I’ll be digging through the trash for your next waiver stash. These 3 guys are barely owned. This week, I’m trying something different. These guys might actually contribute to your squad in the coming weeks. I have provided 2 rookies and one veteran that pretty much everyone knows. Here goes:

1. Gus Edwards, RB, Baltimore Ravens

(0.2% owned in FFPC leagues)

Vs Oakland, @ Atlanta, @ Kansas City

If you are an Alex Collins owner, you are certainly frustrated by Gus Edwards. The big bodied running back (6’1” 238lbs) spent his first 3 college seasons with Miami University before transferring to Rutgers to finish out his collegiate career. Going undrafted, the Ravens scooped Edwards up and signed him as a free agent. In the preseason, he led the Ravens in rushing with 53 rushes for 174 yards. After the preseason finale, Edwards was cut and then signed to the practice squad.

When Kenneth Dixon went down with an injury in week 5, the Ravens activated Edwards in week 6. Since being activated, Edwards has been a bruiser when given the ball. In his first regular season action against Tennessee, he rushed 10 times for 42 yards and had a nice 11 yard run up the gut breaking a few tackles in the process. He hasn’t received more than 10 carries again until this past week against Cincinnati. Edwards out carried Alex Collins 17 to 7 in this contest and he gashed the Bengals defense in between the tackles 17 times for 115 yards (6.8 YPC) and a score. On his touchdown run, Edwards took the handoff and ran up the middle, broke one tackle when the defender fell to the ground and scored from12 yards out. He even scored a two point conversion to tie the game in the 4th quarter.

If you own Alex Collins, you might want to take a look at Edwards. I’m not so sure John Harbaugh has faith in Collins due to his usage as of late. You may need to spend that FAAB you have been saving for Gus Edwards. It seems as though the tide is turning in the Baltimore backfield, and Harbaugh may be leaning on the rookie runner more and more.

2. Marcell Ateman, WR, Oakland Raiders

(0.7% owned in FFPC leagues)

@ Baltimore, Vs Kansas City, Vs Pittsburgh

Marcell Ateman was selected in the 2018 NFL Draft in the 7th round (pick 228) by the Oakland Raiders out of Oklahoma State. In his senior year at OSU, he caught 59 passes for 1,156 yards and 8 touchdowns. He slipped in the draft due to the lack of speed, his limited route tree and his injury history (he missed his junior year due to a foot injury).

What Ateman lacks in speed, he makes up for with his size and catch radius. Ateman is a big body (6’5” 219lbs) that will create a mismatch with most corners and safeties. In the preseason, Ateman displayed these traits which made him a reliable target. In all 4 preseason games Ateman was targeted 17 times and caught 12 passes (71% catch rate) for 139 yards. In the 2nd week of the preseason against the Los Angeles Rams, Ateman also displayed some quickness on a 9 yard out route that he gained an extra 16 yards after the catch for 25 yards.

The most impressive stat that the box score won’t show is that Ateman did not record a single drop in the preseason. Even though Ateman had been impressive, he did not make the 53 man roster and was signed to the Raiders practice squad. Once Amari Cooper was dealt to the Dallas Cowboys, the Raiders promoted Ateman to the active roster. In the first 3 weeks he was active, however, he did not see the field. Heading into the week 11 matchup against Arizona, wide receiver Jordy Nelson was ruled out, which meant Ateman would see an uptick in snaps. He would go on to produce by catching 4 passes for 50 yards (which led the Raiders in receiving). With the game near the end in the 4th quarter, Derek Carr showed his faith in Ateman and threw a sideline dart to him for 32 yards. Ateman quickly got out of bounds once he corralled the pass and this completion would help set up the game winning field goal by Daniel Carlson. Ateman is definitely someone you should look at.

With his huge frame, he’s an instant red zone threat. The only thing holding him back is the Raiders offense. If you like gambles, Ateman could definitely be a boom-bust gamble for your roster.

3. Colt McCoy, QB, Washington Redskins

(0.4% owned in FFPC leagues)

@ Dallas, @ Philadelphia, Vs New York Giants

Normally on the Trash Pile, I would recommend someone to stash on your Dynasty team that’s a little younger. With playoffs in the near future, and a gruesome injury to starting quarterback Alex Smith that will have him miss the rest of the season, I am recommending a familiar name in Colt McCoy. He was a fantastic college quarterback while at Texas and was even the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy back in 2008.

Since being drafted in the league in 2010 (3rd round, 85th overall), he has played for Cleveland and San Francisco until settling with Washington since the 2014 season. McCoy has had his ups and downs since being in the league, but is definitely serviceable. His career stats before being put to work this past week were 508 completions out of 842 attempts for 5,586 yards with 26 touchdowns and 23 INT’s. This past week, McCoy didn’t look too out of place and almost gave Washington a chance to win in Smith’s absence. A missed 63 yard field goal left them just short of the “W”. McCoy’s final stat line was 6/12 for 54 yards and a touchdown pass to tight end Jordan Reed in the left corner of the end zone. McCoy even ran 5 times for 35 yards.

He lands on this list because Alex Smith’s ownership in FFPC is at 86.7%. A lot of those teams might need to scramble to find a useable quarterback and McCoy could possibly be just that. I’m not saying he’s going to win anybody their leagues, but with FFPC’s trade deadline (and many other sites trading deadlines) going by the wayside this past weekend, you are basically relegated to free agents. If you didn’t already snag a backup quarterback, you are basically looking at such names as: Eli Manning, Brock Osweiler or C.J. Beathard (those were the top 3 in my league – just as an example). I know McCoy isn’t a sexy name whatsoever, but sometimes you have to scrape by in fantasy football. Don’t go crazy with your FAAB if you need to add him. Hell, you may even be able to get him for $1. Would you pay $1 to keep your season going? I sure would.