Fantasy Football Week 7: Waiver Wire
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After two weeks Brandon Oliver is finally off the list and I doubt he will be under 50% owned the rest of the year after another 100+ yard performance. My picks last week were hit and miss. Ronnie Hillman, Jerick McKinnon, Mohamed Sanu, and Odell Beckham won’t be on your waiver wire much longer due to solid performances in week 6, but Andre Williams, Lorenzo Taliaferro, Jordan Matthews and Andrew Hawkins all disappointed. A couple of lesser known players, Louis Murphy and Allen Robinson, continued to play well and are back on the list this week.
The big waiver related items this week are the unfortunate injury to Victor Cruz which boosts rookie Odell Beckham into WR3 / Flex territory, Patriots RB Steven Ridley blowing both his ACL & MCL which opens the door for whoever Bill Belichick feels like playing next (Branden Bolden?), and the suddenly dangerous passing attacks of the Raiders and Jaguars which adds a few new fantasy relevant WRs to the waiver wire. I’ll cover all of those developments below, list my recommendations below by priority and give a few warnings on players to stay away from this week.
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Every week on Tuesday, I will be posting my top waiver pick ups for the week. Only players owned in under 50% of Yahoo leagues will qualify. There are all sorts of leagues out there with different levels of competition and varying player pool depths, so I will have a few picks with under 50% ownership, a few under 30%, 15%, and at least one super sleeper under 5%. I’ll also be listing a few players that may be popular waiver adds that I think you should pass on (the Kevin Ogletrees) and I’ll give you my reasons why of course. If there are any players you have a specific question about feel free to hit me up in the comments or on Twitter.
Week 6 Waiver Picks
WR Odell Beckham Jr, Giants (37%) – Victor Cruz is out for the rest of the season and the opportunity is there for the rookie Beckham to take over and become the Giants go-to WR down the stretch. He’s finally healthy and a perfect fit for the Giants quick strike offense. If he’s still available in your league, do whatever you can to get him.
RB Jerick McKinnon, Vikings (36%) – Played 48 snaps to just 14 for Matt Asiata, so it looks like the Vikings are finally going with the more talented RB. They still haven’t officially named McKinnon the starter, but they will soon and McKinnon has RB2 upside in the 2nd half of the season.
RB Antone Smith, Falcons (27%) – He just keeps breaking long touchdown runs with 5 TDs of 35 yards or more on only 22 touches. With S-Jax looking slower by the week, it’s just a matter of time before Smith starts getting 10+ touches per week. Smith has more fantasy points this year than LeSean McCoy, Eddie Lacy, Andre Ellington, Alfred Morris, and Jamaal Chalres. Pick him up, he’ll be in your starting lineup by week 12.
RB Ronnie Hillman, Broncos (45%) – After a surprising 24 carry, 100 yard performance against the Jets in week 6, it’s pretty clear Hillman is the lead back in Denver until Montee Ball gets back in a few weeks. Any RB lining up next to Peyton Manning is worth owning so if Hillman is still available go get him. Short-term I think Hillman will be a better fantasy play than Antone Smith, but Smith has a chance to earn the job for the rest of the year while Hillman probably goes back to the bench when Ball gets healthy.
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WR Andre Holmes, Raiders (4%) – Has 20 targets over the last two weeks and has taken advantage of them with 195 yards and 3 TDs. Holmes has great size (6’4, 210) and has always had potential.
WR Davonte Adams, Packers (6%) – He’s becoming more involved in the Packers offense every week and the fact that Rodgers went to Adams on the 2nd to last play of their win over the Dolphins is a positive sign. If Adams has Rodgers trust, thats good enough for me and I’m adding him wherever I can this week.
WR Cecil Shorts III, Jags (38%) – After missing week 5 with an injury (hamstring) Shorts was back in the starting lineup and was targeted 16 times by rookie Blake Bortles. It’s my rule that anyone averaging over 10 targets a game is worth having on your roster (especially in PPR leagues). The Jags have been airing it out lately and they should continue to throw often since their defense can’t stop anyone except the Titans. Bortles is showing signs of being relevant in fantasy and carrying the Jags skill players with him.
WR James Jones, Raiders (37%) – I’ve been avoiding Jones because he is kind of a boring pick, but with Derek Carr showing sings of life in Oakland and a new coaching staff willing to let him air it out, both Jones and Andre Holmes are worth at least a spot on your bench.