Week 2 is in the books! Which means Week 3 Waiver Wire Rankings are here!

Week 2 brought us a whole new list of injuries. None appear to be season-ending at this point. Greg Olsen will miss two months with a broken foot. Corey Coleman broke his hand (again) and will miss up to six weeks. We had some other minor injuries to Rob Kelley and Terrance West, although their Week 3 availability is still up in the air. Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb exited with injuries, but Cobb seems to be fine. Jordy Nelson is the one we are all waiting for an update on, to determine whether he will miss any time.

Below is as big of a list as you will find for players to pick up. The goal is to illuminate players that fantasy owners can pick up outside of the most obvious targets. We don’t all play in small leagues, so upping the ante and shedding light on players who would otherwise be ignored is optimal. I have included a color code highlighting what type of add priority they possess.

Be on the lookout for the TFA Transaction Tuesday Podcast that will air every Tuesday morning to help you navigate your way through waiver wire Tuesday. It will be a short 15-20 min show that’s all about the top waiver adds and streaming options.

Color Coding

Green = Top Waiver Option

Red = Players to who are currently out/injured

Gold = Streaming Target

Blue = Bench Stash

Purple = Deep League Stash

Quarterbacks

Sam Bradford Alex Smith Trevor Siemian Andy Dalton Jay Cutler DeShone Kizer Jared Goff

Sam Bradford – Clearly we are waiting to see if Bradford is able to play Week 3 after missing Week 2 because of a bone bruise. Early reports out of Minnesota point to his return this weekend against the Bucs. Week 3 is a particularly rough week for QB streamers. If Bradford was dropped because of injury, he’s the best streaming option this week and holds weekly consideration when healthy.

Alex Smith – He continues to buck the “game manager” moniker that has plagued him his entire career with shots down the field. He finished with 251 passing yards and a touchdown against the Eagles on Sunday. He also chipped in 23 yards on the ground. While this week wasn’t in the same realm as Week 1, he was a serviceable streaming option. Next week, the Chiefs will head to LA to take on the Chargers. Smith once again is one of the top streaming options with one of the more favorable matchups.

Trevor Siemian – What in the world is going on in Denver? Trevor Siemian continued his strong play, completing 22-of-32 passes for 231 yards and four touchdowns. He continues to display better accuracy and isn’t afraid to take shots down the field. His crazy touchdown production is likely to come to an end, but with a matchup against the Bills, you can feel comfortable firing up the young signal caller.

Running Backs

Javorious Allen Chris Carson D’Onta Foreman Alvin Kamara Chris Thompson Alex Collins Gio Bernard Samaje Perine Marlon Mack Shane Vereen Matt Brieda James Connor Jalen Richard Chris Johnson Robert Turbin Andre Ellington CJ Prosise Charcandrick West Jamaal Charles Jamaal Williams Elijah McGuire Devontae Booker DeAndre Washington Brandon Oliver Wendall Smallwood Alfred Morris Chris Ivory Aaron Jones Corey Clement Malcolm Brown

Javorius Allen – I had him as my number one waiver add overall last week and boy did he pay off. He finished with 21 PPR points after totaling 101 yards and a touchdown. I don’t need to go in-depth on this. With Woodhead out for the next seven weeks, Allen figures to be heavily involved in the offense and looks like a solid RB2 against the Jaguars in London. He available in over 92% of ESPN leagues (how?!) and 40% of Yahoo leagues.

Chris Carson – We at the TFA podcast have been pounding the table for fantasy gamers to stash him all preseason. He continues to look like the best running back in the Seahawks backfield. He finally received a heavy workload (20 totes) and turned it into 93 yards. With Eddie Lacy a healthy scratch, Carson out-touched all running backs, however, Thomas Rawls appeared to be on a snap-count, which may explain his limited workload. Regardless, Carson continues to shine and is making it harder for the coaching staff to leave him on the sideline. At worst, he’s carved out a sizeable role in a committee, and could soon plant his flag as the true workhorse in the offense.

D’Onta Foreman – Fantasy Twitter was abuzz with Foreman hype during the Bengals and Texans TNF matchup. He certainly looked like the more explosive back and created some extra yardage on his own. He finished with 12 carries which resulted in 40 yards (3.3 YPC), so we should temper the expectations. We have received zero indication that Bill O’Brien will reduce Miller’s role in favor of the rookie runner. At worst, Foreman is worth a bench spot and could carve out a standalone role if the Texans offense can figure things out.

Alvin Kamara – Being a pass-catching back in a Drew Brees offense instantly makes any player a viable flex option. Alvin Kamara hauled in three-of-seven targets for 51 yards. With Adrian Peterson and Mark Ingram clawing for playing time, Kamara seems to be locked into his change-of-pace work, which should encourage all fantasy owners to add the rookie running back immediately.

