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Just for one minute, we can all rejoice in the simple fact that football is back. It was a long offseason with a lot of movement in the NFL, but we finally have something to watch and some actionable data points to analyze in fantasy football.
Week 1 (like most years) featured plenty of teams trying to find their identities on offense and defense. Just six teams scored more than 28 points in Week 1 and just five quarterbacks surpassed 300 passing yards (led by an absurd 466-yard game by Tua Tagovailoa against the Chargers). Over time, we can expect offenses to be crisper.
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
Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
Yahoo: 55% rostered
Brock Purdy showed that his elbow shouldn’t be a concern this season when the San Francisco 49ers throttled the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 1. Purdy completed 19 of 29 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions.
Purdy will rarely break fantasy football but is capable of taking care of the ball and utilizing San Francisco’s array of yards-after-catch weapons on offense. On Sunday, Purdy was able to lean on Brandon Ayiuk in the passing attack (eight catches for 129 yards and two touchdowns), but realistically any combination of Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, or Christian McCaffrey can explode in the passing game.
Purdy is healthy and has one of the most dynamic skill groups at his disposal in San Francisco. He should be rostered in all leagues and will have streaming upside throughout the year.
Derek Carr, New Orleans Saints
Yahoo: 38% rostered
Derek Carr had a solid performance in his first game with the New Orleans Saints. Carr completed 23 of 33 passes for 305 yards and one touchdown with one interception. The veteran quarterback completed passes to five different players, including standout performances from Chris Olave (eight receptions for 112 yards) and Rashid Shaheed (five receptions for 89 yards and a touchdown).
Carr didn’t light the league on fire, but he did surpass 300 passing yards against a Titans defense that spent most of the game pressuring him in the backfield. He showed enough to warrant waiver wire interest and should provide solid QB2-level play for most of the season, especially once the team gets Alvin Kamara and Kendre Miller back in the passing attack.
Two-QB League Waiver Wire Options
Mac Jones, New England Patriots
Yahoo: 8% rostered
It seems that not having an offensive coordinator in 2022 was a bigger problem than Mac Jones was. The veteran quarterback came into an already difficult matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles missing both of his starting guards and still found a way to deliver, completing 36 of 54 passes for 316 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.
It was far from a perfect game for Jones, but at the very least he showed that his 2022 regression was overstated. He looked the part of an NFL quarterback against one of the league’s best defenses missing several key pieces from the offense. Jones will face plenty of difficult matchups in the coming weeks (Miami, the Jets, and Dallas are his next three games) which is why he isn’t higher on this list.
Jones is worth picking up and stashing in two-quarterback or deep bench leagues. His performance against Philadelphia was good enough to get him on the radar and could show us that Jones is amid a year-three leap.
C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
Yahoo: 9% rostered
Rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud had a very quiet debut against the Baltimore Ravens, completing just 28 of 44 passes for 242 yards. Stroud flashed some throws during his debut, but even more impressive was his ability to survive Baltimore’s defense with three missing starting offensive linemen behind him. Stroud also flashed his mobility when the pocket broke down, rushing four times for 20 yards.
Thankfully for Stroud, there will be easier matchups ahead and the rookie should have more time to operate in the pocket to get the ball to his playmakers. At the very least, the Texans will continue to find themselves in negative game scripts, giving Stroud every opportunity to put up big statistical efforts. It is a positive that Houston trusted Stroud to throw the ball 44 times in his first career start.
Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Yahoo: 10% rostered
It is so easy to hate on Baker Mayfield after he flamed out with Cleveland and the Carolina Panthers. However, he flashed some ability at the end of the season with the Los Angeles Rams and earned the starting job with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers coming into the 2023 season. Based on Week 1, Mayfield can have some fantasy relevance in 2023.
Mayfield didn’t do anything exceptional in his first game, but he did spread the ball around to Tampa Bay’s above-average receiving weapons. The veteran quarterback finished the game with just 173 passing yards and two touchdowns but had zero interceptions. Minnesota’s secondary is far from world-beaters, but it was still a positive performance for an oft-criticized player.
Mayfield should have every opportunity to improve in Week 2 against an underwhelming Bears defense that allowed Jordan Love to throw for 245 yards and three touchdowns in his first start without Aaron Rodgers. Time will tell if Mayfield has long-term fantasy viability, but for the short term, he should be rostered.
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