Fantasy Football 2019 Week 8 Waiver Wire Pickup Advice
Is your fantasy team in need of new blood? Each week I’ll bring to you the best pickups to make ahead of the waiver deadline. All the players I list will be owned in fewer than 50 percent of leagues, with the ownership percentage coming from Yahoo.com
Quarterbacks
Teddy Bridgewater, Saints (16% Owned): There is chatter that Drew Brees is hoping to be back in Week 8 vs. the Cardinals, but that’s no guarantee. If he needs an extra week, Teddy Bridgewater becomes a fine play against one of the NFL’s worst defenses, and the Brees rumors should make him free on the waiver wire. Bridgewater is one of the least explosive starting QBs in football, but he’s been careful to not beat himself – only two interceptions in 2019 – and he’s shown blowup potential against awful defenses (314 yards, four touchdowns vs. TB). If you just lost Matt Ryan, or you’re looking to replace Dak Prescott on bye, Bridgewater’s a nice fill-in for a week.
Sam Darnold, Jets (33% Owned): Darnold was absolutely atrocious vs. the Patriots, but he still has plenty of upside in any given week with the right matchup. His next two games are at Jalen Ramsey-less Jacksonville, and at Miami, the worst defense in football. He’s got one of the best safety valves out of the backfield in Le’Veon Bell, a trusty slot receiver in Jamison Crowder, and the home run threat in Robby Anderson. With that type of weaponry, Darnold should have a fairly high floor in good-to-great matchups, and a fairly high ceiling too. I’m not scared to play him in the near future.
Mason Rudolph, Steelers (6% Owned): Rudolph is a very nice one-week play against the Dolphins in Week 8, as long as he plays. The Steelers backup has cleared concussion protocol, and should be good to go. That’s promising, because prior to getting his lights turned off in Week 5, Rudolph had thrown for two touchdowns in three straight games. The yardage wasn’t there, but he’d been up against the Seahawks and 49ers defenses. He put up an efficient 229 yards against the Bengals, and could do serious damage to the Dolphins. Don’t count on him past Week 8 though.
Running Backs
Chase Edmonds, Cardinals (48% Owned): Edmonds proved that he can be a force when he gets the work, and moving forward he might have carved out a minimum weekly role regardless of David Johnson’s health. Johnson entered Week 7 with a back issue, and even though Johnson started, it clearly flared up. Edmonds did what good RBs do to the Giants; he tore them up for 126 yards and three touchdowns. Don’t go crazy here! Johnson, when healthy, will still see the lion’s share of work and Arizona’s next three matchups are against stout run defenses (at New Orleans, vs. San Francisco, at Tampa Bay). But if you’re a Johnson owner you NEED to spend a healthy chunk of FAAB on Edmonds, and the rest of us can feel safe with a decent-sized bid on the off chance he gets the role going forward thanks to Johnson’s back.
Ronald Jones, Buccaneers (48% Owned): Jones’ usage is lowkey one of the most baffling aspects of fantasy football to follow. He’s clearly more talented than Peyton Barber, and he’s responded when given a fair workload. And yet, he carried the ball just four times vs. the Panthers in Week 6, salvaging the day with a touchdown. Realistically, you can’ count on inconsistency the rest of the way, but Jones should be playable against bad run defenses. That means he’s a stash for now until the Bucs are past road dates with the Titans and Seahawks. If he’s available, you’ll likely get him cheaply.
Mark Walton, Dolphins (21% Owned): Walton has the chance to become a workhorse in Miami, especially if they find a trade partner to take Kenyan Drake off their hands. His ceiling is low; this is a crap offense, and their crap defense will ruin game scripts semi-regularly. But Walton did catch five passes against Washington, meaning if Drake departs he might become a three-down back. The Dolphins have tough matchups coming up, but if he can be counted on to flirt with 18-20 touches moving forward, he’ll always be a viable play to provide something even in the worst matchups. Also, his checkered past has so far overshadowed his talent, which is impressive. There’s a non-zero chance of an outright breakout here.
Darrell Henderson, Rams (31% Owned): Henderson might’ve surpassed Malcolm Brown as the No. 2 thanks to Brown’s injury. He averaged 6.5 yards per carry vs. the 49ers last week, and received 11 carries on Sunday vs. the Falcons. Todd Gurley is never going to be a high-volume back again, and Henderson’s explosiveness means he could be a regular FLEX option as long as Sean McVay does the humane thing and takes Brown’s carries to a nice farm.
