A big win this past week at quarterback. I went with Derek Carr, a choice that was not all that popular throughout the fantasy football community. Many feared his foe, the Kansas City Chiefs. I saw an opportunity and nice game script. In the end, he scored more than 27 fantasy points in PPR scoring and ended up QB6 for the week ahead of Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, and Russell Wilson. As for tight ends, I wasn’t nearly as successful. Logan Thomas didn’t do much, Dalton Schultz was serviceable, and Richard Rogers ended up scoring. It was a much improved week compared to my previous week so I am happy to be trending in the right direction.
This week there’s a plethora of quarterbacks to choose from with excellent matchups:
- Derek Carr @ Atlanta #32
- Baker Mayfield @ Jax #31
- Daniel Jones vs Cincy #29
- Philip Rivers vs Tenn #28
- Tua Tagovailoa @NYJ #27
All of the above quarterbacks are facing basically the kindest defenses for quarterbacks. Sometimes too much choice isn’t a good thing, however. You know some of these quarterbacks will dominate while others will pull a 180. Since all of them have great matchups, I will choose the three I think will have the best chance of helping you succeed this weekend.
View your league’s top available players with My Playbook 
Quarterback Streamer of the Week
Derek Carr (LV) @ Atlanta Falcons
I’m going back to the well with Derek Carr. He’s truly been an underrated quarterback all season. Actually, he’s been underrated since last year really. Atlanta is the worst defense which also helps. Atlanta’s offense has been erratic but seems to more often than not keep the games exciting. This is good for Derek Carr and good for fantasy. Games in which a quarterback faces a bad team is not great for fantasy because they tend to run the ball more often with a comfortable lead. You really want back and forth scoring affairs. This helped Carr this past week against Kansas City and I believe will help him this week against the Falcons. I expect a high scoring affair. Weather will not be an issue because they are playing in a dome. Matt Ryan is coming off one of his worst performances in a long time so I see him bouncing back with or without Julio Jones. This game should be closer than many think and I think Carr is about to repeat his performance when he threw for 275 yards and three touchdowns against the Chiefs.
Alternate Streamer of the Week
Philip Rivers (IND) vs Tennessee Titans
I am skipping both Baker Mayfield and Daniel Jones and going straight to Philip Rivers. Rivers is playing like the quarterback the Colts hoped he’d be when they signed him this off-season. He started the season rather shakily putting up wins despite weeks of poor play. Michael Pittman has stepped up and even T.Y. Hilton is showing a pulse. Most of all, I love the matchup. After their Week 1 win over the Broncos 16-14, the Titans have only played one game in which the total score was under 51 points. Out of the eight remaining games, four were over 60 points. This bodes well for both Ryan Tannethrill and Rivers. It is a division game with playoff implications. It is also another game played in a dome, so the weather will not be a factor. This is always something to consider this time of year.
Darkhorse Quarterback
Tua Tagovailoa (MIA) @ New York Jets
It cannot be denied that Tua Tagovailoa was a disaster last week against the Denver Broncos. He was so bad that he was pulled out of the game in favor of Ryan Fitzmagic. However, not long after their loss, coach Brian Flores decided that Tagovailoa was going to get the start this week against the Jets. I am not sure if Sam Darnold will be back for this one and honestly, I hope he is because he will add value to the Jet’s offensive side of things. Even if he isn’t under center, Joe Flacco has been decent enough to make this game competitive. And we want competitive. This could be the bounce-back game Tua needs as he plays against the worst team in football. Don’t expect glorious numbers but expect him to be much better against a porous defense. This game is going to be in New York. We all know that weather can change but as of now, the weather for the game looks clear, with minimal wind. At this time of year, if we can’t have a game in a dome, we want good conditions. Miami is still in the hunt for a playoff spot and Tua is still trying to prove he is worthy of being their future quarterback. Look for him to take it to the level we expect.
Important Note: At the moment, Zach Ertz is only rostered in 55% of Yahoo Leagues. He might be back this week but if not, he’ll be back next. He’s had a disappointing season but Philadelphia, despite having a poor 3-6-1 record is still leading the NFC East Division. I still believe in Ertz to come back and make a second-half surge. If he’s available, pick him up and play him. Dallas Goedert might be the better tight end in Philadelphia, but Ertz is far from dead.
Tight-End Streamer of the Week
Robert Tonyan (GB) vs Chicago Bears
If Ertz is not on your waiver wire, then look no further than Robert Tonyan. Tonyan has had a few big weeks of production to go along with meager ones. However, he seems to be the second most trusted option for Aaron Rodgers currently. A crucial Marquez Valdes-Scantling fumble has put his reliability into question. Although UDFA Alan Lazard is back, it might take another week or two for him to be 100% effective. Chicago is one of the toughest defenses out there but against tight ends, they are in the bottom ten. Tonyan isn’t foolproof but comes with a decent enough floor and has all the upside in the world.
Alternate Streamer of the Week
Jordan Reed (SF) @ Los Angeles Rams
If Jordan Reed is healthy and George Kittle isn’t on the field, then you can expect him to be one of the more dependable streamers any week. Like the Chicago Bears, the Los Angeles Rams are a formidable defense but are not infallible versus tight ends. Reed has proven to be one of the better options on a 49er’s offense that might be getting Deebo Samuel back but will be missing Brandon Aiyuk, who is on the COVID-list (as of now). This means Reed should be one of the top two targets for Nick Mullens. He comes with a higher floor than Tonyan and arguably an equal ceiling.
Darkhorse Tight End
Jimmy Graham (CHI) @ Green Bay Packers or Dalton Schultz (DAL) @ Washington Football Team
I have put two here. Jimmy Graham would be the obvious choice but we are not sure who is going to be the quarterback this week for the Bears. It could be Nick Foles; it could be Mitchell Trubisky; it could be someone else. If it is Foles or Trubisky then Graham would be my choice despite facing the fifth toughest defense against tight ends. If Chicago does not go with Foles or Trubs then I’d pivot to Dalton Schultz. Washington may be a tough defense but they are ranked 25th against tight ends. Andy Dalton is coming off a respectable come-from-behind win which saw him target Schultz six times. Schultz converted four of those into receptions to go along with a touchdown. And for a tight end at this time of the year, you cannot complain.
Import your team to My Playbook for instant Waiver Wire advice
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | SoundCloud | iHeartRadio
If you want to dive deeper into fantasy football, be sure to check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you navigate your season. From our Start/Sit Assistant – which provides your optimal lineup, based on accurate consensus projections – to our Waiver Wire Assistant – that allows you to quickly see which available players will improve your team, and by how much – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football season.
Marc Mathyk is a featured writer at FantasyPros and is a member of The Undroppables. For more from Marc, check out his archive and follow him @Masterjune70.
