Photo by Stephen Lew/Icon Sportswire
Happy Tuesday Fantasy Footballers. Here is to hoping you woke up today 1-0 and with a clean slate on the injury report. However, we can’t all be so lucky and there are many of us in the Fantasy Football World that are looking for some help on the waiver wires in week one. This is going to be your weekly stop to decide who to run out and put claims in for and also how much of your FAAB (Free Agent Acquisition Budget) you should invest in players. A small disclaimer…I don’t believe in blowing the budget this early (Ask Kerwynn Williams, who people went nuts over last year when David Johnson went down.) in the year so I would recommend the conservative approach if your league utilizes a FAAB. I will be covering the players under 50% owned you should be looking out for and for those of you in deep leagues, we will have a Value Adds article just for you with under 10% owned. Let’s get this started.
Must Adds
QB – Ryan FitzpatrickMagic – Tampa Bay (3% Owned)
Yes, I broke the rules and no, I don’t care. If FitzMagic can go out and drop over 450 total yards and 5 TDs at age 35, then I can steal one player from the Value Adds article. Listen, FitzMagic will only be the starter for two more weeks, but you just can’t ignore what the Buccaneers did to open up the passing game for him. DeSean Jackson (more on him later) looks like his hamstrings are nice and flexible and he looks as speedy as ever. Mike Evans is ready for a bounce back year and if you need a bounce back week in week 2 at the QB position then look no further than the man, the myth, the legend…and make your week….well…magical.
FAAB (Only if QB needy): $2
RB – TJ Yeldon – Jacksonville (15% Owned)
Unlike DeSean Jackson, Leonard Fournette’s hamstrings are not all loosey-goosey. Head Coach Doug Marrone says he is “optimistic” about Fournette’s injury, but with uncertainty surrounding this situation, this is a player who will see his ownership skyrocket. Yeldon finished with 7 targets in the passing game, 69 total yards, and a TD. Hamstring injuries tend to hang around and so this is one player you should go out and try to grab, especially if you are a Fournette owner.
FAAB: $12 ($15-18 if you are a Fournette owner)
WR – DeSean Jackson – Tampa Bay (26% Owned)
Like I said earlier, DeSean Jackson was looking spry. Heck, the entire Tampa Bay offense was having a lot of fun on Sunday. DeSean Jackson was consistently running past people and the only thing missing from our memory banks was FitzMagic-lite Mike Vick tossing him bombs. Jackson finished with 5 catches for 146 yards and 2 TDs. If you were one of the few people to toss him a bone this week, you were not disappointed. This is looking like a straight passing offense this year with the underwhelming running game that we saw against the Saints.
FAAB: $10
TE – Jared Cook – Oakland (50% Owned)
Okay, I’ll break two rules. Cook is right at 50% owned, but as I am watching the Raiders game as I type this piece, he has demolished defenders for 6 catches and 113 yards. This guy looks like a big part of new-old Head Coach Jon Gruden’s gameplan as he tries to get Derek Carr back on track this year (as he almost throws an INT right on cue). It may be premature, but then again it may not be. With so much uncertainty at TE, there is always one guy that emerges as a guy who can get it done for your fantasy team if you get them early.
FAAB: $12
Wildcard of the Week
WR Rishard Matthews – Tennessee (44% Owned)
If you watched the Titans game, first off I am sorry that you had to sit through the longest game ever. Secondly, you didn’t see Rishard Matthews do anything. He finished with a measly 18 return yards and no targets. However, the unfortunate season ending injury to Delanie Walker could leave a silver lining for Matthews owners as Marcus Mariota needs a new safety blanket. Am I saying you should go blow the budget? No, I think that you will be the only person going after him. But I do think we see his role increase week to week and he will be a fine buy week fill in by the time you need him.
FAAB: $1
Telling people to pick up Fitz is a bit crazy. I can’t imagine anyone in a 12 team league really needing to go get Fitz
Hey Mike, like I said in the article, only if you are QB needy, which would most likely mean a 2 QB System or someone in a deep league that is looking for a week to week streamer. In this article each week I will have a “Priority Add” at each position just for consistency. Thanks for your comment!
Why include the dollar amount and not the percentage of FAAB? We don’t know what you’re FAAB budget is
Most websites don’t since FAAB is usually $100 a season, but I’ll start making that part of it, or at least giving the disclaimer instead of making the norm assumption!