You’re not playing fantasy football right if you’re not streaming in any of your leagues. In case you’re unfamiliar with the term, streaming is the act of rotating starters at a position and playing someone off the waiver wire based on a favorable matchup. There’s a good chance you should be streaming at least one of your positions each week unless you drafted the perfect team this summer — there’s a chance you did since you subscribed to this site!
I’m almost always streaming defenses in all my leagues during the season so I highly encourage you to check out Justin Varnes’ weekly streaming defenses piece. I’m also not afraid to stream at the typical one-starter skill positions like quarterback and tight end. Every week in this space, I’ll take a look at some lesser-owned players you might want to start based on a matchup, increased opportunities, and/or other factors that might boost their value in a given week. I’ll also highlight some typical weekly starters that you might want to shy away from because of a tougher matchup, an injury, and/or playing time issues.
Important note…
These are not strict Start/Sit recommendations. This article is meant to give you players who are widely available and are looking better than usual this week. Conversely, I’ll also give you players who are widely owned and are looking a little worse than usual this week. Also, ownership percentages are from Yahoo leagues.
Quarterback Streamers
Players to consider benching this week
On bye: Lamar Jackson, Kirk Cousins
In danger of missing: Baker Mayfield (ribs)
In tough matchups: Jared Goff (vs. Chi, 12.7 FPG allowed)
Top options if they’re available…
Justin Herbert (vs. Jax, 60%) — Herbert is still widely available coming out of his bye week. He’s reached 23+ FP in three of his four starts as he’s thrown for 300+ yards or multiple TDs in each of his four starts this season. The Jaguars have allowed 27+ points in every game this season, including 30+ points in five straight contests. My only concern is that Anthony Lynn could ride his running game if they build a multi-score lead as they’re expected to do as eight-point home favorites.
Joe Burrow (@Cle, 61%) — Burrow is averaging 41.0 passes per game through six games and he’s thrown for 300+ yards four times already, which puts him two 300-yard games away from tying Andrew Luck’s rookie record of six 300-yard games. He needed 61 passes in comeback mode against the Browns earlier this season, but he threw for 316 yards and three TDs back against Cleveland in Week 2.
Players to consider streaming the next couple of weeks
Teddy Bridgewater (@NO, vs. Atl — 45%) — Is this considered a revenge game for Bridgewater if the franchise he left helped to rehabilitate his career? Either way, Bridgewater is looking to avenge his worst game of the season from last week in a tough matchup against the Bears. He completed just 55% of his passes and he threw two interceptions in the loss, but his receivers crushed him with several dropped passes. Bridgewater has been snakebitten with just a 2.9% TD rate with six TDs on 206 attempts to start the year, but he’s still averaging 8.1 YPA and 279.3 passing yards per game. He could get positive TD regression against a Saints defense that’s allowing a TD on 8.8% of the passes against them (15 TDs on 171 attempts). Teddy is 45% owned heading into this week’s waivers but he may become more widely available after his shaky performance last week. He’s not only a strong option this week against the Saints, but he’s also more than viable against a Falcons defense in Week 8, whom he posted 313/2 passing against in Week 5.
Players to consider streaming this week
Gardner Minshew (@LAC, 54%) — Minshew has been in the low-end QB1/high-end QB2 range all season outside of his Thursday night dud against the Dolphins when he played without D.J. Chark. He’s accounted for multiple TDs in five of his six games this season, and he’ll be chasing production once again this week as 7.5-point road underdogs in a game totaled at 49.5 points. The Chargers secondary will still be without CB Chris Harris (foot, IR) this week, and they’ve allowed three different QBs to reach 22+ FP in five games.
Kyle Allen (vs. Was, 3%) — This is a miserable week to stream quarterbacks with limited viable options, but I always try to give a lower-owned QB, especially during bye weeks for those one-QB owners (I’m looking at you, Lamar Jackson owners). I’m going to plug my nose and look at Allen this week in a matchup with a putrid Cowboys defense. Kyler Murray needed just nine completions to throw for 188 yards and two TDs against Dallas last week. Allen did have two turnovers last week, but he nearly led the Football Team to a comeback victory with 280/2 passing (18 FP) against the Giants. This is the highest totaled game (47.5 points) Washington has played in over a calendar year, and I’m hoping Allen can ride a Terry McLaurin blow-up game to a serviceable fantasy day.
