This is why I was picking up Deshaun Watson off the waiver wire earlier this season.
Everybody waited on Dak Prescott last season and he turned out to be a top-tier fantasy football quarterback. Watson looks to be doing the same thing and he led all quarterbacks in fantasy scoring in week 5.
He’s scoring touchdowns at a ridiculous rate, and with bye weeks happening for several NFL teams during the next few weeks, he’s a quarterback you can’t leave on the waiver wire.
Here’s the week 6 quarterbacks start ’em, sit ’em guide for fantasy football.
Start
Deshaun Watson vs. Cleveland Browns
I keep waiting for Cleveland, but I continue to get the same result. The Browns are terrible. And they’re really bad against the pass.
The Browns are allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete 74 percent of their passes. Yes, you read that right. Quarterbacks are completing three-fourths of their passes.
That’s terrible. And the way Watson has scored touchdowns in recent weeks, this looks like a bad matchup for a Cleveland team attempting to stay relevant.
Watson appears to be legit, so I’m backing him in a nice matchup against Cleveland.
Philip Rivers vs. Oakland Raiders
Remember when everybody was backing off the Raiders because of their defense? And then we were fooled when they went 2-0?
It’s time to panic in Oakland.
The Raiders allowed Joe Flacco to be efficient in week 5, something no other team has been able to do this season. Oakland has zero interceptions this season and quarterbacks are completing almost 70 percent of their passes.
That should help Rivers, who has looked pretty good in the last two weeks. It’s always a rollercoaster with Rivers, but this looks to be a matchup that plays into his hands.
Brian Hoyer vs. Washington Redskins
This is a deep sleeper, so proceed with caution on this one.
If you have a bye-week quarterback and there’s nobody available, you could do a lot worse than Hoyer.
He had his second-biggest yardage output of his career in week 5 in a loss against Indianapolis. This team isn’t as bad as the record indicates and Hoyer will have plenty of opportunities going forward.
This Redskins defense has been better this season, but the loss of Josh Norman will have a major impact. Norman is their best player on the defensive side of the football, so it’s natural to believe the defense will take a step back.
Kyle Shanahan’s offense can explode at any moment. Hoyer offers up a decent play in week 6.
Sit
Jared Goff vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
Jacksonville introduced itself to the rest of the NFL in week 5. The pass defense is legitimate and should be avoided.
The Jaguars are making it tough on everyone, and that should definitely be the case on the second-year pro for the Rams.
Goff hasn’t been bad this season, but he looked off against a capable Seattle defense in week 5. It won’t get any easier against a Jacksonville defense that is turning over quarterbacks and scoring touchdowns.
Teams are completing less than 60 percent of passes against Jacksonville. If you can, steer clear of Goff in week 6.
Alex Smith vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Smith has been more than just a valuable fantasy commodity. He’s leading everybody in fantasy points through five weeks.
At some point that has to return back to normal. And week 6 is a prime opportunity.
Smith’s doing damage by taking care of the football and utilizing his wide receivers’ speed to maximize those short passes. The Chiefs will face a different kind of defense when Pittsburgh comes to town.
The Steelers are allowing less than 140 yards through the air and have five interceptions compared to just three touchdowns. The last time Smith faced a top-five pass defense, he threw for 155 yards.
I expect a similar production in week 6.
Josh McCown vs. New England Patriots
It’s tempting to start McCown. He wasn’t horrible in week 5 against Cleveland. So far in five weeks, he’s been decent in three of those weeks.
So it’s natural to believe he should be at least pretty good against a New England pass defense that has been sliced and diced this season.
Don’t count on it.
New England got better from weeks 4 to 5 in the pass defense, and now they have more than a week to continue to get better. This is the time where New England makes strides, so I’m counting on that defensively, limiting McCown’s appeal.
There are other players capable of filling in for your bye-week quarterback.
