Here we are again.
Back on the waiver wire hoping to pick up a player that will help you win a game, but that is just it. We want these players to stay on our team and making a lasting impact because injuries and bye weeks are eliminating our bench players one-by-one.
There is hope on the waiver wire, you must decide who has the best matchup. Well, look no further.
Players to add this week
QB Teddy Bridgewater – Carolina Panthers: Bridgewater has looked good this year and he is trending up as he continues to get more confidence in the Panthers offense. He also happens to have the best matchup in week eight against the Atlanta Falcons as they are ranked last in passing defense in the NFL. Week nine is when Bridgewater faces a tough matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs in Kansas City, Mo. With Christian McCaffrey back at practice, Bridgewater has a chance to make the Chiefs game a shootout due to McCaffrey’s ability to make plays in the running and passing game. If you are streaming quarterbacks from week-to-week, give Bridgewater a look.
QB Justin Herbert – Los Angeles Chargers: Herbert just put up the fourth-most points by a rookie quarterback, putting up 38.5 points. Yes, it happened against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but Herbert has thrown for more than 260 yards in each game this year. He has 12 passing touchdowns, and he has only thrown three interceptions. Herbert has multiple favorable matchups in a row with the Denver Broncos and the Las Vegas Raiders. The Broncos have the 22 ranked passing defense and the Raiders are ranked 29. Grab Herbert before someone else does.
RB Leonard Fournette – Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Buccaneers have nearly as talented an offense in their skill positions as the Kansas City Chiefs especially with the addition of Antonio Brown if he can look like he has in the past. Fournette is dealing with a running-back by committee, but his performance against the Las Vegas Raiders should continue. He scored 15.7 points, rushing for 50 yards adding 47 receiving yards. The Buccaneers have one team on their schedule ranked in the top 10 in rushing defense. If his workload continues, he will be fantasy relevant, and if you don’t trust it this week, stash him on your bench.
RB JaMycal Hasty – San Fransisco 49ers: The 49ers backfield has two players on Injured Reserve, leaving Hasty and Jerick McKinnon. The star of the 49er’s backfield suffered a high-ankle sprain which is going to land him on IR. McKinnon rushed for negative one yards against the Patriots compared to Hasty’s 57 rushing yards. Hasty can take over the 49er’s backfield and he will get the chance with a divisional showdown against the Seattle Seahawks in week eight and the Green Bay Packers in week nine. If you need running back help, Hasty can fill whatever role you need.
WR Cole Beasley – Buffalo Bills: Beasley saw 11 targets against the New York Jets, and it is unlikely he sees that number again against the New England Patriots. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t add value to your lineup. All four Bills tight ends were sent home last week due to a positive COVID test and fellow wide receiver John Brown hasn’t played in three weeks. Beasley’s opportunity is at an all-time high and shootouts loom in the Bills future with the Patriots and Seahawks up in the next two weeks. Then they travel to play the Arizona Cardinals in another potential shootout. Beasley has tremendous value right now and if you need wide receiver two or flex help, Beasley can slide into one of those spots.
WR Tee Higgins – Cincinnati Bengals: If Higgins is available in your league, pick him up immediately. His chemistry with Joe Burrow is picking up with each week and he has only put up one single-digit performance and that was in week two. In his past two weeks, he has put up 18 fantasy points and he registered 21 points in week three. Higgins adds value to your team whether he is a stash on your bench, in your lineup or offered in a trade. He is a must-add.
TE Jimmy Graham – Chicago Bears: If you need tight end help, Graham can serve as a replacement for a week or two in your lineup. He has scored eight points in his last two matchups, but he has two beneficial matchups on deck in the next two weeks. The Bears play the New Orleans Saints and the Tennesse Titans in the next two weeks and both squads are ranked 25 or worse against tight ends in fantasy. The Bears have only played one team with those kinds of rankings, and Graham scored 24 points in that contest. Keep Graham on your watch list as he has beneficial matchups for the next two weeks.
TE David Njoku and Harrison Bryant – Cleveland Browns: Both tight ends are most likely available in your league. Fellow tight end Austin Hooper’s emergency appendectomy sidelined him last week and he is most likely going to the game against the Raiders before the bye week. Odell Beckham Jr.’s injury opens the door for more tight end production, and both Bryant and Njoku caught a touchdown against the Bengals. Hooper won’t be sidelined for the season, but both Bryant and Njoku are solid additions to your team, and whichever does better in the next two weeks will most likely continue to see touches in the offense. Monitor both of their statuses from week-to-week, but both are good additions to your tight-end position especially if that is an area your team has struggled this season.
Players to stay away from
QB Baker Mayfield – Cleveland Browns: Mayfield is a good quarterback, but not one that can be easily trusted in fantasy. Week 7 against the Bengals was the only week Mayfield scored 20 or more points and prior to that his highest-scoring game was 15.58. The loss of Odell Beckham Jr. could prove fatal to Mayfield’s season in fantasy. Prior to the Bengals game, he hadn’t thrown for more than two touchdowns in a game, and he tallied at least one interception in five of his seven performances. Mayfield hasn’t proven himself to be trustworthy in fantasy, so stay away unless things drastically change for the quarterback.
RB’s 99.9 percent of the waiver wire: It just isn’t a good year for the running back waiver wire which typically has a couple of gems that come on mid-way through the season. The injuries that have occurred across the league to the running back position has made it hard to find someone that you trust on the waiver wire, and it is why you should stay away from the vast majority on the waiver wire. The only thing keeping it alive is the rush for whichever backup is starting in place of someone’s top back. Looking for running backs on the waiver wire is like trying to find water in the desert; hopeless.
WR Henry Ruggs III – Las Vegas Raiders: Ruggs has a bright future in the NFL, he just isn’t going to be someone you can count on from week-to-week in fantasy football. He has registered double-digit points once this season, and it was against the Kansas City Chiefs. In the game, he has two receptions for 118 yards and a touchdown. That isn’t a very easy stat line to reproduce, and he hasn’t seen more than three targets in a game since week one. Stay away from Ruggs unless something catastrophic happens within the Raiders receiving corps.
TE Gerald Everett – Los Angeles Rams: Everett is only rostered on 1.4 percent of the rosters on NFL Fantasy Football app for a reason. He has registered two games with double-digit points, and averages 6.4 points per game in fantasy. He doesn’t see the target share that one would like him to for a Rams offense that doesn’t have a ton of weapons in the passing game outside of Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp. The Rams don’t have a favorable schedule for tight ends the rest of the year, so leave Everett on the waiver wire and as far away from your lineup as possible.
