Top fantasy football waiver wire adds for Week 2

Death, taxes and never knowing what in the blue moon you’re going to get in the first week of football.

Washington gave the Eagles a game, the Titans romped the Browns, the Cardinals and Lions tied (barf), the Seahawks beat the Bengals by one point and Lamar Jackson set the world on fire. Well, that last one you should’ve known was gonna happen, I’ve only been spending the entire offseason yelling about it.

Now comes the yearly tradition of wildly overreacting about our fantasy teams and doing everything in our power to completely remake them with players on the waiver wire. And I am here to help with that. Instead of just grabbing whomever you can, here are 10 players you should be targeting and working hard to get onto your fantasy team (percent owned in Yahoo leagues).

QB Gardner Minshew, Jacksonville Jaguars (0% owned)

Nick Foles left Sunday’s game against the Chiefs early with a broken clavicle and will certainly miss extended time. Enter the glorious mustache of Gardner Minshew. Minshew went 22 of 25 for 275 yards with two touchdowns and a pick in place of Foles and looked good throwing the football. I wouldn’t expect Minshew to suddenly become a starting caliber fantasy quarterback, but he’s not a bad guy to stash on your roster given how good he looked in his debut. (Also, go add DJ Chark—only 2% owned—who had a few big plays with Minshew under center.)

RB Chris Thompson, Washington (12% owned)

Thompson led Washington in targets (10) and was second in receiving yards and carries against the Eagles Sunday. He became heavily involved in the offense once Philly took command of the game, which is a good sign for fantasy owners since Washington will likely always be down in games. With an offense that’ll constantly be trying to throw their way back into games, Thompson has a ton of fantasy value moving forward.

RB Malcolm Brown, Los Angeles Rams (11% owned)

After being told all summer that the Rams’ backfield would be operating as a committee, we got exactly that Sunday. Todd Gurley finished with 15 touches for 101 yards while Brown had 11 carries for 53 yards but a very important two touchdowns. While Gurley looked better in the second half of the game, I would expect Brown to have a solid role throughout the season as Sean McVay continues to keep Gurley’s knees healthy.

WR John Brown, Buffalo Bills (49% owned)

Remember when John Brown was on the Ravens and he and Joe Flacco were vibing and he was just racking up all the fantasy stats? Get ready for Vibing Fantasy Stats Pt. II as Brown showed off his connection with Josh Allen, leading the team in targets (10), receptions (7), yards (123) and touchdowns (1) against the Jets. He basically was the Bills offense and helped propel them to a come from behind win Sunday. In two weeks Brown could cement himself as Allen’s number one target and now is the time to add him before it’s too late.

WR Jamison Crowder, New York Jets (46% owned)

There was a lot of talk this offseason about how Crowder was showing himself to be Sam Darnold’s favorite target in practice. Well, we saw that on full display Sunday as he finished the game with 14 catches for 99 yards on a whopping 17 targets. Will that target rate keep up through the season? I don’t know, but I’m not going to wait and miss out on a potential 100 catch guy to find out.

WR Marquise Brown, Baltimore Ravens (31% owned)

WHAT DID I SAY?! I said target Marquise Brown wherever you can because he was drafted to be the number one receiver in Baltimore and you could get him basically free. I hope you listened because if you didn’t you’re now competing with all your league mates to try and get him. Brown caught four balls for 147 yards and two touchdowns in the Ravens rout of the Dolphins. If there’s one guy to spend all your FAAB to get on this list, it’s Brown. I mean, need I say more?

WR Mecole Hardman, Kansas City Chiefs (15% owned)

Sadly, there’s no hope of getting Sammy Watkins and his three touchdowns onto your fantasy team (91% owned in Yahoo) but I can offer you the next best thing. With Tyreek Hill set to miss a couple of weeks, you can bet this will mean an increased role for the rookie speedster Hardman. Added bonus, the Chiefs play the Raiders in Week 2, so you’re going to want to play every Chiefs player you can next week.

WR John Ross, Cincinnati Bengals (9% owned)

At first I wasn’t going to include John Ross here because I saw his two big plays and thought to myself “Yea ok great, but we’ve seen this before and what’s really come of it”. But this time is different because it wasn’t as though Ross was just targeted for those big shot plays. Ross finished the game with seven catches on 12 targets (to go with 158 yards and two touchdowns)! Hopefully that’s an indicator that a heavy workload is coming his way with A.J. Green out and we can start to see the first round receiver I’m sure the Bengals want him to be.

WR Danny Amendola, Detroit Lions (5% owned)

If you play in a PPR league, you should certainly be adding Amendola. He finished Sunday with seven receptions on 13 targets but more than just stats, Matthew Stafford was looking Amendola’s way throughout the game, with plenty of plays designed just for him. It seems he’ll be a big part of the Lions offense this year and could develop into a safety blanket for Stafford.

TE T.J. Hockenson, Detroit Lions (51% owned)

If you are lucky enough to be in a league where Hockenson is available, you need to do everything possible to get him on your roster. Hockenson started his rookie campaign with a bang, recording 131 yards and a touchdown on six catches. His yardage was the most ever by a rookie tight end in their first NFL game. He looked like the real deal against the Cardinals and I would fully expect him to continue to be a focal point of the Lions offense. Don’t forget, Matt Patrica knows a thing or two about game changing tight ends and how to maximize their talents.