Fantasy Football: Week 4 Streamers To Consider
Week 3 brought us many surprise comebacks and a ton of real-life and fantasy points from special teams. Hopefully, you rolled with one of the streaming options highlighted last week, like the Colts or Seahawks, and it helped you secure a win.
We also saw strong performances from streamable QBs like Caleb Williams, who was featured in this column. And that’s the whole purpose of this weekly piece: helping you squeeze every last point from your QB, K, and D/ST spots, especially if your regular starters are hurt or in tough matchups.
Before diving into the Week 4 streamers, do not forget to check Andy, Mike, and Jason’s weekly rankings for further advice. And for personalized spot-start suggestions tailored to your specific roster, sync up with the Ultimate Dashboard.
Let’s get to it.
Quarterbacks
Geno Smith – Las Vegas Raiders (23% rostered)
Geno Smith’s season has been a bit of a rollercoaster, but he has shown fantasy viability in favorable matchups. Against Washington last week, despite being sacked five times, he managed a solid outing, with zero INTs and three TDs to Tre Tucker (two of them in garbage time). This week, he gets the Bears, one of the softest defenses against opposing QBs, even though they did manage to contain a CeeDee Lamb-less Dak Prescott last Sunday.
Justin Fields – New York Jets (63% rostered)
Fields’ roster percentage dipped after being ruled out with a concussion in Week 3, but if he clears protocol, he will return in time for an ideal matchup against Miami’s horrendous defense. Fields looked amazing in Week 1 against the Steelers, who also have been pretty bad defensively, but not nearly as bad as Miami. So he could be in for another big fantasy day. Monitor his status closely. If he’s ruled out again, Tyrod Taylor might enter the streaming conversation.
Carson Wentz – Minnesota Vikings (8% rostered)
Maybe it’s true that any pocket passer can thrive in Kevin O’Connell’s offense. In his first start replacing J.J. McCarthy as he recovers from an ankle injury, Wentz didn’t need to do much against the Bengals, but still threw for 173 yards and two scores. This week, he faces the Steelers, a defense that’s allowed solid fantasy outings to Justin Fields, Sam Darnold, and Drake Maye. It’s Wentz’s turn to take advantage.
Kickers
Joshua Karty – Los Angeles Rams (2% rostered)
The Rams are playing excellent football, and their offense is consistently putting Joshua Karty in scoring range. Despite two blocked field goals last week against Philly, he still nailed four other field goals and two extra points. This week’s matchup against the Colts projects to be one of the highest-scoring games of the week. Joshua Karty should have many chances to continue racking up fantasy points in this game.
Spencer Shrader – Indianapolis Colts (35% rostered)
Same game, opposite side of the ball. Shrader continues to be reliable. He’s scored double-digit fantasy points in all three starts and, despite his first miss of the season last week, he still nailed seven attempts. The Colts’ offense is looking great this season, and as long as they keep moving the chains like that, Shrader will keep getting opportunities. This week, he should get plenty against the Rams in what could be an offensive shootout.
Brandon McManus – Green Bay Packers (19% rostered)
This might be my favorite streaming kicker for this week. After struggling in a low-scoring game vs. the Browns, McManus and the Packers now face the Cowboys and their bottom-tier defense. This game should open up for the Packers offense, and McManus could see plenty of action.
DSTs
Houston Texans (56% rostered)
This year, you can’t go wrong streaming against the Titans. Cam Ward continues to take sack after sack, and this trend doesn’t appear to be changing anytime soon. Meanwhile, the Texans haven’t allowed more than 20 points in a game this season. This is a great spot for their front seven to keep adding some sacks to the rookie QB’s count.
Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
Los Angeles Chargers (9% rostered)
The Chargers are 5.5-point home favorites this week in a game where the Giants are projected to score just around 20 points. After Russell Wilson briefly flashed against Dallas, he came back to reality on Sunday night against the Chiefs, throwing two picks and no TDs. Expect the Chargers’ defense to take advantage and keep him in check.
New England Patriots (20% rostered)
Don’t let last week’s Panthers win fool you. Their offense didn’t have to do much. Carolina benefited from a pick-six and a series of mistakes by the Falcons. The Patriots, meanwhile, have shown they can exploit weak offensive lines, such as the Raiders and the Dolphins, in the first two weeks. They are a solid streaming play this week against a still-vulnerable Panthers team.
BONUS: Tight Ends
Hunter Henry – New England Patriots (40% rostered)
After a puzzling Week 2 usage dip, Hunter Henry re-established himself as Drake Maye’s go-to TE. He saw 11 targets last week, catching two TDs and totaling 60 yards. The Panthers have been among the league’s most permissive defenses against TEs, particularly those who are a focal point in the offense, like Henry. If you are in need of a TE, he’s a solid streaming option with upside.