Tight End Streamers
Players to consider benching this week
On bye: Mark Andrews, Mike Gesicki, Trey Burton, Irv Smith
In danger of missing: Jonnu Smith (ankle), Noah Fant (ankle), Zach Ertz (ankle)
In tough matchups: None of note.
Top options if they’re available…
Rob Gronkowski (62%, @LV) — Gronk is getting his football legs back under him as he continues to trend in the right direction after an extremely quiet first two weeks of the season. He saw more than 80% of the snaps for the fourth straight week, and he posted team-best marks in targets (8), receptions (5), and receiving yards (78) while scoring his first TD of the season in Week 6. The Raiders have given up TDs to the two viable fantasy TEs they’ve faced this season in Jared Cook (2/13/1 receiving) and Travis Kelce (8/108/1).
Jimmy Graham (58%, @LAR) — Graham has alternated weeks with touchdowns to start the season and, more promisingly, he’s been an active piece of this passing attack ever since Nick Foles stepped into the lineup. He’s posted 5+ targets, 3+ catches, and 33+ yards in the four games since Foles took over the offense.
Eric Ebron (@Ten, 52%) — Ebron’s upward trend since Week 2 came to a crashing halt against the Browns last week as he managed just 2/9 receiving on four targets. Cleveland’s incompetence ruined his progress as Ben Roethlisberger needed to throw it just 22 times in the victory. Big Ben and Ebron, by extension, will be much more active this week in a battle of unbeaten teams against the Titans. Darren Fells just ripped the Titans for 6/85/1 receiving last week.
Dalton Schultz (@Was, 54%) — The Andy Dalton Schultz connection didn’t produce much in their first full week together. Schultz finished with 4/35 receiving on five targets against the Cardinals. The third-year TE is no longer a must-own player with Dak Prescott out of the picture, but he’s still worth a look for at least this week against a Washington defense that’s struggled against opposing TEs. The Football Team is allowing the fourth-most FPG to the position (15.5), including the fourth-most receiving yards at 56.8.
Players to consider streaming this week
Darren Fells (vs. GB, 6%) — I liked Jordan Akins as a low-end, TE3 this summer so it’s been a bit disappointing to watch Akins have some success early in the year only for him to leave the lineup to give Fells all of the TE opportunities in this offense. To Fells’ credit, he’s taken full advantage of those opportunities over the last two weeks. He’s been the TE2 with 17.1 FPG in Weeks 5-6 — behind only Travis Kelce (23.6 FPG) — hauling in eight of his nine targets for 142 yards and two TDs. Akins didn’t even make the trip to Nashville last week, which suggests he’s week-to-week right now with his high-ankle injury. The Texans could give Akins another two weeks to heal with their bye coming up in Week 8, and the Packers just gave up 5/78/1 receiving to Rob Gronkowski last week. Fells is a TE1 option this week if Akins is out of the lineup again.
Anthony Firkser (vs. Pit, 0%) — Jonnu Smith suffered a minor ankle sprain in the first half last week, which forced him to leave early and has him in jeopardy of missing a pivotal matchup with the Steelers. Filling in for Smith last week, Firkser turned into Jonnu by scoring on an end-zone target and rumbling for a 45-yard gain on a deep ball from Ryan Tannehill. Firkser ended his day with 8/113/1 receiving on nine targets against the Texans. Jonnu has been running hot all season playing with Tannehill, which included two TDs in Week 5, and Titans tight ends now have seven TDs in just five games. The Titans will finally be back to full strength at WR this week with Corey Davis rejoining the fold, but Firkser should be active if Jonnu is out of the lineup. This matchup isn’t easiest against a Steelers defense that’s allowing the ninth-fewest FPG to TEs (7.33), but Pittsburgh did just lose stud ILB Devin Bush to an ACL tear last week.
