Monthly Archives: September 2016

Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

By Michael Visconti September 26th, 2016

Week 3 is all but done and we are staring at the first set of bye weeks in Week 4 (Green Bay and Philadelphia). We are also ready for a 6:30am PST start time live from Wembley Stadium as the Colts and Jaguars kickoff the NFL’s global harmonization marketing strategy. Lame, but I do love early morning football. I am up anyway punching in winning lineups.

More injuries in Week 3! Russell Wilson tore his MCL, Jeremy Langford sprains his ankle, Shane Vereen is out for the season with a triceps injury, and Ryan Mathews hurt his ankle. More news came out on Thomas Rawls this morning keeping him out for an undetermined amount of time. Antonio Gates may miss more time as well. Arian Foster will not play this Thursday. This is nothing new. Injuries happen and we are here to help you spot the correct pickup for the week.

A great strategy each week if you have the roster spot is to spend $1 in FAAB or grab a Free Agent backup RB before the lead back gets hurt. If you have a dud that you can drop use that roster spot on the chance that an injury occurs. Look at our players to watch as a potential list of names of players to grab. If it doesn’t work out, you can always drop them. It really would be nice to have Howard last week rather than spend up to get him this week.

Quarterbacks

Carson Wentz PHI – Turns in another healthy start to his short NFL career. Carson went 23 of 31 for 301 yards and 2 TDs. Carson has a bye in Week 4 but comes back to Detroit and sees a handful of favorable matchups over the next 6 weeks.

Trevor Siemian DEN – Wow. He goes to Cincinnati and lights them up for 4 TDs. He is a must add in all 2 QB leagues and a player to watch as a streaming option in 12+ team leagues.

Ryan Fitzpatrick NYJ – Well that was ugly. Arrowhead is a very difficult place to play and we did not expect much. Fitzpatrick will be fine and this offense will look a lot better next week at home against a stingy Seattle defense. I would not recommend starting him just yet though. Fitzy has some really great matchups between Week 7 and Week 15.

Brian Hoyer CHI – *Only a streaming option for this week. With Green Bay on bye this week you could do worse than Hoyer at home facing the Detroit Lions.

Watch List – Dak Prescott DAL, Tony Romo DAL, Brian Hoyer CHI

Running Backs

Jordan Howard CHI – Jeremy Langford will possibly miss multiple weeks with a high ankle injury. He was on the hot seat any way without the injury and we like Howard to take over this backfield. He will be the hottest pickup of Week 4. Expect to see people spend 40-60% of their FAAB on Howard.

Orleans Darkwa NYG – I predict the Giants resign Andre Williams after the Chargers dropped him this week. That will not help their void in the passing game. Darkwa will fill in as the lead back in New York until Rashad Jennings returns, but he is not the pass catching back that Jennings or Vereen is. Even after Rashad returns his pass catching ability will be hindered with a cast.

Bobby Rainey NYG – Bobby will likely get a big increase in snaps in this pass heavy offense and I like him to get most of the Vereen/Jennings pass targets for the upcoming weeks. He is a sneaky add in deeper 12+ team PPR leagues now.

Dwayne Washington DET – The hot pickup from last week got as many carries as Theo last week with (10). Hardly worth the 40-75% FAAB spend I saw him go for, but he did look the part. He will slowly begin to take over the early down work and I expect him to have a good game this week against the Bears.

Cameron Artis-Payne CAR – As expected Artis-Payne was the lead back in Carolina with Jonathon Stewart out. He out rushed Fozzy 12 carries to 5. The problem is the running back position in Carolina is not a great place to look for points. He is a plugin guy if you are desperate.

Wendell Smallwood PHI – Big shock Ryan Mathews left the game with an injury. Wendell looked pretty good as the lead back and out carried Kenjon Barner 17 to 8 after Mathews left the game. We drafted Wendell in the Pros vs. Joes back in July. Genius! Mathews should be ready to suit up following the week 4 bye, but I don’t believe he will stay healthy nor do I think it will prevent Smallwood from seeing the field. This is not an ideal situation to be in, but Smallwood might be the best available on your wire. The good news is this offense does look legit and he should get plenty of opportunities to be the guy in Philly, after all, they did draft him to be their guy.

