13 Players To Pick Up Before Week 1 - Waiver Wire
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
39 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Sep 7, 2026
Published
Mon, September 7, 2026
15
Player insights
14
Players mentioned
Topics
Terrance FergusonAdonai MitchellCaleb DouglasChris BellDenzel BostonDontayvion WicksGeorge HolaniJonah ColemanKeaton MitchellKeenan AllenPat FreiermuthRay DavisTre TuckerWoody Marks
Player analysis
Player insights
Adonai Mitchell
PositiveUsage32:05
Adonai Mitchell is a high-upside target who has earned consistent praise from Geno Smith, who calls him an 'alpha' and a 'baller.' With Mitchell potentially operating as the WR2 alongside Garrett Wilson, he has the potential to command seven targets per week, making him a strong add for managers needing to replace injured receivers.
Insight pageCaleb Douglas
NegativeDepth Chart35:40
Caleb Douglas is preferred over Chris Bell for early-season usage due to Bell's recovery from an ACL tear. Douglas has flashed in training camp and is considered the more immediate option for fantasy rosters among the Dolphins' rookie wide receivers.
Insight pageChris Bell
PositiveSleeper36:41
Chris Bell is a deep-cut sleeper with a unique style and high potential for yards after the catch. Despite a slow start due to injury, there is internal optimism that he could lead the team in receiving yards, making him a player to monitor closely for mid-season breakout potential.
Insight pageDenzel Boston
NegativeBreakout25:30
Denzel Boston is a better dynasty prospect than a redraft asset for the current season. While he possesses red-zone and sideline ability, he is the third option in an offense that struggled with passing touchdowns, making him a fringe player for deep leagues.
Insight pageDontayvion Wicks
PositiveRole34:06
Dontayvion Wicks has reportedly locked down the WR2 spot in camp. While rookie Makai Lemon is expected to see playing time, Wicks is projected to receive the bulk of the targets and routes early in the season, making him a viable immediate starter for deep leagues.
Insight pageGeorge Holani
NegativeUsage23:49
George Holani is a speculative add for Week 1, particularly if managers are forced to replace injured players like TreVeyon Henderson. While reports suggest he may handle third-down, short-yardage, and goal-line work, the source is skeptical that his role will be as rigid as Zach Charbonnet's was, noting Holani has limited red-zone experience in his career.
Insight pageJonah Coleman
NegativeUsage18:13
Jonah Coleman is currently the RB3 in Denver and is not a Week 1 option. While the Broncos' offense is viewed as fantasy-friendly, the backfield is crowded with J.K. Dobbins and R.J. Harvey, making it unlikely that any single back will secure the full package of carries, targets, and red-zone work.
Insight pageKeaton Mitchell
NegativeUsage13:20
Keaton Mitchell should be rostered in 12-team leagues, though his recent injury history and missed practices make him a risky hold. The source expects him to see 4-10 touches per game via manufactured touches and orbit motion, potentially providing flex value later in the season.
Insight pageKeenan Allen
NegativeUsage28:33
Keenan Allen is viewed as a low-ceiling, low-floor veteran in a run-heavy Colts offense. While he may serve as a chain-mover on third downs, he is unlikely to replicate his high target volume from his time with the Chargers.
Insight pagePat Freiermuth
PositiveValue21:26
Pat Freiermuth has been undervalued all summer and could emerge as a top-15 tight end. With Michael Pittman missing significant camp time, Aaron Rodgers is expected to rely on Freiermuth to fill the target gap. He is competing with Roman Wilson for the second or third target role, and his high contract status suggests the team intends to utilize him heavily.
Insight pageRay Davis
PositiveSleeper23:27
Ray Davis is highlighted as an elite handcuff due to his high production in limited opportunities without James Cook. In two games without Cook, Davis averaged over 150 scrimmage yards and 20 fantasy points per game, making him a priority stash in a top-five offense.
Insight pageTerrance Ferguson
PositiveBreakout19:42
Terrence Ferguson is a potential breakout candidate who could serve as the team's WR3 in 12 or 13 personnel sets. The team aims to utilize him on quick underneath routes against linebackers and safeties to maximize his run-after-catch ability, moving away from his previous role where half his targets were 20+ yards downfield. Given the team's high red-zone efficiency, he is a sneaky add in 80% of Yahoo leagues.
