Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 4

We have watched three weeks pass and already crazy things are happening in football. The Eagles and Broncos are 3-0 with rookie quarterbacks while the Patriots are 3-0 without Tom Brady. Marvin Jones is the new Calvin Johnson and apparently Terrelle Pryor can play every position for the Browns.

No one said it was an easy sport to predict – oh, wait a minute. Didn’t you say your team was “beast” after your draft? Look at you now, reading a waiver wire article because you are so lost and confused with everything that has happened. It’s alright, I wont judge. Here are some waiver picks that should help you...I think...who am I kidding, it’s all so confusing!

Teams on a bye

Eagles, Packers

QB

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1. Carson Wentz (20% owned)

He has a bye in week four so you can’t use him then, but Wentz has been excellent at protecting the ball and has yet to throw a pick. His past game against the Steelers was his most impressive, throwing for two touchdowns and 301 yards. He and Darren Sproles combined to improv an incredible play where Wentz was flushed to the right and threw his pass on the run. He has shown the poise of a veteran in the pocket and has led this team to a 3-0 record with some help from the defense. He can only benefit from the extra time off to add more plays in the playbook to his repertoire.

2. Dak Prescott (44% owned)

Prescott looked great (albeit, against the Bears)in his week three match up. He was firing passes while also picking up yards on the ground. He threw his first touchdown pass to Dez Bryant and completed an impressive 19 of his 24 passes for 248 yards. He also ran a QB sneak into the end zone for his second rushing touchdown on the year. He’s a great option if you’ve got Aaron Rodgers and need a bye week fill in for week four.

3. Trevor Siemien (6% owned)

Siemien took a huge step forward as he torched the Bengals defense for four touchdowns on 312 yards and no interceptions. He had no problem throwing the deep pass and gets the Buccaneer defense in week four. Keep in mind, the Bucs are more suited to stop the run and have given up at least two touchdown passes to each of the quarterbacks they have faced, including Case Keenum last week.

RB

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1. Jordan Howard (24% owned)

Before the injury to Jeremy Langford, Howard was already getting increased playing time. Now, since Langford was carted off the field, Howard should be the most added RB in week four, especially when you consider his juicy match-up against the Lions, who give up a league leading 5.1 yards per carry. Howard has looked better than Langford, even as a backup, so he has a good chance to run away with the starting job.

2. Darren Sproles (39% owned)

If you can afford to wait a week, Sproles is worth the add in PPR leagues. With the injury to Ryan Mathews, Wendell Smallwood took over as the rushing back with 17 attempts compared to the two attempts Sproles had. What Sproles did do was lead the team in receptions and yards and should continue to be used in this confusing yet valuable Eagles running back situation.

3. Kenneth Dixon (12 %owned)

The Baltimore running back job is his for the taking, and he looked like the teams best RB in preseason before his injury. Both Justin Forsett and Terrance West have performed poorly, despite each of them having different roles. Dixon is expected to be back in week four but it will be hard to trust him to start in his first game back. His week five match-up against the Redskins is what fantasy owners should really be targeting.

Avoid:

New York Giants

The running back position for the Giants is one of the most unclear fantasy positions at the moment. Shane Vereen is now out for the season making Bobby Rainey the likely pass-catching back. Rashad Jennings is still recovering from a thumb injury that kept him out in week three, but there is a good chance he plays in week four. If not, Orleans Darkwa is the likely candidate to get most of the carries, but are you really starting him against the Vikings defense, who are giving up the least amount of rushing yards per game? Because you shouldn’t.

WR

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1. Terrelle Pryor (22% owned)

If you missed the Browns and Dolphins game, you didn’t get to see all the ways in which the Browns used Pryor. For most of the game he played the wide receiver position, but he also took over as quarterback for a few plays throughout the game. As the signal caller, he made three completions for 35 yards while also rushing for 21 yards and a touchdown. Most of his work came from the wide receiver position, where he caught eight passes for 144 yards. If the Browns will continue to use him as a weapon at multiple positions, Pryor will have relevance. If you don’t play in a two QB league, this is as close as you can get to having two quarterbacks in your lineup. When Josh Gordon comes back in week 5, the argument can be made that it will take a hit to Pryor’s value, but you can also say it will help him, so Pryor is worth the add.

