Post Week Two Waiver Wire Pickups

Follow@cimini It was a rather quiet week for breakout performances from unknown players. That’ll happen in the first few weeks of the season. Injuries are soon to come in the upcoming weeks and that’s where you’ll see breakout performances come from. Find out who you should be looking at for waiver wire pickups this week. Quarterbacks Ryan Tannehill Two straight road wins by the Dolphins to start the season. It has largely been due to Tannehill’s amazing pocket presence and accuracy. Sunday he threw some incredible accurate throws that were huge for Miami’s close win over the Colts. He has elevated himself into the range of an on the cusp starter and sure fire fantasy backup quarterback. EJ Manuel After the preseason and first two games of the season Bills fans have to be extremely pleased with the drafting of Manuel. A pick that was downgraded by scouts, analysts, and the media. They have their true quarterback of the future finally in Buffalo. He just makes plays and will only get better. Dynasty leagues should consider trading for him or pursuing him via trade. In deeper leagues snare Manuel in case of injury or a need to start over a poor performing quarterback. Kirk Cousins This is an anticipatory move. RG3 is no where near ready to step onto the field. Sooner rather than later Mike Shanahan has to make the move to Cousins to protect the Redskins season from going down the drain. It’s clear that RG3 needs more time to acclimate his body, timing, and overall health. Cousins has shown he can step in and deliver, and would fit right back into an offense that is fantasy friendly. Running Backs Bernard Pierce John Harbaugh shook off the injury to Ray Rice postgame by stating Rice will be fine. We will all see about that. Extreme caution has to be paid here, and that means that you need to pickup Pierce if you own Rice. If you have a higher waiver wire priority try and steal Pierce over a Ray Rice owner. Dexter McCluster Kansas City has kept their offense very basic. It’s been extremely similar to how San Francisco based theirs around Alex Smith. When they’re forced to make a play offensively they have went more and more to the direction of McCluster. His value is great in PPR leagues and will rise as Kansas City is forced to attempt to score more points. Charles Clay Clay had a breakout game against the Colts. Miami is doing an excellent job of finding complimentary players to produce without a tight end to step up. Clay and Brian Hartline are getting extra looks and attention in the offense because of it. Giovanni Bernard Bernard provides that spark factor that forces a coach's hand to get him onto the field. His pass blocking skills still are not where they need to be, so Bernard's fantasy impact will have to come in a decreased amount of plays on the field. As the season wears on if Bernard can show an increased knowledge on picking up blitzes he may become a fantasy viable threat. For now he can be used in PPR leagues but standard leagues should be leery on using him. Danny Woodhead A crowded backfield in San Diego was pieced together on purpose. Woodhead is who he is, and though he didn’t have major damage yardage wise Sunday, he filled up PPR leagues with nine catches. That can’t be overlooked, and neither can the constant shuffling of backs San Diego has been doing. Andre Ellington Arizona has found there third down back and it comes in the sixth round pick in Ellington. With Arizona struggling to produce more than a field goal, Ellington was able to take a wide open pass into the end zone. Palmer has always been fantasy friendly to his running backs, and that won’t come with Mendenhall. In Bruce Arians passing attack a back like Ellington is a quality waiver wire pickup. James Starks Down went Green, and now so has Eddie Lacy. Green Bay has constantly had running back injury woes over the last three to four years, and this time they protected themselves. Keeping James Starks on the roster was a smart move, when most thought they may cut him after the drafting of Lacy and Jonathan Franklin. Starks performance has to be calibrated appropriately, as he gained a lot of yardage when the Packers had a huge lead. The key takeaway though is he will be a complimentary focus back to Aaron Rodgers guerilla passing attack. Wide Receivers DeAndre Hopkins I’m not a big fan of rookie wide receivers as they have a hard time retaining value week to week. But Hopkins was drafted to detract attention from aging wide receiver Andre Johnson. The weeks Hopkins rises to the occasion will be the large question. Towards the end of the year he may have higher value. Foreseeing that is a great reason to stash Hopkins as your fifth or sixth fantasy wideout on your bench. Eddie Royal One can’t help but still classify Royal as a weekly wonder. It’s two weeks in a row now, and Royal has totaled five touchdowns. San Diego’s mix of pass plays has been stellar to start the season. Royal’s five touchdowns has equaled what he had from 09-12. His role seems to fit perfectly with what the Chargers new passing attack brings to the table. Ted Ginn Jr There is no possible way that Cam Newton will continue to be relegated to how he has performed the first two weeks of the season. Ginn Jr. wanted a new chance at wide receiver after being pushed back for years on other teams. He has his chance in Carolina and has done a solid job in the first two weeks of the season. As soon as Cam opens the passing game back up, Ginn may have a breakout game. Mohammed Sanu Cincinnati desperately needs either Sanu or Jones to emerge and solidify themselves as a threat opposite AJ Green. Sanu was drafted for the role a year ago, and should be able to handle the role. He is available in the majority of leagues and would be worth taking a flier on for a developmental roster spot on your team.

