Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 2
There were a lot of injuries in Week 1. Courtland Sutton, Miles Sanders, Deebo Samuel, and Kenny Golladay didn't suit up Week 1 and are likely to miss Week 2. Marlon Mack, Blake Jarwin are out for the season. Le'Veon Bell, James Conner, George Kittle, Michael Thomas, and Phillip Lindsay are all likely out for at least a week.
If you're looking to pick someone up off the Waiver Wire, take a look at the list below. All these players are available in at least 50% of ESPN leagues.
QB:
Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals, 47.9% owned
The rookie looked pretty good in his first game, 193 yards, 1 TD, 63.9% completion percentage. He also had 46 rushing yards, including a 23 yard TD run. In his second game, he takes on the Cleveland Browns, whose defense looked awful in Week 1.
Teddy Bridgewater, Carolina Panthers, 15.5%
In his first game with the Panthers, Teddy Bridgewater looked impressive, throwing for 270 yards, 1 TD, completed 64.7% of his passes and added 26 rushing yards against the Las Vegas Raiders. Now he takes on the Tampa Bay defense that gave up 239 and 2TDs to Tom Brady, although they picked him off twice.
Ryan Tannehill, Tennessee Titans, 32.6%
In the high altitude of Denver's stadium, Tannehill threw for 249 yards and 2 TDs. He spread the ball around, completing passes to 8 different receivers and added 14 rushing yards. Now, he gets to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars defense that lost most of their starters this offseason.
RB:
Nyheim Hines, Indianapolis Colts, 36.7%
Marlon Mack is out for the season with a torn achilles. That helps to clear up this backfield. Jonathan Taylor should control the rushing downs and Hines will control the passing downs and 2 minute drills. In week 1, Hines had 73 total yards and 2 TDs with 8 receptions. Phillip Rivers showed that he likes to check down to his RBs, like he did with the Chargers. Hines has a solid floor with high upside. He plays a Minnesota defense in Week 2 that didn't play well against the Packers last week.
James Robinson, Jacksonville Jaguars, 29.1%
Robinson proved himself to be the RB1 in this offense. He rushed for 62 yards on 16 carries (3.9 yards per carry). He was the only RB with a rushing attempt. QB Gardner Minshew rushed 5 times for 19 yards and WR Laviska Shenault Jr. rushed twice for 10 yards. He also showed he could do well in the passing game, catching his lone reception for 28 yards.
Benny Snell Jr., Pittsburgh Steelers, 14.6%
James Conner sprained an ankle in week 1 against the Giants. Benny Snell Jr. came in and performed very well, rushing for 113 yards on 19 carries (5.9 yards per carry). James Conner is doubtful for week 2, so Benny Snell would become a must start.
Malcolm Brown, Los Angeles Rams, 7.9%
Malcolm Brown looked good in the first game of the season, rushing for 79 yards and 2 TDs, and adding 31 receiving yards on 3 receptions. Malcolm had 2 goal line touchdowns, which shows us he's the goal line back in this offense. His value is shooting up as he showed himself to be the best back in the Rams backfield.
WR:
Jalen Reagor, Philadelphia Eagles, 28.5%
Jalen missed most of the past month with a shoulder injury but he played in week 1 and played well in his first NFL game. He had 1 reception for 55 yards, showing his speed and separation skills. He will be healthier in week 2, and another week of practice will better prepare him as they take on the Rams.
Sammy Watkins, Kansas City Chiefs, 49.9%
Tyreek Hill is clearly the #1 WR in the Chiefs offense, but the #2 spot was still up in the air going into week 1. Watkins showed he had the #2 WR spot locked up in the first game of the season. He led the team with 9 targets, which led to 7 receptions, 82 yards and a TD. The other players competing for the #2 spot had disappointing games. Demarcus Robinson had 3 receptions and 20 yards, and had a really bad drop in the end zone, and Mecole Hardman had 1 catch for 6 yards.
Laviska Shenault Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars, 7.7%
The rookie Shenault showed why he had a lot of hype surrounding him. He had 3 receptions, 37 yards and a touchdown. He also showed his versatility, rushing twice for 10 yards. As the playbook continues to open for him, he should blossom and take full control of the #2 WR job in Jacksonville.
Anthony Miller, Chicago Bears, 37.9%
A lot of people really liked Anthony Miller coming into the season. I was skeptical mostly because of the Quarterback situation. Mitchell Trubisky won the job and struggled for 3 quarters before throwing for 3 touchdowns in the 4th quarter, one of which went to Miller. He and Allen Robinson will control most of the targets for the Bears.
Mike Williams, Los Angeles Chargers, 49.2%
Mike Williams showed his toughness playing in week 1. He was listed as doubtful and some people thought he would miss up to a month. But he played and had a big impact on the game for the Chargers. He had 4 receptions for 69 yards. New quarterback Tyrod Taylor likes the large receiver on the outside, he should continue to get a good number of targets (he had 9 in week 1).
TE:
Jonnu Smith, Tennessee Titans, 22.1%
Jonnu finished week 1 with 4 receptions for 36 yards and a TD. He had a TD or bust game for fantasy in week 1, but he should get more work in the passing game going forward. The Jaguars linebackers should struggle to cover Jonnu, they gave up 69 receiving yards to the two Colts Tight Ends.
Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles, 27.2%
Goedert has shown once again he's a solid fantasy option even though he's the #2 Tight End on his team. He had 8 receptions for 101 yards and 1 TD in week 1 against the Redskins. The Eagles play the Rams in week 2, they'll have to put up points to keep up with the Rams offense. Goedert should have an excellent week 2.
O.J. Howard, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 4.9%
During training camp, several people around the Bucs quietly hyped up O.J. Howard, even with the arrival of Rob Gronkowski. He had 4 receptions for 36 yards and 1 touchdown on 6 targets. He had twice as many targets and receptions as Gronk. He had a red zone touchdown, which is where his value is the highest. Tom Brady loves throwing to his tight ends over the middle. I anticipate their connection will get better throughout the season.
