Week 6 vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Taylor Heinicke had his first bad game last week as he failed to find the endzone. Prior to last week, Heinicke had scored at least twice in every start. He also made things worse by throwing two interceptions. There were some positive takeaways, though. He still had 248 yards passing, and 40 yards rushing. He's averaged nearly 30 rush yards in his four starts this season.

We expect Heinicke to bounce back this week in a favorable matchup against the Chiefs who are 30th in schedule-adjusted fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks. Washington and the Chiefs have two of the worst passing defenses in the league, so there's a chance this thing ends in an offensive shootout. Heinicke is averaging about 300 total yards and two total touchdowns per game and gets a great matchup. He'll be a strong option this week, especially for fantasy owners who are streaming quarterbacks. He has a chance to crack the top 10 at his position this week.

Week 4 at Atlanta Falcons

Taylor Heinicke performed well in Week 3 considering he faced a tough Bills defense. Heinicke threw for 212 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions while rushing eight times for 21 yards and a score (he also caught a pass for -2 yards). If Heinicke was able to do that against a tough Bills team, then he should have no problem finding success against the Falcons this week, who are giving up the third-most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season. Atlanta has given up eight passing touchdowns (second-most in the league) while not intercepting a pass. Atlanta even struggles to contain QBs on the ground, giving up the fourth-most rushing yards to quarterbacks this season. While Heinicke isn't a top 10 option this week, he is around the top 15. He should be a solid streaming option for owners who went that route in redraft leagues.

Week 2 vs. New York Giants

Taylor Heinicke filled in for Ryan Fitzpatrick in Week 1 after an early injury, finishing 11-of-15 for 122 yards and a touchdown (with an additional 17 rushing yards). While he didn't play a full game, he did play 71% of the snaps, so those numbers aren't great for the amount he played. And he doesn't even get a full week of practice to prepare for Week 2 as this game is on a shortened week starting Thursday. Heinicke showed some promise last year, notably in Washington's playoff game when he threw for over 300 yards and ran for another 46, scoring two total touchdowns. We wouldn't expect that this week against the Giants. We'd expect slightly better numbers than we saw in Heinicke's Week 1 game, putting him outside the top 20 quarterbacks for Week 2.

Week 17 at New Orleans Saints

Taylor Heinicke had 274 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons last week, but he also threw three interceptions. Heinicke will get another opportunity to show what he has against the Saints this week, but New Orleans is better on defense than the Falcons and with such inexperience, it’s hard to recommend him in any lineups, especially in what will be a championship week for any owners still playing for something. He should stay on waivers.

Update:

Heinicke was placed on IR, meaning either Garrett Gilbert or Kyle Allen will be starting the final game of the season. Regardless of who takes snaps, fantasy owners should stay away.