By Ryan Weisse
Sometimes, things just don’t work out the way we think they will. If they always did, fantasy football would be far easier! As Nyheim Hines managers can attest, finding running backs on the waiver wire is far from easy. Alexander Mattison was as close to a lock as we’ve seen on waivers this season. He looked great during relief duty in Week 5 and had a cupcake matchup against Atlanta in Week 6. The result? He gave us 10 carries for 26 yards…and plenty of disappointment. This was just your weekly reminder that there was a reason these guys went undrafted when the season started. They will give us a good week here and there but they will rarely be consistent enough to anchor your team.
Week 7’s waiver wire looks good but we just never know. All the players mentioned below are available in 50% of Yahoo fantasy leagues, or, in the cases of Justin Herbert and Tee Higgins, just under.
PRO TIP: Always look at last week’s bye week teams for good players that may have been dropped out of desperation. Week 6 was LA Chargers, Seattle, New Orleans, and Las Vegas.
Quarterbacks
Andy Dalton (68% Available)
Dalton is the first of nine guys appearing on this week’s list that have already appeared a previous time or two this season. Look, game 1 was not pretty, but he did throw the ball 54 times and scored a garbage-time TD. Those points still count. Dak was the QB4 over the season’s first five weeks with a ton of volume and with the weapons there, Dalton has weekly top-10 QB upside. After facing Arizona, he now gets Washington and Philadelphia — both of which feel like better matchups to this point.
Justin Herbert (44% Available)
Herbert bends my self-imposed 50% rule just a bit but he deserves mentioning. He had 554 yards and seven TDs in the two games leading up to his bye week and has an excellent schedule coming out of that bye. Joe Burrow had all the early season hype, but Herbert is the rookie QB to have on your roster for at least the next month.
Running Backs
Justin Jackson (55% Available)
Jackson, like Herbert, is likely available because his team was on a bye last week but, come on, you don’t leave able-body RBs on waivers. Jackson stepped right into Ekeler’s role in Week 5 and was the RB22 on the week with 94 total yards on 20 touches, including five receptions. Ekeler is going to miss some time, likely another month, and Jackson is going to be a playable RB2 during that time.
Boston Scott (87% Available)
This is more of a speculative add until we get more definitive news on Miles Sanders and his knee. If the results of his MRI show a tear, Scott will be the lead back for the Eagles and is a must-add…though temper those expectations. Scott looked good in relief on Sunday (Alexander Mattison, anyone?) but did not look great filling in as the starter at the beginning of the season. If Sanders misses time, he’ll see volume, but will be more of an RB3 than anything else.
JD McKissic (88% Available)
McKissic inexplicably sees consistent passing volume in this offense and if you’re in a bye-week conundrum, he can’t be ignored. This is basically a one-week rental, as Washington is on bye in Week 8.
Lamical Perine (82% Available)
Perine did not do much in Week 6, as the Jets continue to feed the ageless Frank Gore, but will likely be the lead-back before long. He flashed some talent during training camp and New York will want to see what they have in him. Being the lead-back for the Jets doesn’t mean much for fantasy football but he would be a starter and deserves a roster spot in most 12-team leagues.
Wide Receivers
Chase Claypool (51% Available)
HOW THE %#&! does a guy score four TDs and not get added everywhere? Claypool was my #1 add after last week and scored another TD in Week 6. The schedule gets tougher and Diontae Johnson will be back but Claypool is a WR3 with HUGE upside moving forward this season.
Mike Williams (55% Available)
Much like his previously mentioned Charger teammates, Williams is only here because they were on a bye last week. Health is your only question with Mike Williams. He’s played in two full games this season and looked solid in both. With Justin Herbert being named the starter, Williams has a ton of upside if he can stay on the field. Treat him as a WR3 and be pleasantly surprised when he goes off.
Tee Higgins (48% Available)
Yes, I’m breaking my 50% rule again but Higgins is a must-add in all formats. He has 38 targets in his last five games and has at least three receptions in all five of those games. The rapport he is building with Joe Burrow is obvious and he has a sweet matchup with Cleveland in Week 7.
Tim Patrick (82% Available)
The loss of Courtland Sutton was supposed to open things up for Jerry Jeudy but Tim Patrick has been the primary benefactor. There was worry that his Week 5 performance was due to the backup rapport he had with Brett Rypien but he flashed again in Week 6 with Drew Lock. He’s gone over 100 yards in each of his last two games and has some nice matchups for WRs in his upcoming schedule.
Travis Fulgham (69% Available)
There are still a ton of questions about what Fulgham’s role will be once DeSean Jackson and Alshon Jeffery return but his current production cannot be ignored. He has scored a TD in each of his last three games and has 23 targets over his last two. The Eagles play the Giants and Cowboys in their next two, so it is possible we see five straight games with a TD for Fulgham before Philadelphia hits their bye.
Tight Ends
Trey Burton (55% Available)
Of all of the players that you guys didn’t listen to me about last week, this one hurts the most. Hurts you, not me. There are not enough good TEs in fantasy football for us to be ignoring 16 targets in three weeks. The Colts are getting just about zero production from the WR position and Burton is being used to make up that gap. He was the TE3 in Week 6 and will have a solid role for the rest of the season. However, he is on bye in Week 7. I recommend rostering and holding if you are in trouble at the TE position.
Logan Thomas (85% Available)
Thomas has good weeks and bad but he is being utilized every week. He has at least four targets in every game and is sitting at 32 targets on the season. Some weeks, he’ll catch 1 ball for four yards. Others, like Week 6, he’ll reel in 3+ catches for 30+ yards and even add a TD. Playing him is a gamble, but TE is still thin enough for you to consider adding him, especially since he’s playing the leaky Dallas defense in Week 7.
Dallas Goedert (59% Available)
Goedert has been largely forgotten during his time on the IR but is eligible to come back this week. This is significant because Zach Ertz is going to miss some time and has been largely ineffective while on the field thus far. Even if Goedert is not back for Week 7, it seems like if he can get healthy by Week 8, when the Eagles face Dallas, it might be time for him to take the crown from Ertz in Philly.
