RotoBallers,

Below are my quarterback waiver wire pickups and streamers for Week 4 of the fantasy football season. In recent years, the concept of streaming has become a popular one within fantasy football circles. Particularly with quarterbacks and defense/special teams, the idea of swapping players out every week based on attractive matchups has led numerous owners to victory (or to the basement, if such owners didn’t stream correctly).

It’s not a bad idea– why invest a high draft pick on a player you may not want to use every week when you can use the upcoming week’s tilts to your advantage and play the projections?

Editor's Note: Once you're done here, be sure to read about more Week 4 waiver wire recommendations, for all other positions. Just click on any link: ALL - RB - WR - TE - QB - DEF - FAAB

 

Strategy for Streaming Quarterbacks

The problem, as mentioned above, is that if you’re going to go this route then you need to stream right— or you’re going to find yourself in a lot of trouble. Fortunately, the purpose of this weekly article will help you do exactly that with the quarterback position. Every week, we’ll take a look at QB six streaming options: three for one-quarterback leagues, and three for two-quarterback leagues. The focus will be on streaming for the upcoming week, but if that particular player has a positive outlook beyond that point it will be noted for your benefit.

Options for one-quarterback leagues could be just about anyone– if a decent QB really has that tasty of a matchup, then who are we not to take advantage of that? Of course, the obvious names aren’t “streamers”– guys like Cam Newton, Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson are plugged into the starting QB spot for their owners week in and week out. Other than the head honchos at the position, though, anyone is eligible. Two-quarterback leagues, however, work a little differently. In these leagues, most, if not all, quarterbacks are already owned. Thus, to be a streamer option in a two-quarterback league, the QB needs to be close to the bottom of the barrel. For example, you aren’t streaming Eli Manning in a two-quarterback league because under that setting, Eli should be starting every week anyway.

RotoBallers, stream away to your heart’s desire. If you have any questions or comments feel free to send me an email ([email protected]), tweet (@Andrew_Bua), or reach out on Reddit (/u/CitiStrikeouts).

 

One-QB Leagues - Week Four Waiver Wire Streamers

Joe Flacco, BAL

29% owned in Fleaflicker leagues

Joe Flacco has gotten off to a solid yet unspectacular start in 2016. En route to leading the Ravens to a 3-0 record thus far, Flacco has completed 76 of 118 pass attempts (64.4%) for 774 yards (258 YPG), three touchdowns and four interceptions. Coming off a bit of a rough start in Jacksonville, Flacco is our top waiver-wire pickup in one-quarterback leagues for Week 4 with great match-ups coming up.

In Week 4, the Ravens have the fortune of taking on the Raiders and their 32nd-ranked pass defense in Baltimore. Oakland did a nice job in Week 3 of keeping Marcus Mariota in check, but the Raiders' defense isn’t fooling anyone. After allowing 423 yards and four touchdowns to Drew Brees in Week 1 and 396 yards and three scores to Matt Ryan in Week 2, it’s a safe assumption the Raiders will be a defense to target all season long. Flacco also has a very favorable match-up in Week 5, when the Ravens play host to the Redskins, who are allowing 301.7 passing yards per game.

 

Two-QB Leagues - Week Four Waiver Wire Streamers

Trevor Siemian, DEN

7% owned in Fleaflicker leagues

Talk about a coming out party for Trevor Siemian. After a pedestrian first two games at home, many thought he would finally face adversity for his first career road start in Cincinnati in Week 3. If 312 yards and four touchdowns classifies as adversity, then sure. With a mouth-watering match-up in Tampa Bay in Week 4, Siemian is on the QB2 streaming radar.

Siemian’s performance in Week 3 certainly came out of nowhere after averaging 222 yards per game previously. Now that we’ve seen Siemian do that, we can’t rule it out going forward with the elite group of offensive weapons he has at his disposal. The Buccaneers defense is BAD– Week 4 could end up being the CJ Anderson show, but that also means Siemian should have plenty of opportunities as well with the field opened up. Case Keenum didn’t exactly dominate the Bucs in Week 3, but the fact that he wasn’t bad either tells you all you need to know here. If not for only having one career road start, Siemian would be in the streaming conversation even for one-quarterback leagues next week. With a home match-up with Atlanta and a road tilt with San Diego coming up, Siemian is worth a look for longer than just next week.

Cody Kessler, CLE

1% owned in Fleaflicker leagues

A Cleveland Browns quarterback streaming option? Choices are limited in two-quarterback leagues as it is, so if you’re going to stream the position you need to play the match-ups and take what you can get. Kessler had a solid debut on the road against a bad Miami defense in Week 3, and now heads to D.C. to take on the Redskins in Week 4.

Kessler’s first career game saw him throw for 244 yards without any touchdowns or interceptions (he did fumble twice, losing one of them). While not spectacular, especially against the Fins, it’s worth noting he was solid enough for a rookie in a week where the Browns lost Corey Coleman to a broken hand. The Redskins' defense is a nice match-up for him – they’ve allowed 300 yards and three scores to Ben Roethlisberger, 292 yards and a rushing score to Dak Prescott, and 350 yards and a touchdown (with two interceptions) to Eli Manning. Considering Kessler has already demonstrated he won’t be rattled just because he’s on the road, if you’re in need of a second QB in Week 4, he just might provide some very sneaky value.

Brian Hoyer, CHI

2% owned in Fleaflicker leagues

When Jay Cutler went down in Week 3, everyone wondered just how bad the already-terrible Chicago Bears might actually be. Then, when the initial shock of the injury wore off, people started to realize…Hoyer might actually be an upgrade. With a home Week 4 game against the Lions, he has an excellent opportunity to prove the Bears will be a better team with him at the helm.

In his starting debut for the Bears, Hoyer completed 30 of 49 pass attempts for 317 yards and two touchdowns.While most of it came during garbage time, fantasy owners will take the stats however they can get them. The Lions, meanwhile, have faced some behemoth quarterbacks, but have looked like they’ll be awful against the pass regardless of opponent. They’ve surrendered 385 yards and four touchdowns to Andrew Luck, 238 yards and two scores to Marcus Mariota (plus 11 more yards on the ground), and 205 yards and four touchdowns to Aaron Rodgers. Don’t let Rodgers’ yardage total fool you– the Packers scored several quick touchdowns early in Week 3 and took their foot off the gas pedal. Given the ineptitude of both Detroit's and Chicago’s defenses, this one has the makings of a shootout that could see Hoyer picking up a lot of fourth quarter points as the Bears fight to stay in the game. You could do a lot worse than him this week in two-quarterback leagues.

 

Other Week Four Quarterback Matchups That I like

Kirk Cousins, WAS

76% owned in Fleaflicker leagues

Kirk Cousins may be owned in 76% of leagues, but his increased effectiveness as of late seems to be going unnoticed. Cousins started off the year with a dud against Pittsburgh, but has gradually gotten better with each game. Following a 364-yard, one-touchdown performance against Dallas in Week 2, Cousins finally led the Redskins to victory by tossing 296 yards and two scores at the Meadowlands in a 29-27 road upset of the Giants in the third week of the season. In ten-team leagues, there's a decent shot Cousins is sitting on your waiver wire - if he is, he is absolutely in the streamer conversation for one-quarterback leagues.

Considering his continued ascension and matchup, he’s worth a look in Week 4, when the Redskins draw one of the fantasy community’s favorite defenses, that of the Cleveland Browns, at home. Here’s how Cleveland has fared so far: 319 yards and three touchdowns to Ryan Tannehill, 302 yards and two scores to Joe Flacco, 278 yards with two touchdowns to Carson Wentz. All that, and only the game against the Dolphins was on the road. Even if Cousins’ recent efficiency takes a step back, the volume will certainly be there– he’s attempted 43, 4, and 35 passes in his three games so far. Even in one-quarterback leagues, Cousins should provide backend QB1 value in Week 4.

Matthew Stafford, DET

87% owned in Fleaflicker leagues

This one comes with a caveat as Matthew Stafford's ownership has skyrocketed over the past few weeks - he's pretty much outside the realm of being a streamer now. However, this matchup this week is too good to pass up mentioning. While Stafford may not continue the efficiency he's often demonstrated under offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter, the volume will certainly always be there. That alone will always have him in the conversation as a QB1 streamer. With a date in Chicago on deck, Stafford should continue returning that value in Week 4.

To put it mildly, the Bears are a team to target every week in fantasy. They haven't played anyone incredibly notable, yet have made decent quarterbacks look good and good quarterbacks look great. Brock Osweiler hung 231 yards and two touchdowns on them in Week 1, Carson Wentz didn't put up a ton of numbers but methodically destroyed them for 190 yards and a score in Week 2, and on Sunday night, Dak Prescott put up 248 yards and one touchdown. Don't let the lack of huge numbers fool you– the Bears are ripe for the picking. Stafford, meanwhile, has completed 67.5% of his passes for 985 yards (328.3 yards-per-game), seven touchdowns and two interceptions. Again, how ownership rate indicates he's not much of a streamer anymore - but if you drafted him as your bench QB, there's a good chance he should be in your starting spot this week.

 

Check out RotoBaller's famous fantasy football draft sleepers and waiver wire pickups list, updated regularly!