For the third time, we've watched Joe Burrow go down with a season-ending injury. A ripple in the force that disrupted an otherwise scintillating Football Sunday. All of us are poorer as football fans. Burrow was one of the main characters in the Great American Novel that is every NFL season, and the unfolding epic story won't be as good without him. If you drafted Joe Burrow this year, you got a dud against the Browns, and another week-killing number when Burrow left the game vs. the Jaguars early with a toe injury that will probably end his season. While there's no solace for Bengals fans, who lost another prime year of their franchise quarterback's career, fantasy teams can actually recover from this somewhat well without using that many resources. Here's a plan to be the balm for your wound if you were depending on him.
Plan A: Spend big on the waiver wire for or trade for Daniel Jones.
In public and casual leagues, Jones might not have even been added after his huge Week 1 performance because of his reputation for disappointment and his Week 2 matchup against the Broncos. He aced that test and faces an easier schedule of Tennessee, the Rams, Las Vegas, Arizona, the Chargers, Tennessee again, and Pittsburgh through Week 9. He has been an elite QB1, and there's no reason to think that he won't at least be a viable fantasy start as long as he's healthy. Jones' past will make him cheaper than his fantasy numbers to date would dictate.
Plan B: Add Jake Browning from the waiver wire for a reasonable price.
Browning is available in every league, and Burrow teams shouldn't have much competition, as most teams are satisfied with their quarterback production to date. Browning was a top 10 fantasy quarterback when he replaced Burrow for the last third of 2023. He's an aggressive, even reckless passer, and he'll courageously pull the ball down and run even though he's not a supreme athlete, especially when the goal line is in sight. The defensive woes will force Browning to play the way he did against the Jaguars to keep the Bengals in games. Think of him as a discount Baker Mayfield. If you do add Browning to take Burrow's place, maybe add a second quarterback this week with a better matchup than the Vikings, which Cincinnati faces on the road.
Plan C: Trade for Geno Smith or Jordan Love.
It's likely neither of these guys was drafted to be their fantasy team's starter, and both should be available via trade. Smith has been given the green light to be an aggressive passer, and he has an array of weapons that could put him back on the fringe of the top 10 fantasy quarterbacks, where he has been before. Love is playing as well as he did in the second half of 2023, when he was a top 10 fantasy quarterback, but the Packers' defense is so good that he isn't getting a chance to get much passing volume in the second half of games to push him even higher in the weekly ranks.