Fantasy Football Quarterback Streaming Week 17: In Minshew We Trust (Again)

Dec 27, 2022

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I hope you all enjoyed the holiday weekend and you’re still fighting for a title. Making rosters changes at the most-important position may seem like you’re over-tinkering. But we’ve played the matchups with (mostly) positive results all season. So this is it—the final week of the fantasy playoffs. I’ve got my last group of recommendations, but let’s look at how the year went for the streaming process.

More Week 17 Streaming: TE | K | DST

Week 16 Results and Year-End Review

Week 16 Streaming Results
Type	Player	FPTS	Rank
Top Play	Brock Purdy	16	13
Top Play	Gardner Minshew	22.7	7
Deep	Zach Wilson	1.8	32
Deep	Tyler Huntley	13.2	15

I had my doubts about Minshew’s viability going up against the Cowboys, but Philadelphia’s coaching staff and personnel made his situation more palatable. Plus, he got the short-yardage work that made Jalen Hurts a weekly top-12 option. A strong supporting cast will boost the floor of any potential streaming candidate, so I’ll be talking about Minshew and Brock Purdy in a bit. But since this is the final week of the fantasy season (for most), let’s look back at how we got here.

The process gave us favorable results on the season. Top plays averaged 17.2 PPG with 10 top-12 finishes. Deep recommendations had more variance (13.4 PPG), but we found some gems along the way (e.g., Davis Mills – Week 8, Matt Ryan – Week 4, and Jared Goff – Week 2). However, the thing that still gets me is the 2022 quarterback landscape and how harrowing it was over the season.

Kyle Shanahan told reporters that Trey Lance broke his ankle and will undergo season-ending surgery Monday.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 18, 2022

Things quickly went downhill from here, and we learned how much of an advantage it was to draft early-round quarterbacks. I’m not advocating for the strategy, but it’s tough to look past when the middle-class quarterbacks either get injured or flame out. And as a result, the pool of available streaming options dwindled.

Geno Smith’s ascension couldn’t have been at a better time, and managers could work around Trevor Lawrence as Jacksonville went through its growing pains. Their success pushed Taylor Heinicke and PJ Walker into the weekly discussion as we had fewer choices to stream. Your roster may not have had the same star power, but the points still count just the same.

This season didn’t change much about my stance on streaming. I wouldn’t expect the same injuries, and 17.2 PPG would match the current QB9 with 14 or more games played (Goff). My approach will always focus on building strong rosters, including finding value at each position. But I certainly welcome the offseason break to recharge for 2023.

Top Streaming Pick

Gardner Minshew vs. Saints

Week 16 clearly shows the differences between real and fantasy football. Philadelphia lost the game, and Gardner Minshew had three turnovers. The Eagles may be trying to sort through their next steps, but Minshew’s a fantasy star. He was able to deliver a QB7 result in the semi-finals. And, even better, he gave us part of Hurts’s upside.

Eagles QB sneak is automatic 😤

📺: #PHIvsDAL on FOX

📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/Gd75wO7QMX pic.twitter.com/rgMRufkM5B

— NFL (@NFL) December 24, 2022

Despite the interceptions, Minshew was top six in EPA per play (fourth) and CPOE (sixth) in Week 16. The game plan was slightly conservative as the Eagles had a -2% PROE over the six weeks before Saturday and were at -7% in Week 16. However, Minshew was ripping it downfield. His 10.7 air yards per attempt was the ninth-highest of any quarterback on the week. My only concern is the lack of rushing (only two designed attempts and two scrambles). However, more comfort with the scheme may give us more rushing from Minshew. Regardless, with his pass-catching options, he should continue to produce against New Orleans (16.6 aFPA, 18th).

The Saints' last two contests were against a rusty Deshaun Watson in the extreme cold and Desmond Ridder on his first day as a starter. However, in the month before their Week 14 bye, they gave up over 200 yards passing or two passing touchdowns to Tom Brady, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Matthew Stafford. Without significant changes to the Eagles’ offense, Minshew is in line for another productive day in Week 17.