Kenyan Drake MIA – Arian Foster is out again this Thursday and Drake looked to be the best of the backs left in Miami. He hit the hole a lot faster than Ajayi did but the problem is that they both were not very impressive at home versus an inept Cleveland defense. It looks like it is a total time share in Miami while Foster is out, but Drake is worth a bench stash in case he breaks out this Thursday night at Cincinnati. He was targeted in the pass game twice while Ajayi was not. They are also working Damien Williams into the passing game.

Kenneth Dixon BAL – It is clear that somebody will need to take over this backfield and Dixon is the most talented back here. He will be returning from a torn MCL at some point in October and should step into the #1 RB spot in Baltimore.

DeAndre Washington OAK – I saw Washington dropped a bunch of times in the leagues I am in. Murray found the end zone but only rushed the ball 10 times for 37 yards and 1 target in the pass game. DeAndre had 6 carries for 57 yards and also saw 1 target in Week 3. He is worth a speculative add as a bench stash and we will see if he continues to creep up on Latavius’ workload.

Watch List – Paul Perkins NYG, Shaun Draughn SF, Dion Lewis NE, Kenjon Barner PHI, Robert Turbin IND, Chris Johnson AZ, Alfred Morris DAL, Devontae Booker DEN, Kenneth Farrow SD, Dexter McCluster SD, Robb Kelley WAS

Wide Receiver

Adam Humphries TB – Well he has 25 targets in his first 3 weeks. He is developing some great chemistry with the budding star Jameis Winston. He hauled in 9 of his 12 targets this week for 100 yards and a TD. He is going to get consistent looks in this offense and there is nothing better than that. Add him in all formats this week.

Cole Beasley DAL– Cole leads the Dallas Cowboys with 25 targets through 3 weeks. He hauled in all 7 of his targets this week for a total of 73 yards. He has become a consistent safety valve for rookie QB Dak Prescott. That means Dak will continue to throw to him. He is a must add in PPR leagues.

Terrelle Pryor CLE – This guy had a game. He handled some snaps at QB while catching 8 of his 14 targets for 144 yards. He is the clear cut WR1 next week in Washington and we expect him to again see a ton of targets. He is worth adding as a WR4.

Jamison Crowder WAS – Crowder looked amazing in the game this week against the Giants. He is quick and has some great moves. The ball was spread around pretty good this week @NYG with DJax getting 8 targets and Crowder and Garcon getting 7 targets. Crowder is a play maker and should be added in all formats and all sizes of leagues. He is a star.

Watch List – Josh Doctson WAS, Dontrelle Inman SD, Rishard Matthews TEN, Kenny Britt LA, Quinton Patton SF, Robert Woods BUF, Nelson Agholor PHI, Chris Conley KC, Jeremy Kerley SF, Brandon LaFell CIN, Jermaine Kearse SEA, Adam Thielen MIN

Tight End

Hunter Henry SD – Hunter played great catching 5 of his targets for 76 yards until he fumbled on the game winning drive. Ugggh. Henry will be fine it was a rookie mishap and the Chargers will likely keep him rolling. As long as Gates is out Henry is a TE2, and a flex play in high stakes formats that give 1.5 PPR.

Kyle Rudolph MIN – This is the Rudolph we have all been looking for! It looks like Bradford trusts him. He has thrown the ball to Kyle 18 times since taking over this offense in week 2. Rudolph converted 8 of his 10 targets this week and looks like he has developed some rapport with Sam.

Cameron Brate TB – With ASJ out of the picture Brate becomes the official lead tight end in town. He probably was anyway, but they no longer have to give ASJ some of his targets. Cameron had 10 targets and 2 TDs this week. I expect Jameis to continue to look for him in the redzone.

Watch List –Ladarius Green PIT, Jesse James PIT, Trey Burton PHI, Ryan Griffin HOU, Jack Doyle IND

Week 3 Waiver Wire

Week 3 Waiver Wire Pickups

By Michael Visconti September 19th, 2016

We are only at the end of Week 2 and we already have a ton of injuries for fantasy relevant players. Adrian Peterson with a torn meniscus, Danny Woodhead and teammate Keenan Allen both with torn ACL’s, Arian Foster is hobbled with a groin injury, Jonathon Stewart is out for at least a week or two, Ameer Abdullah has a sprain in his foot, and Russell Wilson can’t run with a high ankle sprain. Jamal Charles and Sammy Watkins were never healthy to begin with. This is the NFL. That is what makes Draft Masters (Best Ball) formats so difficult and is also why the waiver wire is so important to win your league.