Ty Johnson, Lions (2% Owned): We don’t know much about Kerryon Johnson’s injury, but Ty Johnson is in line for a big increase in work if Johnson’s going to miss real time. He only put up 29 yards on 10 rushes last week, but the Vikings are an unforgiving front seven. With upcoming games vs. the Giants and Raiders, Johnson will have room to operate. I think he’s a low-end RB2 while Johnson’s out, which is something many, many fantasy owners sorely need right now.
Darrel Williams, Chiefs (11% Owned): Damien Williams seems to have been discarded in the Chiefs’ backfield plans, making LeSean McCoy the preferred back. However, Darrel Williams caught a 52-yard pass two weeks ago, and very well might’ve moved into the RB2 spot on the KC depth chart. He can be added very cheaply right now, and might be a McCoy ankle tweak away from the lead role in this backfield. He’s shown the ability to catch the rock, so he could pay dividends later this season.
Benny Snell Jr., Steelers (5% Owned): Snell is an unknown, but those who are paying attention noticed his 75-yard day vs. the Chargers in Week 6. Jaylen Samuels is still out, and James Conner seems to leave every week with some kind of malady. Keep an eye on Conner’s status; if he’s out this week, Snell is a borderline RB1 vs. the Dolphins. As is, I think he’ll be playable because Conner’s been taking such a beating each week. At any moment, Snell could have the Steelers backfield all to himself.
Alexander Mattison, Vikings (25% Owned): Mattison is a must own for all Dalvin Cook owners. He has had big games even when Cook was active, because Minnesota’s offensive line has been that good in 2019. You can’t really play him unless Cook is hurt, but if Cook does get hurt, Mattison will be one of the hottest commodities of the year on waivers. Don’t wait for him to cost an arm and a leg, get him now while he costs nothing.
Wide Receivers
Kenny Stills, Texans (12% Owned): Will Fuller left Week 7 early with a hamstring injury, and in stepped Kenny Stills with four catches for 105 yards. Stills is just like Fuller, so with Fuller out, I’m very excited about Stills’ big play potential. The Texans have the Raiders up next, and then the Jaguars without Jalen Ramsey. Two nice matchups for Stills to exploit if Fuller’s hamstring forces him to miss time.
Auden Tate, Bengals (38% Owned): It’s hard to trust any Bengals these days, but Tate has been consistently targeted since he entered the lineup. Tate hasn’t seen fewer than six targets since Week 2, and has put up at least 50 yards in four of his last five games. The one time he failed to reach 50 yards, he made up for it with a touchdown. Tate is a high-floor WR3 type, and he’s perfect for teams struggling with injuries or bye weeks. A date with the Rams in Week 8 should yield a TD.
A.J. Brown, Titans (17% Owned): Brown was alive with Ryan Tannehill at QB, putting up 64 yards on six catches (eight targets). That’s what a bad day should look like for a receiver with Brown’s size and speed. This week vs. Tampa Bay should be a statement game for the rookie. He’s a risky play for sure, since the Titans always have the capability of shelving anything interesting offensively for runs to Derrick Henry, but Tampa Bay’s atrocious pass defense is ripe for Brown to exploit.
Cole Beasley, Bills (29% Owned): Beasley was quieter than expected vs. the Dolphins, but he did find the end zone as I predicted. The six targets were not bad, and this week he gets one of the NFL’s worst secondaries (Eagles). Philadelphia might be more vulnerable to John Brown over the top, but as long as Beasley is targeted, he’ll at least be a decent FLEX option in half-PPR or full-PPR formats.
Tight Ends
Darren Fells, Texans (29% Owned): It’s rough out there finding TEs, but Fells is going to be a legitimate touchdown threat all season thanks to the volume of Houston’s passing offense. Oakland, Jacksonville and Baltimore, Fells’ next three opponents (Week 10 bye), are all relatively partial to good games for opposing TEs. Don’t expect the moon, but I’m confident Fells won’t throw up a doughnut.
Vance McDonald, Steelers (49% Owned): Optimism for Vance McDonald has evaporated with Ben Roethlisberger’s season-ending injury, but his talent remains, even if most of his opportunity is gone. McDonald remains playable in the right matchups, especially with Mason Rudolph/Devlin Hodges keeping things pretty short. Miami is one of the best possible matchups for a TE, so he’s playable if you need a guy.