Finding the right fantasy football streamers at quarterback, tight end, defense and kicker has been a strategy I've successfully used for years.
I've parlayed that success into a series of weekly recommendations for the top streaming options at those three positions, as well as tight end, which can be of assistance in a pinch.
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The concept behind streaming is that you add someone for a given week based on the matchup, rather than putting the emphasis behind a player's long-term projection.
I’m only highlighting players who are available in at least 40% of Yahoo! leagues. Please refer to my player rankings based on your league settings to see who is the best available player in your league.
Note: The optimal strategy for streamers is to add the player I have ranked the highest that is available in your specific league. I have no way of knowing who is the best option for your league, so I’m just highlighting the player I have ranked the highest that is available in more than 40% of leagues.
Use my rankings to see if there's a player who's available in your league and ranked higher than those mentioned below.
QB Gardner Minshew (16% owned)
at Titans
It’s a pretty rough week to be streaming QBs. Some of the top options include Baker Mayfield, Kenny Pickett, Derek Carr and Gardner Minshew. I’m going to roll with Minshew, who has fewer question marks than the other QBs listed.
The Colts get to face a pass-funnel defense in the Titans and potentially without RB Jonathan Taylor, they could be a bit more pass-heavy this week.
As of now, I have Minshew ranked the highest at QB14, but there could be a lot of movement in my Week 13 rankings by the time we need to lock in a QB on Sunday, so be sure to check back with my rankings then.
TE Pat Freiermuth (50% owned)
vs. Cardinals
Freiermuth is back in the TE1 mix after a massive 9/120/0 performance in the first game after former Steelers offensive coordinator Matt Canada was fired.
It’s a bit concerning Freiermuth's route participation was just 62% last week. He will need to be in the 70-80%+ range in order for us to really trust him as a low-end TE1 once there aren’t six teams on bye.
However, my guess is that the Steelers were still easing Freiermuth back in and after last week’s massive game, we see his playing time continue to trend upward.
K Chris Boswell (17% owned)
vs. Cardinals
The new and improved Steelers offense in the post-Canada era should provide Boswell with more kicking opportunities moving forward. The Steelers have a team total of 23.5 against the Cardinals, which is the seventh-highest of the week, making Boswell a top-10 kicking option.
Jaguars D/ST (35% owned)
vs. Bengals
It’s a great week for streaming defenses as the Falcons, Jaguars and Bucs all have great matchups. You can’t go wrong with any of those three this week.
I’m going to lean Jaguars since they should be able to get Bengals QB Jake Browning into a pass-heavy game script. He was very fortunate to have a couple of tipped passes end up as completions last week. Those can easily turn into turnovers or pick-sixes going forward.
I like the upside for the Jags defense here on Monday Night Football.