There will be plenty of owners that cut bait on guys that are starting off slow. It’s too early to give up on guys that you liked a month ago. Pay attention each week to whom is being dropped. Slow starts for Tyrod Taylor, John Brown, Tyler Lockette, Jay Ajayi and Derrick Henry are three names that come to mind. This is only the beginning, stay tuned for all of the hot pickups for your waiver wire run each week. Unless you do not want to win, if that’s the case then please ignore the remainder of this article.

Quarterbacks

Carson Wentz PHI – Carson has exceeded expectations thus far. I will note that he has played the Browns and Bears so far to start the season, but he faces the Steelers, Lions and Skins his next 3 games. He is an excellent spot start for example if you are looking for someone to play while Russell Wilson is getting healthy.

Marcus Mariota TEN – Mariota looked as though he is ready to take a step forward this year. He is showing confidence in his team. His newly found run-game support will help take some of the pressure off of him as well. He is not a weekly starter yet, but he could provide some upside as a streamer or an effective backup.

Ryan Tannehill MIA – Remember this kid was a top 10 ranked fantasy QB for the 2015 preseason. Then he had a hugely disappointing season. Here is to the possibility of better direction and righting the ship in 2016 under offensive minded Adam Gase. I will take him in a couple of leagues betting on the come.

Ryan Fitzpatrick NYJ – This offense is the real deal. There are so many weapons this year with the addition of Forte and Enunwa. I was not anticipating this offense to be this much greater than they were last year, but they are. In 2015 Fitzmagic was one of the most consistent QB’s week in and week out. I would bet that he will have the best season of his career in 2016.

Sam Bradford MIN – Stefon Diggs is a complete stud! The big storyline here IS Adrian Peterson going down with a knee injury. I believe this will actually increase Bradford’s value, that they will have 3-5 more pass attempts per game and McKinnon is good enough to keep the chains moving. Sam looked really good against divisional rivals the Green Bay Packers considering he only had two weeks to learn the offense. Ron Jaworski said Bradford is a professional QB and he played really well the last two years in dysfunctional offenses and he is a great fit for this system.

Watch List – Dak Prescott, Tony Romo, Carson Wentz, Alex Smith, Tyrod Taylor

Running Backs

Dwayne Washington DET – A very tricky foot injury to Ameer Abdullah opens the door for 7th round rookie to take some snaps. Theo Riddick will be the starting running back but Washington is a bigger more prototypical RB. He went 6 carries for 32 yards and a TD last week and if he continues to play well we like his chance of getting somewhere in the neighborhood of 12-15 carries.That is considering that Ameer’s injury keeps him out more than the projected 1-2 weeks, which is not so far-fetched considering a foot sprain can linger.

Fozzy Whitaker CAR – I am not a huge fan of Carolina RB’s because they rarely play outside of the 30 yard lines. Fozzy is also not the clear back while Stewart is down with an injury. Cameron Artis-Payne was a healthy scratch last week but that was because he does not play special teams. I would probably spend much less and take a flier on Artis-Payne rather than over spend for Fozzy. Great name though.

Kenneth Dixon BAL – It is clear that somebody will need to take over this backfield and Dixon is the most talented back here. He will be returning from a torn MCL at some point in October and should step into the #1 RB spot in Baltimore.

Shaun Draughn SF – We loved this guy in PPR formats as a startable flex in bye weeks from the get go with his receiving skills, but we love him if he is the lead back if Hyde suffers another injury. Hyde had another very unproductive week against a stingy Carolina defense, so we won’t over react, but I personally believe that Draugn will be the lead back one way or another in SF at some point this season.

Jerrick McKinnon MIN – McKinnon will be the hot pickup this week Well if you listened to my last podcast I was touting this guy. I also said a couple of episodes earlier that if he ever gets the fulltime opportunity he will produce, well he now has the opportunity. Let’s see what he can do.

Watch List – Dion Lewis NE, Shane Vereen NYG, Kenjon Barner PHI, Kenyan Drake MIA, Robert Turbin IND, Josh Ferguson IND, Matt Asiata MIN, Chris Johnson AZ, Alfred Morris DAL, Devontae Booker DEN, Kenneth Farrow SD, Andre Williams SD, Dexter McCluster SD, Ronnie Hillman MIN

Wide Receiver

Kenny Britt LA – It looks as though Kenny is carving out the WR1 role in Los Angeles. With the QB play there that might not be very exciting, but he did catch 6 balls for 94 yards on 10 targets against a good Seattle defense. I would rather have a WR1 on a bad team than a WR3 on a decent team any day.

