The Week 11 Waiver Wire Future Planning series is Matt-centric. Think of it as the ‘No Homers Allowed’ episode of The Simpsons, but with everybody named Matt allowed to enter the realm of the 2-QB fantasy football world.
Matt McGloin
Well, the only people who saw Matt McGloin as a Top-10 fantasy quarterback option in Week 11 were McGloin and his parents. But, that’s exactly what happened, as McGloin threw for a 197 yards and three touchdowns versus a Houston Texans defense which had given up an average of 179.9 passing yards per game heading into Week 11.
There was talk of McGloin being looked upon as a better option than Terrelle Pryor before the season began by some in the Raiders’ front office, and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweeted Sunday morning how McGloin had a chance to keep the starting quarterback job in Oakland for more than one game if he performed well.
Well, three passing touchdowns, and a win later, and McGloin is poised to make a second straight start.
Raiders Head Coach Dennis Allen had the following to say of McGloin’s performance after the game:
“Obviously Matt McGloin went in and played outstanding. To go against that defense, to have three touchdown passes with a [105.9] quarterback rating, I thought that was outstanding for a kid that’s an undrafted free agent that came in here as a fourth arm for camp, to come and perform in this type of environment. I thought that was outstanding.”
Healthy or not, Pryor might find himself earning extra “rehab” time, with McGloin supplanting him as the starter rest of the season. The schedule for the Raiders and McGloin isn’t the most tantalizing one rest of season though.
However, plus match-ups versus the Cowboys in Week 13, and the Chargers in Week 16 of the fantasy playoffs could have you lean towards using McGloin as a QB2 streamer, if he can get past the Tennessee Titans this week.
The Titans have been stingy against quarterbacks this year, especially in the passing touchdowns allowed department, as only one quarterback has thrown for multiple touchdowns against them, and that was Matt Schaub and his three passing touchdowns in Week 2.
In total, the Titans have given up seven passing touchdowns, with Russell Wilson, Colin Kaepernick, and Andrew Luck as a few quarterbacks who didn’t throw a single passing touchdown against the Titans this year.
Use McGloin with caution this week, if forced to start him.
Matt Schaub
Not sure what Gary Kubiak was thinking when he decided to bench Case Keenum for Matt Schaub in the third quarter of Sunday’s game versus the Oakland Raiders, and we’re not really sure if anybody can explain the rationale behind it with a straight face.
Kubiak can go on and on about Schaub being a better in-game adjuster than Keenum, which I would hope to be the case, seeing as how Schaub has been in the league for ten years now, while Keenum was making only his fourth career NFL start.
Andre Johnson and owners of Case Keenum in 2-QB leagues were the most vocal about the move, I’m sure, and if Kubiak is willing to risk losing his job by going back to Schaub, in a lost season, 2-QB owners have to consider Schaub as a potential roster stash now.
Luckily, Kubiak has already named Keenum the starter in a dream match-up versus the Jacksonville Jaguars this week, but now the worry is if Keenum will get to finish the game he starts. Hopefully he can, as the Jaguars just let Carson Palmer throw for over 400 yards against them, without intercepting him once, which was the first time Palmer accomplished either this season.
Matt Simms
The good game/bad game, up and down roller coaster ride known as Geno Smith’s 2013 NFL rookie fantasy season continues, as Geno had his worst performance as an NFL starting quarterback Week 11 versus the Buffalo Bills.
Smith had a season low in completion percentage, passing yards, passing yards per attempt, and quarterback rating, while also throwing zero touchdowns, and tying a season high in interceptions with three.
Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan eventually yanked Smith out of the game, leading to another Matt Simms sighting. This Simms relief appearance was a much better one than his Week 8 showing, as Simms went 4-of-6 for 60 yards, and a touchdown versus the Bills.
There is no quarterback controversy at the moment in New York, with Ryan saying Smith will remain the team’s starter in Week 12, but another dismal performance could lead to the quarterback with the second most interceptions this season finding himself on the bench. Again.
Matt Cassel/Josh Freeman
When Christian Ponder threw a pick-six interception versus the Seattle Seahawks this past weekend, he was pulled, and replaced with Matt Cassel. In addition to his pick-six interception, Ponder threw one other interception, and added a lost fumble.
It’s a murky situation going forward in Minnesota at the quarterback position, with the team having three less-than-ideal quarterbacks to chose from, and it could be any one of Ponder, Cassel or Josh Freeman starting this week for the Vikings.
You almost want to avoid this situation entirely, but the rest of season schedule for Vikings quarterbacks is one that features match-ups which could lead to QB2 streaming possibilities.
Matt Hasselbeck
Just kidding! I hope. Check back next week.
Stats used in this article from FantasyData.com, and Yahoo! Fantasy Sports
