With Kirk Cousins out for the season, and Matthew Stafford, Jared Goff, Trevor Lawrence, and Russell Wilson all missing from the Week 9 projections, quarterback is anything but deep in Week 9. But the strange thing about that is that lowering the bar for expectations actually makes more players desirable as a streaming option.
For most of this season, I've given a disclaimer that none of the streaming options are in my top 15 QBs, because it usually takes a projection of 20 Fantasy points to crack the top 15. This week, Dak Prescott at QB9 is the last QB I have projected for 20 Fantasy points. Baker Mayfield, Bryce Young, Jordan Love, Mac Jones, and Derek Carr all project for 18-to-19 Fantasy points and sit at 11 through 15 in my projections. Gardner Minshew and Will Levis are behind them, but get bumped up as well in my rankings.
What all this means is that if you missed out on your favorite streaming option early in the week, there is mostly likely still someone on the waiver wire with a similar projection. I've ranked my favorite options who are rostered in 65% of leagues or fewer in the waiver wire section below.
16.2% -- Joshua Dobbs 16.2% off-target rate is the second-highest in the league. He may stabilize things in Minnesota but it's still an enormous downgrade from Kirk Cousins.
5 -- Brock Purdy has thrown five interceptions in his last three starts. He threw four in his first 11.
43 -- Joe Burrow ran for a season-high 43 yards in Week 8. He's all the way back.
1.3% -- Daniel Jones owns a league-worst 1.3% touchdown rate. Even for a QB who has always struggled to get into the end zone, that number should double. Once he's 100% he'll be a borderline starter again.
20 -- Jordan Love hasn't scored 20 Fantasy points in a game since Week 3 despite some matchups that look pretty fantastic on paper.
11.7% -- Sam Howell has been sacked on 11.7% of his dropbacks, the third-highest mark in the league.
7.6 -- Bryce Young averaged 7.6 yards per pass attempt in his first game after the bye. That's a full yard better than any game before the bye.
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Young and Gardner Minshew face off in a battle of my two favorite streamers this week. I slightly favor Young for two reasons. One, his matchup is better, and two Young has the upside to become a weekly starter in the second half of the season. Still, there's not a big enough difference between the top three streamers for me to spend too much on any one of them.
Minshew has historically lived in the 18-to-22 Fantasy point range when he's been a starter. This year he's averaging 19.2 FPPG in his four starts. The Panthers defense is nothing to fear, but I do worry that the Colts have so much success running on Carolina that Minshew doesn't have to do much. They are at New England and then on a bye the following week, so this is a one-week add.
Mayfield is a serviceable borderline starter just like Minshew. He also faces the Titans in Week 10, so he could be a two-week band-aid. His 89.5 passer rating is his best mark since 2020 and he's thrown at least 37 passes in each of his last three starts due to the woes of the Tampa Bay run game.
Will Levis' debut was spectacular, but I'm not quite ready to start him on a short week against the Steelers. That being said, unless I have a top six QB on my roster, I would like to have Levis as my QB2. If that upside validates, he could be a borderline starter rest of season.
Howell was already averaging a league-high 46 dropbacks per game. With Montez Sweat and Chase Young shipped at the deadline, that number may go even higher as the Commanders won't be able to stop anyone. Howell is the favorite to lead the league in pass attempts rest of season and that's not a bad thing for Fantasy when you've got Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson to throw to.
Yes, I know the Commanders and Patriots game only has an over/under of 40. That's at least part of what makes Jones contrarian. Well, that and his play this season. Washington will have little pass rush without Sweat and Young and they already could cover anyone deep. Stack Jones up with Demario Douglas, just don't tie your whole bankroll up in this game.
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Heath's projections
My full set of Week 9 Fantasy Footballprojections for every position are now available on SportsLine. Find out which of my favorite plays are projected to score higher than consensus rankings and which don't live up to their draft hype, at least in Week 9. Projected stats for all starting quarterbacks are available, so be sure to check out the full set of projections at SportsLine.