Insight pagePositiveBreakout31:49
Terrence Ferguson is a high-upside tight end target for Week 1. The Rams are reportedly planning to utilize him more in the short passing game to leverage his run-after-catch ability, potentially making him a breakout candidate in an offense that has historically produced fantasy-relevant rookies.
Insight pageTre Tucker
PositiveBreakout26:00
Trey Tucker is the WR1 for the Raiders and a strong sleeper candidate, rostered in only 25% of Yahoo leagues. Despite the team's overall passing outlook, Clint Kubiak's history of generating explosive downfield plays suggests Tucker could provide volatile but high-upside spiked weeks as a deep threat.
Insight pageWoody Marks
NegativeUsage7:17
Woody Marks is viewed as a strong handcuff with some independent value, though his passing-down role is unlikely to make him startable in fantasy. While beat writers suggest a potential 60-40 workload split with David Montgomery, the source notes that Marks's previous production as a lead back did not translate to high fantasy value.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
0:00You know what time it is. The first Waiver Wire episode of the season.
0:04I don't know, we're going to give you 12 to 15 names that you should consider at the end of your bench,
0:10at the end of your roster right now. Look, I understand you drafted all these names.
0:15They're all your babies. They're all going to do well this year.
0:18But just have an open mind, an open ear to some of the names that we bring up like Terrence Ferguson and
0:25Dontavian Wicks and even Chris Bell, the rookie wide receiver here from the Miami Dolphins.
0:29Joel Smith joins me for this episode and every single Monday night for the rest of the season to set you up
0:35to succeed on the Waiver Wire every single year.
0:38So stay tuned to this episode of Yahoo Fantasy Football with Josh and Hayden.
0:42Just because your draft is complete doesn't mean your roster construction is over.
0:45No, no, no. Today we have at least a dozen names for you to consider ahead of week one.
0:51And to do that with me every single week once Monday Night Football hits triple zeros, that is Joel Smith.
0:57Joel does fantastic work over at Yahoo. Obviously, you know, his social media bubble.
1:01He is simply the best at his deep analysis.
1:03Joel, I have an opening question for you that I think fits perfectly into what you do so well.
1:09Waiver Wire budget advice, fab dollars. Okay. Are people too aggressive or conservative early in the season?
1:13I like to be aggressive in general early on.
1:16I will say one piece with that. The deeper the league you have, the more aggressive you should be.
1:21I would say if you are on a double flex three receiver, 12 team, 14 team, 16 team, all that.
1:27I would be more aggressive in week one if you are in a deeper league.
1:31It's going to get to a point where there's just like not many players that are available.
1:36And there's more teams that are going after those very few players.
1:40If you're in a smaller league, then I feel like you can be a little bit more patient.
1:45But I did look into this even last year.
1:47I remember after week one last season, it was really bad on waivers.
1:51I don't know if you remember this where it's just like, oh, this isn't very fun.
1:56I'm like, we got no waiver options after the first week are good.
1:59Yeah. And then I looked at the article, Justin Boone wrote it on Yahoo.
2:03And there were three names in there still Trevor Lawrence, Rico Dowdle and Kenny Gainwell.
2:08Where at the time it was still like, ah, like, are they really going to be that good?
2:13But it was top five quarterback and two fantasy running back twos still in week one.
2:17So I still lean like more aggressive after that first weekend.
2:20Yeah. And Harold Fenn was a big pickup or should have been after week one.
2:25And that kind of goes into my view on this too, Joel.
2:28Like if you have a belief in a player or in a situation, go for it, you know, unload the fab early on.
2:35Don't be shy, especially if they still have an unknown element to them that others might be questioning if that's going to repeat itself a bit more.
2:42Like, for example, we're going to talk about Terrence Ferguson here today.
2:46If he goes for 87 yards and a touchdown in week one and plays 70% of the snaps for the Rams, like
2:52I'm going to go nuts with my budget here versus, you know, another tight end.
2:56Let's say Durham Smythe somehow catches two touchdowns and 55 yards in his debut for the Ravens.
3:01Like we know what Durham Smythe has been. We know the teams he has played for and the roles that he's had.
3:08So if he farts in the end zone twice, that doesn't mean I'm going to like go out of my way to unload my fab like that.
3:15It's just while the production might be similar, I think the situations might be different and the unknown elements might be different.
3:22So I'm more inclined to go after, especially rookies, like the unknown players versus like the retread veterans that might have a great week one.
3:29But again, we have more of an understanding of who they are at large in the zoom out view.
3:34Yeah, I would say look for the usage and also look for those summer reports to be confirmed.
