If we can pretend I didn’t tell you to pick up Matt Flynn last week then that would be swell. Yikes, what a disaster the Flynn sequel was in Detroit on Thanksgiving.
The thought process behind giving Flynn a look was noble, no matter how disastrous the final results were.
Heading into Week 13, the Lions were giving up an average of almost 300 passing yards per game, while sporting a 14:1 passing touchdown to interception ratio in its previous five games.
We remember what happened though, as Flynn wasn’t able to capitalize on a good on-paper match-up, as he threw for only 139 yards, while accounting for zero touchdowns, and a combined three turnovers (one interception, two fumbles lost).
Flynn was also sacked a total of seven times. No matter how you look at the numbers, they weren’t pretty.
This late into the season though, there aren’t that many quarterback waiver wire options floating around in competitive 2-QB fantasy football leagues, and Flynn seemed like one of the better options.
Hopefully rolling with Flynn didn’t cost you a playoff spot last week.
For those of you able to get past Flynnapocalypse, maybe because you went with Brandon Weeden instead, below are some names to consider on your 2-QB waiver wire this week.
Alex Tanney/Caleb Hanie
If you’re the quarterback of the Cleveland Browns, and they have had three of them this year, your best bet at succeeding is to throw the ball into the vicinity of Josh Gordon and let him make plays.
That’s exactly what happened Week 13, as Brandon Weeden targeted Gordon a team high 15 times Sunday versus the Jaguars.
Gordon wasn’t all that special with those targets, as he only caught ten of them, to the tune of 261 yards, and two touchdowns. No big deal, really.
Weeden suffered a concussion at the end of the game though, and the Browns might wind up starting their fourth quarterback this year, with both Weeden and Jason Campbell dealing with concussions.
The current replacement quarterback options for the Browns are Alex Tanney, Shane Falco, and Caleb Hanie.
The last time Hanie saw any meaningful NFL action was 2011, when he was playing for the Bears, and he’s been a street free agent since being released by the Baltimore Ravens in August.
Tanney is an unknown undrafted quarterback, better known to the public as the ‘Trick-Shot QB’ and his YouTube video. If you want to learn more about Tanney, you can read this investigative XN Sports piece on Tanney here.
The Browns desperately need Campbell or Weeden to be cleared, but if neither can go, it might be the Alex Tanney or Caleb Hanie show on Sunday versus the Patriots.
Jay Cutler
The will he or won’t he be back drama with Jay Cutler continues this week, as there still has been no official determination one way or the other regarding Cutler’s playing status this week.
For 2-QB leagues where Cutler is chilling out on the waiver wire, make it a priority to roster him.
Even if Cutler doesn’t make it back this week, he’ll be another week closer to returning in Week 15, and could provide a boost to your team, especially if you make it to tour league’s Week 16 championship, when the Bears play the Eagles.
Matt Simms
Geno Smith was benched again by Rex Ryan, providing Matt Simms with another opportunity to show how bad the quarterback situation is in New York.
Smith has already been named the starting quarterback for Week 14, as has become customary for the Jets. But the question to be asked isn’t who’s starting for the Jets, but who’s finishing?
Three times on the season Simms has had to relieve Smith of his duties, and we might see it a fourth time.
At what point does Simms get to start a whole game for the Jets? Or even David Garrard?
You would think that isn’t possible, but this is a team that saw Greg McElroy start for the team last season.
The Jets are still in the wildcard hunt, somehow, and the team believes Smith at quarterback gives them their best chance to win. The logic can’t be argued with, but the Jets haven’t been the most logical thinking team over the years, and it could lead to a Matt Simms or David Garrard start.
Your best bet is to avoid the situation entirely in fantasy, but if you’re relying on Geno Smith, and somehow haven’t been eliminated from the playoffs, then Matt Simms should be on your radar.
Matt Cassel
A concussion suffered by Christian Ponder Sunday versus the Chicago Bears saw Matt Cassel get another shot at playing quarterback for the team, and he was fairly effective.
The Bears pass defense is nothing to be scared of, but Cassel still managed to complete 60.6 percent of his passes, for 243 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
The Vikings face off against the Ravens this week, and no official staring quarterback has been named by Leslie Frazier yet.
The Ravens defense has been a tad up and down this season. We all remember the Peyton Manning seven touchdown game Week 1, but that was followed by six games where they only allowed a combined four passing touchdowns. After that, they gave up five combined touchdowns. Since then, their past three games has seen them allow only three combined passing touchdowns.
The match-up could go either way for Cassel, but, as mentioned earlier, starting quarterbacks are hard to come by this late in the season in 2-QB leagues.
Hopefully you’ve been playing out your 2-QB season with a 2-3 week looking ahead mentality, and were able to secure the services of quarterbacks such as Mike Glennon, Case Keenum, and Josh McCown, rather than have to rely on Matt Cassel or Matt Simms.
*Stats used in this article from FantasyData.com, ESPN, and Yahoo! Fantasy Sports
