Fantasy Football Week 5: Waiver Wire Pickups
Sep 25, 2016; Arlington, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys receiver Cole Beasley (11) looks for the touchdown call from field judge Steve Zimmer (33) after a catch against Chicago Bears corenrback Jacoby Glenn (39) in the second quarter at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
The waiver wire is what will end up making or breaking your fantasy football season. Here are a few players that could help you off the wire in Week 5.
I’m not going to lie to you: this is a bad week for the wavier wire. In fact, out of the five weeks so far in the 2016 season, this might be the worse week if you’re looking for help. Unlike the previous weeks, there were not any significant injuries from the week before that makes any one player a must add this week.
With that said, we’ll take a look at some players that can possibly help you now and possibly down the road.
For these purposes, we will being using Yahoo! Fantasy Football as a guideline. Any player that is 50 percent owned or less is eligible.
Oct 2, 2016; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens running back Terrance West (28) runs with the ball in the second quarter against the Oakland Raiders at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports
5. Terrance West, RB – Baltimore Ravens (31% Owned)
The Ravens decided to bench Justin Forsett in Week 4 (before cutting him on Tuesday) and West handled a majority of the touches in the backfield. He finished the game with 21 carries, 113 yards, and one touchdown. Now should you expect this performance every week? Absolutely not. Yet, this week he does play the Washington Redskins, who have one of the worse run defenses in the NFL.
Keep in mind that rookie Kenneth Dixon is nearing 100 percent and could be active this week. He should be eased into snaps and touches, but it’s not inconceivable he takes over as the Ravens starting running back at some point.
That notion shouldn’t scare you off from adding West to your roster this week and possibly starting as a RB2/FLEX option with four teams on bye.
Oct 2, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers tight end Hunter Henry (86) cannot bring in a catch during the second quarter as New Orleans Saints free safety Vonn Bell (48) defends at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
4. Hunter Henry, TE – San Diego Chargers (31% Owned)
When Antonio Gates isn’t playing, Henry is a great streaming option as a backend TE1. In Week 3 he caught all five of his targets for 72 yards. In Week 4 he caught four of his seven targets for 61 yards and a touchdown.
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The fact is, tight end is a prominent position in San Diego’s offense and quarterback Philip Rivers loves throwing to his tight end. In Week 5, the Chargers take on the Oakland Raiders who are certainly beatable in that department.
Adding Henry is predicated on the assumption Gates will not be playing. If Gates pulls a Barney Stinson and decides to suit up in Week 5 it will be hard to trust Henry in fantasy lineups. It’s not to say he won’t play or have a role in the offense but his biggest asset right now is he is dominating snaps at the position.
Owners that are hurting at tight end need to keep a close eye on the injury report. With guys like Jimmy Graham, Travis Kelce, Coby Fleener, and Julius Thomas on a bye, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Henry finish as a top-five TE if Gates is a no-go.
Sep 18, 2016; Landover, MD, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Cole Beasley (11) runs after a catch against the Washington Redskins during the first half at FedEx Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
3. Cole Beasley, WR – Dallas Cowboys (45% Owned)
The Dallas pint size reciever is coming off a Week 4 game where he hauled in his least amount of receptions on the season (3). However, his 66 receiving yards mark the fourth straight game this season where he has had 65 receiving yards or more.
Let me be clear: this recommendation is for full-point PPR leagues and full-point PPR leagues only. If you are a standard league where you don’t reward players for a reception, don’t add him. If you are a 0.5-PPR league where a player only gets half a point per reception, don’t add him. Beasley won’t win you weeks, but chances are he won’t lose you them either. He has a decent floor in PPR leagues and ,with bye weeks, he could be a good WR3 or FLEX option.
Heading into Week 5 he is currently outscoring guys like Alshon Jeffery, Jeremy Maclin, and Brandon Marshall in PPR leagues. Although there’s very little chance he keeps that pace up, it’s just a reminder he is reliable to some extent.
