Fernando Mendoza · Kirk Cousins · 2026 week 1

Fernando Mendoza or Kirk Cousins?

Wondering who you should start this week — Fernando Mendoza or Kirk Cousins? The start/sit call and the numbers behind it are below, plus who wins a straight-up trade. Rebuilt nightly.

Start Kirk Cousins — barelyThis one is a coin flip — the projections are within 0.4 points. The matchup leans Kirk Cousins (MIA allow the 10th-most QB points), but you can defend either call.

Player	Wk 1	Proj (PPR)	Matchup	Form L3	Trade value	Status
Fernando Mendoza	@ NO	16.6	27th · tough	–	81	healthy
Kirk Cousins START	vs MIA	17.0	10th	12.6	51	healthy

QBs vs NO recently: Brady Cook 4.7 pts (W16) · Cam Ward 17 pts (W17) · Kirk Cousins 10.2 pts (W18).

QBs vs MIA recently: Joe Burrow 29 pts (W16) · Baker Mayfield 19.4 pts (W17) · Drake Maye 15.7 pts (W18).

Who wins a straight-up trade?

Fernando Mendoza carries the higher trade value — 81 against 51 (a 37% gap). In a one-for-one, the side receiving Fernando Mendoza gets the most. Momentum: Fernando Mendoza -41 and Kirk Cousins +51 over the last 30 days.

Open in Start/Sit (any scoring) Open in the Trade Analyzer

More QB decisions

Fernando Mendoza or Daniel Jones?Fernando Mendoza or Aaron Rodgers?Fernando Mendoza or Bryce Young?Kirk Cousins or Jacoby Brissett?Kirk Cousins or Geno Smith?Kirk Cousins or Tua Tagovailoa?

Game logs, matchup ranks and form are the 2025 season — 2026 hasn’t kicked off. Projections, schedule and trade values are current 2026 numbers, refreshed nightly.