Stretching the Field

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If you’re in a formatted league that gives points based on big plays, then you’re happy to have quarterbacks, running backs, and wide receivers that have great averages per throw, run, or catch. The impact on receivers that have high yards per catch alleviates the risk some if a player is limited to under five catches. Let’s look at some players that exceeded their positions in averages per pass attempt and per catch on Sunday.

Key Stat Filler Game of the Week: Packers vs 49ers

Both Aaron Rodgers and Colin Kaepernick put on a show Sunday. Kaepernick completed almost 70 percent of his passes. Some were blown coverages by the Packers and others were darts in tight windows. Kaepernick seems to not mind being a drop back passer if he needs to be. His yards per attempt was almost eleven, while Rodgers was near ten. Boldin and Vernon Davis had receiving averages of over sixteen yards a catch. For Green Bay, Rodgers had a nine yard average per attempt while Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb put up stellar yards per catch with Nelson over 18, and Cobb over 15.

Quarterbacks

Peyton Manning
I won’t list all the Broncos receivers that Manning’s eleven yards per completion had to do with their monster yards per catch. Manning’s night went from basic to unreal in a matter of just an intermission. A special night all around, and one of the freakish fantasy games of all time.

Russ Wilson
Wilson was the sole reason that the Seahawks were able to do anything offensively, as the Panthers negated the Seahawks ground game. He only had eight incompletions on thirty three attempts, and averaged a few tenths beneath ten yards a completion. One of his best games to date.

Ryan Tannehill
Tannehill will always be in the shadow of Wilson, Luck, and RG3. His play though has Miami thinking they’re in good shape to over take the Patriots sooner than later. He averaged over seven yards a completion Sunday and this was with only one completion to Mike Wallace.

Matt Stafford
Detroit has been looking for a back since Jahvid Best had issues with concussions. They have found one in Reggie Bush, who did not waste anytime running wild Sunday. His 100 yards receiving helped pad Stafford’s yards per attempt at 8.3.

Andy Dalton
AJ Green put on a show on Charles Tillman and Tim Jennings and the entire Bears secondary Sunday. Dalton continues to elevate his game based on having AJ Green on the field. The big plays will not stop with the duo, and if Mohammed Sanu can become a suitable second receiver watch for Dalton’s numbers to continue to remain strong.

Wide Receivers

Trio of Giants Receivers: All three Giants receivers reaped the dividends of a frustrating evening of playing from behind. Victor Cruz, Hakeem Nicks, and Reuben Randle all had averages of over twenty yards a catch. Those numbers surely will come down. With the Giants rushing woes it won’t be surprising to see Eli gunning the football through the air on a weekly basis.

