Week 1 was a rollercoaster full of fun twists and turns with many shocking surprises. One of my recommendations, Nick Foles was awful for fantasy owners on Thursday night despite winning. One of my other recommendations, Ryan Fitzpatrick, was really Fitzmagic as he dominated the rest of the quarterbacks in Week 1 scoring 57 points in Yahoo leagues. The other three were mid-range, decent streamers. With tight ends I was not so successful. On the whole, most tight end streamers apart from Seattle rookie “only-touted-to-be-a-blocking” tight end Will Dissly along with Colts’ Eric Ebron showed up. My top two recommendations, Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Ricky Seals-Jones, did not do well but both managed more points than Evan Engram, Trey Burton, Jimmy Graham, and Travis Kelce. At least if you started them, you beat some fantasy managers who invested heavily in their tight ends.
But with a new week comes new hope and optimism. Despite having some more information, Week 2 is far from chalk streamers. So without further ado, here are my Week 2 quarterback and tight end streaming recommendations:
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Quarterback
QB Stream of the Week: Alex Smith (WAS) vs Indianapolis
In his first week, Alex Smith looked more like Alex Smith of old. He was able to coast by playing his typical game-managing style, rather than playing like the Alex Smith of 2017. Washington faced a bad Arizona team and never really had to work very hard for the win. However, this game will most likely be a competitive, high-scoring affair. Both Andrew Luck and Smith should run amok as this game is screaming offensive battle. Arizona never really challenged Washington so once the Redskins built a sizeable lead, they just ran the ball. However, this one will not most likely be one-sided as Luck already started to shake the rust off his arm. Smith will have to involve Josh Doctson, Jamison Crowder and Paul Richardson more in order to keep this game tight. There should be a lot of touchdowns thrown in this game from both sides, therefore, I like Smith this week.
Tyrod Taylor (CLE) vs New Orleans
It seemed that the New Orleans Saints defense, which over-performed in 2017, was resembling its former self even against a backup quarterback in Ryan Fitzpatrick, allowing the Buccaneers to score copious points. Tyrod Taylor’s debut was not particularly stellar but the fact that he continues to run the ball is. Don’t expect him to throw for four touchdowns like Fitzpatrick but also don’t be surprised if he throws a couple to go along with one on the ground. Landry showed that his move to Cleveland might not bear as many targets but did indicate that he is formidable, racking up more yards on fewer opportunities. Josh Gordon scored in Week 1 and should be more productive this week as he will be on the field more. Another sneaky play would be Antonio Callaway who could play a similar role to DeSean Jackson this week. Similar to the Indianapolis and Washington matchup, look for this game to be a high-scoring affair in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. And if Cleveland falls behind early, then they will have to rely on Taylor to throw them out of the hole.
Case Keenum (DEN) vs Oakland
I am writing this before watching the Oakland Raiders play their first week against the LA Rams. I just have a sneaky suspicion that without Kalil Mack, the Raiders will have a poor defense. It should be ready to exploit for Case Keenum who managed to throw three touchdowns against a better Seattle Seahawks defense. Keenum might not be elite but proved in Week 1 that he is a definite improvement over the quarterbacks Denver had last year. He might make a few mistakes (three interceptions in Week 1) but has an arsenal of Emmanuel Sanders, Demaryius Thomas, and rookies Courtland Sutton and Phillip Lindsay to throw to. It would help Keenum’s cause if the Raiders have a decent offense to keep the game close. If it isn’t a blowout, Keenum should throw a lot of passes and get you many fantasy points.
Other QB Streamers
Dak Prescott (DAL) vs New York Giants
This might seem to be coming out of nowhere considering Prescott was terrible in Week 1 coupled with the fact that the Giant defense held their own against the Jaguars. If Dallas does change its focus and allows their QB to run more then Prescott and the Cowboys should redeem themselves in Week 2. When Prescott ran with the ball in Week 1, Dallas looked more dangerous. He could be overlooked by many this week as a good contrarian play.
Sam Darnold (NYJ) vs Miami
Despite their elongated victory over the Titans, don’t be fooled by the Dolphins’ defense. It is still beatable. I am a bit tepid since it is Darnold, who is a rookie quarterback I have not seen play yet (he is playing in one of the Monday night games in Week 1). Even if Darnold is average, he could accumulate a decent amount of fantasy points based on this underrated receiving corps and juicy matchup.
Tight End
TE Stream of the Week: Jared Cook (OAK) vs Denver Broncos
One thing that carried over from 2017 to Week 1 was that the Broncos continued to give up a lot of fantasy points to the tight end position. They allowed 20 points to a no-name rookie tight end by the name of Will Dissly. This week they face the well-seasoned Cook, who did garner many targets last year. The Raiders are devoid of many receiving options so this should be another good week for Cook. This is an in-division matchup so the hatred runs deep and therefore will be a highly-spirited affair. There is also a distinct possibility that the Raiders will play most of the game behind, which translates to Derek Carr having to throw the ball more. Cook and Carr had a great rapport in 2017 and that certainly continued in Week 1 against the Rams where Cook saw a whopping 12 targets.
Ben Watson (NO) vs Cleveland
It took a while to reestablish their relationship, but in the end, Watson caught all four of his passes for 44 yards last week against the Buccaneers. The Browns were very generous to tight ends in 2017 and last week allowed Pittsburgh’s Jesse James to get 60 yards. As good as Michael Thomas is, don’t expect him to repeat his 16 receptions for 180 yards this week. The Browns will most likely focus their defensive attention on Thomas and Alvin Kamara. This will allow fringe players like Watson to be slightly overlooked. When he last played with Drew Brees in 2015, Watson saw 109 targets and also had six touchdowns. The New Orleans defense seems to be more porous this year, therefore, Brees will throw more than he did in 2017. Many were hesitant to draft Watson because of his age. However, the tight end position statistically favors old guys over the shiny new rookies. And it seems that Watson is just starting to heat up.
Jonnu Smith (TEN) vs Houston
Given the Titans starting TE Delanie Walker is out for the season, pick up Jonnu Smith, if not as your season-long starter, then for this week. The Texans were the fourth-most generous defense against tight ends last year and allowed Rob Gronkowski to roll all over them despite the Patriots not having many other starting receiver options. Whether if it is Marcus Mariota throwing the ball or backup Blaine Gabbert. Last week Mariota and Gabbart targeted all Titans tight ends 12 times in their loss to the Dolphins. Smith is young and athletic. Luke Stocker did have two receptions last week but it will be Smith who will replace Walker as the team’s main tight end receiver moving forward. With Walker’s loss, Smith could find himself not only breaking out but could establish himself as the future starter in Tennessee.
Other TE Streamers
Eric Ebron (IND) vs Washington
It appears that Jack Doyle is the tight end target hog in Indianapolis still but Ebron is an end zone favorite for Andrew Luck, stemming all the way to the preseason. Ebron had four receptions last week for 51 yards and a touchdown. Maybe the chemistry between Ebron and Luck will develop even more, and don’t expect Washington’s defense to be as good this week. The Colts are a far better offense than Arizona.
Ian Thomas (CAR) vs Atlanta
It appears that Greg Olsen won’t be playing in Week 2. If you are daring and want to be the ultimate contrarian, then start rookie Ian Thomas. Atlanta allowed 13 targets to Eagle tight ends last week. The Carolina and Atlanta game should be a close one, so don’t expect Cam Newton to run as much. Thomas, who is young and athletic, comes with a low floor but also provides a higher ceiling than most. If he hits, he will help win you the week.
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Marc Mathyk is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Marc, check out his archive and follow him @Masterjune70.
