Fantasy football is about adapting to change and creating the best possible team through trading, waiver wire pickups, and starting the right guys at the right time. I am a massive proponent of using the waiver wire in a way that gives your team the ability to improve without sacrificing your best players in a big trade. Through the year, after every single week I will be telling you, by position, the players I feel deserve to be picked up on your rosters. The way I judge a player to be on “waivers” is based on the percentage in which they are available across every ESPN league. In order to be considered on the waiver wire, the player must have a 50% or less ownership percentage according to ESPN data. I will be striving to find the most unique values that will offer you an advantage over your opponents who may not even know that player exists. So strap in and get ready for your team to get better.
Running Backs:
Tyler Allgeier (17% owned):
Starting Falcons running back Cordarrelle Patterson has been put on IR with an injury and now in steps Tyler Allgeier who looks to assume many of the carries that Patterson was receiving. This past week, Allgeier had ten carries for 84 yards against the Browns to go along with one reception for 20 yards. I personally think that he will be the RB1 for this team as he has even gotten ten carries in a game earlier this year with Patterson playing. I will say, however, that Caleb Huntley received ten carries and did get a touchdown so perhaps wait a week before trusting Allgeier in your lineups. In terms of the waiver wire, he is a must pickup in my opinion.
Brian Robinson Jr. (37% owned):
After miraculously recovering from gunshot wounds, Robinson Jr. is set to be back and have an immediate impact in this offense. You might have forgotten, but in the preseason, it was clear that Robinson Jr. had actually taken over the early down role as the Commanders looked to be moving away from Antonio Gibson. Needless to say, Gibson has been horrific thus far only averaging 3.3 yards per carry across four games and played the least amount of snaps that he has played all season.
Isiah Pacheco (11% owned):
Pacheco had a ton of hype stemming from a few great preseason performances but had not really shown his ability until this week against the Buccaneers in which he had 11 carries for 63 yards. He did not produce a ton of points but any running back who is receiving upwards of double digit carries in one of the best offenses in football is worth a stash on the bench. I think Pacheco has long-term value in the sense that as the season progresses, he should be getting more and more touches.
Latavius Murray (0% owned):
With Javonte Williams out for the season and Melvin Gordon forgetting how to hold on to the football, it seems the Broncos are in desperate need for a running back. In steps Latavius Murray who just had 11 carries for 57 yards and a touchdown for the Saints. The Broncos claimed Murray off of the Saints’ practice squad and I think Murray could have a big red zone impact for a Broncos team that will surely improve offensively as the season progresses.
Wide Receivers:
George Pickens (38% owned):
Pickens has slowly begun to dominate for the Steelers offense. The quarterback play has limited him severely as Trubisky was horrible, but Pickett was a lot more efficient and allowed Pickens to finish with 6 receptions for 102 yards against the Jets. Pickens is huge at 6’3 and Pickett showed a tendency to throw jump balls to him so the red zone upside is absolutely there for this season. I am targeting Pickens everywhere and hope to have him as a flex option in the coming weeks.
Corey Davis (7% owned):
With Zach Wilson back at quarterback, Davis was able to thrive. He had seven targets which he translated into five receptions for 74 yards and a touchdown. Even going back to last season, it is clear that Wilson trusts Davis and will give him targets. Elijah Moore and Garrett Wilson are amazing but I do not see Davis simply dropping out of the offense. I think Davis is easily a flex play every week with his safe floor of targets.
Josh Reynolds (11% owned):
It is weird to say that the best offense in football is the Detroit Lions, but that is simply a fact thus far this year. The Lions have averaged over 35 points a game this year and Reynolds has been a big part of that. He had ten targets for 96 yards last week and this week had eight targets for 81 yards and a touchdown. Jared Goff is going to be throwing the ball a ton and Reynolds seems to have secured a nice role for himself in this offense. Ride the hot hand of the Lions offense and grab him while you still can.
Noah Brown (12% owned):
Another week with Cooper Rush at quarterback has allowed Brown to continue to flourish. He has 50+ receiving yards in every game this season. Additionally, Brown has never had less than five targets in any one game. His season low in fantasy points is just 9.1 and he offers amazing flex value week in and week out. I would pick this player up in every league possible as his role in this Cowboys offense has been very stable.
Tight Ends:
Tyler Conklin (39% owned): Conklin has been as steady as it gets when it comes to targets as he has five or more targets in every game this season. In a ‘down’ week, he only had three receptions for 52 yards which for a tight end is great value on the waiver wire. I think Conklin should be rostered everywhere and the touchdowns are bound to start coming in with Zach Wilson manning the offense instead of old Joe Flacco.
Logan Thomas (31% owned):
This is where tight ends start to get shallow, but Thomas has had five or more targets in every game but one and had five receptions this past week. Thomas is not a player I would love to start at all but with a tight end injury or a bye week, Thomas offers some value as a player who will give you some production.