3:39If there is just consistent talk, this guy is going to be used this way and he's going to be getting more
3:46volume in this way as that role. And it's proven week one, then it's like, all right, well, we have a little
3:52bit more of a one week sample in theory than just like a random spike against a really good matchup that we
3:58don't really know is a really good matchup yet.
4:01Okay, let's dive into a whole bunch of players here.
4:04Once again, this is going to be in your feed after every single Monday night football.
4:08But we didn't want to leave you hanging ahead of week one because again, we have got Wednesday games and Thursday games.
4:14You know how roster construction works on Yahoo. If a player is out or an IR, you can move them in that
4:21spot and pick up some of these guys in exploratory fashion.
4:24How we're going to do this is the obvious names own less than 50% in Yahoo leagues.
4:29And then later on, we're going to do the deep cuts about 25, 20% on Yahoo.
4:33So let's start with the running backs here. The first name here is Woody Marks at 49%.
4:38A few things. His preseason, the beat writer positivity for it.
4:41The suggestion that this might be closer to like a 60-40 split with David Montgomery and just overall questions about the offensive
4:48line has made me want to target less D-Mont as the offseason has gone along.
4:52What is your thoughts on Woody Marks heading into week one?
4:55Yeah, I feel the same way on Montgomery just with like him kind of needing bell cow volume, I would say in that situation.
5:02With Woody, it's confusing because I like him on both sides where I think he's an amazing handcuff.
5:07At the same time, I don't think that 40% is going to be enough.
5:11And the passing rule, I don't think is like super valuable for him even.
5:15Where like last year, he had eight starts at the end of the season.
5:19In those eight starts, I was like the lead back, 11 receptions.
5:22So like I don't think there's like passing roles really going to like make him startable in fantasy.
5:28But at the same time, I do think he's like a good handcuff.
5:31Totally. I think he has a bit more independent value than typical handcuffs.
5:35We'll get into the handcuff section here later on.
5:38The Houston Chronicle's Jonathan M. Alexander believed that the rushing workloads for Dave Montgomery and Woody Marks quote might not be 50-50, but it will be close.
5:45And then what I've seen from Woody Marks this preseason, maybe some of his best like individual moments and opportunities of his entire career so far.
5:53At the same time, I went back and looked at his finishes last season.
5:57And he had weeks of running back six, 18, 18, 10, and 14 last year.
6:01So I don't believe it's out of the realm of possibility that, you know, a second year player has improved, especially one
6:07that was more viewed as a passing down back and maybe improved as a ball carrier.
6:12But overall, I don't think either is going to matter if it is a 60-40 split as much as we wanted them
6:18to, as much as we drafted them to. But Woody Marks will be on my mind if something does happen to Dave Montgomery as we go along.
6:26Yeah. The RB six week was incredible. Unless that.
6:28Missed that hope. Okay, let's look. Tyler Algier. All right.
6:31We don't know right now how much time Jeremiah Love is going to miss or how much he's going to play here in week one.
6:38And that's why I wanted to throw him in this mention.
6:41Like Mike Garofalo reported that he is quote 50-50 to play in week one.
6:45Jeremiah Love. That was back on September 1st. So I guess my question here, Joel, is if Jeremiah Love is out, there's no James Conner in week one.
6:53There's no Trey Benson in week one. Tyler Algier might be widely viewed and widely ranked as a top 24 back.
6:59Yeah. It's one of those where it's like the injury and love being a rookie like makes it more interesting because in
7:06general, like I wouldn't say like Algier is my favorite, even like as a handcuff.
7:10I think it's more of a situation where once Jeremiah Love is in there, he's going to be like a worse version of Charbonnet last season.
7:17I would say where Charbonnet had like a dozen touchdowns and was the RB 30.
7:22And I would see that path like for Algier to send a much worse offense.
7:26But if Love is truly out, then that's where he is in flex range.
7:30He wasn't always like the greatest fantasy running back, even when he was a starter as a rookie.
7:35But the volume is still going to make him a startable play and a flex play in those leagues.
7:41Yeah. I don't have a great long view on Tyler Algier this season.
7:44This is more of a week one. If we get reports from Adam Schefter late into the night that, you know, Jeremiah
7:51Love is going to be limited to 20, 25 snaps, then Tyler Algier will maybe have more value in week one than
7:57he does for the next like 10 or so weeks.
8:00Let's talk Keaton Mitchell, you know, fantasy football's favorite player.
