The fantasy world is starting to get healthy at the quarterback spot. Ben Roethlisberger is back, Tyrod Taylor should return for Week 9, Marcus Mariota should be back, and Tony Romo is getting closer. Plus, most quarterbacks have already had their bye weeks.
Fantasy football waiver wire: 5 quarterbacks to target for Week 9
Derek Carr took care of business against a tough Jets defense. What other quarterbacks are worth a pickup?
With so much added depth to the position, it’s not as important to make pickups for owners in one-QB leagues. Still, we saw some young quarterbacks step up.
Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders (owned in 39 percent of leagues)
The Jets have shut down a number of quarterbacks this season, but that didn’t stop Carr from dropping 333 yards, four scores and no turnovers in a 34-20 win. It was the sixth straight game he completed at last 20 passes and the Raiders are really allowing him to stretch the field with his receivers.
Carr also gets a nice schedule coming up. He plays the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 9, the Minnesota Vikings in Week 10, the Detroit Lions in Week 11 and the Tennessee Titans in Week 12. He should be a top-12 QB the rest of the way.
Tyrod Taylor, Buffalo Bills (owned in 39 percent of leagues)
Taylor is coming back this week after missing four weeks due to a knee sprain. He is coming off a bye and gets an interesting matchup against the Miami Dolphins, who were just carved up by Tom Brady. The Dolphins are a so-so matchup, but this game is at home.
He was putting up very nice lines before his injury, so most owners should just pick him up and stash him to see what happens. Plus, it’s nice to have running back LeSean McCoy back.
Sam Bradford, Philadelphia Eagles (owned in 53 percent of leagues)
He is coming off a bye and chances are he’ll have receiver Nelson Agholor back. Bradford has not really been good this season and is not even a QB2 on the year. Things do get better for him with the Cowboys, Dolphins, Buccaneers and Lions coming up.
Someone in your league may have dropped him after the bye, but Bradford has the system and weapons around him to turn it around. He’s worth a look at any depth. You probably want to wait a week or two before you trust him in your starting lineup, though.
Marcus Mariota, Tennessee Titans (owned in 34 percent of leagues)
He is going to play this week after a knee sprain from last month. The Titans have no idea what they’re doing with their running backs, so they should be asking Mariota to throw the ball a lot. Their defense is also not good at all.
This week, he gets the New Orleans Saints, who just had one of the highest-scoring games in recent memory. Mariota could be a low-end QB1 this week.
Jameis Winston, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (owned in 18 percent of leagues)
He’s starting to figure it out and has two scores in each of his last two games. Winston has also thrown the ball 29 times in each of those games, so the Bucs are getting away from their run-heavy attack. Winston has a very nice schedule coming up with the Giants next week. Yes, those same Giants that just allowed Drew Bress to throw for seven scores.
You probably won’t want to start Jameis, but he’s worth a look in 14-team leagues.
