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NFL Fantasy Football: Week 2 waiver wire targets
- Elijah Mitchell's injury in week 1 opens up a substantial role for Jeff Wilson in the San Francisco offense
- Curtis Samuel reminded fantasy managers of his potential when healthy with a robust week 1 performance
- Jamaal Williams, Khalil Herbert, Jaylen Warren also make Opoyi's week 1 waiver wire list
Several injuries and standout rookie performances marked the first week of the NFL season. These were major influencers for Opoyi’s week 2 waiver wire list. We’re providing the priority order in which to target players as well as suggestions for how much of your Free Agent Acquisition Budget (FAAB) to use.
The full list follows:
Also read: NFL 2022: Top Quarterbacks in Week 1
1) Jeff Wilson: (Recommended FAAB: 35% of overall budget)
Elijah Mitchell, starting running back for the San Francisco 49’ers was injured during their week 1 loss to the Chicago Bears. More devastatingly for them and fantasy owners of Mitchell, the star running back suffered an MCL sprain during the game which will keep him out for the next 2 months. Next man up is Jeff Wilson, who is used to the lead role for the 49’ers – he led the team in rushing in 2020. For however long Mitchell is out, we expect Wilson to retain the lead role, which should provide RB2 production with upside.
2) Curtis Samuel: (Recommended FAAB: 12% of overall budget)
26-year-old wide receiver Curtis Samuel was one of the standout performers in Washington Commanders’ 28-22 win over Jacksonville Jaguars. He was targeted a mouth watering 11 times, and registered 8 receptions for 55 yards and one touchdown in the match. Samuel also registered 4 rushing attempts for 17 yards. If Samuel stays healthy, he should provide WR3 production with WR2 upside the rest of the way
3) Jamaal Williams: (Recommended FAAB: 10% of overall budget)
Jamaal Williams is the 1B in the Detroit Lions running game, playing behind DeAndre Swift. He also has a substantial goal line role. In this role, Williams had 11 carries for 28 yards with two touchdowns in Detroit’s week 1 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. We expect Williams to continue to provide flex value in his current role. In addition, if Swift were to miss any time due to injury, Williams would become an instant lottery ticket to win your league.
4) Khalil Herbert: (Recommended FAAB: 7% of overall budget)
Khalil Herbert had only 10 carries to starter David Montgomery’s 20 in the Chicago Bears’ week 1 victory over the San Francisco 49’ers. However, he out-rushed Montgomery 45 yards to 26 and also had a major role to play when the game was close at the end. While we aren’t declaring Herbert as the victor in this backfield yet, we expect his role to continue to grow based on this performance. Also, as Montgomery’s primary backup, Herbert would instantly inherit an RB2 role with upside were Montgomery to get injured.
5) Jaylen Warren: (Recommended FAAB: 7% of overall budget)
Najee Harris, the star running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers, was injured during their week 1 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. He didn’t especially distinguish himself with this performance, registering 3 carries for 7 yards. But Warren established himself as the clear backup to Harris nonetheless. If Harris is unable to suit up for week 2, expect Warren to provide RB2 production based on volume alone.
6) Brian Robinson Jr.: (Recommended FAAB: 5% of overall budget)
Brian Robinson seemed to have sewed up the lead role in the Washington Commanders’ backfield a few weeks back. Then, a couple of weeks back, Robinson was shot twice as the victim of a botched carjacking. Subsequently, he was placed on the reserve/non football injury list. In the last few days, we’ve heard positive news come out of the Washington Commanders team on Robinson’s recovery from the shooting. He seems set to return in week 5. Stash him in your league, especially if you have an injured reserve (IR) slot.
7) Jahan Dotson: (Recommended FAAB: 5% of overall budget)
Jahan Dotson, playing his first game for the Washington Commanders, made an impact. He hauled in 3 of 5 targets for two touchdowns in the Commanders week 1 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. We don’t expect quarterback Carson Wentz to throw 41 times in every game as he did in this one, and the rookie Dotson’s number of targets was underwhelming in a heavy pass volume game. But based on this performance, Dotson’s role should grow.
8) Tyler Boyd: (Recommended FAAB: 5% of overall budget)
Tee Higgins, star WR for the Cincinnati Bengals, was ruled out with a concussion during their week 1 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. As a result of this, Tyler Boyd now moves up from the third wide receiver on the team to spot number two, behind Ja’Marr Chase. Boyd caught 4 of 7 targets for 33 yards and a touchdown. If Higgins is unable to go in week 2, Boyd shapes up as a WR3 or Flex option.
Also Read: Why 49ers’ Kittle, Davis-Price, Danny Gray miss NFL 2022 opener vs Bears
9) Taysom Hill: (Recommended FAAB: 2% of overall budget)
Taysom Hill has had a substantial role as an all-purpose player in the New Orleans Saints offense the last few years. In this role, he’s lined up in a variety of positions including quarterback, running back, wide receiver, full back and tight end. With the retirement of head coach Sean Payton this offseason it was unclear what kind of a role Hill would continue to play. We got clarity on this in the Saints’ win over Atlanta Falcons in week 1. Lining up in his gadget role, Hill had 4 carries for 81 yards and a rushing touchdown, also adding a 2 yard reception. Hill has tight end eligibility in some leagues. If he does in yours, we’d suggest picking him up to shore up a traditionally weak position.
10) Devin Duvernay: (Recommended FAAB: 1% of overall budget)
Devin Duvernay, caught all 4 of his targets for 54 yards and two touchdowns in the Baltimore Ravens’ week 1 win over the New York Jets. While we wouldn’t suggest chasing touchdowns based on a single performance, it seems clear that Duvernay is going to have the second wide receiver role in the Baltimore offense behind Rashod Bateman. Based on this performance, we expect this role to grow.
Also read: McCaffrey to Barkley: Players returning from injury do well in Week 1
Bonus recommendation: DeAndre Carter: (Recommended FAAB: 1% of overall budget)
DeAndre Carter caught 3 out of 4 targets for 64 yards and a touchdown for the Los Angeles Chargers in their week 1 win over the Las Vegas Raiders. He took on a more substantial role after star wide receiver Keenan Allen was ruled out with a hamstring injury. Because of the short 3 day gap between game 1 and game 2 for the chargers, Allen might not recover in time for that game. If so, expect Carter to provide WR3 value in game 2.
Also read: Running back analysis: D’Andre Swift vs Jamaal Williams
Other targets:
Robbie Anderson, James Robinson, DJ Chark, Gerald Everett
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