With the first full week of byes upon us, the XN Sports writers scrambled to the waiver wire for the busiest week yet. Having to replace any starter from the Redskins, Steelers, Vikings, and Buccaneers, let’s take a look at who the XNers snatched up and who they were willing to drop for them.
Bryno Rhinos (Bryan Knowles) added Ryan Fitzpatrick, dropped Tampa Bay D/ST
In a 2-QB league, every quarterback, no matter how unattractive, is a must-own. Next week, Jeff Tuel will be snatched up in every 2-QB league, that’s how it goes. Bryan particularly needed him because he owns Jake Locker and Josh Freeman. He also owns EJ Manuel and has his work cut out for him now that Fitz is the only healthy QB with a job on his team. If Ryan Fitzpatrick is available in your 2-QB league, you should snatch him up. Try to trade him if you have no intention of starting him.
Make It Wayne (Igor Derysh) added Rashard Jennings, dropped Santonio Holmes
With Adrian Peterson on a bye week, I have no choice but to take a shot on Jennings who is the likely starter for Oakland with Darren McFadden and Marcel Reece out. Santonio is an easy drop, he’s out for at least two weeks.
Derwood #Degenerates (C.D. Carter) added St. Louis D/ST, dropped New York Jets D/ST
Mr. Carter continues to stream his defenses, dropping the Jets D as they head into Atlanta and picking up the Rams D which faces Jacksonville. Anytime a free defense is facing Jacksonville, grab them. There are high school teams better than the Jags.
Fifty Shades of Cats (Felipe Melecio) added Robert Woods, dropped Ryan Broyles
Woods is coming off an 80-yard, 1 TD game against Baltimore but only came away with five catches for 64 yards. Still, this turned out to be a great pickup because Stevie Johnson got hurt last night and Woods figures to be the number one if he’s out an extended amount of time. He got 13 targets last night and is worth a pickup in all leagues despite catching a mere 16 of his 39 targets.
My Buddy and Me (Dave Major) added LeGarrette Blount, dropped Vincent Brown
Blount suddenly looks like the number one in New England, and with Stevan Ridley possibly missing Sunday’s game with injury, he will be the number one. He’s not a particularly attractive option, especially against Cincy, but he certainly has value if he’s the main running on the Pats going forward. Vincent Brown has a season-high of 41 yards so far and doesn’t look like the number one receiver he’s listed as on the depth chart.
Fantasy Foundation (Rich Hribar) added Cleveland D/ST, dropped Indianapolis D/ST
Rich continues to stream defenses as well, opting for the tough Browns D against the Buffalo Bills. That worked out perfectly as the Browns got 18 FPS on four sacks, an interception, and a punt return TD. If only there were fantasy points for taking out quarterbacks’ knees, last night’s game would have won Cleveland and Buffalo D owners their weeks.
Make It Wayne (Igor Derysh) added Kellen Winslow, dropped Willis McGahee
I really didn’t see McGahee getting 26 touches against Buffalo but Brandon Weeden will do that to an offense. Guess who I’ll be trying to re-pick up on Tuesday.
Winslow is my hail mary. With Heath Miller on a bye, I like Winslow as the Jets’ primary redzone target with Stephen Hill and Santonio Holmes out. Starter-by-default Jeremy Kerley, at all of 5’9”, only has one redzone target this season and fellow TE Jeff Cumberland has barely made a dent in the passing attack.
Fantasy Foundation (Rich Hribar) added Chad Henne, dropped Mike Tolbert
With Blaine Gabbert stinking it up against the Colts, Rich is taking the chance that another game or two with a sub-31 QB rating will force the Jags to make the switch back to Henne. In a 2-QB league, you often have to speculate like this ahead of time to shore up your bench.
Make It Wayne (Igor Derysh) added Carolina D/ST, dropped Baltimore D/ST
Baltimore hasn’t been doing a whole lot for me. I don’t like to stream defenses weekly like C.D. and Rich, instead opting to pick up defenses for stretches at a time. I like Carolina for their next four games against Arizona, Minnesota, St. Louis, and Tampa Bay. I’m definitely dropping them when they have a stretch facing Atlanta, San Francisco, New England, and Miami.
Fantasy Foundation (Rich Hribar) added Shane Vereen, dropped Shonn Greene
Shane Vereen is only about six weeks from returning and his value will be sky high when he does. Greene is still not healthy enough to play and will likely have a small role in Tennessee so Vereen is definitely worth his spot.
Make It Wayne (Igor Derysh) added Jeremy Kerley, dropped Daniel Thomas
Like I mentioned earlier, Hill and Holmes are out. That makes Kerley and Clyde Gates the top two receivers. Gates is terrible and I wouldn’t touch him with someone else’s team but Kerley is a good receiver with a big opportunity. Watch for rookie Ryan Spadola to be a sleeper in the Atlanta game.
The Winter Classics (Chris Blanchard) added Nick Novak, dropped Chris Ivory
With Chris Ivory injured and Mike Goodson returning, Ivory’s value is way down. Nick Novak is one of the most picked up players of the week after putting up four field goals over the last two games.
My Buddy and Me (Dave Major) added Zac Stacy, dropped Bryce Brown
With Daryl Richardson out as the starter, the Rams will look to Stacy and Isaiah Pead for carries. Whether either does better than Richardson is unlikely but it’s worth a shot. Bryce Brown only has value if LeSean McCoy gets hurt.
Keepin Heads Ringing (Michael Clifford) added Atlanta D/ST, dropped Tennessee D/ST
While the Titans will face a Chiefs offense that has barely turned the ball over, Michael is grabbing the Falcons D which will face Geno Smith who has eight interceptions and three fumbles.
Derwood #Degenerates (C.D. Carter) added Rod Streater, dropped Bobby Rainey
Without enough non-bye week players to fill a line-up, Denny had to grab Streater for a week. He has Pierre Garcon, Emmanuel Sanders, and Vincent Jackson on byes so he’d need another receiver. I wonder who he’ll drop…
Derwood #Degenerates (C.D. Carter) added Brandon Gibson, dropped Brandon Weeden
At 7:27, this Brandon Weeden had zero value with Brian Hoyer taking over as the starter. Hoyer will obviously start the rest of the season and put up huge numbers. He’ll obviously do well against Buffalo. Well, bad news kids. Brandon Weeden is here to stay so he’ll be one of the most sought after QBs in the league next week. The terrible things 2-QB leagues make you do.
Meanwhile, there is no one available on the waiver wire so Denny grabbed Gibson. As his Week 5 opponent, this, combined with the fact that he has only one RB who’s not on a bye and started Brian Hoyer, couldn’t make me happier.