8:03They open against the Arizona Cardinals. Just your thoughts on what Keaton Mitchell can do this year and if he should be
8:09on every single roster out there in a 10 to 12 man league.
8:13I think for 12 teams, he deserves to be on every roster.
8:16I would say it's tough because he's now missed six straight practices.
8:19So with the injury history and missing practices, like I get it.
8:23And it's like rostering an injured handcuff is not super ideal.
8:26But there is a small path, especially in those deeper leagues for him to be playable, even not as a handcuff because
8:32of Mike McDaniel and how running back focused they are in this offense, the potential pass catching role and just his explosive ability there.
8:39So I still think he should be rostered. But obviously week one would I wouldn't consider it at all.
8:45Obviously, overall, I view Keaton Mitchell as Amar Hampton's, you know, Robin to the situation.
8:49Like there might have been these pockets of fantasy football Twitter that said like, oh, there's a chance based on his underlying
8:55metrics and and per carry basis that Keaton Mitchell is one of the more undervalued backs across the league or could maybe
9:01overtake Amar Hampton at some point this offseason. I never believe that.
9:05The beat writers are stating that's not the case at all.
9:08But what I do think happens is anywhere from four to six to maybe even 10 touches for Keaton Mitchell on a weekly basis.
9:15And they're almost these manufactured, hey, we're going to get him in this orbit motion, this like strafe motion and catch passes.
9:21They got some stuff down the field, too. I mean, Mike McDaniel had what the running back three and running back four
9:27overall season for Raheem Mostert and, you know, Devon Achan.
9:30So I'm not expecting that. But we have seen him get, you know, two running backs heavily utilized as the season goes along.
9:37Yeah. And that's what I've been kind of like preaching is, yes, I get that Mostert Achan season was like one of a kind.
9:44And they were the number one scoring offense. But they were also top five.
9:48Like, that's not what we're thinking Mitchell's going to be like.
9:51We're thinking like, oh, maybe Mitchell could be like a flex play down the line.
9:55So that's where like my hope kind of lies in him of having some standalone value as a handcuff as well.
10:01Okay. I'm not sure we're going to have any positive things to say about this next name.
10:06Tajay Spears at 39% of Yahoo leagues. It shocked me in the opening of the preseason when he and Tony Pollard basically went drive for drive.
10:13If it stays that way in the regular season, Joel, I think neither of these backs will matter.
10:18Yeah. Because Pollard, like as a bell cow, the last couple of years has been borderline RB2.
10:23Borderline. Borderline. It hasn't really been that great. This offense, like I wouldn't expect it too much better from especially as looked in the preseason.
10:30But with Tajay there, Brian Dable coming in as that offense coordinator and play caller, he's had a pretty heavy running back
10:37split throughout his time, whether it's New York or Buffalo.
10:40So I think he's going to bring a little bit more of that and have PPR.
10:44It's not the grace or Spears. Like I can see him being like, again, a solid handcuff, but standalone value.
10:50I don't really see it in this offense. And Joe, let's talk.
10:53Jonah Coleman, another running back for the Denver Broncos.
10:56What do you make of the rookie? I mean, people love rookies.
10:59He was drafting a lot of leagues, but still out there in what?
11:0366%. Yeah. He's a weird one just because like he's starting as the RB3.
11:07So it's weird to like say like, oh yeah, you should draft the third running back, even though he's like a long
11:13way away from being the starting running back. But there is so much positive besides that.
11:18Like Denver's running back, like the fantasy running back potential in Denver is amazing.
11:22Their offensive line is incredible. They throw to running backs a bunch.
11:25And then when we're looking at the running backs in front of them, like Dobbins is the guy on the ground.
11:31Harvey is the guy in the air. Coleman has been talked up as both of that.
11:36And Dobbins is obviously very injury prone and Harvey could be passed and is also coming off of surgery.
11:41So there's still a lot of positive for Coleman.
11:44It's just not going to be week one, obviously.
11:46Can I pour some cold water on this? I thought Jeff Bell put the Broncos running back room really well.
11:52He said that J.K. Dobbins is the running back who gets a bunch of rushes without targets.
11:57He said that R.J. Harvey is the running back who gets targets, but no rushes.
12:01And then he said that Jonah Coleman is the running back who gets a little bit of both, but not enough for either.
12:08Like when you go back and look at J.K.
