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.

By Zack Cimini
notjustagame23@gmail.com

Get out the air horn and belt out at the same time, CAM NEWTON IS THE REAL DEAL. What a show he put on, in an all out treasure performance. It’ll go down as the debut of debuts. No matter what sport in the next ten to fifteen years, when a rookie’s first game is underway, Newton’s will be at the top of the bar. Play after play, throw after throw, Newton stayed undeterred, calm, and poised. Delivering rocket throws with his ahem, non accurate arm.

Throughout all of his summer interviews and predraft interviews he answered questions appropriately but with emphasis on getting better each time. Those workouts and hard work advanced his weaknesses that were just on display in college eight months ago, to near flawless execution. Was it a mixture of the Cardinals attacking too much with pressure, and leaving the secondary exposed? Maybe. Newton though made plenty of tough throws and right reads. Right reads being key. As many rookies overlook wide open receivers consistently.

It was an amazing start to week one, and owners are for sure to scurry their way to right click and add plenty of players. At the top being Newton. Who else should be looked at.

Quarterbacks

Cam Newton-
Newton possesses all the attributes you could want. A younger 2001 Daunte Culpepper. Slimmer, faster, and possibly a better arm. He already shows the natural pocket presence that leads you to believe he will only get better. If you already had Newton as a fantasy player, all you were expecting was 200 yard games POSSIBLY, and additional points from rushing. Not anymore. He’ll obviously tail off in some games, but he is going to be a monster for years to come.

Ryan Fitzpatrick- Why he continues to not get his proper credit is beyond me. He did well last year by dropping back and putting the team on his shoulders week after week. He blossomed over the 2010 season and has the Bills believing. Four touchdowns and proper management of every drive at Kansas City was very impressive.

Mark Sanchez- Only 64% owned in Yahoo leagues, Sanchez showcased a solid week one outing. He may not have too many 300 yard passing games, but he should see an increase in the touchdown category. He has too many weapons to throw to and should be a viable backup fantasy quarterback at the least. With Shonn Greene performing bust like in the regular season again, the Jets might have to rely on Sanchez’s arm more than they thought.

Running Backs

Cadillac Williams- Steven Jackson’s exit after an galloping touchdown run, makes room for this waiver wire pickup. Cadillac Williams has been through his fair share of injuries over the years, but hasn’t lost his toughness. He stepped in well with nearly ninety yards rushing and fifty receiving. He is likely available in the majority of leagues and is worth stashing on your bench if you’re thin on backs.

Jacquizz Rodgers- You can already see the funk of the Falcons offense, resulting in some changes. One that likely will happen is finding a way to get Rodgers on the field and more touches. He is the scat back type that offenses love to mix in. Watch for increased plays from Rodgers over the next few weeks. He did some damage as a pass catching receiver Sunday.

Delone Carter- Whispers were circling just a week ago when Carter eclipsed Donald Brown on the depth chart. It seems that there are some big changes ahead for the Colts, not just in the loss column. Carter could end up overtaking this job before long.

Derrick Ward- Dependant on if Arian Foster’s hamstring injury lingers, Ward could be a decent impact guy. The Texans love to rush the football, so the top two backs always have great fantasy value.

Wide Receivers

Jason Avant- Avant just keeps staying productive as an Eagle. With the Eagles loving to throw the football, Avant has always had fantasy value. This year there are many variables to see that increase. The Eagles are more explosive, and the concerns with the athletes above Avant on the roster chart.

Jason Hill- Luke McCown is going to be the typical Jay Fiedler type at quarterback. Handing the football off enough not to lose the game and drive his coaches crazy. With an effective ground game as the Jaguars have, it’ll create openings for McCown to deliver some throws. Hill didn’t catch a touchdown but caught enough passes to warrant waiver wire attention.

Jabar Gaffney- Gaffney is a journeyman that keeps on handling his business. Could the decision to start Rex Grossman last season truly of been the proper call? Grossman seems to have found his niche with the Redskins, which boosts all Redskins receivers up a tad from a week ago.

Brandon LaFell- Newton’s yardage average was assumed to be near 200 yards a game at best. Was his four hundred yard game above average? Clearly. But teams will go back to doubling Steve Smith like they did years ago. When that happens, LaFell will become an increased target.

Randall Cobb- Cobb could be a one week wonder. Based on what we have all seen from special teams super studs the last few years, you’d have to expect for Cobb to get on the field more. Even with all the Packers receiving weapons, Cobb poses as a fantasy worthy pickup in deeper leagues.

Ed Dickson- Joe Flacco has always been very comfortable with his tight ends. Todd Heap was the main guy for the start of Flacco’s career. Now it’s Dickson, who even though has been a Raven, really never got involved as a pass catching tight end. Those doubting Dickson being effective as a fantasy worthy tight end may want to reshift, as he can be this years Mercedes Lewis.