2014 Fantasy FootballAndrew Miller

2014 Fantasy Football: Week 4 QB and D/ST Streaming Options

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Teddy Bridgewater
Source: Sean Gardner/Getty Images North America

Defense/Special Teams streaming has been a popular option for a while now for fantasy owners. But quarterback streaming has begun being put into use just recently, it seems. As the demand grows we must meet it with a supply of fantasy articles. Each week I’ll highlight several quarterbacks and defenses fantasy owners can pick up for that week to stream in their starting lineups. As the season progresses, more options will appear as teams and players are dropped and we discover who’s real and who’s not. If you have any questions about these picks or fantasy football in general, hit me up on Twitter @44AMiller.

Quarterback

Teddy Bridgewater (7 percent owned ESPN, 11 percent Yahoo!) – It’s a weak week for quarterback options on the waiver wire for short-term plays. So I’ll give you one who can be played this week and kept on your roster for a while. Bridgewater will start for Minnesota for the foreseeable future, and he has a little bit of promise for those looking for some help at the position. He did fine in his debut Sunday, and while nothing stands out in his passing line he did rush six times for 27 yards, including one designed run. Minnesota should trail against Atlanta this week, and Bridgewater should have plenty of opportunities to put up points against a fairly susceptible defense.

Defense

Detroit Lions (32%, 79%) – at New York Jets – Detroit boasts the second best defense through three weeks in ESPN standard scoring, and the Jets have given up the 12th most points to defenses on average. The Lions have a very good front seven, which helped shut down Green Bay last week. The Jets have very little going for them, especially if Eric Decker isn’t 100 percent. The Jets have allowed multiple sacks in every game while the Lions have recorded multiple sacks in every game. Geno Smith has thrown four interceptions so far.

Miami Dolphins (12%, 41%) – at Oakland – The Dolphins defense doesn’t get the credit it should because the team’s offense is under such criticism. Yeah, Miami has allowed 83 points, but twice has the defense scored 10 points in ESPN standard scoring. If the Phins would average 10 on the season right now they’d be third among D/ST’s, so the skill is there. Last week they recorded five sacks, two weeks after registering four sacks. Cam Wake and Co. should eat this week against the lowest-scoring and lowest-yardage team in the league.

Indianapolis Colts (10%, 41%) – vs. Tennessee – The Colts hit paydirt last week against Jacksonville, and they should again this week against the Titans. They’re the 10th-friendliest offense for opposing D/ST’s. I mean, they basically made the Cowboys look like the 2000 Ravens in Week 2. Indy doesn’t have much of a pass rush, but against a similarly poor team last week the Colts sacked Jacksonville quarterbacks five times. Tennessee has allowed eight sacks this season, and Jake Locker has thrown two interceptions in each of his last two games.

San Diego Chargers (61%, 65%) – vs. Jacksonville – While the Jaguars’ ranking of the most anemic offense in the league is mostly due to Chad Henne, it’s not like this team is loaded with playmakers anywhere. Putting Blake Bortles in the starting lineup will help, but the Jags gave up 10 sacks in Week 2 and Bortles threw two picks last week. The Chargers should force the Jags into playing catch-up so they’ll have a lot of chances at rushing the passer and accruing sacks and interceptions. The Chargers are tied for 10th in ESPN standard scoring, and after this week their schedule consists of the Jets, Raiders and Chiefs.

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