Well, with the injuries across the league in Week 2, it’s no surprise that you are searching for Waiver Wire Gems! After Week 2, there are still plenty of guys on waivers that need to be rostered and there are likely to be a lot of fantasy managers in need of help. Here are my top guys at QB, RB, WR, and TE, all available in at least 50% of Yahoo fantasy leagues. Four of these names are on here for the 2nd straight week…which means you aren’t listening. Here’s hoping you take my advice this week and I have to write about different guys next week. In other words: Pick ‘Em Up!
Quarterbacks
Gardner Minshew (68% Available)
Look, I get it. Last week, you thought I was joking. The fantasy guy with a mustache loves the QB with a mustache. Don’t make the same mistake twice. Minshew has looked great for two weeks, with two QB1 finishes. He also has one of the best schedules you’ll see over the next few weeks. If he is on this list next week, I’ll be beyond disappointed.
Ryan Tannehill (54% Available)
It appears that the Titans may be way more willing to throw the ball than we originally thought. Tannehill has 67 passes and 6 passing TDs over the first two weeks of the season and had four TDs in Week 2 without arguably his best WR. You would need to be in trouble to add him, but if you are in trouble, you could do worse than Ryan Tannehill thus far in 2020.
Justin Herbert (97% Available)
Based on head coach Anthony Lynn’s statement after the game, Tyrod Taylor will be taking the job back, so this is more of a stash play. Herbert completed 66% of his passes for 311 yards and two TDs (one rushing) in his first career game. He wasn’t even prepped for the game, he found out he was starting less than an hour before taking the field. The kid looks good and his weapons look better when he plays. It will be his job by Week 5, so if you have a deep bench, he’s worth an add as your QB2.
Running Backs
Joshua Kelley (61% Available)
In an article for The Fantasy Footballers last week, I said that Kelley would need a lot more playing time to fill the role left behind by Melvin Gordon. In Week 2, he got it. His YPC looks rough but he is the short-yardage and goal-line back, he isn’t going to have many big yardage days. The fact that he carried the ball 23 times speaks volumes to the confidence they have in this young man and the fact that he out-touched Austin Ekeler in a close game (25-20) shows his massive upside. If he is a true 1b to Ekeler’s 1a, he will have every week value in fantasy football.
Mike Davis (98% Available)
With Christian McCaffrey looking at the dreaded high-ankle sprain, Davis should see a good amount of touches over the next 2-3 weeks. He is definitely just a temporary add and will have no value once CMC returns. While he only had one carry in Week 2, he was targeted eight times and secured all eight for 74 yards. He’s probably a better play over the next two weeks than Dion Lewis but Lewis is the better waiver add because he has the job for the rest of the season.
Update after Tuesday Free Agency and Injury reports: Jerick McKinnon & Devonta Freeman should be added, Dion Lewis is no longer worth an add.
Wide Receivers
Russell Gage (79% Available)
Gage is on this list for the 2nd straight week and I cannot express enough how big of a mistake this is for managers. Atlanta is going to throw the ball 700 times this year and Gage is 2nd on the team in targets through two weeks. He will have down weeks when Julio decides to get involved but he is just about a lock for 7+ targets every week. They even designed a play for him to throw a TD in Week 2…but Julio dropped it. Julio Jones hates your fantasy team.
N’Keal Harry (79% Available)
Coming into the season there was a thought that Cam would lock onto Harry as his only down-field WR and that looks to be coming to fruition after Week 2. In a barn-burner with the Seahawks, Harry was targeted 12 times, reeling in eight balls for 71 yards. He actually led the team in targets but Julian Edelman did a lot more with the balls thrown his way. Harry is starting to show why the Patriots made him a 1st Round pick and won’t be on your waiver wire for long.
Laviska Shenault (83% Available)
Another player on this list the last two weeks. Laviska Shenault is a playmaker through and through and you’re going to miss out if you don’t get him now. As mentioned with Minshew, the Jaguars schedule gets pretty damn easy for the next month and Shenault is going to find the end zone at least three times. Through two weeks, he has 119 total yards and one touchdown as the 4th option on this team. He is more talented than anybody on this squad outside of DJ Chark. When he finally becomes the 2nd option, you will regret not adding him to your fantasy roster.
Tight Ends
Logan Thomas (68% Available)
The 4th and final player making a repeat appearance on this list. All offseason, we talked about how there was no true 2nd target behind Terry McLaurin. I wished and hoped it would be Steven Sims — I’m still holding out hope — but right now, Thomas is the man. The former QB turned TE has 17 targets in two games and scored a TD in Week 1. His yardage leaves something to be desired but he is clearly the 2nd option in this offense. He was targeted nine times in Week 2, only catching four balls for 26 yards. As Dwayne Haskins improves, so will Thomas and he has a chance to see 100 targets in 2020.
Jordan Akins (98% Available)
Akins has played two very different games thus far in 2020 but has given essentially the same fantasy result. In Week 1, he only saw two targets but scored a TD, finishing as the TE13. In Week 2, he failed to score but was targeted seven times, catching all seven and was the TE13 after the Sunday games. With Will Fuller hurt already, Akins’ role in this offense is secure for the foreseeable future. He does have to compete with fellow TE Darren Fells but has out-played him in each of the first two weeks.
Dalton Schultz (98% Available)
This could easily have been Drew Sample but there is one big difference: Sample came into the game unexpectedly, the game plan he benefited from was designed for CJ Uzomah. Let’s see how he does in Week 3 after the Bengals know he is their starter. The Cowboys knew that Schultz would be their TE1 and still put together a plan that saw him targeted 10 times. Schultz caught 9/10 for 88 yards and a TD. He is not as talented as Blake Jarwin, and every week won’t be against Atlanta, but it appears that Schultz has a place in this offense and has top-10 fantasy upside.
