What should we use to project future fantasy production? It’s one thing to create projections in the offseason, but to adjust in season is incredibly difficult. We wish we could just use previous fantasy production to guide us, but with how fluky touchdown production and other stats can be in such a small sample, it’s something we cannot afford to do.

That’s where expected points come into play. You’ve probably seen some form of expected points before, but the basis is that it judges players based on the opportunities they receive, in order to illustrate how many points they should score. Since it strips a lot of the “flukiness” that can come from individual games, it’s a terrific way to create the foundation for a weekly projections.

Today, let’s utilize expected points to our advantage. However, I want to do it in a different way than you may be used to see. Rather, I want to utilize simple variables to create a very easy-to-use metric. Thus, for every position in this series, we will be using only one statistic that correlates strongly with fantasy football production to create this metric.

For quarterbacks, that variable is total yards. Touchdowns ultimately move the needle, yet they’re quite unstable, while yardage is a much more reliable metric from one game to the next. However, not all yards are created equal; rushing yards earn more points than passing yards. In fact, based on my research, each rushing yard was about twice as significant when it comes to fantasy production as every passing yard.

Using weighted yardage, the coefficient of determination between expected fantasy points and actual points was 0.77. In other words, 77% of a quarterback’s fantasy points per game could be explained by their weighted total yards per game. That indicates a pretty strong relationship, and the type of reliability we’re looking for. There will be players that consistently score more or less touchdowns than others, which will allow them to overachieve or underachieve their expected fantasy output.

With that, let’s take a look at how each quarterback rates in terms of expected fantasy points:

For the rest of the season, it’s hard to argue with anyone who has Lamar Jackson as their top-ranked quarterback for the rest of the season. He’s passing the ball more than ever, and the results have been remarkable. Also, Aaron Rodgers’ middling production fantasy-wise is legitimate; the team isn’t giving him enough opportunities to air it out, and the lack of passing volume is hurting him. That was also the case with Russell Wilson, though that’s less significant now that he’ll miss significant time with a finger injury.

Buy Low

By looking at players who are underachieving their expected points total, we can find some players to potentially buy-low on:

Jackson ranks second in points per game (PPG), so it’s unlikely you’re going to be able to buy-low on him. The same goes for Jalen Hurts, who has little difference between his expected and actual production.

Usually, I’d say Ryan Tannehill was a tremendous buy-low, but his numbers are skewed by two overtime games. At the same time, his passing efficiency should improve with AJ Brown and Julio Jones back healthy, so he’s still someone to buy low on as a quarterback streamer.

Right now, my ultimate buy low would be Daniel Jones. He’s only rostered in 40% of ESPN leagues, so he might just be available, yet it’s hard for me to understand why he’s not seen as a consistent streaming option. He’s not part of a great offense, but he’s also had 32 pass attempts in every game he’s finished, in addition to 27 carries in those four games. As he’s dealing with a concussion and set to face the Rams, now would be the time to check if he’s been dropped or acquire him via trade for a very cheap price.

Sell High

Conversely, by looking at players who have overachieved their expected fantasy production, we can find players to sell high on: