Sit Marcus Mariota in Week 3 if you have a real alternative — 4 projected points lands 13 under the QB starter line.
- Projection
- 4 pts
- QB rank
- #33
- Matchup
- vs SEA
Marcus Mariota's fantasy role in Week 3
Marcus Mariota goes into Week 3 of the 2026 season as a deep-league QB flyer for the WSH. He is rostered in 1% of leagues and actually started in 0% of them, and we rank him QB33 on our own weekly board at 4 projected points.
Interest is climbing — roster rates moved up about 1% over the last week, which usually means managers are reacting to a bigger snap or target share.
No injury designation to work around right now, which keeps his projection honest.
Week 3 matchup breakdown
The matchup: vs SEA. Our Pepper Meter heat rating for this spot is 1 out of 5, which is how we grade the combination of role, projection and opponent difficulty.
Against a typical starting QB baseline of 17 points, his 4-point projection is 13 points short. That gap is the whole start/sit argument in one number.
How to play it
Sit Marcus Mariota in Week 3 if you have a real alternative — 4 projected points lands 13 under the QB starter line.
If you are deciding between him and another QB, compare projections first, then lean on the Pepper Meter heat rating as the tiebreaker.
Sally's take
Peppers & Picks ranks Marcus Mariota (WSH QB), our QB33 this week for Week 3 of the 2026 NFL season vs SEA, projecting 4.0 projected points with a mild Pepper Meter rating. Nothing in the projection defends him — 76% below positional par is a bench line for me. The vs SEA draw matters here — home snaps against SEA shape how often he's asked to do something. Mild on the Pepper Meter is generous, honestly.
Tina's take
Peppers & Picks ranks Marcus Mariota (WSH QB), our QB33 this week for Week 3 of the 2026 NFL season vs SEA, projecting 4.0 projected points with a mild Pepper Meter rating. Nothing in the projection defends him — 76% below positional par is a bench line for me. The vs SEA draw matters here — home snaps against SEA shape how often he's asked to do something. Mild on the Pepper Meter is generous, honestly.