Week 2 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups: Add Jarvis Landry!
Though Week 1 hasn’t officially ended with the Seahawks and Broncos set to meet tonight, we’ve hand-picked the top free agents to pursue once waivers open. Marcus Mariota of the Falcons and Jarvis Landry of the Saints both had impressive and surprising debuts for their respective teams in a nail-biter of a game on Sunday. They headline the top free agents to look out for in fantasy football leagues heading into Week 2. Happy football!
Quarterbacks
QB Marcus Mariota, Atlanta Falcons (10.73% Owned)
Despite not starting in over two years and a matchup against a tough New Orleans defense, Mariota lifted eyebrows on Sunday afternoon in a heartbreaking 27-26 loss to the Saints. Mariota only threw for 215 passing yards, one touchdown, and one interception, but he also managed to make some noise with his legs. Mariota turned 12 carries into 72 yards, proving he is just as mobile as ever. Atlanta’s offense still has a ways to go but if Mariota can get on the same page as Kyle Pitts, he could be a decent streamer in Week 2. Yes, the Falcons have a tough matchup against the Los Angeles Rams this week but Josh Allen did post over 350 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns in the season opener. Don’t expect similar numbers from Mariota but he can absolutely get you a solid 18 fantasy points due to his dual-threat ability.
QB Carson Wentz, Washington Commanders (22.10% Owned)
If you are looking for a quarterback on the waiver wire, don’t expect any sexy names to be available. But you don’t need a sexy quarterback, you need one who can produce consistently. Although Carson Wentz is far from the guy I want under center, he did light up the Jaguars in his Washington debut yesterday. Wentz finished with 313 passing yards and four touchdowns! With Wentz as your quarterback, you are going to see some boneheaded turnovers but you can do way worse if you are looking for a replacement for the injured Dak Prescott. Wentz is capable of keeping your fantasy squad afloat while you wait for your starter to heal from his injury.
Running Backs
RB Jamaal Williams, Detroit Lions (55.40% Owned)
Though RB D’Andre Swift had the majority of Detroit’s rushing production in Week 1, Jamaal Williams had a terrific game. Swift tallied 144 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries but Williams still saw 11 carries and was able to turn one of those touches into a brilliant second-effort touchdown in the red zone. J-Will proved that even when Swift is healthy, he has potential stand-alone value as a flex play, especially in PPR formats. Plus, the Lions seem to favor Williams when they are close to the end zone. And due to Williams’ upside and Swift’s injury history, Williams is always one play away from being a low-end RB1. Should Swift go down, Williams will step in as the next man up. Williams should be owned in much more than 50% of Yahoo leagues.
RB Jeff Wilson Jr., San Francisco 49ers (17.63% Owned)
Elijah Mitchell left the 49ers’ game early with a knee injury in Week 1. Mitchell already has a history of injuries in the little time he’s been in the league. As a result, expect Jeff Wilson to see an uptick in production in Week 2, especially since Mitchell was ruled out for the remainder of the game immediately after exiting. It’s not far-fetched to think Mitchell won’t be able to play in Week 2, which would mean Wilson would get the spot start.
RB Jaylen Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers (5.58% Owned)
Despite being questionable heading into Week 1, Najee Harris started for the Steelers, perhaps prematurely, and left the game early. Harris was lit up in the fourth quarter and although he was able to walk to the sidelines on his own, he was unable to return for a critical overtime period. Harris has been struggling with lingering injuries this offseasoon, and was likely rushed back into playing. As a result, Jaylen Warren could see a substantial increase in his rushing attempts. Based on pure volume, Warren could be a low-end RB1 given the number of touches he would see in Hariss’ absence. Najee Harris owners should be putting a claim in for Warren immediately.
Wide Receivers
WR Devin Duvernay, Baltimore Ravens (28.51% Owned)
Most fantasy football experts thought Rashod Bateman would emerge as Lamar Jackson’s go-to target after Marquise Brown was sent to the Arizona Cardinals. However, it was Devin Duvernat who dominated the New York Jets’ secondary in the Ravens’ big Week 1 victory. The third-year receiver caught all four of his targets for 54 receiving yards and two trips to the end zone. Ravens receivers are tough to trust, especially since Mark Andrews will see more targets than any Baltimore receiver in 2022. However, if the speedy and shift Duvernay can continue to outproduce Bateman, he is worthy of a bench stash in all but the shallowest fantasy leagues. I wouldn’t start him in Week 2 against a strong Miami Dolphins secondary but he’s definitely worth a roster spot.
