Injuries keep piling up in the NFL, and Week 4 was no different. It started with Tua, who shouldn’t have even been on the field for TNF after that hit he took Sunday…even if it was just a back problem.
The Miami Dolphins are just dumb. Like most organizations, treating their players like chattel. And Tua is one of the few QBs in the league who probably felt like his job was on the line if he didn’t play Thursday, and…
This soapbox is for later. But he wasn’t the only QB hurting. Daniel Jones took a bruising as well this week.
Oh, and Denver might have fixed their offense only in time to break Javonte Williams. Get better, my man. It should have been your backfield from the start. And Cordarrelle on IR??? And Jonathan Taylor may not play TNF (he shouldn’t, but see above).
That said, until someone starts throwing TK loads of money, my day job is teaching college. And it’s MIDTERMS. Which means my time is short as I try to get all these grades in.
That said, Waiver Wire this week will be short and sweet, with some grades to go with it. So let’s get started. And, as always…
Only players owned in less than 50% of Yahoo! leagues make the list.
QBs
Geno Smith — 13% owned
We’ve talked about Geno before, and it’s starting to feel less like a feel good story and more like a Comeback Player of the Year type story. Can he save your fantasy season? Maybe. He’s got the weapons and the coaching, and the Seahawks have already won more games than many prognosticators gave them winning in the preseason. We’ve recommended him once, and we’ll do it again.
Grade: B-
Kenny Pickett — 6% owned
The Pickett Era has begun in Pittsburgh, and like Geno, he’s got a bunch of shiny weapons to play with. You could argue that at WRU, he’s got 3 of the most promising wideouts in the game in Johnson, Claypool, and Pickens. But, of course, he’s as green as they come as a rookie. But we’ve seen rookies ball out hard in fantasy when their numbers gets called. Can he save your fantasy season?
Grade: C-
RBs
J. D. McKissic — 28% owned
I’m going to keep cheerleading for McKissic. He’s a quality RB2 in Washington, and he always comes on strong late in the season. While other places are going to tell you to go grab Mike Boone or Tyler Allgeier because of the injuries this week, I’ve got nothing to say about either guy. So, I may be way off, but I know McKissic, and he’ll be a bench stash that’ll pay off come fantasy playoff time, and right now is averaging 9 points a week, which is more than I’ve gotten from Dalvin Cook, Aaron Jones, or Alvin Kamara some weeks.
Grade: B+
Kenneth Gainwell — 32% owned
There’s not a better handcuff to have right now in fantasy. Miles Sanders is looking good, but he’s bound to go down at some point. At the same time, the Eagles were the #1 rushing team last season and are Top 5 so far this season. Gainwell is bound to see more work as time goes on, and is in a better situation than say, Mike Boone, who just had Latavius Murray signed to steal carries from him.
Grade: B-
Isiah Pacheco — 20% owned
What’s scary is that the Chiefs offense seems to work better when their running game gets hot. Pacheco seems more and more to be gaining Andy Reid’s confidence as the RB2 over McKinnon, who otherwise would probably be my waiver wire pick for you. If you’re in a dynasty league and this guy isn’t gone yet, then for shame! Everyone else, this could be a bench stash.
Grade: TBA
WRs
Jameson Williams — 27% owned
This is the week Williams is eligible to come off the IR for the Lions, and you’ve seen what Goff has been doing. With the Sun God maybe still out, if Williams plays Week 5, it could be amazing. If St. Brown comes back, and even if Williams takes another week, at some point this duo is going to be on the field together and Goff is going to have riches like he never imagined with the Rams. This might be the best bench stash of them all.
Grade: B+
Michael Gallup — 41% owned
Kind of surprised he wasn’t scooped up more last week, but Gallup is officially back for a Dallas team that desperately needs receivers. While he looked serviceable in Week 4, the sky is going to be the limit going forward. The question is more what’s going to happen at the Cowboys QB position if Dak comes back this week and really isn’t ready.
Grade: B
George Pickens — 40% owned
The other side of the Kenny Pickett getting the start in Pitt is that you might actually have a reason to buy in on their receivers. Pickens is super talented and already seems to be a favorite target of Pickett. So, this P&P connection could be the new thing after years of the B’s in the Steel City.
Grade: B
TEs
Robert Tonyan — 32% owned
Tight end is getting super slim. So much so that there’s guys I want to recommend, but they’ve been putting up big, fat goose eggs. Tonyan is at least getting production, but the question becomes, how much do you trust this Packers’ offense right now?
Grade: C+
Will Dissly — 3 % owned
Minus a dud Week 2, Dissly has been a pretty reliable target for Geno Smith. And just like that, I’ve got two Seahawks on the Waiver Wire this week. Probably would have 3, but Rashaad Penny is a starting RB1 in the NFL, so of course he wasn’t on waivers.
And that’s it!
Here’s to a HEALTHY WEEK 5!!!