3 Fantasy Football Quarterback Streaming Options for Week 9
Quarterback streaming isn't for everyone, but if you're in a standard league -- like a 10- or 12-team league that features just one starting signal caller -- grabbing potentially productive quarterbacks in good matchups off the waiver wire is often doable.
Sure, you won't have the luxury of setting it and forgetting it with Patrick Mahomes as your quarterback, but when the top-end signal-callers draw a tough matchup, their upside can oftentimes be matched by a waiver-wire option in a more favorable situation.
If you're looking for some quarterback options from the waiver wire -- regardless of league size -- we have you covered. Here are three quarterbacks rostered in fewer than roughly 30% of Yahoo leagues who are in good spots this week.
Kirk Cousins, Vikings
Yahoo Roster Percentage: 28%
Passing volume is always a concern with Kirk Cousins. I mean, the dude threw 14 passes last week. Despite that very valid worry, I like Cousins as the top streaming play for Week 9.
The Minnesota Vikings are at home against the Detroit Lions, a team with the ninth-worst defense, per our schedule-adjusted metrics. Minnesota is a 4.0-point favorite, per FanDuel Sportsbook, and the total is way up at 54.0 points. That gives the Vikes a juicy 28.50-point implied total.
I'm sure the Vikings will try to run Dalvin Cook as much as possible, just like they did in Week 8. But the hope is that Cousins can get in on some touchdowns. On a week that's not all that fun for streaming, we have Cousins as the QB17, projecting him for 17.02 fantasy points.
Nick Mullens, 49ers
Yahoo Roster Percentage: 1%
Nick Mullens gets a Thursday night matchup with the Green Bay Packers. The Packers have been pretty tough on quarterbacks -- surrendering the ninth-fewest fantasy points per game to the position -- and when you couple that with how banged up the San Francisco 49ers' pass-game weapons are, it's enough for me to put Mullens below Cousins.
But even sans Deebo Samuel and George Kittle, Mullens can have a solid day. He played really well against the New York Giants earlier this year, going for 343 yards and a score, and he threw for 238 yards and two touchdowns in garbage time against the Seattle Seahawks last week. So he's capable, and he's working with one of the best offensive minds in the business in Kyle Shanahan.
Our model projects Mullens for 16.79 fantasy points this week, putting him a touch behind Cousins.
Daniel Jones, Giants
Yahoo Roster Percentage: 26%
We witnessed the full Daniel Jones experience in Week 8 as he mixed flashes of good play with some bad-looking throws and picks. Through it all, he ended up with a pretty decent fantasy output -- 18.24 fantasy points -- against an elite Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense.
The matchup is easier this week as he travels to the Washington Football Team, though it's not a super cushy spot as Washington sits 11th in both overall D and pass defense, per our metrics.
Jones has played Washington already this season, struggling to 13.88 fantasy points. But Jones' running ability helps both his floor and his ceiling. Jones has run for at least 20 yards in all but one game in 2020, including four outings of at least 45 yards. He rushed seven times for 74 yards against Washington in the aforementioned clash.
The return of Sterling Shepard appears to have helped, as well. With Shepard in the lineup the last two games, Jones has totaled 18.24 and 21.68 fantasy points, and Shepard has hauled in 14 of 18 targets for 133 yards and a tud.
We forecast Jones to amass 15.34 fantasy points, ranking him as Week 9's QB21.