Michael Floyd
Arizona provided Larry Fitzgerald with half of the touchdowns he had all season in one game Sunday. Floyd though had the best catch of week one, with an amazing one handed grab with a cornerback draped on his back. Floyd hauled in four catches for over eighty yards for a twenty yard average.

Antonio Brown
Brown had an average of just over fourteen yards a catch against the Titans. It looks like Brown will be used to try and fill the void left of big play potential without Mike Wallace. There are a lot of concerns with the Steelers offensive line and running game, which may hinder Brown’s overall value.

Torrey Smith
By now we have seen enough from the connection of Joe Flacco and Smith to know that these two are lethal on deep plays. Smith averaged over twenty yards a catch against the Broncos. That was on just four catches but his total was just over 90 yards.

Jerome Simpson
Simpson flourished with big plays two years ago as a Bengal. His summersault flip for a touchdown still makes people hit the replay button. With Christian Ponder’s struggles it will likely be an up and down battle for Simpson and Greg Jennings to have consistent numbers. Simpson did have an average of over 20 yards a catch Sunday.

Marques Colston
Colston is sort of like a tight end that complements Jimmy Graham. He is always in the stats sheets and he makes the over the middle type of catches that you’d expect from a tight end. He had five catches for nearly 70 yards near fourteen yards a catch.

Vincent Jackson
Jackson continues to shine as a Buccaneer, as he had his way with Antonio Cromartie Sunday. If you watched the game though it appeared more damage could have been done. On paper though Jackson had an average of 22 yards a catch week one. He’ll remain a top ten to twelve fantasy receiver all season.

Post Week One Waiver Wire

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Did you over draft to get Zach Sudfeld and took a goose egg for his performance? That may be an over reaction searching for a new tight end starter already. But a fantasy season is short and moves need to be made quickly not in contemplation. If the depth on your roster is mediocre or you had a mediocre draft there were plenty of ahtletes that shined in week one that can boost your roster’s overall value.

Quarterbacks

Terrelle Pryor
No one had more of a booming impact in week one than Terrelle Pryor. Often times quarterbacks that teams have slim game film on are able to get off to a solid career start. That has happened for Terrelle Pryor who the Raiders used to his skillset perfectly. They rolled him out for throws, and mixed in designed quick throws to keep his confidence up. That won’t go away in future weeks. Either will the threat he has with his legs which is Pryor’s biggest fantasy asset.

Carson Palmer
You have to be careful with Palmer because he is who he is. His poor moments typically turn into poor games. But when he is on he can be a lethal quarterback. He connected week one on a couple of nice deep ball throws against the Rams. With Michael Floyd, Fitz, and Andre Roberts opportunities to air out the football won’t go away. If his health can remain entact than Palmer is a viable fantasy backup.

Running Backs

Le’Veon Bell
Pittsburgh’s offensive woes revolve around numerous issues. One of the main ones is that the do not have a factor back to hand the football too. If people in your fantasy drafts were scared by the platoon of Steelers backs or Bell’s injury, now is the time to capitalize. He’ll be back sooner than later and should spark some momentum in a dead offense.

*Note Vereen will miss up to four weeks with a broken bone in his wrist. He is still a high value pickup, if he is available.

Shane Vereen
Vereen rescued the Patriots from a loss week one to the Bills. With the passing game suffocated by the Bills secondary in the second half, the Patriots reshuffled their game planning after several three and outs. That game plan shifted to Vereen who responded with several back to back chunk yardage gainers. You wouldn’t think he is available in leagues but he is available in near 20 percent of Yahoo fantasy leagues.

Wide Receivers

Michael Floyd
The aerial threat for the Arizona Cardinals has re-arrived. Something that was missing for three years since Kurt Warner’s retirement. It may take awhile for things to really heat up for the Cardinals offense but it’ll continue to blossom over the course of the season. Attention on Larry Fitzgerald is not going to go away. It appears that Floyd is ready to overtake the second receiver role and fill it appropriately.

