Jameis

Winston

Jameis Winston (shoulder) is apparently only in line for emergency work. You already were probably barely interested in starting Thompson-Robinson in superflex leagues, but the idea that he could lose some playing time to Zappe makes him almost impossible to start. Zappe has not seen time this year, but had a 1272/6/9 line for the Patriots in 2023 while spelling Mac Jones. It’s highly unlikely he’d give the Browns a spark, but it’d be hard to believe he’d be worse than Thompson-Robinson has been thus far.

DTR suffered a calf injury on the opening drive of the Browns’ Week 16 loss to the Bengals and was listed as limited in Wednesday’s practice. Despite this injury, he appears to be trending in the right direction, with Dorsey already confirming him as the team’s Week 17 starter with one more practice left to go in the week. Those still stashing Jameis Winston or one of several Browns receivers in hopes of Winston returning as the starter appear to be out of luck. It’s still early enough for something to change, but DTR appears locked in as the starter barring an unexpected development.

Implied in that is that Jameis Winston (shoulder) wouldn’t be a sure bet to start if DTR isn’t able to go. Folks, we have a non-zero chance of Bailey Zappe time against the Dolphins in Week 17. We just thought you should know, might want to prioritize the Dolphins D/ST. (As if you weren’t doing that anyway after Thompson-Robinson’s first start.)

Things were trending in this direction after Tillman failed to log a full practice during the week and was listed as questionable heading into the weekend. Jerry Jeudy and Elijah Moore will remain the top two receivers for the Browns for at least one more week, but they will also have tight end David Njoku back on the field after he missed Week 15 due to a hamstring injury. All pass-catchers for the Browns will get downgrade with DTR under center and Jameis Winston listed as the team’s QB3.

Winston is listed as questionable with a shoulder injury. Bailey Zappe will serve as the backup to Dorian Thompson-Robinson. The Browns will list Winston as inactive, meaning he can only enter the game if both Zappe and DTR get hurt. For fantasy managers praying for a Winston takeover in the second half, garbage time will not be your salvation this week. The quarterback situation takes Jerry Jeudy from a borderline WR1 ranking to a measly WR3 projection for his date with Cincinnati.

There isn’t super notable outside of the fact that Dorian Thompson-Robinson may not go the distance against the Bengals. The second-year quarterback has thrown for 540-1-7 in 12 career games while completing 51.4 percent of his passes. He’s almost certainly a downgrade from the turnover-prone Winston, and could test Stefanski’s patience enough for him to pivot back to Winston mid-game if he deems it necessary. Neither quarterback should be counted on from a fantasy perspective.

Winston is slated to backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson against the Bengals in Week 16, but the shoulder ailment could make that untenable. If Winston can’t go, Bailey Zappe would likely be the second-string signal-caller.

Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski declined to name a Week 16 starter on Monday. It appears he’ll bench Jameis Winston after his disastrous Week 15 outing against the Chiefs in which he threw three interceptions and no touchdowns. Thompson-Robinson under center for Cleveland is a major blow to everyone in the Browns offense. Jerry Jeudy goes from borderline WR1 status to WR4 and David Njoku, fighting through a hamstring injury, will be barely usable in 12-team formats. The Bengals defense is very much in play with the inaccurate DRT starting for the Browns.

Nothing has changed since Sunday, when Stefanski said after the game that he was unwilling to name a starter for next week’s game against the Bengals. Stefanski knows what he has in both Jameis Winston and Dorian Thompson-Robinson. With Winston, the Browns have a chance to be an explosive offense that’s just as capable of a 30-point outburst as it is a three-turnover day and no points — as we saw last week. With DTR, the offense’s ceiling is much more capped while the floor remains just as low. Fantasy managers who have something to play for in Week 16 will be pulling for Winston to get the nod, as a move to DTR would be an immediate downgrade for all Browns pass-catchers.

Lucky to escape with “only” three picks, Winston was benched for Dorian Thompson-Robinson with around seven minutes remaining and the Browns down 21-7 in the fourth quarter. “DTR” was even worse, but speaking afterward, coach Kevin Stefanski was noncommittal on Winston’s status going forward. Winston is not the Browns’ future, but neither is DTR. Keeping Winston under center would at least keep the team somewhat functional, but it would be understandable if the Browns decided to throw a DTR Hail Mary in search of a diamond in the rough. If Winston can keep his job one more week, he has a fantasy semifinals smash spot in the Bengals’ league-worst defense. Stay tuned.