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Awful weather conditions stifled plenty of offenses throughout the league in Week 16, leading to subdued fantasy totals across the board. Unlucky fantasy managers likely saw some players they’ve depended upon all season struggling to put up their customary totals in subzero temperatures.
There were still some impressive performances throughout the NFL. Six different quarterbacks threw for at least 300 yards (led by Joe Burrow’s 375 passing yards against the Patriots). Four different quarterbacks (Burrow, Jared Goff, Dak Prescott, and Kirk Cousins) had three passing scores on the day.
In this article, I will look at the fantasy football waiver wire for quarterback pickups and streamers, focusing on players under 65% rostered in fantasy leagues while adding a couple of deep sleepers for two-quarterback leagues (less than 25% rostered).
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Single-QB League Waiver Wire Options
Daniel Jones, New York Giants
Yahoo: 63% rostered
Daniel Jones had one of his best games as a passer in Week 16, throwing for 334 yards, a touchdown, and one interception against the Minnesota Vikings. Jones has scored at least 17.0 fantasy points in five of his last seven games despite a lack of receiving talent in New York.
The Giants have another good quarterback matchup in Week 17 with the Indianapolis Colts coming into town. The Colts head into tonight’s matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers allowing 17.1 fantasy points per game (FPPG) to quarterbacks. Additionally, they’ve only generated seven interceptions this season.
Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
Yahoo: 36% rostered
Brock Purdy now has four straight games with at least 14.0 fantasy points after Saturday’s 37-20 victory over the Washington Commanders. Purdy completed 15 of 22 passes for 234 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. The rookie quarterback has now thrown two touchdowns in all four of his games played this season.
Purdy remains on the fantasy radar with a game against the Las Vegas Raiders on deck in Week 17. Las Vegas has given up the sixth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season by allowing 18.8 FPPG to the position. Purdy is executing the offense well despite the loss of Deebo Samuel and is a viable quarterback to start for managers in a pinch.
Gardner Minshew, Philadelphia Eagles
Yahoo: 27% rostered
The Eagles lost a tough game to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 16, but Gardner Minshew looked good leading the offense. The veteran backup quarterback threw for 355 yards and two touchdowns (with two interceptions) against an extremely talented defense.
Minshew will remain a viable quarterback thanks to the array of weapons around him in Philadelphia, especially with Dallas Goedert returning from injury in Week 16.
His Week 17 opponent, the New Orleans Saints, is also a challenging defense (15.9 FPPG to quarterbacks in 2022), but Minshew doesn’t need to be stellar to put up a big day.
Two-QB Waiver Wire Options and Stashes
Sam Darnold, Carolina Panthers
Yahoo: 7% rostered
Sam Darnold has looked pretty good coming off the bench for the Carolina Panthers. In four games, Darnold has thrown for 509 yards and three touchdowns with zero interceptions. The quarterback has also added 15 carries for 54 yards and two touchdowns during that stretch.
These aren’t world-beater numbers, but they have been good enough to allow Darnold to score at least 11.0 fantasy points in four straight games. That puts him firmly on the radar as a streamable QB2 in two-quarterback or SuperFlex leagues to close out the season.
Darnold should have plenty of opportunity to have a solid game against a struggling Buccaneers defense. Tampa Bay has given up 24 passing touchdowns and generated only eight interceptions this season. They are currently allowing 16.5 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks on the year.
Carson Wentz, Washington Commanders
Yahoo: 5% rostered
There were rumors that Taylor Heinicke was on the hot seat heading into a challenging game against the San Francisco 49ers. Overall, Heinicke played well, but two straight drives with turnovers caused him to get benched for incumbent starter Carson Wentz.
Wentz looked good during his first game action since Week 6, completing 12 of 16 passes for 123 yards and a touchdown with zero interceptions. Be patient adding Wentz on waivers (he hasn’t formally been named the starter heading into Week 16), but if the team does decide to start him, he will have a strong matchup against the Cleveland Browns.
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