Jerome Simpson
Simpson’s speed has came back after strugglin with minor injuries and inconsistency last year. Minnesota looks like they want to attempt to develop the passing game, even though it resulted in many poor decisions by Christian Ponder Sunday. The positive of it though was Simpson, who made a couple of diving stellar catches. One was on the end of a near fifty yarder in which he outstretched his arms perfectly to haul in the pass.

Brandon Stokely
With Jacoby Jones out for an expected four to six weeks, Joe Flacco is going to need to find another target to seek. Stokely is the best option as he has the experience and better route running than Marlon Brown. Though Brown did have the better week one, that was largely due to Flacco chucking the football with the Ravens down big. In conventional close games it will be Stokely who is more involved.

Jordan Cameron, Tight End
There were two tight ends that were trumped by fantasy analysts as must needs. One was Zach Sudfeld who was held without a catch Sunday. Cameron was the other and he continued to shine with the best tight end performance of any tight end Sunday. Good luck to the fantasy owners pursuing Cameron this week in the twenty one percent of leagues he is available in.

Julius Thomas, Tight End
Thomas exploded onto the fantasy radar Thursday. Anyone and everyone that doesn’t have a tight end named Gonzalez, Gronk, Graham, or Witten will be purchasing a bid on Thomas. Peyton Manning has never been known to develop too many fantasy one week wonders in his time. If he considers a player an asset than he will be a contributor all season long.

Harry Douglas
The Falcons offense only scored 17 points Sunday. That may end up being their season low on the year. They’re loaded and Matt Ryan is one of the best quarterbacks on his home turf. They’re are a couple of variables that make adding Douglas to your team a possibility. Teams are going to pay more attention to Tony Gonzalez, and Roddy White is playing through a high ankle sprain right now.

Kellen Winslow
Winslow is hoping to have a successful comeback after years of failed stops with different teams. He is healthy now and looked sharp against the Buccaneers, one of his former teams, Sunday. He was Geno Smith’s safety valve several times on the lone drive in which the Jets scored a touchdown.

Brian Hartline
Until Mike Wallace shakes the home run or nothing label, Hartline is going to continue to reappear on the fantasy football spectrum. He had a great week one debut. These type of performances are not out of the ordinary for Hartline. Last year he had a few big games but that was with a weaker Miami receiving corp. Keep an eye on how the Miami passing attack evolves with newcomers Gibson and Wallace. Hartline should hold value with with a tight end option not there for the Dolphins.

Kenny Stills
Stills shined in the preseason with a few dazzling catches. Marques Colston has exceeded anyone’s expectations after bein a 7th round draft pick. Age and injuries are catching up to Colston. A receiver like Stills can help alleviate the pressure of Colston being a number one receiver on the decline. Expect Stills to overtake Colston as the primary target before the year is over.

Julian Edelman
Falling in love with new names on high scoring offenses is a trap many fantasy owners fall for. It was Edelman that outshined Danny Amendola and the slew of rookies elevated to bestow fantasy levitation instantly. Edelman looked great in the slot and that is where Brady is comfortable throwing the football. Two touchdowns don’t hurt either.

