RADIO
For many, Week 17 is the final week of the fantasy season. However, there are plenty of leagues across the world that play in Week 18. If you are in one of those leagues, then this article is for you. The fantasy championships are the time to embrace risk and shoot for scoring upside.
There were some big fantasy performances from the quarterbacks in Week 17, but for the most part, the collective position was a fantasy letdown. Tom Brady led the way with 432 passing yards, but only three other quarterbacks surpassed 300 passing yards. Thankfully, six quarterbacks had three passing touchdowns to provide some level of scoring.
In this article, I will look at the fantasy football waiver wire for quarterback pickups and streamers, focusing on players under 65% rostered in fantasy leagues while adding a couple of deep sleepers for two-quarterback leagues (less than 25% rostered).
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Single-QB League Waiver Wire Options
Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
Yahoo: 45% rostered
Brock Purdy continues to provide fantasy value as the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers. Purdy has scored at least 14.0 fantasy points in every game he has played this season.
The rookie quarterback now has over 200 yards in four of five starts and has at least two passing touchdowns in every game started. San Francisco will have another fantastic matchup against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 18, giving Purdy a slightly higher ceiling than usual to go with his very stable floor.
Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns
Yahoo: 65% rostered
Deshaun Watson has started knocking off the rust and is showing occasional flashes of the quarterback we saw with the Houston Texans. Since returning from his suspension, Watson has just two games (out of five) with a completion percentage greater than 60%. Thankfully in fantasy, the completion percentage doesn’t score points.
Watson just completed his fourth straight game with double-digit fantasy points and his first game of the season with over 20.0 fantasy points. The quarterback threw for just 169 yards but had three touchdown passes while adding 31 rushing yards. Watson now has at least 20 rushing yards in every start this season.
Cleveland will have a solid matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 18. Fantasy managers looking for a boost at quarterback should consider him if he is on the waiver wire.
Two-QB Waiver Wire Options and Stashes
Jarrett Stidham, Las Vegas Raiders
Yahoo: 1% rostered
The Raiders were mocked endlessly when they announced ahead of their Week 17 game that they would be benching Derek Carr in favor of Jarrett Stidham to end the 2022 season. For at least one week, Stidham proved the critics wrong.
The veteran quarterback faced off against the NFL’s top defense, the San Francisco 49ers, and threw for 365 passing yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions. In his defense, the second interception came in overtime after a Nick Bosa pass rush forced an errant pass. Stidham also added seven carries for 34 yards in the overtime loss.
The Raiders will have a challenging matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 18, but Stidham should still have access to Josh Jacobs, Davante Adams, and Darren Waller in the passing attack. Stidham does have some fantasy value if your fantasy championship is in Week 18.
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More Waiver Wire Pickups and Advice
