Week 8 vs. San Francisco
This week is another chance for Carson Wentz to light it up against a 49ers team that gave up a 40-burger last week to the Cowboys. The Eagles have the highest implied team total in Vegas this week, and Wentz is the overall fantasy QB2 on the season. The 49ers have also allowed the second-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, giving up more than 20 per game. Wentz is an elite fantasy option in Week 8.
Week 7 vs. Washington
Carson Wentz is on fire this season with a better than 4:1 touchdown to interception ratio. This week he gets a rematch at home with Washington, a team he threw for 300+ yards and two scores against on the road in Week 1. In the past two weeks, Wentz has 7 touchdowns. Start him with confidence in Week 7.
Week 6 at Carolina Panthers
Carson Wentz is QB6 through five weeks, but three of his five games were against teams that are currently top-10 in fantasy points allowed to the position. The challenge is greater on the road with a short week this time against a Panthers defense allowing the ninth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks. Carolina is also top-10 in our aFPA vs. QB rankings. For that reason, Wentz is a fringe QB1 in 12-team leagues this week.
Week 5 vs. Arizona Cardinals
The Eagles get a west coast team coming east for a 1 PM eastern kickoff, and that team is ranked only 25th in our aFPA vs. QB rankings. Take away games against Jacoby Brissett and Brian Hoyer, and the Cardinals have allowed 27.1 and 22.9 points to Matthew Stafford and Dak Prescott, respectively. This leads us to believe Wentz is a top-10 QB this week with a couple of big names at the position on a bye week.
Week 4 at Los Angeles Chargers
Carson Wentz is the QB6 through three weeks of the season but is buoyed by his first two weeks after a subpar 13.2 points last week. Nevertheless, Wentz is a low-end QB1 candidate this week on the road against the Chargers, a team that has allowed the 13th-most fantasy points to QBs (17.0 fantasy points per game). The Chargers are now without the servicesof top corner Jason Verrett for the season, freeing up coverage for Wentz's targets.
Week 3 vs. New York Giants
Wentz is the fantasy QB3 through two weeks, but his matchup is the toughest yet this week against the second-best defense in our aFPA vs. QB rankings. Wentz only averaged 10.5 points in two games against this division rival a year ago. You can consider him a fringe QB1 in Week 3, based on his volume (42 attempts per game) and the distinct possibility his defense gives him short fields against a bad Giants offense.
Week 2 at Kansas City Chiefs
Wentz had a decent start to the season, with 16.9 standard fantasy points at Washington, but it should be noted a good chunk of that came on an improvised broken play where Nelson Agholor was left open for a touchdown. The matchup is tougher this week at Kansas City, who are ranked eighth in our aFPA vs. QBs. Wentz was likely drafted as your backup QB and should remain as such on your bench in 1QB leagues this week. He must cut down on his turnovers (two last week) if he's going to become a reliable fantasy option.
Week 1 at Washington
Wentz's fantasy prospects are improved in 2017, with the additions of Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith on the outside. However, he faces a Washington secondary, led by shutdown corner Josh Norman, that he struggled against, failing to reach 15 fantasy points in both matchups last season. Overall, Washington is just 24th in our aFPA vs. quarterbacks, but in one-QB leagues, there are better options, even if you are streaming QBs.
Fantasy Upside
Since 2000, 10 quarterbacks started at least 14 games in each of their first two seasons. On average, this group improved their per game fantasy output by 15.9% in their second season. Wentz averaged 13.1 fantasy points as a rookie, and a 15.9 percent improvement would put him squarely in the QB2 mix. The Eagles invested in the receiver position this offseason by signing Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith, with former first-round pick Nelson Agholor now expected to man the slot after the team traded Jordan Matthews to Buffalo. With Zach Ertz and Darren Sproles are also back in the passing attack, Wentz has no shortage of weapons to utilize in the passing game. 4for4's TJ Hernandez also notes the Eagles finished 19th in yards/drive—but it wasn’t nearly as bad as their 28th-placed ranking in QB fantasy points suggest. There could be some positive regression there.
Fantasy Downside
The Eagles were 16th in pass play percentage in their first season under Doug Pederson, and he may want that percentage to be even lower in 2017, considering he was 27th in pass play percentage in his final season in Kansas City (2016). Philadelphia also has the No. 1 toughest schedule in terms of our QB adjusted fantasy points allowed (aFPA) rankings.
2017 Bottom Line
The new weapons and a strong offensive line should help Wentz progress in his second year. In two-quarterback leagues, he should not be overlooked, but in one-quarterback leagues, he's likely just a bye-week replacement or streaming option.
Week 17 vs. Dallas
Carson Wentz attempted just 24 passes and threw for 172 yards along with a TD and an INT in the team's win over the Giants in Week 16.
It was the second-straight week Wentz didn't reach 200 yards. This week, he's ranked 21 on our QB list, making him a lower-end QB2 option. Dallas is 19th in allowing fantasy points to QBs, so it's not a bad matchup. Earlier this season, Wentz threw for 202 yards and a TD, but came up just short of a win. In single QB leagues, there are much better options.