2. Jamison Crowder (16% owned)

5’9” receivers aren’t the easiest to trust, but lets face it, the receiver position isn’t just for the big guys. Antonio Brown is 5’10” and is the most valued receiver in fantasy. Crowder’s role in the Redskins offense is expanding as he is tied with DeSean Jackson and Jordan Reed for team targets with 24. His two touchdowns are the most for any receiver on the team, and that includes the tight end red zone target in Reed. He holds more value in PPR leagues, but if he is going to continue to find the end zone like he has for the past two weeks, then he is worth an add in all formats.

Deeper Add

Adam Humphries (1% owned)

Who? Adam Humphries has been Tampa Bay’s second best receiver this season behind Mike Evans. He has yet to score a touchdown on the season, but his targets over the last two weeks have increased - although he really benefited from the team falling behind in his last game. Regardless, with the team behind, you would have thought those targets would have went to Vincent Jackson, but he only got six targets to Humphries 12. If you think Jameis Winston is going to continue passing a lot, then you should be looking to add Humphries and drop Jackson if you have him. Jackson hasn’t been a fantasy factor for a long time now and Humphries presents an opportunity to drop him.

TE

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1. Kyle Rudolph (42% owned)

He has caught a touchdown pass in each of the past two games with Bradford as the quarterback. He is tied with Stefon Diggs for the team lead in targets. His week four match-up against the New York Giants will be a tough one as the G-Men haven’t allowed a passing touchdown to the main tight end option on the three teams they’ve faced, but they have given up seven or more targets in every game. Rudolph should be a good tight end option for the rest of the season moving forward.

2. Jack Doyle (10% owned)

He was targeted more than Dwayne Allen in week three and has the ninth most targets among tight ends. It appears week one was not a fluke and he will be used in this pass-heavy offense. At 6’6”, he is an obvious red zone target, despite not catching a touchdown pass in the last two games.

3. Hunter Henry (6% owned)

The word on Antonio Gates is that he will likely miss another game because of his hamstring. Henry caught all five of his targets for 76 yards but was unable to find the end zone in place of Gates. His critical fumble on one of the last Chargers drives hurts his stock a bit, but the team needs passing options with all the injuries they have suffered on offense. Their next game SHOULD be a high scoring one against New Orleans. A few other things to note about Henry is that he is a rookie coming off a spectacular junior year of college in which he won the John Mackey award as the nations top tight end.

4. Zach Miller (40% owned)

When Jay Cutler was passing the rock in the first two games, Miller totaled 7 receptions on 47 yards. Then Brian Hoyer is named the QB after Cutler sprains his thumb and Miller goes off. He caught eight of his nine targets for two touchdowns and 78 yards. If Cutler starts in week four, it will be hard to trust Miller to repeat his performance with Hoyer. Cutler is currently doubtful to start against the Lions.

Avoid

Richard Rogers (5% owned)

I’ve seen his name pop up in other waiver wire pieces but it doesn’t make sense to add him with the bye week coming up. On top of that, the Packers aren’t sure if Jared Cook’s injury is a multi week injury. What we do know is that it’s not a season ending injury and the tight end position has never really been a factor in the Green Bay offense anyway.

DEF

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1. Washington Redskins (7% owned)

The Redskins haven’t been the greatest defense for fantasy purposes through the first three weeks, but they haven’t been so bad either. Yes, they did wet the bed against the Steelers in week 1, but over the last two games against the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants, the defense has combined for six sacks and four turnovers. They get the Cleveland Browns in week four.

2. Oakland Raiders (48% owned)

The Raiders had a couple poor match-ups in the first two weeks against the Saints and Falcons, but they were able to hold Tennessee to 10 points while collecting one sack on two interceptions. They get to face Joe Flacco, who didn’t throw a touchdown pass in his last game against the Jags, in week four.

3. Buffalo Bills (38% owned)

This one isn’t the easiest recommendation as Bill Belichick proves time and time again that it doesn’t matter who starts at the quarterback position. Without Tom Brady, the Patriots have scored over 21 offensive points in all three games. Their is a good chance Julian Edelman will be starting at quarterback, a position he played in College. The Bills are coming off a terrific game against a Cardinals offense that’s filled with weapons. They managed to pick off Carson Palmer four times. It seems like a big risk with how well the 3-0 Patriots have managed without Brady, but the risk could be worth it with all the other mediocre defenses on the waiver wire.