Cole Beasley DAL– Cole has been targeted 18 times in his first two weeks. That’s on pace for 153 targets for the year and if he catches 70% of his targets (mostly shorter routes) he will have over 100 catches for the year. Now the extrapolation game doesn’t always work, but it is clear that Dak is looking for him. He is worth in add as a WR4.

Jamison Crowder WAS – Crowder might be the most talented WR on this team while he was being drafted as the 3rd Redskin wide receiver. He is a great fantasy WR3 in PPR formats. Look for him to catch around 80 passes this year in this offense and if DJax or Garcon get injured then that number could be low.

Quincy Enunwa NYJ – Enunwa proved that he is going to be a regular target despite being listed as the WR3 in this offense. He out targeted Marshall and Decker he is the 3rd wide out on the Jets behind Marshall and Decker, but when a WR catches 7 balls on 8 targets for 54 yards and a TD we pay attention.

Will Fuller HOU – I really don’t think he is still available in your league, but it’s time to pick him up in 8 and 10 team leagues also.

Tyrell Williams SD – I told you so. We looked him before the Keenan Allen injury. Grab him if he is still available.

Tyler Boyd CIN – Tyler went drafted in a ton of leagues, but he is worth a look in this offense. He caught 6 balls for 78 yards and should be a decent WR5 to own for the upcoming bye weeks.

Danny Amendola NE – While Chris Hogan was the sexy pick this offseason Amendola was again the forgotten man. Remember he was acquired as the Wes Welker replacement just a few seasons ago. If an injury occurs to Hogan or Edelman Amendola could be a top 15 fantasy wide out. Or he could be a spotty PPR WR4 as it is now. You could do worse in your flex spot in a 12 team PPR.

Watch List – Josh Doctson WAS, Dontrelle Inman SD, Quinton Patton SF, Robert Woods BUF, Nelson Agholor PHI, Chris Conley KC, Jeremy Kerley SF, Brandon LaFell CIN, Jermaine Kearse SEA

Tight End

Hunter Henry SD – Hunter is going to be on the field more now that Keenan and now Woodhead are on the IR, but he will not be a fantasy value unless Gates gets hurt which is likely to happen at some point this year. We do not usually fall for rookie tight ends, but they really like this kid in San Diego and so do we.

Dennis Pitta BAL – Pitta the fool! It’s like an old buddy came back to say hi. So pleased to see that Dennis is performing. Flacco always loved his tight end target and if he manages to stay healthy this year he will put up a number of big games. 9 catches for 102 yards on 12 targets. I am nervous that a lot of people will spend a ton of money adding him in high stakes formats only do be gone by week 4. Keep his injury risk in perspective when bidding on him.

Clive Walford OAK – He was definitely drafted in high stakes formats but he is available in most 12-team PPR leagues and is worth a speculative add as a TE #2, especially if you own Barnidge.

Watch List –Ladarius Green PIT, Jesse James PIT, Trey Burton PHI, Will Tye NYG

Week 2 Waiver Wire Pickups

Week 2 Waiver Wire Pickups

By Michael Visconti September 13th, 2016

There is so much to factor in when picking up and dropping certain players. Our projections will give you a good semblance of what players to drop for which of these names to pick up. Not all of these guys will be available in your league; in fact, most were drafted in high-stakes (12 team 20 rounds) formats. Still most of our home leagues will have these guys available. It is a great idea to refer to our weekly projections to decide if you should be replacing a guy on your roster with any of these names.

If you need to back up an injury then these are your guys, but be sure that the player you are dropping is not stuck in the “week one overreaction” fad. As for how to use your Free Agent Auction Budget dollars a good rule of thumb is to keep each of these pickups under 20% of your total FAAB. Now of course the depth of your league dictates the amount you’ll spend. There is another thought process that early in the year the potential stars fall through the draft cracks and that you won’t get a better value than when you do in the beginning of the year. It doesn’t always work. I have seen guys blow their entire annual FAAB on a big Week 1 or an injury only to not hold the job. Be smart. Spread your cash out you’ll need it during bye weeks.