Chris Thompson – He’s scored the fourth-most PPR points through two weeks and has certainly looked like the most explosive back on the Redskins roster. He doesn’t have the requisite size to be an every-down back but should continue to see valuable targets. He currently has seen the sixth most targets (11) and has found paydirt three times. His touchdown efficiency will certainly tumble but he’s looking like a solid RB3 in PPR formats moving forward.

Alex Collins – If Terrance West misses Week 3, we could see an expanded role for the second year back out of Arkansas. Collins was just added to to the active roster this past week after the injury to Danny Woodhead. After West exited, Allen dominated the workload, but Collins did make the most of his seven carries, totaling 42 yards. After the game, Harbaugh suggested more playing time is coming for Collins. He’s worth a speculative add in all 12 team formats.

Gio Bernard – The Bengals are a mess in general, but even more so in the backfield. With a terrible offensive line and poor play from the Andy Dalton, it’s hard to trust Joe Mixon or Jeremy Hill. However, with a matchup against the Packers in Green Bay on tap, Gio Bernard figures to be in line to see some targets in what should be a negative game-script, making him worthy of an RB3 consideration in PPR formats.

Elijah McGuire – Merely a name to monitor with Bilal Powell poor play. Elijah McGuire plays on a Jets team that doesn’t offer much in terms of upside. However, if anything happens to veteran Matt Forte and Powell continues his abysmal play, McGuire could offer some FLEX appeal down the road.

Devontae Booker – He’s working his way back from injury, but is the true handcuff to C.J. Anderson. Jamaal Charles continues to receive limited work and it’s hard to believe they would commit to him if/when Anderson goes down. The fantasy community seems to have forgotten about second-year back Devontae Booker. Many wanted to crown rookie De’Angelo Henderson as the handcuff. If I was a betting man, I would put my money on Booker as the heir to the throne. If you’re in a deeper format, I would look to roster Booker as a speculative add.

Wide Receiver

J.J. Nelson Marqise Lee Jermaine Kearse Rashard Higgins Devin Funchess Tyler Lockett Mohamed Sanu Geronimo Allison Cole Beasley Kenny Stills Jaron Brown Paul Richardson Brandon Coleman Deonte Thompson JuJu Smith-Schuster Russell Shepard Ryan Grant Braxton Miller Josh Gordon Alex Erickson Josh Bellamy Chris Conley Cordarrelle Patterson Markus Wheaton Kasen Williams Taywan Taylor Ricardo Louis Terrance Williams DeDe Westbrook Michael Campanaro

J.J. Nelson – With John Brown hurt, J.J. Nelson stepped up, hauling in 5-of-7 targets for 120 yards and a touchdown. Over the first two weeks, Nelson is the third-highest scoring WR, averaging 19 PPR points per game. He’s also scored a touchdown in each of the last two weeks and has put up 0.67 PPO (point-per-opportunity) which is fourth-highest among wide receivers. Obviously, you don’t need me to tell you that he’s not going to sustain that level of production, however, he should continue to be involved in the offense whether John Brown is on the field or not.

Marqise Lee/Allen Hurns – Once Allen Robinson was lost for the season, all eyes turned to Marqise Lee and Allen Hurns as the main benefactors. Lee secured seven-of-12 targets for 79 yards, while Allen Hurns brought in six-of-7 targets for 82 yards and a score. On paper, these aren’t terrible performances, however, most of Hurns’ production came during garbage time, which is his M.O. Moving forward, I would prefer the consistency that Lee will provide, but you can’t feel great about either of them on a week-to-week basis. With a matchup against the stellar Ravens defense on tap, I wouldn’t feel great starting either of them this week.

Jermaine Kearse – It was a good week for all of the Jermaine Kearse truthers … wait, those don’t exist, do they? I hope not. Either way, Kearse is the defacto No. 1 WR in an offense led by Josh McCown, if that doesn’t turn you on then I don’t know what will. His 87% snape-share were the most by any Jets wide receiver, which is encouraging. He ended up with 64 yards on six receptions (12 targets) and also hauled in two touchdowns. Playing for the Jets will make him hard to count on a weekly basis, but his usage will make him an interesting flex option on most weeks.