12:10Dobbins season last year, I mean, people want to cite, you know, he was on pace for the first, you know, Sean
12:17Payton running back to get 250 plus carries. He was also on pace for a career season, but that was still, you
12:23know, the running back 22 and points per game.
12:26So that would be a nice win if we get that from Jonah Coleman at some point this season.
12:31But the reason why R.J. Harvey became a really good fancy football asset in the heart of the season was because he got everything right.
12:38He got the carries, he got the receptions, and he got the red zone work.
12:42And now that this is like a triple, you know, trio, I don't know, Joel, if any of these backs is ever going to get the entire package.
12:50Yeah, it'll be tough. Like if all three stay healthy, it will be really tough.
12:55I don't think it'll happen at that point. It's just like, will that happen?
12:59And also there is that potential too, on top of the injury, like of R.J.
13:03Harvey kind of being passed. It's tough. I don't think he'll be passed as a receiver.
13:08So it just adds to your argument. Like the receiving is such a huge chunk of this.
13:12I haven't necessarily been super in on Dobbins because of the low reward versus the high risk.
13:17But I think if there was one that like shocked everybody and was a huge value, it would be like, oh, I'll
13:24just take the running back in this amazing offense for free at the end of drafts rather than like trying to hunt one in round eight or something.
13:32Okay, let's talk handcuff corner. This is going to be an area that I'd love to talk about in the waiver episodes
13:38because look, if one of your players listed is out ahead of a game or they're in reserve or any many ways
13:44of this, you can just put them on IR and then fill in with a handcuff running back who in the next
13:50waiver episode, we might be talking about as the most pivotal pickup of the week.
13:55So just to get ahead of that, Joel, I'll rank them.
13:58Tank Bigsby, Ray Davis, Malik Davis, Seth McGowan. You can hit on any of these names or none of them if you want to.
14:05I do like a lot of these names. I do.
14:07I think Ray Davis is the most underrated handcuff running back maybe I've ever seen.
14:12Where just I think the only reason we're not drafting him is just because Cook's been healthy, which it's hard to predict injuries and that goes both ways.
14:20And although I love Cook this season, it also makes me love Ray Davis because it's the same team.
14:25Like we have a top five offense, top five offensive line.
14:28And he has had two games in his career without James Cook.
14:32He has 20 touches in both, 326 scrimmage yards, over 150 scrimmage yards per game and 20 points per game.
14:37He's just like, it's been amazing. And it's very, very limited two times without James Cook.
14:42And the offense is still the same. Joe Brady kind of like hand selected them.
14:46So I think Ray Davis is just like a free guy at the end of the draft is great.
14:52Yeah. And I think Ty Johnson missed a bulk of training camp on top of that.
14:56Yeah. Hand up. I drafted a ton of Ray Davis over the last two years.
15:01So it's weird to do it a third year, especially when James Cook, you know, has almost been healthy for every single one of those.
15:08I know people are shouting like Blake Corum and a whole bunch of handcuff names.
15:12Joel, to me, those are not true handcuffs. You know, those guys have legit standalone value.
15:17I'm talking about the ones that have zero standalone value.
15:19But again, if Saquon goes down to me, you're looking at Tank Bixby as a every week top 20 running back for
15:26as long as Barkley is on the bench. Okay, let's jump to wide receivers.
15:30This list is much smaller. Denzel Boston is rostered in 31% of Yahoo leagues.
15:34He had an excellent training camp. And once we got the preseason, we know that Todd Munkin loved to throw the football to Casey Concepcion.
15:41And so that's why Casey and Denzel Boston's, let's say, ADPs and roster percentage is much, much different.
15:46What are your view? What's your view on Denzel Boston heading into his rookie season?
15:50I like him a lot in Dynasty. I think if he works in redraft, he's going to be one of those players
15:57that like gets picked up in week one, dropped in week three or four or five, and then picked up again at the end of the season.
16:04And it's like good then. It's just tough because like the reason we like Casey as like that first round rookie and
16:11Boston was drafted, like right after him, there's like very different styles.
16:14Like Boston is going to be good as that red zone receiving threat.
16:18So when you're on offense that had like under one passing touchdowns per game last season and he's the third option, it's
16:24tough to like even in deep leagues to like see the value there.
16:28So I like him in Dynasty. It's just a really tough situation to do it in right now.
16:33Yeah, we'll see a lot of Travis Hunter probably in week one as well.
16:37It's going to be easier to get, you know, Quinchon Judkins, Casey Concepcion and Harold Fan in the football.