Go For The Fade

When it’s red zone time most people want to gravitate to the coaches inserting their power back in I formation. With the rise of quarterbacks statistically throwing the football more, there are other key red zone stats to look out for. Big tall targets are a quarterbacks best friend inside the five yard line. Knowing the tallest receivers in the NFL that are likely to be thrown a fade route, is yet another key stat you should know going into your fantasy football drafts. The fade route is one of the most common throws on the goal line. Seemingly every team knows it’s coming, but teams just can’t stop it. The reason why is because of the height advantage and leaping ability with a wide receiver over the smaller defensive back. That and the quarterback and receiver have worked on the route countless times. It’s a timing route that the receiver and quarterback have a spot in mind before the ball is even snapped. All the receiver has to do is go up and get it. Here are some guys you should keep in mind for the fade route. Obvious names such as Calvin Johnson, Fitz, Bryant, Colston, Jackson, and Dwayne Bowe I’ll keep off this list. Mohammed Sanu Sanu had his ups and downs as a rookie a year ago for the Bengals. It looks like he has overcome some of his struggles and will be the second receiver for the Bengals this year. He is a tall target and has already had a nice fade route touchdown catch with Andy Dalton in the preseason. Attention is coming AJ Green’s way for the third straight season, and will keep things open for Sanu in the red zone. Mike Williams Mike is not necessarily the tallest receiver, but he is a touchdown gobbler in red zone. He could be having a horrific game, and then have his one catch for six yards and a touchdown. That’s what makes Williams a different type of tier two wide receiver. He has done it many of times where his catches and yards may not be there in a certain game, but he makes up for it with a meaningful six point touchdown catch for you. Justin Blackmon When he returns from suspension Blackmon should and will be a commodity for fantasy owners. His physique and abilities is what made him a top draft pick a year ago out of Oklahoma State. I actually think he’ll still come close to his numbers from a year ago even with a four game suspension. Golden Tate A fade throw might not be how Russ Wilson looks for Tate, but the two have a knack for connecting in the red zone. Tate had seven touchdowns last year, including a couple of big game winners. A deep ball catch against the Patriots and the replacement referee’s jump ball notoriety catch. At 5’10 the Seahawks work and look for Tate as if he was 6’3. Malcolm Floyd The red zone is still Antonio Gates’ but age and loss of speed mean that others can and will have a chance to still Gates thunder. Floyd has filled that role somewhat over the past few years, but the Chargers are still looking for that Vincent Jackson type. If healthy Floyd, at 6’4, is still the primary receiver to have the best opportunity. Jon Baldwin His role in San Francisco and how he develops is the key here. The Chiefs obviously did not like his development so sent him for another receiver in AJ Jenkins. With Michael Crabtree out and Anquan Boldin aging, Baldwin may get a chance to replant his NFL steps and take ahold of an opportunity. In college he was dominant at Pittsburgh, and has the size at 6’4 is a quarterback’s best friend. Alshon Jeffrey Knowing the lingering effects of Brandon Marshall’s hip injury will be a high indicator of what Jeffrey’s season will look like. If Marshall is hindered by the injury mentally and physically on the field, it will give Jeffrey’s a prime chance to have a breakout season. Trestman’s new offense is expected to be fantasy friendly, and Cutler should look Jeffrey’s way plenty of times.

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Preseason is more of a period where fantasy owners get over zealous in hyping their player’s and over all roster. Do not get to the point where you’re tinkering so much with the bottom of your roster that you’re subbing off and on with the waiver wire already. It’s uncalled for. Be patient. Here are some newsworthy players though that did a little more for themselves, especially for drafts coming up this week.

Jared Cook- I’ve never been big on guys rejoining their old coaches and expecting great things. That’s all people keep saying about Cook and Jeff Fisher. But Saturday, Cook showed great burst and size over the middle for the Rams. He used his speed on getting open for a couple of seam routes with Bradford, and then used his size and leaping ability to snare a touchdown pass from Bradford.

Brandon Gibson- I profiled a post about Gibson yesterday. He did a solid job Saturday with five catches for over forty yards and a touchdown. It should have been two touchdowns for Gibson. With Miami looking for a tight end to step up and not getting it, Gibson is going to be a guy Tannehill leans on even more.

Kenbrell Thompkins- It’s a game of who knows when it comes to the Patriots receivers behind Danny Amendola. I wouldn’t expect Thompkins or Dobson to explode on a week to week basis but one is going to emerge to have more value—it’s just inevitable. Thompkins had a slew of catches and over 100 yards in Saturday’s poor outing by the Patriots. Thompkins filled the role that the Patriots have used over the years with Welker and now Amendola, as Amendola sat out the game. He’ll be on the field but do not expect the slot receiver catches consistently from Thompkins.

