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Fantasy Football Week 11 Waiver Wire Pickup: QB Michael Vick

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By @bradberreman24

Michael Vick, New York Jets, Fantasy Football Waiver Wire

Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Jets managed to upset the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, due largely to their defense forcing four turnovers. But Michael Vick performed solidly under center as well, going 10-for-18 for 132 yards and two touchdowns while adding 39 yards on eight carries. Over the last two games, since he took over the starting job, Vick is averaging 164 passing yards per game with three touchdown passes and 57 combined rushing yards. More importantly, Vick has not thrown any interceptions in his two starts and he has not been responsible for any turnovers in that span.

Should fantasy football owners with a need at quarterback consider adding Vick?

The first thing to know is the Jets have a bye in Week 11, so Vick is obviously not usable this week. Week 12 brings a rematch with the Buffalo Bills, against whom Vick played in Week 8 after replacing Geno Smith. In that game Vick threw for 153 yards with zero touchdowns and three total turnovers (one interception, two fumbles lost), along with eight carries for 69 yards, and the Bills entered Week 10 allowing 13.1 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks (tied for third-fewest in the league; ESPN scoring). Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith threw for 177 yards along with 25 rushing yards and a touchdown against Buffalo on Sunday (15 fantasy points), which creates some hope Vick can make some hay with his own running ability.

After that the schedule looks tough for Vick, as four of New York’s final five games come against teams that entered Week 10 in the top-10 of the league against quarterbacks (ESPN scoring). That includes two games against the Miami Dolphins (Week 13 and Week 17), who entered the week allowing the fewest fantasy points to the position (11.3 per game). Matthew Stafford’s performance on Sunday (280 passing yards, two touchdowns) was just the third time all season Miami allowed more than 15 fantasy points (ESPN scoring) to a quarterback, and not surprisingly the other two came in two of the other three games they’ve allowed multiple touchdown passes.

The Minnesota Vikings and New England Patriots also came into Week 10 in the top-10 against quarterbacks, and Vick will face them in Week 14 and Week 16 respectively. So the only week he may be usable during the playoffs in a lot of fantasy leagues is Week 15 against the Tennessee Titans, who have allowed multiple passing touchdowns just twice in nine games this season, including four straight games allowing just one touchdown through the air.

Vick is owned in just 12 percent of Yahoo! leagues right now, with his age (34) and injury history leaving owners hesitant to get on the bandwagon. Concern over his durability is not going away, as Vick dealt with a foot injury last week, but otherwise he has job security and his running ability quells some of the downside attached to some tough upcoming matchups.

There may still be elevated expectations attached to Vick’s name, as fantasy owners remember the 2006 version that rushed for over 1,000 yards. Those days are obviously not coming back, but Vick is worth a look as a QB2 in deeper leagues for anyone that wants to place a small waiver wire bet on his upside.

Brad Berreman is a Columnist at Rant Sports.com. Connect with him on Twitter or Google +.

 

 

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