16:42With that said, I really do think that Denzel Boston has ISO ball ability, sideline ability on top of it.
16:48And you brought up the red zone stuff. Todd Munkin talked about those red zone skills earlier this offseason.
16:53But, you know, Cleveland was 29th in the NFL with 2.2 red zone drives per game.
16:58And then even in Baltimore last year, Todd Munkin's offense was 27th in red zone touchdown rate.
17:03So, yeah, maybe Denzel Boston will have his moments this year with a couple of touchdowns or a single touchdown grab.
17:09But that's more maybe a 2027 conversation. Okay. We go from a rookie to a vet.
17:13What about Keenan Allen signing halfway through training camp and being a part of this banged up Colts passing attack?
17:19Yeah, he's another one that I'm not like dying to go out and get on waivers before week one.
17:24And like even after I think like going into year 14, it's one of those low ceiling, but also like kind of low floor player.
17:32All the reports is kind of he's going to be the three wide receiver sets on the outside and low passing volume offense.
17:38When they are scoring, a lot of it is on the ground.
17:42Like when they get in the red zone, they're running the ball.
17:45They have still like Tyler Warren there as that number one with Josh Downs and Pierce.
17:50And like he's just like another one of the guys.
17:52So I think it's just going to be low.
17:55Like he's not going to get the 120 targets that he saw with Justin Herbert.
17:59And then the offense is very different where I don't think it's really benefiting him to be a year 14 outlier.
18:05I will say I think the 28% is pretty low.
18:08Like we could look at the end of week one against his Ravens defense and see that Keenan Allen is a leading receiver for this team.
18:16I wouldn't say I'm predicting that, but it wouldn't shock me either.
18:19One area that stands out to me how he's going to be useful on this team is third downs.
18:24I mean, he is a chain mover every single year of his career.
18:28But with the Chargers last year, he had 51 targets on third down compared to 28 for Ladin-McConkie, 20 for Quentin Johnson.
18:34I'm interested to see what this does for Josh Downs more so than Tyler Warren.
18:39Because let's say I think Josh Downs had the most targets on third down last year.
18:43Meanwhile, Tyler Warren, the most of his were on first and second down.
18:47And again, Keenan Allen, I think, was 22nd EPA added on catches last year on late downs.
18:52So it's, again, not predicting it, but it wouldn't shock me at all if Keenan Allen has a sneaky week one.
18:58Yeah, still a good NFL player. Still a good NFL player.
19:01His game ages gracefully is one way of putting it.
19:04Okay. Yeah. Tight ends. Maybe you were very frustrated with how your tight end room fell in the draft.
19:09We're going to fix that right now. And then man to do it as Terrence Ferguson potentially here.
19:14Joel, he's only rostered in 20% of Yahoo leagues.
19:17We know that they play early against the San Francisco 49ers.
19:20The Rams do. This is the one that I'm watching here for week one.
19:24Okay. For this reason, in 2023, Kyron Williams popped up for 15 touchdowns, 1300 yards.
19:28It was evident during week one that we should have unloaded our fab for him.
19:33Also in 2023, Puka Nakua, fifth round rookie, 1500 yards.
19:36We should have unloaded our fab despite him again, being more of a late round pick and a very much of unknown.
19:42Terrence Ferguson, as you know, Joel, half of his targets last year were 20 plus yards on the field.
19:47He was a unicorn in terms of his usage.
19:50Now, all that we've heard is they want to get him more quick passes underneath against linebackers and safeties and allow them to run after the catch.
19:58So maybe, oh, maybe this is one of those breakout players in a position that unless you draft at the top five
20:04or top six, you have major questions on your roster.
20:07Yeah. It's like, it's what we were talking about earlier.
20:10If he goes out in week one and it is the usage that they've been talking up, it's like, Ooh, then we really like it.
20:17Then it's worth that money there. A lot of people have been talking about how he can just be like the team's
20:23pseudo wide super three, kind of how like Mike Jasicki is in Cincinnati where yes, they kind of like they have Andre
20:29Yoshivosh, but Mike Jasicki, the slot guy, Mike Jasicki is that wide super three on the team and two, two might get
20:36in the way of that at well. But I think there's still the shot that Ferguson can be that.
20:41And it's just such a good offense. Like you want to be part of it.
20:4580%, I think it's 82% of tight end touchdowns come in the red zone and they led the NFL last year, obviously
20:52in those red zone touchdowns through the air. So I think Ferguson can be like one of those sneaky guys.
