Sneaky Starts: Week 7

Oct 22, 2015

All but the luckiest fantasy owners at some point need to find the proverbial diamond in the rough – a waiver wire or bench player who is capable of putting up some points in a pinch. This weekly feature is dedicated to that part of fantasy football. It's not pretty, but it's part of the game.

Last week’s Sneaky Starts featured Blake Bortles (QB6), Colin Kaepernick (QB7), LeGarrette Blount (RB4), Theo Riddick (RB22), Duke Johnson (RB31), Torrey Smith (WR10), Gary Barnidge (TE3) and Julius Thomas (TE5), who all scored starter- or flex-caliber numbers in Week 6.

Let’s take a look at the Sneaky Starts for Week 7:

Quarterbacks

Ryan Fitzpatrick, Jets (@ NE)
FitzMagic owns the #13 PPG through six weeks and has a nice matchup with the Patriots, who are #24 in QB aFPA. In seven career games against New England, Fitzy has averaged 291 yards and 1.9 TD per game. He does tend to throw a few picks as well, however.

Teddy Bridgewater, Vikings (@ DET)
Bridgewater has thrown for a combined 518 yards in his last two games, which coincides with the emergence of rookie receiver Stefon Diggs. The matchup against the Lions is fantastic (#28 in QB aFPA).

Brian Hoyer, Texans (@ MIA)
Don’t look now, but Hoyer has strung together three-straight top 11 finishes, and he’s averaging a stellar 8.2 YPA, which is 6th among QBs who have attempted at least 90 passes.