Matt Barkley
With more and more fantasy owners opting to wait on the quarterback and tight end positions in drafts, streaming each position has become a viable option. This is made easier by the fact that there are usually solid options on the waiver wire. Each week this column will scour the waiver wire and look for quarterbacks and tight ends who are owned in fewer than 50% of leagues and could be worth starting for your fantasy team.
All ownership percentages come from Yahoo fantasy leagues and all references to fantasy points allowed per game come from our fantasy points allowed (PA) reports here on Fantasy Pros. All references to DVOA (Defense-Adjusted Value Over Average) come from rankings on www.footballoutsiders.com. A detailed explanation of DVOA can be found here.
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Quarterbacks
Colin Kaepernick (SF): 33% ownership @ Los Angeles Rams
It might not always be pretty, but Kaepernick continues to provide adequate and occasionally excellent fantasy numbers for those who stream him. That was no different in Week 15 as Kap finished with 183 passing yards, two touchdowns, and 21 rushing yards against the Atlanta Falcons. He draws yet another favorable matchup in Week 16 as he will take on a floundering Rams squad that has really struggled against opposing passing attacks. Los Angeles’ pass defense ranked just 20th in the league in DVOA before Week 15. As usual, Kaepernick’s ability to pick up rushing yards serves to raise his weekly floor.
Matt Barkley (CHI): 3% ownership vs. Washington Redskins
Barkley has shown us a few things over his four starts. He has played much better than anyone really expected and he brings as much multi-touchdown upside to the table as any streamer out there. That being said, you are going to get interceptions with Barkley, so hopefully your league doesn’t penalize picks too much if you plan on streaming him. Barkley, over his past four games, has racked up six touchdowns and five interceptions. Those numbers are deflated a bit by the Week 13 home tilt against the 49ers where the teams played through snow and extreme cold. Either way, Barkley gets a plus matchup against a Redskins pass defense that is allowing the eighth-most fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks and just allowed Cam Newton to have his best game in months on Monday night.
Tight Ends
Vernon Davis (WAS): 24% ownership @ Chicago Bears
Davis was targeted nine times against the Panthers on Monday night, good for third-most on the team. After watching the game, it is clear that Jordan Reed‘s injured shoulder is still not healthy, meaning Davis should continue to see an expanded role for Washington. Davis caught just 4-of-9 targets and dropped what looked like it would have been a sure touchdown at one point on Monday night. That being said, even at age 32, Davis is still one of the most athletic tight ends in the league and is worth considering if you are desperate this week.
Hunter Henry (SD): 20% ownership @ Cleveland Browns
Henry scored another touchdown last week, giving him seven in his rookie year, even though he has had to split snaps with future Hall of Famer Antonio Gates. Henry is more of a deeper league play, but he’s still worth a pickup considering his opponent in Week 16. The Browns have been one of the worst teams in the league when it comes to defending opposing tight ends. They are tied with Carolina for most fantasy points allowed to the position and Football Outsiders has their pass defense rated 31st in the league in DVOA. Cleveland has been decimated by Charles Clay (seven catches for 72 yards and a touchdown) and Tyler Eifert (5/48/2) in back-to-back weeks. Henry has a good shot at adding to his touchdown total this weekend.
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Matt Terelle is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Matt, check out his archive and follow him @supermt.
