Fantasy Football Week 4 FAAB Bids for QB/TE: Carson Wentz, Chig Okonkwo, and More

Three weeks into the NFL season, do you feel like you are more or less prepared to excel in fantasy football? A lot probably depends on your roster. If you drafted Joe Burrow, CeeDee Lamb, and James Conner, for example, you're probably cursing the fantasy gods for forsaking you.

When it comes to information, we definitely have more of it, but it's questionable as to how much you think it helps. We know all about the dangers of small samples, but that doesn't stop us from overreacting to everything that happens each week as if it's the new norm. When a guy has a big game, it's important to keep it in the context of everything we know and the best projections moving forward.

Let's look at some of the hottest waiver wire names at quarterback and tight end and what reasonable FAAB bids might look like for those players. Your numbers might vary a little depending on your roster needs and FAAB budget, but this is a good baseline from which to start. All numbers are based on a $100 budget.

Check out FantasySP's waiver wire tool to keep up with the hottest names being added by fantasy owners each week.

Quarterback

Marcus Mariota, Washington Commanders

Mariota's fantasy value has an expiration date, as quarterback Jayden Daniels could return at any time, including this coming week. We knew it was a short-term injury from what was reported, something that made it clear that Mariota wouldn't be long for fantasy consideration.

Mariota is more of a placeholder here for all the short-term fantasy names who show up from week to week when injuries happen. This will always come up; we had five backup quarterbacks play in Week 3, and three of them might be back on the bench in Week 4.

Whenever that's the case, it's best to save your FAAB money for guys who might be long-term solutions. You can find a one-week fill-in anywhere; the free agent market is booming with them. When it's only one week, the guy you spend on might not have a productive game, costing you a bunch of money and not even giving you one good week.

Spend FAAB money on those who can make a year-long impact on your team, or at least weeks-long. Players like Mariota, Tyrod Taylor, and Mac Jones will soon give the reigns back to their previous top guys, leaving you with a player without fantasy worth. Mariota is a fine free pickup if you're hurting and think you could use him but don't spend money unless you're truly in a desperate situation with no other options.

Conservative Bid: $0

Need Bid: $1

Desperation Bid: $2

Geno Smith, Las Vegas Raiders

Geno has had two really good statistical games and one really bad one this season:

• Week 1: 362 passing yards on 10.6 per attempt, one touchdown, and one interception
• Week 2: 180 passing yards on 4.2 per attempt, no touchdowns, and three interceptions
• Week 3: 289 passing yards on 10.0 per attempt, three touchdowns, and no interceptions

His team got dominated in Week 3, and part of his success was due to racking up garbage time numbers, but there is real talent for Smith to throw to in Jakobi Meyers, Brock Bowers, and even Tre Tucker, who had 145 yards and all three TDs for the Raiders on Sunday.

Smith is likely to ebb and flow throughout the season. The first and third games were against the Patriots and Commanders, teams with middling defenses at best. The second game was against the Chargers, one of the best defensive teams in football through three weeks. The matchups will play a big part in Smith's fantasy value.

Because of that, Smith is more of a streamer/rotation guy than someone to count on every week. That keeps him low on the FAAB meter, not necessitating any bid (maybe a dollar or two if you're desperate). Otherwise, you can probably pick Smith up and drop him at your leisure when he has a decent matchup or find someone else who can approximate his value.

Conservative Bid: $0

Need Bid: $1-2

Desperation Bid: $3

Carson Wentz, Minnesota Vikings

Here's one of our other backup quarterbacks from Week 3. I just went through a big thing about not counting on backups if they will only play for a short time because it will put you right back where you were once that guy hits the bench again. It's a little different if the backup in question is going to be in the lineup for an extended period.

Wentz and Cincinnati's Jake Browning are those guys at the quarterback position right now. Browning's status is a little clearer, as Burrow is expected to miss around three months; that means most of the season will belong to Browning. The young quarterback struggled mightily against Minnesota in Week 3, gaining just 140 yards on 5.2 per attempt with a touchdown and two interceptions.

That's not a guy anyone is dying to grab on the wavier wire. Wentz was better, throwing for 173 yards on 8.7 per attempt with two touchdowns and no interceptions. The volume wasn't there, but Wentz didn't have to do much of anything, as his team dominated from beginning to end, forced five turnovers, and scored two defensive touchdowns.

We can expect a little more out of Wentz than Browning because we've seen him do it in the past, but Wentz falls somewhere in the middle. J.J. McCarthy is on IR and can return after three more games, something that immediately lowers Wentz's value, but there's a lot of uncertainty around McCarthy, meaning his absence could last longer.

With Wentz likely an inconsistent fantasy player, I have to treat him no better than a streamer. It would be a little different if we knew he would play the whole season, but with his value on a ticking clock and without high-level expectations, Wentz is another guy to not spend money on and just pick up for free if you really want him on your roster.

Conservative Bid: $0

Need Bid: $1

Desperation Bid: $2

Tight End

Hunter Henry, New England Patriots

Henry is owned in close to half of leagues, not widely available the way most guys listed here are but enough to make it worth taking a look if you're in need of a tight end. He really stands out this week because on Sunday, Henry caught eight passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns, each at least twice as much as anyone else on New England.

He also leads the Patriots in targets, receptions (tied), receiving yards, and touchdowns. I thought last year he might operate as the WR1 at times because the Patriots had a weak receiving corps, and that's happening now, just a year later; Stefon Diggs and Kayshon Boutte haven't been able to make a consistent impact.

Going forward, Henry has a chance to keep putting up numbers but is likely to be a little inconsistent. He already showed that this season, catching four passes for 66 yards in Week 1 but just one for nine in Week 2. While he's a decent fantasy player, Henry isn't a weekly fantasy starter.

His upside in this offense is enough to spend a few bucks if you're without an option at the position but don't expect a slew of 90-yard, two-touchdown games. Understand that Henry is a fine fantasy player who will leave you wanting more at times.

Conservative Bid: $1-2

Need Bid: $3-4

Desperation Bid: $6

Chig Okonkwo, Tennessee Titans

I'm not trusting Okonkwo. It's been multiple seasons now of talk that he would be a breakout player, and it just hasn't happened. He was around 50 catches, 500 yards, and a touchdown or two in each of the past two years, fine for a middling tight end but not a guy who we are going to take notice of in fantasy often.

He does lead his team in receptions and yards (12 for 120) and is third with 16 targets. That puts him at TE15 in PPR and TE20 in standard, a player who can be considered as a streamer in the right matchups.

His current numbers have him on pace for 68 catches and 680 yards, though a continued lack of touchdowns brings down his fantasy value. Those numbers would have been sixth and eighth, respectively, among tight ends last year. The question is whether he can be trusted to keep up those career-high rates.

As I said before, I don't trust him. Tennessee has one of the worst passing games in the league so far, and QB Cameron Ward has averaged fewer than 170 yards per game on 5.1 yards per attempt with a completion percentage lower than 55%. The floor is way too low to expect anything consistent from any Titans' pass catcher.

You can value him as a streamer, especially if you're hurting at the position, but it's risky to assume Okonkwo will keep producing career-best numbers. With a low floor and ceiling, Okonkwo is a better free pickup than a guy to spend FAAB dollars on.

Conservative Bid: $0

Need Bid: $1-2

Desperation Bid: $3