At the beginning of the week, the clear top two streaming options were Geno Smith and Carson Wentz. Smith, who has played like a must-start quarterback, saw his roster rate rise to 91% so he's clearly off the board. And Wentz is rostered in 57% of leagues as well, so you may be looking for a third option. Surprisingly, that option is Daniel Jones.
Jones hasn't exactly been Fantasy-relevant this season. His 16.2 points per game ranks 23rd among quarterbacks. His 6.4 yards per pass attempt and 2.3% touchdown rate are career lows. In other words, while you might sit Russell Wilson or Matthew Stafford for Smith or Wentz, Jones is more of a desperation play. But that doesn't mean there isn't any reason for optimism.
For one thing, Jones is coming off one of his best days as a passer in Week 5 against the Packers. He completed 21 of 27 passes for 217 yards, didn't turn the ball over, and was only sacked once. He showed a strong connection with Darius Slayton, who may be emerging as a more legitimate No. 1 receiver than Jones has had for most of the year. In the Giants only loss this year Jones threw 37 passes against the Cowboys. If he could approach this type of efficiency against a bad Ravens pass defense, with more pass volume, a 300-yard game is possible.
But Jones doesn't need 300 yards passing to deliver as a top-12 quarterback because of what he's capable of with his legs. He ranks fourth among all quarterbacks with 41 rush attempts and third with 230 rush yards. The potential of a 50-yard rushing game with a score lowers the floor of what Jones must do as a passer to be Fantasy-relevant.
Let's get to the rest of the preview:
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23.2 -- Fantasy points per game in 2022 for Geno Smith, fifth-best in the league.
58.4 - Passer rating for Skylar Thompson in relief for the Dolphins. It's hard to confidently start your Dolphins if Thompson gets the start versus the Vikings.
33.8 - Fantasy points per game surrendered to quarterbacks by the Dolphins in the past three weeks.
23.7% -- Marcus Mariota's bad throw percentage, according to Pro Football Reference, the highest mark in the league.
Wentz has thrown at least 38 passes in every game this season. His Fantasy production has been up and down, but so far it's been predictable. Against good defenses he's been awful and against everyone else he's been a starter. The Bears do not have a good defense.
The Ravens have allowed the third-most Fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. Joe Flacco and Mac Jones are the only QBs who haven't scored at least 19 Fantasy points against Baltimore.
Don't hold Pickett's Week 5 performance against him. The Bills have arguably the best defense in football. Pickett's schedule is better in the second half of the season, so hold onto him if your quarterback has a late bye.
When Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes step foot on the same field, fireworks happen. The last time we saw them they combined for 844 yards of total offense and eight touchdowns. Either one is a great DFS play this week, but Allen has the slightly better matchup. Allen is my top value on FanDuel and my No. 2 value on DraftKings, behind only Geno Smith.
Jones is a better play on DraftKings, where the pricing makes cheap QBs more affordable. But the combination of him potentially chasing the score as an underdog, the porous Ravens secondary, and his rushing upside gives Jones sneaky tournament upside. Just don't play him in any contest where you care about floor, it's not existent.
