Looking at the best fantasy football waiver wire pickups to make for Week 2 of the NFL season. Waiver adds this week include Kansas City Chiefs WR, Hollywood Brown.
Whew, that was fun! The NFL is back and Week 1 had plenty of fun surprises to offer. As expected, defenses proved to be a bit ahead of offenses in most of the games played on the first Sunday of the season. Then, we got a ridiculous offensive shootout in the nightcap that many will dub as a game of the year candidate. Now, it’s time to try and make sense of what we saw and identify the best fantasy football waiver wire pickups early on in the new season.
As always, we caution you on overreacting to box score stats. Instead, we encourage you to dig deeper into the numbers and put a greater emphasis on snap counts, targets and touches when deciphering the players you want to prioritize amongst your fantasy football waiver wire pickups. Like most years, many players around the league had inaccurate ADPs based on the opportunity available to them within their respective offenses.
One last piece of advice: do not be afraid to shake up your roster! While it can be tempting to hold onto late-round rookie dart throws, managers must be willing to set their ego aside and improve their roster whenever the opportunity arises. Remember, fantasy football is a marathon, not a sprint! Operating with the mentality that your bench spots are destined to be fluid throughout the season will give you an instant leg up over some other managers in your league. With that, here are some of the top fantasy football waiver wire pickups to target after the first week of action.
Note: Players must be owned in less than 50% of ESPN leagues to be included in the best fantasy football waiver wire pickups column. Ownership percentages will reflect their status on Tuesday mornings ahead of standard waiver processing.
Best Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 2
QB Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups
Michael Penix Jr., Atlanta Falcons (20.0%)
Funny enough, Michael Penix Jr. was featured in the final fantasy football waiver wire pickups column last year, and he’s getting the party started for us as we turn the page to Week 2 on the new season. I’m not sure if that would be considered a brilliant transition, a bridge or what. What I am sure of is that the Falcons have a quarterback who is good at football under center. Despite his top weapon, Drake London, getting injured in the fourth quarter, Penix very nearly led Atlanta to victory. With Darnell Mooney missing this game and London now day-to-day, a lack of quality pass-catchers is the biggest concern for Penix in the short-term. Then again, he actually made Kyle Pitts relevant in Week 1, so maybe it’s not that much of a concern after all.
Daniel Jones, Indianapolis Colts (4.9%)
As someone who has been a serial Daniel Jones apologist for years, boy, did I feel vindicated on Sunday afternoon! Yes, it’s only one game. And yes, said game came against a Miami Dolphins defense that appears to have major flaws. None of that changes the fact that Jones balled out. From a fantasy standpoint, he also showcased his vastly underrated rushing upside with a pair of touchdowns. There will undoubtedly be some bad outputs along the way, but Jones will certainly continue to benefit from a Colts offensive line that is easily the best he’s ever had in front of him. Am I allowed to refer to him as a poor man’s Josh Allen? Sorry (but not really) to those who take offense.
RB Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups
Dylan Sampson, Cleveland Browns (32.7%)
Dylan Sampson is an obvious inclusion amongst our fantasy football waiver wire pickups. The Browns’ backfield situation figures to be an evolving situation in the coming weeks, as the Quinshon Judkins situation continues to play out. While one is probably right to assume fantasy football rookie Sampson won’t be the lead back forever, he had 20 touches in Week 1 on 33 snaps compared to only seven touches on 41 snaps for veteran incumbent Jerome Ford. Even though Sampson’s production will likely take a hit long-term whenever Judkins gets added to the mix, this is a fantasy football add that should have staying power on your roster.
Tyler Allgeier, Atlanta Falcons (38.8%)
Bijan Robinson was the star of the Falcons’ backfield and Week 1 and will presumably maintain that status for the entire season. That said, Tyler Allgeier was modestly involved in the game plan. Despite only playing 19 snaps, he carried the ball 10 times. While he wasn’t very efficient with those carries, the usage simply reiterates the fact that Allgeier is one of the most valuable backup RBs in the NFL. It’s also reasonable to assume that he will get work down near the goal line as a power back on a number of occasions, even with Robinson healthy. While he’s nothing more than a low-end FLEX play for now, the appeal to roster him is much higher due to his handcuff status.
WR Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups
Hollywood Brown, Kansas City Chiefs (50.0%)
Based on the 50% ownership threshold as a criterion for inclusion in this fantasy football waiver wire pickups column, we’re right on the line by featuring Hollywood Brown. Even though we say “less than”, I’m making the executive decision to expand to “equal to” on this occasion. That’s how important it is to make Brown a priority claim this week if he is available in your league. His WR9 finish in PPR scoring is not a fluke. Brown will be a focal point of the Chiefs’ passing attack in the coming weeks due to the absences of Rashee Rice (suspension) and possibly Xavier Worthy (injury). After missing the vast majority of last season due to an injury of his own, Brown now has the opportunity to shine in Kansas City.
Cedric Tillman, Cleveland Browns (42.6%)
There’s an argument to be made that Cedric Tillman’s preseason ADP should have ticked up a bit higher than it was as soon as the Browns named Joe Flacco the starting QB. Instead, he went undrafted in over half of leagues and became one of our top fantasy football waiver wire pickups this week. When Flacco came off the couch two years ago to lead Cleveland to the playoffs, Tillman was one of the primary beneficiaries of his presence. He matched Jerry Jeudy with 67 snaps played on Sunday and wasted little time in finding the end zone with Flacco back in the fold. The Browns don’t have anyone who will challenge him as a top wideout in this offense any time soon.
Quentin Johnston, Los Angeles Chargers (3.6%)
Plenty of people had left Quentin Johnston for dead coming into the season. For most, it was a case of fantasy football box score analysis. For others, it was the inclination that this guy just can’t get separation or hold onto footballs consistently at the NFL level. Well, the former TCU standout went from being discussed as the WR4 on the Chargers roster to playing the second-most snaps among the receiving corps on Friday. He held onto five of his seven targets and found the end zone twice in a very shocking performance. It will be worth monitoring this situation going forward. While Johnston is presumably well ahead of rookie Tre Harris at this time, he did receive fewer targets than both Ladd McConkey and Keenan Allen.
TE Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups
Brenton Strange, Jacksonville Jaguars (20.2%)
Third-year pro Brenton Strange has a great opportunity to take a step forward in the Jaguars’ offense under new head coach Liam Coen this year. The jury is still out on whether the new staff and scheme can maximize Trevor Lawrence. One of the ways they presumably aim to do so is by having him get the football out quicker in passing sets. Strange was targeted four times in Week 1 and caught all of them for 59 yards. In PPR formats, every reception adds up. Lawrence also connected with backup tight end Hunter Long for a touchdown, showing a utilization of the TE position down in the red zone.
Juwan Johnson, New Orleans Saints (1.2%)
Remarkably, the tight end with the most targets in Week 1 is available in almost all of ESPN leagues. The Saints’ lack of talent is a very real thing. So is their below-average quarterback play. Whether Spencer Rattler starts the entire year or Tyler Shough eventually gets some run, Johnson’s role in the offense could prove to be very stable due to the lack of reliable weapons. What’s more, tight ends often have a reputation for being the best friends of young/rookie QBs. Add in the fact that Kellen Moore was not shy by any means about passing the ball in Week 1, and the recipe is there for Johnson to be a fantasy football waiver wire pickups option with staying power.
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