20:57They drafted him high last year. He was like, who's their first pick?
21:01This team is four deep at tight end. There's a chance they legitimately live out of 12 and 13 personnel.
21:07And if that's the case, then Terrence Ferguson is their wide receiver three behind Pukunukua and Devante Adams.
21:12So if I have to, and I probably have when I made the thumbnail headline, a player ahead of this, again, he's
21:18out there in 80% of Yahoo leagues, not the ones I play in, but 80%.
21:22So go out and I would say, pick him up ahead of week one.
21:26The other name here is Pat Fryermuth that I wrote down.
21:29Joel, I don't even know if you want to say anything about this.
21:33My only point is I think there's a chance that Pat Fryermuth has been undervalued all summer.
21:38That's like a take that's been creeping up in my brain as the weeks have gone along.
21:43Michael Pittman missed a ton of camp. Aaron Rodgers said that Pat Fryermuth would be a big part of filling in in
21:49that gap for when and until, you know, Michael Pittman gets back to 100%.
21:53And if that's the case, we know Aaron Rodgers really gets to pick out who he throws the football to.
21:59Pat Fryermuth might be like a top 15 tight end when we look back at it the rest of the season.
22:05Yeah. It could be worth a start against the Bengals.
22:08If that doesn't change there last year, he destroyed them.
22:11But it'll be interesting because like obviously Arthur Smith, he runs such tight end heavy sets and Mike McCarthy's kind of been
22:17the opposite, but they've paid both Fryermuth and Darnell Washington so much money.
22:21They're both, I think, top 10 in their contracts.
22:23So it'll be interesting to see like how much each of them is used.
22:27Totally. And, you know, we did deal with Darnell Washington, who was more of a sixth offensive lineman, but also Johnnie Smith in that grouping last year.
22:35And Johnnie Smith is now gone. And then really, if Muth wants to be the third target or even second target early
22:41on, it's Roman Wilson that maybe he's competing with.
22:44And you would like to think that Pat Fryermuth can overtake Roman Wilson in that packing order.
22:49Okay. We're going to deep sleepers, deep names here in a moment.
22:52First, just wanted to mention, as we're going to do throughout the rest of the shows this week, our content schedule.
22:58As I said, every Monday night, after Monday Night Football, we're going to have this, the waiver episode with Joel.
23:04Tuesday, it's a live stats versus. This film, 6 o'clock Eastern.
23:07Myself, Hayden, and Matt Harmon. Wednesday, running back rankings with Justin Boone in the evening.
23:11Thursdays, I know I'm guesting on Matt's channel for a weekend preview.
23:15And we'll have some other smaller videos that Hayden's a part of too.
23:18And then Friday, wide receiver rankings for all of you.
23:21We close that with Sunday. Starting even earlier this year, 10.30 a.m.
23:25until kickoff. A live preview show, Fantasy Football Live.
23:27And then our normal Q&A. So yeah, join us six days a week here on the channel for some content.
23:33I love it. I'll be joining you. Yes, you will.
23:36You will, Joel. You'll be here. You have no reason not to be.
23:39Okay. Less than 25% of Yahoo leaks. I'm going to throw George Holani's name at you right now, Joel, because he's rostered
23:46and only 4% on Yahoo at the moment. I'm not super bought in on it.
23:50I've seen recently. I'm sure you have. Yes. Like he could potentially be their goal line back.
23:55So maybe there, if he like gets that and the receiving, just like a unicorn where he's not really getting much carries,
24:01but he's getting all the important work. We very rarely see that, but I think I'll pass in general just because like
24:07we saw Charbonnet last year and even Holani is the RB2 to walk our last season in the playoffs.
24:13Like really good NFL player, very valuable for their team.
24:16Wasn't really like a fantasy play in the NFL playoffs.
24:19So just to reset this, we know Zach Charbonnet is out for at least four games and it could be longer.
24:25We don't know that right now. The report that you're bringing up is from the athletics, Andrew Destin.
24:30He said that Jadarian price is going to be used on early downs while George Holani plays the third down short yardage and goal line rolls.
24:37That's a big leap for me to make. Okay.
24:40For one, Holani has one red zone carry in his career.
24:43Now he did have, you know, three games with Ken Walker, the third out over the last, what two seasons and played
24:49about 33% of the snaps in those situations and saw one goal line opportunity and red zone opportunity.
