It’s officially fantasy football research season, and everyone is refreshing their memories of how everyone performed last NFL season. However, we too often see fantasy football players use the end-of-season rank as the be-all and end-all. Lumping the entire season together doesn’t tell the entire story.
For example, a quarterback who passes for 700 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions across two weeks is great. However, if the second game was only 190 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions, then your team could have a 1-1 record despite having a high-ranking quarterback.
FlurrySports has developed a Consistency and Boom/Bust Tool that gives more context to last season’s fantasy football performances. It breaks down how often a player was a “boom,” a “bust,” or if they were worth the start every week across the full season.
Below, we will go over the fantasy football QBs who may have ranked well at the end of the season, but given more context, they may have been the reason why you lost some matchups. For quarterbacks, the player had to finish as QB12 or better to be considered a “starter” for a week, and they were considered a “bust” if they were outside the top 18.
5 Fantasy Football QBs Who Lost You Matchups in 2021
Taylor Heinicke, QB16 (Starter: 35.7%, Bust: 50%)
Did you fall victim to the Taylor Heinicke fantasy theatrics early last season and stuck with him a little too long? Don’t worry, you’re definitely not alone. He replaced Ryan Fitzpatrick in Week 1 and looked good, then followed that up with a 336-yard, two-touchdown performance with only one interception in Week 2. Sure, he had some other decent games, but boy, he was a nuisance to your fantasy team over the course of a full season.
Heinicke finished as QB16 last season, but he was worth being started only about 36% of the time. He finished outside the top 18 at the position in half of his games, not including Week 1. However, it does include a stretch where he threw one or fewer touchdowns in five straight games. Yikes.
Ryan Tannehill, QB13 (25%, 56.3%)
Following a season in which everyone believed Ryan Tannehill revitalized his career, he let down his fantasy owners. Sure, he finished the season as QB13, but that doesn’t tell the full story.
Tannehill was never a top-three play, and he was considered “startable” only a quarter of the time. The Titans quarterback finished outside the top 18 at the position in over half of his games. Sure, he didn’t have the threat of Derrick Henry in the backfield for much of the season, but from a fantasy football perspective, it doesn’t matter. He was just bad.
Derek Carr, QB12 (37.5%, 56.3%)
Speaking of just bad, hello, Derek Carr. The man was a top-12 quarterback for fantasy football last season. I cannot take that away from him. However, much like Tannehill, the QB12 was never a top-three play and he was labeled a “bust” in over half of his games. That’s right, the QB12 was bad more often than he was just fine. How could we lower the bar any further?
Carr now has a new coach and Davante Adams to throw to. Will he be worth owning this season, or will he continue to have that Carr family stench?
Joe Burrow, QB5 (56.3%, 31.3%)
I know, how dare I say anything negative about “Joe Cool.” I love Joe Burrow and think he is already one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL. However, despite finishing as QB5 last season, he put up some absolute stinkers that may have lost you multiple matchups.
Over the first 17 weeks, Burrow was worthy of being in a starting lineup (QB12 or better) only nine times. On five occasions, he was outside the top 18 at the position. So, while he was a top-five player, there’s a realistic chance Burrow cost you five weeks last season.
Would you rather have Burrow, or the QB8 in Jalen Hurts, who was start-worthy 73% of the time and a bust only 20% of the time?
Russell Wilson, QB20 (38.5%, 38.5%)
Obviously, Russell Wilson fantasy football owners from last season know how frustrating it was having the former Seahawks quarterback. Thanks to a finger injury, Wilson missed three games, forcing you to find a replacement for a player who had been so steady and healthy in his career.
However, it was more frustrating when he returned to the field, because he wasn’t good. Russell Wilson was a bust in nearly 40% of the games he played, then he missed three other games. He was a big bust last season, but will you give him another chance in Denver?