In Week 5 the Cowboys take on the Cincinnati Bengals, who have given up six receiving touchdowns to opposing receivers on the season. It wouldn’t be a shock if he finds the end zone for the first time this season on Sunday.
Nov 22, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; New York Jets running back Bilal Powell (29) makes a reception during the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. The Texans defeated the Jets 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
2. Bilal Powell, RB – New York Jets (23% Owned)
Powell had a good case to be drafted in re-drafts back in August and September. However he lost most of his luster between Weeks 1-2 when Matt Forte dominated touches in the backfield. During that time Powell only saw eight total touches. Over the last two weeks the kid from Louisville is starting to build some steam again.
In each of the last two games he has had 10 total touches and has hauled in six receptions in both contests. This shouldn’t be considered a fluke or unsustainable because it was obvious there was no way Forte could keep pace with his Weeks 1-2 workload. In those two weeks he had 59 total touches which would have put him on pace for 472 on the season. There was a zero percent chance that was going to last through 16 games.
Over the last two weeks Forte’s total touches have decreased by 13 on a per game basis. Considering he was only averaging 3.77 YPC between Weeks 1-2 it shouldn’t be a real surprise the coaching staff has decided to give him less carries.
For the owners who didn’t sell high on Forte when you had the chance, you probably lost your opportunity. For the owners looking for running back help (especially in PPR), Powell would be a solid pickup.
Sep 25, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; New York Jets wide receiver Quincy Enunwa (81) celebrates after a run during the second half against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs won 24-3. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
1. Quincy Enunwa, WR – New York Jets (37% Owned)
Well, I’m shocked the guy is still available in so many leagues. But he is and owners need to jump all over him. After two weeks it was clear Enunwa had a role in the Jets offense when he hauled in 13 receptions for 146 receiving yards on 14 targets. It didn’t matter that he was the Jets No. 3 receiver because he was still seeing enough targets to be considered relevant.
Now, the Jets WR2 in Eric Decker is dealing with a shoulder injury that could not only keep him out for another week but possibly the season.
In his first full game as the Jets No. 2, Enunwa had six receptions and 60 receiving yards in a tough matchup against the Seattle Seahawks. He now has at least six receptions in three out of four games this year. His 23 receptions and two touchdown receptions leads the team heading into Week 5.
Ryan Fitzpatrick has thrown nine interceptions over the last two games. That number will come down and the Jets will be able to sustain more drives. When that happens, Enunwa will see more targets and opportunities on top of the success he has already had.
Oct 2, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Brian Hoyer (2) throws a pass during the second half against the Detroit Lions at Soldier Field. Chicago won 17-14. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Other Receiving Votes
Here are a few more names you want to consider when you go through your fantasy football waiver wire.
Philadelphia Eagles RB Darren Sproles (48% Owned) – He’s coming off a bye week, but don’t forget he last time he took the field he had 128 receiving yards and a touchdown.
New York Giants WR Victor Cruz (47% Owned) – He now has double-digit PPR points in four straight games. You could do worse as a WR4 during the bye weeks.
Baltimore Ravens RB Kenneth Dixon (25% Owned) – He’s finally healthy and could be active for Week 5. It might take some time but there’s a chance be becomes the Ravens starting running back at some point. If that happens he could be a game changer in fantasy leagues.
New England Patriots WR Chris Hogan (24% Owned) – He hasn’t done much over the last two weeks but then again no Patriots receiver has without Tom Brady. Now that he’s back, Hogan’s numbers could see a nice boost.
Pittsburgh Steelers WR Sammie Coates (17% Owned) – He’s coming off his best game of the season. In the Steelers high-powered offense he’s worth a speculative add because his physical attributes in that offense could pay big dividends if he happens to put it all together.
Chicago Bears QB Brian Hoyer (5% Owned) – In back-to-back weeks Hoyer has thrown multiple touchdown passes and over 300 yards. The Bears defense isn’t good and this should force Hoyer to throw late in a majority of games.