Drake Maye vs Justin Herbert: Who Should You Start?
Two quarterbacks who will land on plenty of the same rosters in 2026. Drake Maye (New England Patriots) finished the 2025 season averaging 20.7 fantasy points per game in 17 games. Justin Herbert (Los Angeles Chargers) came in at 17.9 PPG over 16 games. The gap is real but not insurmountable with the right matchup.
Drake Maye carries a 2.8-point PPG advantage from the 2025 season. That baseline matters, but it is one input among several. Matchup difficulty, scoring trends, and injury reports move the needle week to week, which is why the best answer changes depending on when you are asking.
Both are dual-threat quarterbacks. Drake Maye added 450 rushing yards and Justin Herbert chipped in 498, which gives them a higher weekly floor than traditional pocket passers when defenses take away the deep ball. That rushing production is the biggest reason their ceilings look different from drop-back QBs, and it is the stat that typically separates them on tough passing matchups.
Drake Maye has his bye in Week 14, and Justin Herbert rests in Week 12. Managers rostering both need waiver wire depth at quarterback for those two weeks, and that is exactly the kind of planning DraftCall's matchup engine surfaces automatically so you are not scrambling on a Sunday morning.
