NFL Waiver Wire: Week 3 Pickups

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Published on September 17, 2019

Week 2 is in the books and a lot of players mentioned last week came crashing back to earth with more "normal" performances. There were some big injuries at quarterback (Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger) and some other key players went down as well. Let's look at who's worth taking a shot at this week.

QUARTERBACK

Primary Targets

Mason Rudolph, PIT - Ben Roethlisberger is scheduled for season-ending elbow surgery, leaving Rudolph as the signal caller for the rest of the season. Rudolph has all the physical tools (6-foot-5, 235) and has some good weapons at his disposal. He connected with Vance McDonald for two touchdowns Sunday and is familiar with James Washington after playing collegiate ball with him at Oklahoma State. JuJu Smith-Schuster will still make big plays this season and the backfield should be fine with Jaylen Samuels if James Conner misses any time. Bump up Rudolph in two-QB/super-flex leagues. FAAB: $5-$10, $20+ in the aforementioned leagues or if you're a Ben/Brees owner

Secondary Targets

Teddy Bridgewater, NO - Drew Brees is expected to miss at least six weeks with a thumb injury, and with a Week 9 bye for the Saints, it would make sense to bring him back after that break. Bridgewater will get first crack at the starting job, but there's a good chance we could see more Taysom Hill, eating into Bridgewater's playing time. This is one of the better offenses in football, and getting a week to work with

QUARTERBACK

Primary Targets

Secondary Targets

Daniel Jones, NYG - Whispers for Jones to take over as the starting quarterback are getting louder and the Giants might make that switch as soon as this week. Jones surprised in preseason, looking much better than most thought when the Giants drafted him sixth overall this year. He likely won't save the Giants season, but expecting him to perform better than Eli isn't a tall bar to clear. FAAB: $3-$6

Hail Mary

Trevor Siemian, NYJ - Sam Darnold is expected to miss at least three games while he recovers from Mono. Three games is the lower end of the timetable for his return but it's unlikely Siemian will provide much fantasy value while he's out. The Jets play the Patriots (twice), Cowboys and Eagles over their next four games, all of which boast very good defenses.

So that was the blurb I wrote before Siemian got hurt in the Monday night game. Let's try this again:

Luke Falk, NYJ - Look, he's been cut from a couple teams and doesn't have a ton of arm strength, according to scouting reports. I don't think I'd use him in two-quarterback or even super-flex leagues over a running back or tight end. Still, he could surprise, and he'll now have time to work with the first stringers even though that seemed impossible two weeks ago. FAAB: $1-$2

RUNNING BACK

Primary Targets

Jaylen Samuels, PIT - James Conner injured his knee late in the Steelers home loss Sunday to the Seahawks, and it remains to be seen if he'll miss this week and potentially more games. If he were to miss an extended time Samuels would benefit the most. He filled in as a capable starter when Conner missed time last season. Samuels can be used in passing situations as well, and in limited time on the field this season has already lined up in the slot seven times despite playing only 21 plays. Rookie Benny Snell is worth a mention as well as he'll see an uptick in touches and become the de facto backup if Conner is out. Conner said Monday he thinks he can play this week, but let's see what the medical staff has to say as the week goes on, and whether he gets starter's snaps in practice. FAAB: $10-$15 (adjust accordingly once we know how much/if time Conner will miss); Snell, $1-$2

Raheem Mostert, SF - It's kind of hard to read the tea leaves with Tevin Coleman out, considering three San Francisco running backs made a fantasy impact Sunday. Mostert, Matt Breida and Jeff Wilson each had double-digit carries with Wilson finding the end zone twice. It's tough to ascertain if the run-heavy approach was a result of playing with a big lead in the second half, and it's uncertain how the touches would be divided if the game had been closer. Coleman is considered week-to-week and could be back as soon as this week. Even if that's the case it would appear Mostert has done enough to have some type of role in the RBBC, getting something like 8-10 touches per week. FAAB: $10-$15

Secondary Targets

Frank Gore, BUF - A hamstring injury forced Devin Singletary from Sunday's game, leaving Frank Gore to handle the bulk of the workload for the Bills. He finished the day with 19 carries for 68 yards and a score and added two catches for 15 yards. It's unknown how much time, if any, Singletary will miss, and in his absence T.J. Yeldon will get more work especially on passing downs. Despite averaging less than three yards a carry, look for Gore to continue to start and handle most of the early down work. FAAB: $4-$8

Hail Mary

Darwin Thompson, KC - Both Damien Williams (knee) and LeSean McCoy (ankle) are banged up, and if either injury is severe it would open the door for Thompson to become a bigger part of the offense. Kansas City has arguably the best offense in football and it's reasonable to think Thompson would inherit the 10-15 touches either Williams or McCoy would leave behind if either missed time. FAAB: $2-$4

WIDE RECEIVER

Primary Targets

Nelson Agholor, PHI - Agholor was thrust into the No.1 wide receiver role early in Sunday night's game after both Alshon Jeffery (calf) and DeSean Jackson (groin) left due to injury. While neither injury sounded too serious, it's unknown if and how much time they'll miss. Agholor finished the game with a 11-8-107-1 line and is easily the go-to wide receiver while the other two are out. Note that the absence of the wide receivers set Zach Ertz up for a whopping 16 targets. Mack Hollins should be on the radar in deeper formats. FAAB: $5-$10, bump it up if his teammates will be out

Demarcus Robinson, Mecole Hardman, KC - Both are repeat players after getting mentioned last week. However, both are still less than 50 percent owned, which won't be the case by this weekend. Robinson had a monster game with Tyreek Hill out, finishing the week as the highest-scoring wide receiver with a 6-6-172-2 line. While the Chiefs offense seems to be clicking just fine without Hill, it'll be tough to predict on a weekly basis which player will go off. Sammy Watkins (13-6-49) had something of a dud game after going nuts Week 1, and Mecole Hardman had the same number of targets (6) as Robinson. This shows that Watkins is probably the best play given the number of targets, and it'll be a coin toss between Hardman and Robinson to see which has a game worthy of No. 2 wide receiver value until Hill returns. Hardman, who had a second long touchdown called back Sunday, is still the preferred option between him and Robinson. FAAB: Robinson $4-$8; Hardman $5-$10

Secondary Targets

James Washington, PIT - As mentioned, Washington and Mason Rudolph appear to have a good rapport together and have put up some big numbers when working together during preseason games. While this success has yet to carry over into the regular season, changing to Rudolph at quarterback could help Washington's on-field production. FAAB: $2-$4

TIGHT END

Secondary Targets

Will Dissly, SEA - Dissly had a big game in Cincinnati, finishing with five catches for 50 yards and two touchdowns for the fourth-highest scoring player at the position Week 2. While it was encouraging to see this production it's worth noting he had a 2-1-12 line Week 1 while battling a knee injury. Dissly is supposedly healthy and with DK Metcalf on the outside and Tyler Lockett stretching the field he should have plenty of room to work over the middle of the field. FAAB: $3-$6