Fantasy Football Quarterback Waiver Wire Adds for Week 16: Trevor Lawrence, J.J. McCarthy, Kirk Cousins and More

With week 15 of the NFL regular season nearly in the books, it's time to start turning our attention to week 16. Here, we'll go over some fantasy football waiver wire options at quarterback.

Check back for more waiver wire stories as week 15 wraps up.

Check out fantasy football waiver wire targets all season on FantasySP. 

Should You Add Trevor Lawrence?

Lawrence was sensational in week 15, throwing for five touchdowns and rushing for another. He was 20-of-32 passing for 330 yards, while adding 51 rushing yards on five attempts.

He's not going to replicate that performance often, especially against tougher defenses, but Lawrence has been an average-or-better fantasy QB for several weeks running now.

The only problem with Lawrence's fantasy outlook is his next opponent. He has a very stiff test coming against the Broncos.

With how Lawrence has looked of late though, I still will be pretty high on him as a fantasy asset. He's still a better deep-league asset in the tough matchup, but he's at least an option in standard leagues.

We'll see if Lawrence can defy the odds and deliver another average-or-better showing in week 16.

Should You Add Kirk Cousins?

Cousins is fantasy QB3 heading into the Monday night game in week 15. He was 30-of-44 passing for 373 yards and three touchdowns. He added nothing as a rusher, but avoided a turnover to deliver a big fantasy score.

He won't get to face the weak Buccaneers' defense again, but there's some decent matchups ahead for him, so Cousins will be a pretty solid deep-league option at least.

Over the past four weeks, Cousins now has two slightly below-average marks, a dud and a high-end fantasy finish. Playing the matchups going forward makes some sense with him, but he's still probably a peg below the other fantasy QBs around the league.

Arizona will be his matchup in week 16. The Cardinals are a pretty average fantasy matchup, so Cousins will be a deep-league starting option for the coming week.

After a good showing in week 15, and some extra time off, I'd be confident enough in Cousins to start him in some deeper fantasy leagues for week 16. Maybe he can surprise again, as he looks to set himself up for the seasons to come.

Should You Add J.J. McCarthy?

McCarthy delivered a second straight 20-point-or-more showing in week 16. He was 15-of-24 passing for 250 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. McCarthy added 15 rushing yards and a touchdown on four attempts to boost his fantasy score.

McCarthy has started to settle in a bit these past two weeks, although the defenses he's faced have been really bad, so take his results with a grain of salt. 

Luckily for McCarthy, he has another stellar matchup coming against the Giants. There's a chance that McCarthy finishes as a top-10 fantasy QB for a third straight week as a result.

After two good showings in a row and with another good matchup coming, McCarthy is a pretty good deep-league option, and should see his start percentage jump up this week.

I'd consider him in a standard league, but for those competing for fantasy glory, there's probably better options on your roster, or on the waiver wire. 

I'll go over my week 16 fantasy rankings for quarterback on Wednesday, so check back for that article.

Should You Add C.J. Stroud?

Stroud had one of his best fantasy showings in week 14 against the Cardinals. He was 22-of-29 passing for 260 yards, three touchdowns and no picks. He rushed for 10 yards on six attempts.

Stroud had been underwhelming in his previous two starts, which came after he missed a few games with a concussion. He maybe was able to settle back in this past week though, so he could be a sneaky good asset down the stretch.

Las Vegas is his matchup in week 16. The Raiders are a slightly above-average matchup for him.

Stroud is a good deep-league option as a result, but I'd stop short of calling him a standard league option. He just hasn't shown me enough to trust him in such a critical fantasy week.

Should You Add Tua Tagovailoa?

Tagovailoa plays on Monday night against the Steelers, so we'll see how he looks in that game, and if it can put him in a good spot heading into week 16.

He will face the Bengals, who are a top-five fantasy matchup for quarterbacks, and that's why I'm listing him in this article.

Tagovailoa has been underwhelming as a fantasy asset of late, but a decent matchup tonight could help him get rolling. If he looks good tonight, then he'd be a pretty solid deep-league option for week 16.

I understand if you don't want to trust him, but he could help his cause tonight and surprise again in week 16.

Should You Add Bryce Young?

Young was unimpressive in week 15 in the team's loss to New Orleans. He had 163 passing yards, a score and no picks on 15-of-24 passing. Young rushed for 49 yards on seven attempts.

He gets mentioned here because he'll be taking on the Buccaneers in week 16. Tampa Bay is another top-five fantasy matchup for quarterbacks.

The teams haven't met yet this season. They will meet again in week 18, and whoever wins the matchups likely wins the NFC South.

Young only is a deep-league option with his overall season numbers, but in a favorable matchup, he's not a half-bad option.

Should You Add Aaron Rodgers?

Rodgers is the other half of the Monday night QB matchup.

He is coming off a great showing in week 14, so tonight is a chance for him to keep things rolling. A pretty solid matchup against the Dolphins means Rodgers could indeed impress again.

Rodgers will be facing the Lions in week 16. Detroit is just outside being a top-five fantasy matchup for a quarterback, so Rodgers could be a pretty solid deep-league option, especially if he looks good on Monday night.

Unless he looks really good tonight, Rodgers should only be considered in deeper leagues for week 16. He just hasn't delivered enough this season to be anything more than a deep-league option after one game. A second big showing in a row could change my mind a bit, but he's likely a better deep-league asset than a standard league one.

Should You Add Gardner Minshew?

Minshew will take over as the Chiefs' starting quarterback for the final three games of the season after Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL.

Minshew only played a few snaps on Sunday after Mahomes departed. He completed three of his five passes for 22 yards, but threw a pick that sealed the game, and ended the Chiefs' playoff chances.

Kansas City has plenty of offensive weapons, which could help any quarterback find success. And Minshew has starting experience in his past, so it's not like he'll be making his first NFL appearance or anything like that.

He's a backup for a reason though, and with Kansas City out of the playoff picture, I wouldn't be surprised if there were a number of other “injuries” that pop up to some high-end offensive players on the team. What I'm getting at is that Minshew is not a must-add waiver wire add, even in deeper leagues.

I do like his matchup against the Titans though, so I'd be fine starting him in deeper leagues. He's not one to start in all those leagues, and he should be avoided in standard leagues too.