RADIO
Dan Fornek's fantasy football quarterback waiver wire pickups before Week 8 of the 2021 NFL season. His free agent QBs to add, stream and stash off waivers.
The onslaught of bye weeks in Week 7 was brutal for fantasy managers, but thankfully several quarterbacks were able to deliver quality performances to help fantasy lineups navigate the loss of top-end production. Joe Burrow paced the quarterback position with an excellent 416-yard, three-touchdown performance against the Baltimore Ravens. Four other quarterbacks (Matt Ryan, Matthew Stafford, Derek Carr, and Mac Jones) also threw for at least 300-yards. Both Tua Tagovailoa and Tom Brady threw for four passing touchdowns while nine quarterbacks had multiple passing touchdowns. Despite the big passing days, not all was well.
Rookie Zach Wilson was knocked out of his game against the Patriots with a knee injury after starting six of 10 passing for 51 yards. Sam Darnold once again struggled to move Carolina’s offense, throwing for 111 yards and an interception before getting benched in the fourth quarter. Finally, Patrick Mahomes had an uncharacteristically bad day for Kansas City in a smash spot against the Titans. Mahomes threw for just 206 yards and an interception in a blowout loss before getting knocked out of the game. Thankfully, Week 8 doesn’t have a ton of byes, although we will be missing two starting fantasy quarterbacks in Derek Carr and Lamar Jackson.
In this article, I will be focusing on players who are under 65% rostered in fantasy leagues while adding a couple of deep sleepers for two-quarterback leagues (less than 20% rostered).
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Top QB Streamers and Adds
Trevor Lawrence (QB, JAX)
Yahoo: 40% rostered ESPN: 36% rostered
Trevor Lawrence went into his first career bye week on a bit of a hot streak. The rookie signal-caller had put together three straight games with 15 fantasy points. During that stretch, he completed 65 of 98 passes (66%) for 796 yards and two touchdowns with just one interception. He has also been solid on the ground, carrying the ball 17 times for 75 yards and two additional touchdowns. Lawrence is starting to adjust to the NFL game and it is allowing his ridiculous ability to flash more consistently on Sundays. The Jaguars haven’t had the easiest time on offense this season, but will have two weeks to prepare for Seattle’s overwhelmed secondary.
Seattle is allowing 19.1 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks heading into Monday night’s game against the Saints. Through six games, they have generated just two interceptions. Lawrence will have every opportunity to have a big day through the air as a one-week (and possibly longer) quarterback streaming option.
Daniel Jones (QB, NYG)
Yahoo: 28% rostered ESPN: 29% rostered
It isn’t pretty, but Daniel Jones continues to be a viable dual-threat quarterback for fantasy. Jones completed 23 of 33 passes for 203 yards and a touchdown against Carolina in Week 7. He also added 28 rushing yards. Jones was able to produce 17.5 fantasy points despite being down Saquon Barkley, Kenny Golladay, Sterling Shepard, and Kadarious Toney in the passing game. There is a chance all four of those players can work their way back into the starting lineup starting in Week 8. If Jones has close to his full complement of weapons, then he could be poised to have a big day against the Chiefs' defense.
Kansas City’s secondary has allowed quarterbacks to average 24 points per game this season, the second-most in the NFL in 2021. Additionally, the Chiefs will be in a get-right game on offense against a mediocre Giants’ secondary. The Giants held Carolina’s offense in check, but Kansas City is a different beast. Jones in a negative game script with a decent complement of weapons could be poised to provide a strong fantasy day as a streaming quarterback.
Sam Darnold (QB, CAR)
Yahoo: 60% rostered ESPN: 47% rostered
Starting Sam Darnold is tough to stomach given his last three weeks in Carolina. Darold has completed just 54 of 103 passes (52%) for 495 yards and two touchdowns with five interceptions. Darnold has struggled to replicate his hot start to the season, but he hasn’t been helped out by his offensive line either. Matt Rhule benched Darnold in the fourth quarter against the Giants but came out after the game and said he would still be Carolina’s starter going forward. If Darnold is going to keep a hold on this job, then he is going to have to raise his game to another level in Week 8.
Darnold has a perfect chance to do that against the Atlanta Falcons. Atlanta came into Week 7 as a bottom three fantasy defense against quarterbacks this season (22.2 points per game) before promptly giving up 291 passing yards and four touchdowns to Tua Tagovailoa. Atlanta has a terrible pass rush, which should give Darnold the time he needs in the pocket to push the ball downfield to D.J. Moore and Robby Anderson. Darnold is nothing more than a one-week streaming option, but he does have upside if you are without Derek Carr or Lamar Jackson this week.
2QB Options and Stashes
Teddy Bridgewater (QB, DEN)
Yahoo: 20% rostered ESPN: 21% rostered
Teddy Bridgewater struggled in the first half of Thursday night’s game against Cleveland before putting together a strong second half. Bridgewater finished the day with a pedestrian 13 fantasy points thanks to 187 yards passing and two touchdowns with one interception. Bridgewater hasn’t been exceptional this season, but he is on a three-game stretch with multiple passing touchdowns. He also has two 300-yard passing games on the season. Thankfully, the Broncos’ QB1 will have 10-days to heal a lingering foot injury that limited his ability on Thursday night against the Browns. Additionally, Bridgewater will be getting Jerry Jeudy back in the passing game, although he may need some time to re-acclimate to the NFL's game speed after his high ankle sprain.
The Broncos’ passing attack will have an excellent chance to get back on track against an abysmal Washington secondary. Through seven weeks, the Football Team has surrendered 2,178 passing yards and 19 touchdowns while generating just four interceptions. Bridgewater has some long-term appeal as well with games against Dallas and Philadelphia on deck before Denver’s Week 11 bye.
Tyrod Taylor (QB, HOU)
Yahoo: 4% rostered ESPN: 3% rostered
Tyrod Taylor is on the cusp of coming back from his hamstring injury which gives him fantasy relevance assuming he takes the job back from rookie Davis Mills. Taylor played well his first two weeks as a starter, completing 31 of 44 passes (70%) for 416 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Taylor also added five carries for 55 yards and a touchdown. Davis Mills has shown solid flashes through six games, but he is still a developmental quarterback and could use more time on the bench. The rookie has completed 63% of his passes for 912 yards and five touchdowns with seven interceptions. There is a chance that Taylor doesn’t play in Week 8, but he still offers long-term fantasy upside as a dual-threat quarterback throughout the rest of the bye weeks.
Houston has a tough game against the Rams in Week 8, but have a much better game in Week 9 against the Dolphins. After their Week 10 bye, Houston has a great stretch against underwhelming secondaries. Taylor will likely be back as the starter against the Titans, Jets, Colts, Seahawks, and Jaguars. You could do worse than rostering a quarterback against a stretch of weak defenses.
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