Streaming Quarterbacks: Week 9 Targets

Oct 28, 2014

More than 70 percent of Carson Palmer's Week 8 fantasy production came on two throws -- a tidbit that's equal parts thrilling and absolutely terrifying.

Palmer, our lead Week 8 streaming option, notched 21.3 fantasy points against the Eagles thanks solely to long touchdowns to Larry Fitzgerald and John Brown. Palmer -- who was still available in 85 percent of leagues last week -- maintained his 0.51 fantasy points per attempt (FPAT), though his inefficiency without those lengthy scores should be something of a red flag.

Arizona's aged signal caller, during his four weeks of action, is averaging a hefty 19.8 points per contest. This is why I wouldn't begrudge anyone for simply committing to Palmer as their every-week starter.

Our other Week 8 streamers, Alex Smith and Ryan Tannehill, posted pedestrian stat lines, with Smith piling up passing yards but failing to punch one into the end zone.

Tanny's rushing prowess once again proved critical to his fantasy value as he ran five times for 48 yards. Tannehill now has 145 yards on 14 rushing attempts over his past three games -- a mouthwatering total for those who understand the appeal of quarterback running production.

Streaming targets are becoming more clear every week -- a critical development in successfully playing the waiver wire and exploiting favorable matchups. I regret keeping Kyle Orton out of my Week 8 column. There's no reason to not target the Jets' Swiss cheese secondary.

My streaming selection, after eight weeks, are averaging 15.2 points per game, or QB12 numbers. Optimal quarterback streamers are scoring 21.8 points -- QB2 numbers.

Now on to Week 9, when many owners will fight through a regular Bye Week Apocalypse...

Carson Palmer (ARI) at Dallas Cowboys

I promise I don't copy and paste material into this space every week. Palmer is once again an ideal streaming option facing off against a Dallas defense that just gave up 299 yards and two scores to the great Colt McCoy.

Dallas' defense, which seemed like an avoidable unit for a while, has been exploited in recent weeks. The Cowboys now give up 7.3 yards per pass attempt -- the ninth most in the league. Quarterbacks are completing 66.8 percent of their passes against a Cowboys' secondary that has struggled mightily with speedy deep threats. John Brown and Michael Floyd could create havoc barring a game flow disaster.

Dallas has allowed a 0.45 FPAT through eight games, and a 0.51 FPAT over the past couple weeks. Palmer is still available on 51 percent of Yahoo! waiver wires. Get him.