Brandon Stokely- There is a reason why Stokely keeps hanging on and signing with quality franchises. At his veteran age, Stokely still has great route running and hands to play in the NFL. I’m not sold on Jacoby Jones, and the threat of Stokely filling the Anquan Boldin role might not be as big of a drop off as people think. The flare after the catch will not be there, but Stokely can be a great third and short and third down option for Flacco. He had three catches for over forty yards against the Panthers Thursday.

Michael Floyd- Floyd already looks much better than he did last preseason. He caught on in the Cardinals offense in the second half of 2012 and seems to be carrying that over into 2013. Attention is not going to be on him, as teams know all about Larry Fitzgerald and even Andre Roberts. Expect Floyd to develop nicely with Palmer, as he caught a neat back of the end zone beaut from Palmer in yesterday’s loss to San Diego.

Alshon Jeffrey- Cutler loves to air out the ball, and new head coach Marc Trestman is going to emphasize to Cutler that he needs to stay off the radar lock feed with Brandon Marshall. If he listens games like Jeffrey had Thursday should keep increasing (7 catches for nearly 80 yards).

Aldrick Robinson- Someone is going to fill the aging Santana Moss’s role and Robinson may be that guy. Pierre Garcon still has to prove his health over the long haul as well. Robinson is not a guy to jump on immediately but is one to keep an eye on. He had nearly 60 yards receiving with a touchdown against the Bills.
Joique Bell- Keep an eye on Bell as the Lions likely aren’t sold 100 per cent on Mikel LeShoure. It looks like the Lions will utilize Bush similarly to how Miami did, which will be to give him just enough carries to keep him fresh. Bell had five carries for over fifty yards against the Patriots.

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The season-ending injury to tight end Dustin Keller is already rearing its ugly head. Clearly, Miami needs to identify a target at receiver to fill in even more as a possession receiver. Saturday the Dolphins settled for three field goals in which they dominated the Buccaneers in yardage by almost 2 to 1. Yet, they lost not all just because of their red zone inefficiency (three costly turnovers) but it’s something that cannot be overlooked.

Charles Clay who is supposed to be the tight end to replace Keller had another putrid outing with just one catch against the Buccaneers. Tight end is vital for any young quarterback. This is a sticky situation for Miami entering the season, and will put added pressure on the perimeter for Miami’s receivers. It also will allow the linebackers to cheat up more in the box to stop the run, as Clay has not shown to be a quick outlet safety valve in preseason action.

One positive Saturday was the play of Brandon Gibson. A free agent bolstered addition to the Miami receivers along with Mike Wallace seems to be emerging quickly. Tannehill looked for Gibson quite often Saturday. The pair should have had two touchdown connections. One was dropped by Gibson in the back of the end zone. It was in an awkward spot where Gibson looked to have lost his concentration because he was trying to land his two feet without being crunched by defenders and also avoid the bottom of the field goal post. The ball went in his hands and as his shifted his body to land his feet the football slipped out.

At least a few drives later Gibson redeemed himself with a short four yard touchdown catch right before halftime.

He finished the evening with a Dolphin high five catches for 43 yards. Do not be too alarmed by the yards per catch. In the regular season Mike Wallace has proven throughout his young career that he is one of the best deep threat receivers in the NFL. That won’t change and that is going to allow Gibson to develop even more with a high amount of under route catches. He will be Miami’s new Davone Bess and critical to the Tannehill having a reliable possession receiver.
Gibson should have fantasy owners thrilled in PPR leagues. His projected 50 or so catches should jump by at least an extra fifteen, and maybe five to six touchdowns. Not a fantasy starting wide receiver, but a receiver you can insert against a team like the Patriots, or for a bye week fill in. His catches each week make him a borderline fourth receiver in deep leagues.