Underwhelming. That’s a pretty good way to describe the overall quarterback play around the NFL across Week 7 in terms of fantasy points. Those who invested high draft capital in Jalen Hurts and Josh Allen came away pleased, though if we’re honest Hurts getting to almost 23 fantasy points on 14 pass attempts and just 22 rushing yards is of course not sustainable. As of Sunday night, just four quarterbacks reached the 20-point threshold, with one of them being Drake Maye who (unless you’re me tanking for next year in my keeper league) you probably didn’t start. The interceptions were flying between Patrick Mahomes, Brock Purdy, and Jordan Love, combining for seven picks between them, damaging their overall fantasy bottom lines. Marcus Mariota, who came in for the injured Jayden Daniels, came away with 19.6 points, while Mahomes’ 16.4 points a few weeks ago was his highest output all season. How sickening is that? Furthering the quarterback frustrations, the Texans’ offense ran through Joe Mixon on their way to a close loss in Green Bay. CJ Stroud threw for a highly uncharacteristic 86 yards in what has been a relatively disappointing season for the former Buckeye from a fantasy perspective. While there will surely be better days for these star quarterbacks, you might be coming away from Week 7 a bit frustrated with your signal caller, feeling like you want and deserve more. Let’s see who can give your lineup a little jump start as we approach the critical weeks of the fantasy football regular season. As always we keep the names to those who are rostered in under 70% of Yahoo leagues.
Russell Wilson, Pittsburgh Steelers (7% rostered):
Steelers fans were ready to boo Russell Wilson off the field after a shaky start against the Jets, but the 13-year veteran turned things around quickly, putting together the overall QB1 performance of Week 7 heading into Monday night (264 yards, 2 TD, 1 rushing TD). In what looked like a difficult matchup on paper against a tough Jets secondary, Wilson displayed a strong connection with George Pickens, as the polarizing receiver put up 111 yards on five receptions with a touchdown. According to Next Gen Stats, Pickens’ 16.6 air yards per target was the highest of the season, showing Wilson got the ball down the field to Pickens a bit better than Justin Fields. For a guy who hasn’t played since Christmas Eve last year, Wilson put together a much better outing than most expected. The kitchen is still wide open for Wilson to cook, especially with the Giants coming to town next week, who got completely rolled over by the Eagles in Week 7. Big Blue can get after the quarterback, but they also give up the eighth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks.
https://www.twitter.com/SNFonNBC/status/1848171549859201073
Aaron Rodgers, New York Jets (50% rostered):
Yes, Mr. Rodgers’ performance in Pittsburgh wasn’t anything to be overly excited about, but this is more about projection and what’s around him. With the acquisition of his best buddy in Davante Adams, Aaron Rodgers has a collection of weapons that can help the almost 41-year-old put together more than respectable stat lines. I know I seem to mention a collection of weapons every week, but when it comes to finding a quarterback on the waiver wire, one of the key aspects should be who they get to throw the ball to, and no one can deny Rodgers has plenty of attractive weapons at his disposal. No one wants to hear excuses for Rodgers, but after missing all of last season, it makes sense that the Jets offense hasn’t quite hit their stride yet. Week 8 brings a trip to Foxborough to face the Patriots, which obviously is not the daunting task it once was. Weeks 10 and 11 have a few more juicy matchups for Rodgers when they face the Cardinals and Colts who give up the fourth and ninth most fantasy points to quarterbacks, respectively. I’m not sure if cheap points potential is a stat (it should be), but Rodgers should be the near top of it, as you’ll see below.
Breece 💨
2019 All-American Breece Hall (@BreeceH) takes off for a 56-yard gain.#JetUp#AllAmericanBowl 🇺🇸
— Navy All-American Bowl (@AABonNBC) October 21, 2024
Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins (45% rostered):
Of course, Tua Tagovailoa’s long-term health is the most important, but the discussions around him retiring have all but ceased. The 26-year-old is targeting next week to return, according to The Athletic, and it’s just in time to face a plus matchup vs the struggling Cardinals defense. It’s not every day the passing yards leader from the year prior who also has one of the NFL’s most explosive receivers of the last decade is available on the waiver wire. It’s at least worth checking to see if Tagovailoa was dropped when things looked a lot murkier for his NFL future a few weeks ago. Three of the next four opponents for the Dolphins are the Cardinals, Rams, and Raiders, all who are in the top ten among defenses that allow the most fantasy points to quarterbacks, according to NFL.com. Throwing all your FAAB at Tagovailoa or not having a reliable alternative option at quarterback on your roster are both risky options considering his concussion history, but there may not be another signal-caller available on the waiver wire this season that offers the explosion weeks we know Tagovailoa and a healthy Dolphins offense can have. Just in case you forgot the Tua-Tyreek connection, check out the clip below.
https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1832862168863113337
Stashes:
Both Maye and Bo Nix should be widely available in most leagues and have shown enough over the last few weeks to be in the streaming conversation. Maye put up 20+ fantasy points in just his second start yesterday against the Jaguars and showed a nice rapport with tight end Hunter Henry. The next three matchups for the Patriots aren’t the most appealing (Jets, Titans, Bears), but the likelihood of the Patriots trailing and needing to throw along with Maye’s rushing ability makes him relevant in the streaming world.
Broncos rookie quarterback Nix hasn’t shown quite as much as Maye in the passing game, but he’s been getting it done on the ground. 136 rushing yards over the last two weeks puts Nix as a potential streaming option, especially in Week 8 when the Panthers come to Denver, who give up the most fantasy points to quarterbacks.