Here is a review of your options to start at quarterback that you may be able to find available in your leagues. For this article, I am looking at options that are owned in less than 50-percent of either ESPN and Yahoo leagues and what you may be able to expect from them. I’ll be looking for games with high implied point totals, ideally for a team that is supposed to win, but also looking at past trends to see if there are any match-up specific notes worth taking into consideration.
**Ownership and odds gathered 9/23/2020**
Results – Week 5: N/A – Apologies for missing Weeks 4 and 6, life got in the way (as it has so often during 2020.)
Through Week 2: 9-12
Streaming QB: 19.02 FPPG (QB13) from the top option each week*
(This is based upon FPPG to account for players with byes)
*Including Fitzpatrick Week 4 and Bridgewater Week 5
Week 3 crushed our overall record, as most of our picks busted. Now that we know more about the defensive landscape and offensive philosophies of teams, we'll have more limited options that will be better bets to produce at backend QB1 numbers.
Best Bets
Kirk Cousins (MIN) vs. ATL (ESPN: 16.4%, Yahoo: 32%) -3.5 // Total: 55 (Implied Totals: W 29.25 – 25.75) Six weeks into the season and Dalvin Cook is banged up again. The Vikings are monitoring whether he will be able to play this week (early reports are promising,) but the smarter move may be to just let him rest through their Week 7 bye to ensure he is fully healthy. Between having a banged up star runningback and the emergence of rookie Wide Receiver, Justin Jefferson, Cousins is likely to see an increase in pass volume and should be able to be efficient against a poor Atlanta defense. Use Cousins with confidence this week.
Ryan Tannehill (TEN) vs. HOU (ESPN: 34.4%, Yahoo: 48%)
-5.5 // Total: N/A – Pending Tuesday (Buffalo at Tennessee)
Tannehill may have been dropped after the Titans’ Week 4 game was rescheduled. Take advantage! Teams have been loading up the box in an effort to contain Derrick Henry and it leaves Tannehill plenty of opportunities on play-action passes. This is again a very efficient offense and Tannehill gets his best weapon (A.J. Brown) back from injury. Corey Davis is on the COVID list, but with another week, there is a chance they’ll be back to full strength in the passing game for Week 6. Even if they aren’t, between Brown, Jonnu Smith and Adam Humphries, there are enough options for Tannehill to succeed.
Andy Dalton (DAL) vs. ARI (ESPN: 0.2%, Yahoo: 3%) +2.5 // Total: 54.5 (Implied Totals: L 28.5 – 26) Dak Prescott's injury was gruesome – no way around it. Unfortunately, the season goes on, and it’s next man up – Andy Dalton in this case. The fortunate part for the Cowboys is that Andy Dalton is not a typical backup. This is a veteran, who has led a team before and this Dallas team is likely his best set of supporting characters in his career (no disrespect to A.J. Green and Tyler Boyd.) I would expect Dallas to lean on the running game with Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard more moving forward, but their defense is so bad (and the offensive line so banged up) that there will be plenty of opportunity late in games for Dalton to rack up fantasy points.
Jared Goff (LAR) at SF (ESPN: 47.1%, Yahoo: 78%)
-3.5 // Total: 50.5 (Implied Totals: W 27 – 23.5)
Goff is in an efficient, high volume passing offense led by head coach Sean McVay. There’s not many better situations out there to create success for an adequate talent, which Goff is. San Francisco’s defense is nowhere near as strong as it was last year, partially due to injuries, so this is a situation where I’m not afraid to roll Goff out if I am in need of a QB.
Teddy Bridgewater (CAR) vs CHI (ESPN: 42.5%, Yahoo: 55%) -2.5 // Total: 44.5 (Implied Totals: W 23.5 – 21) Bridgewater has this Carolina offense humming. They are spreading the ball around and haven’t missed a beat despite losing all-world ‘Offensive Weapon’ Christian McCaffrey. The Bears can be beaten through the air, while their defensive line is formidable. If Carolina can scheme a way to protect Bridgewater from Kahlil Mack, he should be able to find plenty of opportunities for his receivers downfield.
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