Rashard Higgins and Ricardo Loius – Higgins out-snapped veteran wide receiver Kenny Britt by 12 snaps and was also targeted nine more times. He turned his 11 targets into 95 yards on seven catches. With Corey Coleman sidelined for six-to-eight weeks with a broken hand and Kenny Britt becoming irrelevant, Rashard Higgins becomes a very interesting addition to any fantasy team needing wide receiver help. If you aren’t familiar with Higgins, he isn’t going to blow you away with his measurables. He ran a 4.64 forty and had a 32″ vertical and 116″ broad jump, which are pretty subpar for any wide receiver. That said, he was a favorite of Matt Harmon’s Reception Perception back in 2015. He stated in his write-up on Higgins: “Colorado State’s Rashard Higgins finished with the second-best Success Rate vs. Coverage score against man defense, the third-best against press, and fifth against zone. All the makings of a future NFL prospect, at worst, in the results of my methodology. At best, these scores show us that Higgins is a clear sleeper who can quietly emerge from the mid-rounds to become a top-level receiver in the game.” While his Reception Perception scores were fantastic and his usage on Sunday was encouraging, we need to temper expectations until we get a bit more data on how things will shake out with Corey Coleman sidelined.

As for Ricardo Loius, he’s certainly the more explosive athlete. The former Auburn Tiger boasts 4.4 speed with an 89th percentile burst score and a 74th percentile catch radius. Still, we will need to see a bit more usage (two targets) to make him a viable option for any 12 team league. If Kenny Britt continues to look like a turd, Louis could easily see a serious spike in target share within the offense.

Devin Funchess – It’s time. Devin Funchess has been more myth than anything over his past two seasons. He had his second-most receiving yards (68) of his career on seven targets. With Greg Olsen out for the foreseeable future with a broken foot, Funchess should see a steady dose of targets on a weekly basis. With that being said, Funchess will still need to produce and that’s something we have yet to see from him. He is still only 23 years old, so I wouldn’t count out the possibility of him being a viable WR3. With a matchup against the Saints on tap, there is no better way to turn around a woeful offense.

Paul Richardson and Tyler Lockett – The Seahawks offense have yet to fire. We continue to wait for them to put it all together, and to make matters worse, Richardson suffered a broken ring finger, though he was able to play through it and hauled in the game-clinching touchdown. As for Tyler Lockett, he received nine targets to Richardson’s five. Lockett was a fantasy darling last season but he battled injuries and never met expectations. Moving forward, if the broken digit limits Richardson, we could see an even bigger target-share for the third year wide receiver out of Kansas State. That said, we also will need to see a more explosive Seattle offense to really buy into any Seattle pass-catcher.

Mohamed Sanu – He’s hauled in 11-of-15 targets through two weeks for 132 yards and no touchdowns. Despite plate in one of the most explosive offenses in the league, he remains a volatile week-to-week option with so many other weapons in the offense. He’s deserving of a bench spot on any 12 team league roster.

Geronimo Allison – This is solely dependent on the health of Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb. He’s worth a speculative add in most formats, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to acquire him unless we get word today that Nelson will miss extended time.

Brandon Coleman – He received six targets and turned that into 82 yards and a touchdown. Coleman is a massive specimen who stands 6’6″ but has never received consistent playing time. I had a particularly egregious take a few years ago calling him the next Marques Colston. Obviously, I was wrong, but if the Saints continue to feed him with targets he could finally have some fantasy value. It should be mentioned that Willie Snead will return next week, so I’m not sure how much longer Coleman will be involved.

Deonte Thompson – He’s a truly explosive athlete with 4.36 speed, but at 28 years old, it’s hard to believe he will finally put it all together and be a contributor to any offense. He seems to be more of a flash in the pan after hauling in four-of-seven targets for 54 yards and a garbage-time score for the Bears.

Tight End

Eric Ebron Evan Engram Coby Fleener Benjamin Watson Zach Miller Jack Doyle Austin Seferian-Jenkins Austin Hooper Jared Cook Julius Thomas

Eric Ebron – I have been on Team Ebron all offseason and he showed why on Monday Night Football, hauling in all five of his targets for 42 yards and a touchdown. He did all of his damage in the first half, as the Lions played ball control offense in the second half. The Lions will take on a Falcons defense that allowed the ninth-most yards and the seventh-most touchdowns to tight ends last season. If he’s still available, add him before it’s too late.

Evan Engram – He scored his first career touchdown on a blown coverage by the Lions defense on Monday night. He received a healthy seven targets and figures to receive a decent enough target share to make him a worthy streaming option at worst.

Benjamin Watson – He led the team in targets (8), receptions (8), and yards (91) and displayed he still has something left in the tank at age 36. He’s widely available in all formats and should be a top streaming option this week against the Jaguars in London.

Austin Seferian-Jenkins – He’s eligible to return after serving a two-game suspension. We heard all offseason that ASJ has cleaned himself up and found sobriety. We’ve always known about his immense talent, he’s just never been able to put it all together or stay healthy. With little to no weaponry on the offense, ASJ could lead the team in red zone targets and should see enough targets to allow him to be a usable streaming option on most weeks.

Defense/ST

Ravens vs Jaguars Dolphins vs Jets Patriots vs Texans Browns vs Colts Rams vs 49ers

Kickers