Remember DO NOT overreact to what you saw this weekend; it is only week 1.

Quarterbacks

Marcus Mariota TEN – Mariota looked as though he is ready to take a step forward this year. He is showing confidence in his team. His newly found run-game support will help take some of the pressure off of him as well. He is not a weekly starter yet, but he could provide some upside as a streamer or an effective backup.

Ryan Fitzpatrick NYJ – Fitzmagic was one of the most consistent QB’s last season week in and week out. He will continue to find his stride this season as Matt Forte adds a new dynamic to this offense. Marshall, Decker, Enunwa, and Forte are some real nice weapons for him to average a 250 yard 2 TD stat line for a complete season. Great streaming and backup option.

Alex Smith KC – We are a fan of him this year. These are arguably the best options that Alex has ever had under center. Travis Kelce, Chris Conley and Jeremy Maclin provide a spark to this offense. Alex had 14 targets going to West and Ware. While we do not expect every team to play defense like the SD Chargers we are anyticipating Alex Smith’s best statistical year in 2016.

Watch List – Dak Prescott, Carson Wentz, Josh McCown, Jay Cutler

Running Backs

Spencer Ware KC – Even when Charles comes back healthy Ware will make an impact. Andy Reid has never been much of an RBBC guy but his talent is undeniable. His strength, vision and hands looked incredible on Sunday. Grab him if he’s available.

Tevin Coleman ATL – Tampa Bay is really good against the run which is why we will not overreact to Devonta Freeman’s horribly slow start, but if this trend continues we could see Tevin take the reins. For now, this is a total time share but that could change.

Kenneth Dixon BAL – It is clear that somebody will need to take over this backfield and Dixon is the most talented back here. He will be returning from a torn MCL at some point in October and should step into the #1 RB spot in Baltimore.

Shaun Draughn SF – We loved this guy in PPR formats as a startable flex in bye weeks from the get go with his receiving skills, but we love him if he is the lead back if Hyde suffers another injury.

Watch List – Justin Forsett, Travaris Cadet, Shane Vereen, Kenjon Barner Damien Williams, Robert Turbin

Wide Receiver

Cole Beasley DAL– Dak looked for Cole a lot in his first game on Sunday as he had a really good control of the offense despite a weak stat line and a loss there was quite a few bright spots for him. One of which was his comfortability with slot receiver Cole who caught 8 of his 12 targets.

Will Fuller HOU – Star in the making. This offense is changing before our eyes. I would be nervous of how many targets Will is going to get with DeAndre in town, but Fuller is the most talented WR of this group.

Tajae Sharpe TEN – Tajae looked the part this last Sunday as he was Mariota’s favorite target. Tajae managed to haul in 7 catches for 76 yards. Great debut!

Jamison Crowder WAS – Crowder is a PPR dynamo. We can’t understand why we got him in the 18th round of the FFPC this last week. He is going to be great this year. Look for him to catch around 80 passes this year in this offense and if DJax or Garcon get injured then that number could be low.

Quincy Enunwa NYJ – Deep league only option as he is the 3rd wide out on the Jets behind Marshall and Decker, but when a WR catches 7 balls on 8 targets for 54 yards and a TD we pay attention.

Tyrell Williams SD – A whole lot of targets just became available in San Diego with the season ending injury to Keenan Allen. Sad, really, we may never get to see what Keenan could really do. Williams giant frame seems like the perfect fit for those deep balls from Rivers as they will be trailing in many contests.

Eli Rogers PIT – Drafted in most leagues but listed just in case. This kid is the real deal, grab him if he’s there. He’s Big Ben’s #2 target.

Watch List – Dontrelle Inman, Quinton Patton, Robert Woods, Nelson Agholor, Chris Conley, Jeremy Kerley, Kenny Britt

Tight End

Austin Seferian-Jenkins TB – He is on the watch list simply because he saw the field. There are not many players with his ability, and if he manages to get his head right and attitude adjusted then his ability will show. That is something Coach Dirk Koetter will not be able to deny.

Hunter Henry SD – Hunter is going to be on the field more now that Keenan is on the IR, but he will not be a fantasy value unless Gates gets hurt which is likely to happen at some point this year. We do not usually fall for rookie tight ends, but they really like this kid in San Diego and so do we.

Watch List – Dennis Pitta, Jack Doyle, Jermaine Gresham, Jacob Tamme