RGP brings you an article for Fantasy Football Week 5 that’ll go over our top waiver wire pickups and trade candidates!
Note on FAAB Leagues: We don’t recommend spending much on any position outside of RB. There are usually decent options out there every week, and they don’t hold nearly as much trade value as RBs. It’s also much trickier to have a mid-level WR on your bench because there’s rarely a clear time to use them, whereas it’s quite simple for RBs when the other member of their backfield is out. For that reason, we aren’t going to suggest bid amounts for any position other than RB. You know if you desperately need a QB, WR, or TE. If you do, then it makes sense to bid 8-12% of your budget to take care of that need. If you’re adding those positions to keep them on your bench, then we would bid 1% or 0 if that’s allowed. We like to see if we can get those guys for free, but we save our budget for RBs. Lastly, you never NEED a defense or kicker. We stream them every week and never bid more than $1. Just put in claims for the top-6 options and surely you’ll get one that’s good enough. These are not predictive enough positions that getting the “best” option is worth anything, and they hold no trade value.
Note on Start/Sit Questions: Our team is available to you in Discord nearly 24/7, but we ask that you check the projections before asking us who you should start or sit. The FanDuel projections can be used for Half-PPR leagues, and DraftKings for Full-PPR. If you’re choosing between two guys and one projects a full point better than the other, you don’t need to ask us who we’d start. If it’s really close or there’s more nuance to the strategy, we’re happy to discuss it with you.
Note on late season acquisitions: As we get later into the season, the FAAB budget becomes less valuable, so firing it all on one of the last good players is acceptable. You’ll notice we’re raising the budget we’re willing to use on waiver claims as the regular season winds down.
- Dontayvion Wicks – WR (GB)
We continue the WR pickup trend with Wicks, who is a great add for a few reasons. First of all, with Jordan Love back in the lineup he exploded for 5 catches on 13 targets, 78 yards, and two touchdowns. He did have some drops that can be a concern, but Christian Watson was carted off which would thrust Wicks back into a greater snap share, which made him relevant last year when Watson was dealing with injuries. The drops can be fixed, and if he’s going to be getting a significant amount of targets each week this is a player that should be rostered in all leagues. He’s my top priority and I’m willing to use 40% of FAAB here with Wicks. He has played 70% of snaps just three times in his career and has averaged over 20 fantasy points. He’s been a target hog when he’s out there, so the upside is worth taking a shot on.
- Wan’Dale Robinson – WR (NYG)
This is your last chance to add Wan’Dale if you haven’t already. This Giants offense continues to get funneled through Nabers and Robinson. We saw Robinson have another excellent PPR game catching 11 passes for 71 yards. As long as Robinson and Daniel Jones remain healthy, he will be a solid option to start on a weekly basis. We would use 15-20% of your FAAB with Robinson who has proven to us he can be a reliable PPR receiver.
- Josh Downs – WR (IND)
Welcome back Josh Downs! The sophomore receiver had himself a day after getting back from his injury that held him out the first two games of the season. One thing to note, he got a touchdown and most of his production from Joe Flacco after Anthony Richardson left the game. He ended up having an 8-82-1 line on 9 targets which was encouraging to see. If Richardson is out for a while this could also be beneficial to Downs as the offense seemed to flow better, and Downs would surely benefit from a pure passer who is more willing to throw short routes. The same way Dalton revived an offense that seemed to lack in the passing game in Carolina, Flacco did the same as he also brought Michael Pittman out of his slump. That being said, Richardson was having his best quarter in a while before he left with an injury, so the offense might be headed in the right direction regardless of who is under center. Whether it’s Flacco or Richardson, Josh Downs is going to have a bright future in this offense as someone they have relied on continuously. We would use 10-15% of your FAAB with Downs.
- Chase Brown – RB (CIN)
If you are looking for RB help then we have some solid backs this week that would be worth scooping up if they’re available. We begin with Chase Brown who had an amazing day with 92 total yards and 2 touchdowns. He may not be the lead back that you desire, but he goes into immediate RB2 territory if Moss goes down and can be used as a flex option in a timeshare. He was out snapped on Sunday by Moss but what catches our attention is that it was Brown that had 3 red zone carries to the one carry Moss had. That may not be a sign of things to come but Zac Taylor has made it known they want to get Brown involved in this offense with his skillset. His snap share also grew quite a bit more than what we saw in the first three weeks, so there are encouraging signs here. We believe Brown makes for an excellent stash and a fringe flex play if your team needs one. We would use 10-15% of your FAAB here.
- Kareem Hunt – RB (KC)
Our next back to consider is Kareem Hunt who took over the backfield against the Chargers while Steele got phased out. This just goes to show that Andy Reid trusts Kareem Hunt, who is very familiar with his offense. Samaje Perine had a goal line TD but it was Hunt that led the backfield in snaps, rushing yards, and rushing attempts. In addition, Hunt led the backfield in routes ran over fellow passing back Perine. We could envision the role growing for Hunt as he continues to learn the offense. The only reason we aren’t bidding more here is because Clyde Edwards-Helaire is likely coming back soon, and of course, Pacheco will eventually return and probably reduce Hunt’s value to nothing before the fantasy playoffs begin. We would use 5-10% of FAAB on Hunt.
- Trey Sermon – RB (IND)
The final running back to try and claim off waivers is Jonathan Taylor‘s backup, Trey Sermon. JT’s injury is likely to be a lingering concern for a while and it may cause him to miss this week. Sermon would likely be a usable streaming option anytime Taylor sits out, so he’s definitely worth owning. If you need someone to play this week, then I would go as high as 20% on Sermon, but I would only bid around 5% if you would simply be stashing him on your bench.
Trade Targets
- Josh Jacobs – RB (GB)
We come back to Josh Jacobs for a trade candidate after another dud performance. This game should frustrate Jacobs owners even more, which makes this a great time to get him for cheaper than last week. He only had 9 carries for 51 yards, but also managed 4 catches for 27 yards on 6 targets which salvaged his fantasy day. The Packers fell into a quick 28-0 deficit which forced them to abandon the run, so for Jacobs to still produce makes this game impressive. A particular stat we found interesting was that when Jordan Love has been under center, Jacobs has run into stacked boxes in only 1 of his 26 carries. The positive regression will come. Get on Jacobs before it’s too late.
- Devin Singletary – RB (NYG)
Now unless your name is Malik Nabers, your casual fantasy owner doesn’t want to own any Giants. We do though. We want to add Robinson and trade for Singletary because this is a funneled offense with guys getting overlooked because of the team not being good. Better yet, Singletary is coming off a horrific 14 carries for 24 yards outing in a game where they could simply not get the run game going, which is to our benefit with owners who may be frustrated with him. Not only is he a great target for the season because of his near full time role, but he has dates with Seattle who is dealing with D-line injuries (who the Lions just ran all over) and the Cincinnati Bengals who have been poor against the RB position as well.
- Ladd McConkey – WR (LAC)
As we approach teams finally going on their bye weeks, McConkey is a target that you could nab while he’s not playing this week. He had a 5-67-1 line on 7 targets as he continues to see his role grow on this offense. The Chargers have trusted their rookie who they spent a high draft pick on and that is evident with his 27% target share this season. Many thought it would be Josh Palmer as the breakout receiver with the departure of Mike Williams and Keenan Allen in the offseason, but it’s been the rookie McConkey who’s not only separated himself from the pack slowly, but can prove to be a reliable WR1 for the Chargers as this season goes on which likely will translate well for Fantasy.