Ben Roethlisberger Injury: 5 Fantasy Football Replacements For Steelers QB
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger reportedly has a torn meniscus in his left knee, an injury that will require surgery and keep him out of his team’s Week 7 showdown with the New England Patriots.
This also is bad news for fantasy football owners, many of whom rely on Roethlisberger’s consistently strong production to win their weekly matchups.
Here are five players to target on your league’s waiver wire to replace Big Ben.
Landry Jones, Pittsburgh Steelers
Jones is worth a pickup solely based on the fact he’s Roethlisberger’s backup. He played in seven games last season but only attempted 55 passes and completed just 58.2 percent of them. He also threw three touchdowns with four interceptions. That’s not great, but Jones has a ton of quality weapons to target on offense, including elite playmakers in wide receiver Antonio Brown and running back Le’Veon Bell.
Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco 49ers
Kaepernick isn’t the fantasy stud he used to be, but he’s a starter again. He threw for 187 yards and a touchdown, along with 66 rushing yards in a Week 6 loss to the Buffalo Bills. It was decent performance for fantasy owners in standard scoring leagues, although his 44.8 completion percentage is worrisome. Kaepernick has a favorable Week 7 matchup against a struggling Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense, so he’s not a bad one-week replacement for Big Ben.
Alex Smith, Kansas City Chiefs
Smith isn’t going to put up incredible stats, but he’s one of the league’s most accurate quarterbacks and rarely turns the ball over. He’s thrown one interception in his last four games, in addition to three touchdowns in that span. His next three matchups are against horrible defenses — the New Orleans Saints, Indianapolis Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars — so Smith’s best is likely yet to come.
Brian Hoyer, Chicago Bears
Hoyer has thrown for 300 or more yards in four straight games, along with six touchdowns and zero interceptions in that span. That’s really good consistency from a player who’s been a backup for most of his career.
Case Keenum, Los Angeles Rams
Keenum had his best game of the season in a 31-28 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday. He completed 27 of 32 passes for 321 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. He’s not going to put up those numbers every week, but he’s not a bad short-term replacement, either.
Thumbnail photo via Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports Images
