been sharp, and he has three needle-moving targets in Garrett Wilson, Kenyon Sadiq and (when healthy) Adonai Mitchell. With Breece Hall out indefinitely, the Jets might have to steer into the pass for the next few weeks. Smith has become a credible player for depth purposes or Superflex formats.
Stroud’s smashing rookie year came in 2203, but NFL seasons age in dog years; it feels like a decade ago. He’s been a below-average QB since, and the Houston offense doesn’t have a second pitch when Nico Collins is hurt. The only metric where Stroud excels is interception rate, and you could posit that he’s a little too conservative at times — the ideal interception rate is not zero, as my podcast mate Michael Salfino always says. Stroud has yet to face a great defense this year and still he’s stuck with a 6.6 YPA and 60% completion rate. His pocket awareness might be getting worse, too.
Bargain Bin
$5 Aaron Rodgers
$4 Kirk Cousins
$3 Cam Ward
$3 Deshaun Watson
$2 Jameis Winston
$1 Fernando Mendoza
$1 Marcus Mariota
$0 J.J. McCarthy
$0 Shedeur Sanders
$0 Jalon Daniels
Winston’s arm has looked compromised in his first two games and the Giants probably have lowered expectations here — note the trade for J.J. McCarthy this week. Week 3’s win over the Titans was mostly about hiding Winston and letting the run game and the defense control the outcome; the Giants can’t play that way every week, but it’s a potential nightmare for anyone rostering Malik Nabes and Isaiah Likely.
Courtesy Injury Ranks —Not for Debate
$16 *Caleb Williams
$12 *Jayden Daniels
$7 *Baker Mayfield
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