WR Robbie Anderson, Carolina Panthers (32.21% Owned)
After an abysmal 2021 season, Anderson lit up the box score in the 2022 season opener. Maybe that’s because he legally changed his name from “Robby” to “Robbie" Anderson is incredibly hard to trust because we’ve seen him explode only to disappear a week or two later. That being said, it sure looked like Anderson and new Panthers quarterback Baker Mayfield established quite the connection this offseason. The two hooked up five times for 102 yards on Sunday, including a huge 75-yard touchdown. Anderson has big-play ability and gets a more-than-beatable New York Giants secondary in Week 2. Look for Anderson to build off his huge Week 1 performance.
WR Jarvis Landry, New Orleans Saints (62.11% Owned)
Juice Landry had a massive game for the Saints. While he didn’t get into the end zone, Landry caught seven passes for 114 receiving yards. He looked ferocious, and he simply outpowered some of the Falcons’ cornerbacks that were guarding him. It’s tough to predict how the Saints receiving corps will look for the season. Michael Thomas had a great first game back for the Saints, catching two bullet touchdown passes from Jameis Winston to help the Saints clinch a 27-26 victory. Though he only had 57 yards in the game, expect MT’s yardage to increase substantially after his hands looked like superglue yesterday afternoon. In addition, the Saints could be targeting Chris Olave more as the season progresses. Still, Winston was shut down in yesterday’s game for the first three quarters. New Orleans’ passing game should expand over the next few weeks and if this is the case, Landry could be seeing a substantial share of the targets.
WR Jahan Doctson, Washington Commanders (57.14% Owned)
The rookie wideout made some serious noise in fantasy football leagues but many fantasy owners have no idea what Doctson’s breakout Week 1 performance means for his 2022 outlook. Doctson caught three of the five balls thrown his way for 40 receiving yards and two scores. The Commanders threw the ball 41 times on Sunday and although Doctson has to compete with Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel, Logan Thomas, and Antonio Gibson for targets, the rookie should continue to see about five targets per game. In Week 2, Doctson gets a Detroit Lions defense that allowed 38 points to Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles. Expect Doctson to build off of his impressive debut.
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Tight Ends
TE O.J. Howard, Houston Texans (0% Owned)
Even though most people have been touting Brevin Jordan’s name as a potential sleeper, it was the recently-signed O.J. Howard who saw the most important snaps and targets at the tight end position in Week 1 for Houston. Howard was pretty lucky as both of his targets went for touchdowns. He finished with two receptions for 38 yards and two scores. Howard could very well be a one-week wonder but considering how difficult it is to find consistent production at the tight end position, Howard could be worth a waiver wire claim heading into a tough Week 2 matchup with the Denver Broncos. It’s probably not the week to start Howard but he’s a decent wait-and-see pickup at the tight end position. If you have roster space, he’s worth the gamble.
TE Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints (12.00% Owned)
Through the firstthree-quarterss of the Saints’ season opener, Jameis Winston kept getting sacked and Alvin Kamara couldn’t find any open space. Most of the offense before the fourth quarter of the game came off of a 57-yard (career-long) run for Taysom Hill. He followed that up with a touchdown. Each season, Hill comes up big for the Saints since Sean Payton began using him as the team’s swiss-army knife. Now, HC Dennis Allen is seemingly following his lead and continuing to give Hill a substantial role on theSaints's offense. Though he is now listed as a tight end, the Saints can use him as a pass-catcher or as a running back. This makes him uniquely valuable in fantasy football this year as well as for the Saints’ offense.
TE Hayden Hurst, Cincinnati Bengals (19.06% Owned)
In the Bengals’ season opener, TE Hayden Hurst caught five passes for 46 yards. He was targeted eight times in the contest, which was likely the worst game of Joe Burrow’s NFL career. Though Burrow had 338 passing yards and two touchdowns, he threw four interceptions and fumbled twice, turning over the ball once more. In total, Burrow had five turnovers in yesterday’s game which limited his opportunities on offense. Hurst should be targeted more in a game where Burrow plays like himself. The Steelers's defense made his Week 1 start a nightmare. Moving forward this season, Burrow should have many more opportunities on offense which should increase Hurst’s production moving forward. Taking into consideration how terrible of a game Joe Burrow had, Hursts’ five catches for 46 receiving yards was a solid overall performance.
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