Justin Fields DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Justin Fields is preparing to start Saturday's preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and is taking first-team reps in Thursday's practice behind the rest of the starting offensive line, according to Matt Derrick of ChiefsDigest.com. The Chiefs will hold Patrick Mahomes out of a second straight preseason game as he continues to recover from a torn ACL and LCL in his knee from late last year. Fields also started the team's preseason opener last week against the Los Angeles Rams and went 4-for-4 passing for 41 yards and ran the ball twice for nine yards. The 27-year-old former 11th overall pick by the Chicago Bears in 2021 from Ohio State has elite rushing ability for a QB, but his accuracy issues as a passer have kept him from realizing his true potential as a starter in the NFL. Fields was a disaster for the New York Jets last year and played in a career-low nine games, completing 62.7% of his passes for 1,259 yards, seven touchdowns, and one interception. His fantasy stock in all formats is at a new low in 2026 as the backup in KC, but if he is forced into action, he could become interesting in two-QB superflex leagues in head coach Andy Reid's offense.

Kansas City Chiefs new backup quarterback Justin Fields made some impressive throws in training camp practice on Thursday, including a perfectly placed pass outside the numbers to receiver Andrew Armstrong during 7-on-7 drills, according to Chiefs.com's Matt McMullen. Fields added another excellent throw to hit tight end Mason Pline deep down the sideline. The 27-year-old former 11th overall pick by the Chicago Bears from Ohio State was a massive free-agent bust with the New York Jets in 2025, only playing in nine games and eventually being benched in favor of veteran Tyrod Taylor. Fields, who has always possessed elite rushing ability at the QB position, just has yet to put it all together as a passer to make him a viable long-term starter. He threw for 1,259 yards, seven touchdowns, and one interception in his nine starts for the Jets, and now he finds himself as QB insurance in KC for Patrick Mahomes (knee), who is recovering from a torn ACL and LCL late last season. Mahomes appears to be on track for Week 1 of the 2026 regular season, but if anything were to happen to Mahomes again, Fields would become an interesting dual-threat weapon in head coach Andy Reid's offense.

As he enters his sixth season in 2026, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Justin Fields will be suiting up for his fourth NFL team. The 27-year-old opened the 2025 season as the starter for the New York Jets, but he struggled mightily across nine starts before eventually being benched. At this point, the high-end prospect pedigree that followed Fields in the early portion of his career is likely gone. Still, Fields has proven to be an elite rushing quarterback when given the chance to play, which allows him to maintain some fantasy appeal. Across 59 career NFL games (53 starts), Fields has rushed for nearly 2,900 yards and 23 touchdowns. As long as Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (knee) stays healthy this season, Fields has no path to fantasy production. However, with Mahomes returning from a torn ACL, Fields could be worth targeting in the late rounds of deeper two-quarterback leagues as a handcuff option.