We’re now a quarter of the way through the season and Lamar Jackson is the QB1, just like everybody had it projected. Jackson leads the league in quarterback rushing yards with 238 and is tied for the league lead in passing touchdowns with 10. The rushing yards add the equivalent of just should of six extra touchdown passes to his total points. Let’s take a look at the leader board for Week 4:
| Quarterback | Week 4 Opponent | Fantasy Points | Percentage Owned |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jameis Winston | at Rams | 29.3 | 68% |
| Aaron Rodgers | vs. Eagles | 25.4 | 99% |
| Lamar Jackson | vs. Browns | 24.4 | 99% |
| Matthew Stafford | vs. Chiefs | 23.4 | 55% |
| Marcus Mariota | at Falcons | 23.2 | 11% |
| Jacoby Brissett | vs. Raiders | 22.5 | 35% |
| Joe Flacco | vs. Jaguars | 22 | 6% |
| Jared Goff | vs. Bucs | 20.6 | 93% |
| Philip Rivers | at Dolphins | 20.4 | 92% |
| Carson Wentz | at Packers | 19.7 | 98% |
| Patrick Mahomes | at Lions | 18 | 100% |
| Mason Rudolph | vs. Bengals | 16.8 | 11% |
“Stream of the Week”, Daniel Jones looked, well, like a rookie quarterback, even in what should’ve been a good matchup against the Redskins. To be fair, the Giants were up 7-0 early in the first quarter and extended it to 14-0 early in the second quarter. The Giants defense forced four turnovers and the Redskins never got anything going on offense, even after switching to Dwayne Haskins. The Giants were able to kill the clock, running the ball 37 times. Jones’ final line was 23/31 for 225 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions thrown. He also ran the ball five times for 33 yards. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a better matchup for Jones than the Redskins and Week 5 gives him a Goliath matchup against the Vikings.
If you read Andy Dalton‘s writeup last week, you could tell there was some pause in me just making the recommendation and Dalton looked bad on Monday night. The Steelers came into the game averaging two sacks per game before the Bengals offensive line, or lack thereof, allowed Dalton to get taken down eight times. In the end, Dalton ended up going 21/37 for 171 yards, throwing one interception and fumbling twice, losing one.
The Giants defense held Case Keenum to 22 yards in four offensive series’ (the first time the Giants defense shut down anyone all year – rimshot) before being replaced by Dwayne Haskins. He managed to throw one interception on the third play of the game. Once Terry McLaurin was ruled out, the Redskins quarterback became a hard pass.
Andy Dalton (36% Owned)
Maybe I’m just a glutton for punishment, but let’s go back to the well with Andy Dalton. This week Dalton faces the Cardinals, who have allowed the world to anyone facing them this year. The Cardinals have allowed 271 passing yards per game and that’s including last week, where the Seahawks were in cruise control all game and didn’t have to sling the rock. The Cardinals secondary should get a boost, as they get Patrick Peterson off suspension, but one man bailing out water cannot save a sinking ship.
Jacoby Brissett (35% Owned; Pick of the Week)
You can call Jacoby Brissett a game manager all you want, the fact is he’s currently QB13 so far this season. The Colts don’t ask Brissett to do too much, which is a gift and a curse for us in fantasy in that it gives him a decent floor week to week, but it certainly limits his upside. In a stat that might surprise everyone, Brissett is currently tied with Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson for the most touchdown passes thrown over the first four weeks with 10.
This week Brissett gets a matchup with Mahomes and the Chiefs in Arrowhead. One of the keys to Brissett’s success, in my opinion, has been the offensive lines’ ability to keep Brissett upright as the Colts have allowed the 6th fewest sacks through four weeks. The Chiefs have an average pass rush, ranking 14th in sacks this year. One of the keys to this play is if Brissett has T.Y. Hilton back on the field.
Teddy Bridgewater (7% Owned)
I’m not saying Teddy Bridgewater is Jared Goff, but we just saw what Goff was able to do to the Buccaneers defense. In an epic shootout (that no one saw coming), Goff went 45/68 for 517 yards, throwing two touchdowns and three interceptions. I don’t see Bridgewater ever throwing the ball 68 times, but the way to beating the Bucs is through the air.
Through four games, the Bucs defense is allowed a league-low 59.2 rushing yards per game and that’s while facing Todd Gurley, Christian McCaffrey, Saquon Barkley (injury shortened game), and the 49ers rushing offense, which ranks second in the league in yards per game. If you’re desperate at quarterback, I think Bridgewater could get a sniff at the top 12 quarterbacks this week. Good luck!
(Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire)
Who do you think is the better option on the wire: Minshew or Mariota?
Talk about picking between a rock and a hard place. The slightest of leans to Mariota. He’s at home and while both Carolina and the Bills have been good against the pass, Carolina leads the league in sacks, QB Hits, and opposing pass yards per game.