Joe Burrow
vs Kyle Pitts

“Burrow is projected for around 19.6 points in an offense that’s throwing the ball 36-plus times a game. When a quarterback is that entrenched as the engine of his offense, a tough matchup on paper isn’t enough to scare me off. Burrow’s also sitting in a game with a 27-point implied team total for Cincinnati, which tells me the market expects Cincinnati to move the ball regardless of what Jacksonville’s defensive numbers say.”

“Burrow had an underwhelming opener, but he’s tallied 489 passing yards (244.5 per game), 7.45 adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A), five passing touchdowns, and zero interceptions in two subsequent contests, scoring 19.88 DraftKings points per game and 19.88 FanDuel points per game in the last two weeks. The Bengals lost a shootout last week, and the Jaguars have the firepower to push Burrow into a ceiling performance through the air. His top passing-game weapon will be featured in the core studs.”

“Joe Burrow may not be a must-start this week, but Chase Brown , Ja’Marr Chase , and Tee Higgins are all auto-starts.”

“According to the Fantasy Points Data Suite 2.0, among 33 quarterbacks with at least 20 dropbacks, Burrow ranks: 13th in passing yards per game (230.5) 19th in adjusted net yards per pass attempt (6.14 ANY/A) Tied for 14th in passing touchdowns (three) 10th in expected passing touchdowns (3.5) 21st in rushing yards per game (9.5) Interestingly, the Bengals are just fifth in pass rate over expected (6.3% PROE) this year. That’s still pass-happy, but Cincinnati tied for first in PROE (7.9%) from 2023 through 2025. Their defense is better, and the washed-up, Aaron Rodgers -led Steelers are unlikely to push Burrow and Cincinnati’s offense into a shootout.”

“Joe Burrow nearly gifted Tampa Bay a pick-six, the Buccaneers heavily guarded Chase, and Burrow simply could not connect with his WR1. That extra attention also opened things up elsewhere: TE Mike Gesicki finished with five catches for 78 yards and a TD as Tampa Bay focused on containing Chase and Tee Higgins . Look, that does not completely let Chase off the hook.”

“Joe Burrow’s health has been a concern in recent years, but I’ll bank on him playing a full season with one of the easiest schedules in football. I believe 4,500 yards and 40 touchdowns are more than doable.”

“But if Bengals QB Joe Burrow, who missed nine games last season, enjoys a season of good health, McPherson should have his fair share of FG and PAT opportunities.”

“When Joe Burrow was healthy, he was a top-three quarterback last season”

“The pivot to more under-center passing won’t be as natural and certainly might not be anywhere near as successful for the Bengals, because Burrow clearly isn’t as comfortable and doesn’t perform as well. In fact, if we go back the last three years, Burrow’s under-center dropbacks average just 3.6 air yards, which ranked dead last: #69 out of 69 qualifying QBs. His time to throw of 2.81 seconds was the #5 fastest out of 69 QBs, and he threw just 17% of passes 10+ yards downfield, also ranking dead last.”

“Zac Taylor wants the Bengals to play more from under center in 2026. Unfortunately, Joe Burrow under center is precisely where this offense struggles most, which is why the Bengals haven't used it often of late. How much the Bengals choose to pivot to under-center passing and how much Burrow can improve on these dropbacks might have a large impact on their fortunes in 2026.”

“Overvalued: Joe Burrow, Quarterback (QB4, Pick 59 OVR) Now, this isn’t to say that I don’t like Joe Burrow, or that I don’t think that Joe Burrow is a talented player; I just think that Joe Burrow is capped insofar as he doesn’t rush at all, and the Bengals’ offensive line isn’t strong enough for him to be a consistent top-four player without the rushing.”

“Of the top-10 quarterbacks based on LTV, Burrow is the one quarterback with little to no rushing upside, making him the quarterback I would want to trade away.”

“Kyle Pitts has been an afterthought to begin the season.”

“Pitts has a 7.4% target share, 0.41 YPRR, zero red zone targets, one deep target, and a 10% first-read share (third on the team behind Drake London and Jahan Dotson ). I’m hesitant to plug Pitts back into a lineup this week. Green Bay has held tight ends to the 13th-fewest yards per target while ranking 16th in fantasy points per opportunity allowed to the position.”

“Kyle Pitts has just one 15-yard catch on four targets over the first two weeks, but the Falcons’ passing game has been nonexistent with Cooper Rush at quarterback. Michael Penix Jr. could return from his knee injury and take over as the Falcons’ quarterback as early as this week against the Packers. Pick up another tight end to staunch the bleeding if you must, but don’t release Pitts yet unless you have only a small handful of bench spots.”

“Pitts is coming off a season where he posted a 90% route rate and a TE4 finish in PPR points per game. Sure, he’s a frustrating asset to own, but most tight ends are. I’m not moving Pitts down in my dynasty ranks based on this one performance.”

“I think it transfers over to 2026. -Derek Brown Kyle Pitts (TE – ATL) Last season, Kyle Pitts finished as the TE2 in total fantasy points.”

“Pittsburgh Steelers Kyle Pitts was a polarizing draft pick.”

“The Falcons don’t have a lot of firepower at wide receiver beyond Drake London , so Kyle Pitts could very well be Atlanta’s No.”

“Players like Jaylen Warren , Terry McLaurin , Rico Dowdle , Rashee Rice , Jameson Williams , Emeka Egbuka , Quentin Johnston , and Kyle Pitts can all become interesting depending on where they are still available in your draft.”

“-Pat Fitzmaurice Must-Know Tight End Fantasy Football Stats Kyle Pitts (TE – ATL) Kyle Pitts had a 22.7% target share last season, but it’ll be a bit of a different situation this season.”