Not much was expected out of Blaine Gabbert when he took over the starting quarterback job for the San Francisco 49ers in Week 9. He was average, though, in his first three games, and then turned in his biggest game in years Sunday in the 49ers' 26-20 overtime win over the Chicago Bears.
Fantasy football waiver wire advice: Blaine Gabbert has best day as a 49er
The San Francisco quarterback used the end of regulation and overtime to salvage what had been a rough day. We break down the fantasy implications.
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Gabbert had only 196 passing yards Sunday (on 18-of-32 passing) with one touchdown, but he added 75 rushing yards and a score on six carries, including a 44-yard touchdown run with under two minutes remaining in regulation. Gabbert's touchdown came on a 71-yard connection with wide receiver Torrey Smith early in overtime, winning the game for the 49ers.
Fantasy impact: If you were following along there, math would tell you that Gabbert had 27 rushing yards and 121 passing yards through the first 58 minutes of the game. It was only that last run and the heave to Smith that took Gabbert from about six fantasy points to his final total of 24.
Still, every play counts. Aaron Rodgers' owners aren't upset that a big chunk of his numbers in Week 13 came on that famous Hail Mary. Through four starts now, Gabbert has averaged 17.3 fantasy points a game, far better than anyone would have guessed. The flip side, though, is that one stopped run would have left Gabbert with an awful fantasy day, and that's the kind of thing that could easily stop him next time. He's owned in three percent of Yahoo! fantasy leagues and, even with a nice matchup against Cleveland looming, he's nothing you want any part of in fantasy.
