Post Week Seven Waiver Wire Pickups

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Your fantasy football season is officially beyond the halfway mark. Fantasy playoffs will be under way in the less than two months. Are you in position to make a run or are you cemented at the bottom of the league? There’s always a chance to get on a winning streak with a few key additions.

Quarterbacks

Josh McCown
The Bears offense didn’t skip a beat when McCown stepped in with Cutler’s groin injury. McCown is a capable starter that has plenty of them under his belt. As a Cardinal he staged comeback wins and has been a quarterback teams have wanted to retain in case an injury pops up. Count on McCown to make less mistakes and run the offense the way Trestman wants.

Andy Dalton
You could see Dalton’s confidence reemerge after a deep ball completion for a touchdown early against the Lions. Over the last four weeks Dalton had been erratic. It looked like the offense may cave under his guidance. He picked himself up and put on a show against a Detroit defense that has performed better as of late. A key reason for Dalton’s slide was the fact that defenses had shielded AJ Green nicely. Great players like Green won’t be held down permanently.

Running Backs

Chris Ivory
A lot of crucial plays went the New York Jets way against New England. An area they had consistency though came with the legs of Chris Ivory. He brought stability to the run game even though his yards per carry average doesn’t showcase that. Bilal Powell did an admirable job in a few games and may still have an impact but Ivory brings the punch teams look for from an every down back. Rex Ryan wants to stay in games and will do so using the running game and defense.

Roy Helu
Washington can score offensively. If they weren’t a potent offense I would have just considered Helu a one week wonder. They’ve always been a team that carries the football a lot. With Alfred Morris not having the campaign he did a year ago, it has opened up the opportunity for Helu to steal some carries. Touchdowns won’t come as easy as they did Sunday, but you want to get Helu just for the volume of runs Washington does.

Jacquizz Rodgers
With Steven Jackson still shelved with an injury the Falcons have resorted to what the Chargers and Saints do. That is utilize the short passing game with their receivers and running back Jacquizz Rodgers. For Rodgers he was able to ignite the Falcons Sunday with two touchdowns and nearly 50 yards receiving. Rodgers has dotted the fantasy radar before but never could be relied upon with the Falcons weapons. Well now Rodgers is one of their main weapons with Julio Jones down and Roddy White missing time as well.

Tight Ends

Marcedes Lewis
Lewis made it back onto the field for the first time in 2013 Sunday. The results were only one catch for 31 yards. This is a chance to grab a tight end if you’ve had issues throughout the season in that department. He is a big athletic target that looked solid in the preseason. He will have more involvement in the Jaguars passing game that has been better since Justin Blackmon returned from suspension.

Jordan Reed
You could see the breakout game coming weeks ago from Reed. The Redskins involved Reed just enough to get you to think he was on the cusp. He is the new age tight end breed that presents matchup problems for defenses every down. With RG3 now regaining his form the offense is looking much better. It did help that Reed was facing a Bears defense that could not slow any series down Sunday.

Wide Receivers

Jarrett Boykin
After a few drops last week against Baltimore it didn’t appear Boykin would be capable of a big game. Facing the Browns secondary which has been solid even made it more daunting for Boykin to have success. He caught eight of ten targets Sunday and had the dagger touchdown in the fourth quarter. Rodgers can make a name out of anyone, and Boykin is just the latest to move up the ranks with injuries present.

Darrius Heyward-Bey
The more and more that Trent Richardson continues to disappoint the less carries he has been getting. That lives an easy summation that the Colts are going to remain a passing team. They’ve been a dependable fantasy team that can have three wide receivers be fantasy worthy. Bey hasn’t been a statistical standout but he is showing progress as the season goes on. He could propel into a nice flex option or bench option when a solid start presents itself.

Riley Cooper
Two weeks in a row now Cooper has emerged as a go to target in the Eagles offense. Mike Vick if he is fully healthy he may be renamed starter after the team’s woeful offensive performance. DeSean Jackson’s numbers are coming down a bit as teams are defending him better. Cooper will have continued opportunities to be a fantasy threat.

Harry Douglas
Fantasy owners that inserted Douglas got more than they bargained for in fantasy points Sunday. Obviously the Falcons injury woes have stricken the team at running back and wide receiver. Matt Ryan is still upright and that means the Falcons are going to throw no matter if they have practice squad receivers on the field. Douglas has played his role throughout the years as a Falcon and now gets to prove he can be a force.

By Zack Cimini

notjustagame23@gmail.com

Double digit comebacks and continued offensive explosions keep occurring. Equating to a high amount of points being scored, and fantasy points being racked up quicker than Victor Cruz realizing he was not touched. More importantly with defenses struggling, teams are able to get production from receivers all across their depth charts. There are plenty of receivers included on this weeks waiver wire addition to help with your depth issues.

Quarterbacks:

Andy Dalton:

His second half versus Buffalo was a complete reversal. He showed the poise and had his teammates believing in the comeback. A double digit come from behind win, and solid stats to back it up. Dalton still would be ranked near the bottom of fantasy quarterbacks, but he is showing that he has valuable upside. If you’re in a tight bind with depth at quarterback, you may want Dalton for end of the season insurance.

