For Week 8, I recommended Jared Goff against the Dolphins, Daniel Jones at the Seahawks, and Andy Dalton against the Raiders. Goff had a useable QB16 fantasy finish on the week that could’ve been better had Jamaal Williams not vultured two touchdowns on the ground. And while Jones had a disappointing outing against a resurgent Seattle defense, Dalton at least had a serviceable QB18 fantasy finish on the week against a despondent Las Vegas team that looks to have given up on the season.
Overall, Week 8 offered decent performances for fantasy GMs who eschewed drafting a quarterback early and have been streaming the position. If you drafted Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson early or managed to snag Tua Tagovailoa or Geno Smith later on in your drafts, this article probably isn’t for you. But if you’ve been streaming quarterbacks this season or have Dak Prescott on bye, here are some viable Week 9 quarterback streamers with good matchups to target.
Week 9 Quarterback Streamers
Check out our Week 9 Rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE | PPR |
Note: The below quarterback streamers are the “best of the rest”, meaning that they’re generally rostered in less than about 50-60 percent of major fantasy football platforms at the time of this writing even after waivers have run on Wednesday.
Justin Fields (38% ESPN, 61% Yahoo)
Over the last five weeks, Justin Fields has been the QB5 in fantasy points per game, largely due to his rushing production. Over that span, he’s averaged 10 rushing attempts for 66 yards per game and has run for a touchdown in each of the last two games. On the season, Fields ranks second among quarterbacks in rushing attempts, rushing yards, and rushing touchdowns. As with other mobile quarterbacks, Fields’s ability to create points with his legs gives him a high weekly floor and ceiling, placing him among the top quarterback streamers for Week 9.
In addition, Fields has a favorable matchup at home against Miami. The Dolphins rank 29th against the pass in DVOA, and they’ve allowed the seventh-most passing yards per game to opposing quarterbacks as well as the 11th-most points per game to opponents. Chicago has also been calling more passing plays for Fields as of late, as he’s averaged 23 pass attempts per game over the last five weeks compared to just 15 pass attempts per game over the first three weeks of the year. With his rushing production and added passing volume in a favorable passing matchup, Fields is in a good spot this week.
Taylor Heinicke (12% ESPN, 10% Yahoo)
Like Fields, Taylor Heinicke is a mobile quarterback who also finds himself in a favorable passing matchup this week. In his two starts this year, Heinicke has been the QB11 in fantasy points per game even though he’s thrown an interception in each game thus far. And while his weekly floor is much lower with just four rushing attempts per game, Heinicke’s ceiling is apparent, having run in a score last week even though he’s averaged just 17 rushing yards per game in his two starts.
On top of his rushing potential, Heinicke also has a good matchup this week against a Minnesota defense that ranks 22nd and has allowed the fourth-most passing yards per game to opposing quarterbacks through eight weeks. It helps, too, that Washington’s defense ranks 28th against the pass and just traded away William Jackson on Tuesday. Even though the over/under in this game is only projected at 43.5 total points, this game has sneaky shootout potential between two teams with struggling secondaries. While a risky option among the Week 9 quarterback streamers, Heinicke has a high ceiling.
Andy Dalton (19% ESPN, 14% Yahoo)
Do you feel lucky, punk? Andy Dalton was listed as a risk/reward option among last week’s quarterback streamers, and while he was far from a week winner, his 17 points against the Raiders were good enough not to tank your fantasy team. We also saw his ceiling potential in Week 7 against the Cardinals, when he finished as the overall no. 2 fantasy quarterback on the week even with having thrown three interceptions to go along with his four touchdowns. Dalton remains a risk/reward play this week in a favorable matchup at home against the Ravens.
Baltimore’s defense has allowed the fifth-most passing yards per game to opposing quarterbacks, and this game projects for 48 total points scored, the fourth-most among the entire Week 9 slate of games. In what could turn into a shootout in primetime on Monday night, Dalton has a lot of upside against this Ravens defense that just allowed over 300 passing yards to a struggling Buccaneers offense last Thursday night. Turnovers make Dalton a risky option, but passing volume could keep his fantasy production afloat yet again this week.
Honorable Mentions
In deeper leagues, if none of the above-recommended quarterback streamers are available, Ryan Tannehill might need to throw a lot to keep up with a red-hot Chiefs offense coming off their bye if his ankle is healthy enough. Kansas City ranks just 26th in pass defense and has allowed the third-most passing yards per game to opposing quarterbacks. And if you’re desperate with six teams on bye this week, P.J. Walker been playing fairly well since taking over in Carolina. And although the Bengals’ defense has been stout against the pass this year, they just lost their top cornerback Chidobe Awuzie to an ACL tear last week, so their secondary could be more vulnerable in this game.
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