The best fantasy QB options to stream for Week 5

Recapping the quarterback streaming options featured in Week 4, two of our featured signal-callers turned in serviceable performances, as did Joe Flacco as an honorable mention candidate, although Matthew Stafford dropped the proverbial ball.

*Through Sunday’s games

Notes: Kirk Cousins sat outside the top-10 FanDuel salaries for Week 4 and at the time of publication was in less than 20 percent of ESPN starting lineups, although that number climbed above 50 percent by Sunday. While Cousins is still ranked only 28th in our QB grades for the season, his average of 0.57 fantasy points per dropback on Sunday was the seventh-best… Matthew Stafford missed the mark against Chicago, although he did have the best passing grade of the Week 4 streaming picks, and Stafford does boast our fifth-best QB grade on the season (85.3)… Dak Prescott has set a rookie record by going his first 141 pass attempts without an interception. Coming off another top-10 fantasy performance, he’s still available in roughly half of ESPN leagues and was left on the bench in more than 70 percent of Week 4 lineups.

It was far from pretty, but Joe Flacco was fantasy’s No. 6 QB in Week 4 as an honorable mention pick, and the other, Carson Wentz, comes off a bye to face Detroit’s woeful defense.

We’re at the quarter-pole of the NFL regular season and already about a third of the way through fantasy’s regular season. That’s enough of a sample size to start separating trends from outlier performances on both sides of the ball, and it gives us an opportunity to target matchups.

The quarterback landscape is particularly fluid this week, creating more demand and raising the stakes for those streaming the position. In Week 5, Drew Brees, Russell Wilson, Blake Bortles and Alex Smith all have byes. Cam Newton and Carson Palmer are both in the league’s concussion protocol, while the Cardinals have a short turnaround Thursday night. Trevor Siemian is also day-to-day with a shoulder injury.

Below are the most attractive options for QB streaming in Week 4, listed by ownership and start percentages from ESPN leagues as well as Week 5 FanDuel salary.

Week 5

Brian Hoyer (CHI @ IND) – 3.9 percent owned/2.9 percent started/$6,000 FanDuel salary

Coming off back-to-back games with 300-plus passing yards, multiple TDs and no interceptions, it’s time to take Hoyer seriously. With another plus matchup on the docket, the only real red flags revolve around the availability of dinged-up wideouts Alshon Jeffery (knee, hamstring) and Kevin White (ankle), although Eddie Royal came up big on Sunday (7-111-1). Reports have surfaced that Hoyer could keep the Bears’ starting job even when Jay Cutler (thumb) returns, and with PFF’s No. 2 QB Rating (100.23), our metrics show that such consideration is warranted.

Hoyer’s Week 6 performance against the Lions earned him his best grade since Week 6 of the 2015 season, as he completed 78 percent of his 36 throws and was cool under pressure (six-for-eight for 44 yards, two touchdowns, and a 127.1 QB Rating when under pressure). He now sits fourth out of 30 qualifiers in adjusted completion percentage. It’s also worth noting that out of 101 dropbacks so far this season, Hoyer has been pressured only 26.7 percent of the time, the seventh-lowest percentage among qualified passers. His 78.9 adjusted completion percentage under duress trails only Russell Wilson. And while Hoyer did complete mostly underneath stuff on Sunday, he was 2-of-3 for 86 yards on deep passes (targeted 20 yards or more downfield).

Over at FanDuel, Hoyer’s Week 5 salary is the same as Tony Romo’s, and only one of those two will be active this week. The Colts have graded out as our second-worst team in pass coverage, and Las Vegas has placed the over/under at a sizeable 48 with a five-point spread.