Jason Campbell:

Entering week four, Campbell quietly was in the top ten for quarterback rating. He has also been fearless with his downfield throws and has been doing this with an injured group of receivers still sidelined. As they start returning, the Raiders are going to be even more explosive offensively. Campbell finally is able to run an offense where he has a familiarity with being in it a year ago. The first time in his career he has not had to relearn a new offensive system.

Alex Smith:

How crazy have the times become, that Alex Smith may actually be a fantasy factor? Alex Smith. It seems like he has been in the league for fifteen years, but he was only drafted in 2005.At 3-1 the 49ers have done it largely because of Smith. Frank Gore finally showed something vs. the Eagles, but the first few weeks it was Smith carrying the offense. Mistakes have declined for Smith, as he is taking what the defense gives him.

Kolb Struggling While Learning New Cardinals System

 http://bleacherreport.com/articles/877775-kolb-struggling-while-learning-new-cardinals-system

Running Backs:

Ryan Torain: Torain once again has re-entered the waiver wire sweepstakes. An explosive week four after no carries all season. Washington is going to run the football, it’s just a question of who will be doing it. Green arrows on Torain and put three red ones next to Tim Hightower.

How does Tim Hightower Fare Now?

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/876017-shanahan-does-it-again-where-does-tim-hightower-fit-now

Isaac Redman: Pittsburgh’s offense just seems like it needs to be re-tweaked. Big Ben’s nimbleness is not quite there, and the support of a running game definitely isn’t. Rashard Mendenhall has not been able to break lose, while Redman seems to be delivering when on the field.

Derrick Ward: The carousel of backfield injuries keeps rotating for the Texans. With Ben Tate’s groin injury, the majority of the work load will refocus in the hands of Arian Foster like a year ago. Ward has missed a few weeks himself, but is expected to return next week. How responsive Foster’s hamstring is will determine if Ward will get eight to ten carries or not.

Stevan Ridley: New England’s backfield never truly has had a consistent fantasy back in quite awhile. BenJarvus Green-Ellis had his brief moments, but always had the worry of Fred Taylor/Danny Woodhead/Kevin Faulk. Plus the Patriots would rather run their short yardage passing game over running. Rookie, Stevan Ridley was a high pick for Bellichick in the third round. His workload Sunday led to a solid day as he filled in for injured back Danny Woodhead.

Top Seven Fantasy Busts Heading Into Week Three

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/873636-fantasy-football-the-7-biggest-busts-of-the-season-entering-week-4

Wide Receivers

Key In On Raiders Athletes for Waiver Wire Additions

 http://bleacherreport.com/articles/877397-key-in-on-raiders-athletes-for-waiver-wire-additions

Darrius Heyward-Bey:

The first round pick is starting to show signs that he can be a force at wide receiver. He needs to stay healthy, but if so his speed complements the cannon arm of Jason Campbell. Sunday he was targeted seven times by Campbell and had his second career 100 yard receiving game.

Laurent Robinson:

One positive for Dallas is that they are scoring a high amount of points each week. It’s almost all riding on the arm of Tony Romo. Luckily from a fantasy standpoint, receivers do not have to worry about Romo’s errant mistakes. Robinson should still have fantasy value even when Miles Austin returns. This offense is just too explosive to not have three main receivers as fantasy weapons.

Randall Cobb:

Even though Donald Driver returned to action Sunday, he has clearly reached the last leg of his career. This team wants to be explosive, and is loaded with weapons. Cobb had a sixty one yard play Sunday, and needs on field action to add even a higher dimension for the Packers. It’s a crowded receiving group, but injuries are bound to happen. Scoop Cobb now in fourteen team leagues, and monitor in ten or twelve team leagues.

Arrelious Benn

Defenses have figured out a way to limit Mike Williams. It has led to an offense that has struggled a bit to find a main offensive weapon. Sooner or later a quarterback of Josh Freeman’s caliber is going to find new ways to generate offense. Benn made a couple of big plays Monday Night. One would of been a 60 yard touchdown if he did not step out of bounds.

Victor Cruz:

A dominating performance with three touchdowns last preseason saved Cruz from being a likely preseason casualty cut. Now he has made the most of his playing time with early season injuries to Manningham and Nicks. Expect the Giants to have a formidable three receiver fantasy impact as they did a year ago with Steve Smith.

Steve Breaston:

As bad as Matt Cassel has been to start the year, there is no possible way he was going to perform like that for sixteen games. He has had the same pattern of awful games as a Chief, only to bounce back when least expected. If Cassel can have eight to ten games with over 250 yards passing, it’ll make Breaston a flex option and borderline number three receiver plug. That’ll be dependant on your other receivers matchups. Breaston learned behind Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald for years, and can be a bright spot for the Chiefs. With the running game in sharp decline, more emphasis will have to be put on the passing attack.

Jared Cook:

Matt Hasselbeck continues to surprise on how well he has handled the switch to the Titans. A true veteran that should bolster and improve upon his weekly performances with Chris Johnson re-emerging. Cook made a few big catches Sunday, and should see his targets rise with Britt out for the year.