24:54I should say not just goal line red zone opportunity.
24:57So to me, that's almost Joel imparting Zach Charbonnet's role one-to-one onto George Holani.
25:01And I don't think it's going to be that rigid.
25:04Um, I will add though, like where we're seeing with Trevor and Henderson right now, and how he is out of practice
25:10and Adam Schefter saying it's a long shot for him to play.
25:14I think this game is what on Wednesday night, if you drafted Trevor and Henderson to like be your flex player, I
25:20think a speculative ad instead is George Holani. And maybe you have to be forced to play him in that situation.
25:26Uh, it wouldn't shock me at all. Even if Hendo plays, if Holani outscores Hendo this week.
25:31And this is a week one show. So I will say if there's any week that Holani is going to be like
25:37the best, it would be in week one with the rookie price as like his first ever career game.
25:42Yeah. This is one of those short view names.
25:45Like T Ferg is a long view. Obviously, Holani to me is a very short view name.
25:50But again, the first four weeks, uh, wins and losses matter just as much as let's say weeks five through nine on top of it.
25:57Okay. Deep cut wide receivers. Trey Tucker versus the Miami Dolphins.
26:00Easiest matchup. I would say in the opening 11 weeks for this Raiders team only rostered on 25% of Yahoo leagues right now, Joel.
26:07I don't mind it. It's 25%, which I'm surprised.
26:10It's like that low just because of that means he's like going undrafted in a lot of like the bigger leagues too.
26:16But Tucker, he is the wide receiver one in Las Vegas.
26:19Like they bring in Naylor, but at least from like the reports right now in preseason, they rested Trey Tucker and they did not rest Jalen Naylor.
26:27So it's looking like he's going to be the wide receiver one on the team, even though, you know, Raiders receivers aren't
26:33expected to be the best, but Kubiak could give him potential because he is the explosive deep threat.
26:38And we've seen that with Kubiak in the past, like Rashid Shaheed in New Orleans or JSN last year, whatever it is.
26:44Like it's always, there was a big explosive touchdown.
26:47So he's not going to be consistent. It's going to be pretty volatile, but he's a prayer guy that can answer a lot of prayers.
26:54We just don't know what it's going to be.
26:57Yeah. If it hits hot and if it runs hot, then Trey Tucker, you know, could have some really spiked weeks for you.
27:03It's interesting. Like Clint Kubiak and both chances he's been recently as a play caller.
27:08New Orleans wasn't supposed to be this downfield passing attack.
27:10He turned it into a top 10 explosive offense.
27:13Seattle last year was among, if not the best at 10, 20 plus yards down the field.
27:18That wasn't expected to happen once he took over.
27:20So this is just part of his DNA in terms of downfield stuff.
27:24And while they paid Jalen Naylor this off season and for agency, every single B writer has said that Trey Tucker is
27:30the wide receiver one, even if Brock Bowers kind of has that mantle, but they have to throw it to someone else too.
27:37So I'm with you. 75% of leagues out there, I think are sleeping on Trey Tucker a little bit.
27:42Yeah. And he doesn't need to be like an eight target game guy to produce.
27:47Like if he just gets like a couple of those deep shots, it'll be good.
27:51What do you want to say about Jacoby Lane, the rookie Ravens wide receiver, who's available in 81% of leagues out there?
27:57He's the better guy in dynasty. We know that, but there is some potential just because of the mix of his style and the offense.
28:04He's like the opposite of Denzel Boston. Basically he's in a Ravens offense where yes, they are also lower volume in the passing attack.
28:11He looks like he's going to be the wide receiver too.
28:14If Bateman is not there, but even in college with Makai Lemon, he was the clear wide receiver two to Lemon, but
28:21he still had more touchdowns over that three year span, the last two seasons in general.
28:25So Lane can still get there in a really good offense.
28:28If he just has like a really big touchdown season, I hope that Z flowers is used more in the red zone,
28:35but it hasn't been in the past. That's like one thing.
28:38And then the other bigger thing to me is they led the NFL on tight end target share in the red zone.
28:44Like they usually do Baltimore these last few years with Lamar.
28:47But now like Charlie Kohler is not there. Isaiah likely is not there.
28:51And Mark Andrews is obviously in decline. So it's like 42% of the targets once it tight ends there.
28:56Yep. A lot of that could be up for grabs for Jacoby, man.
29:00We have the same exact notes for this one.
29:03And you said it even better than I could have.
29:05Yeah. I mean, the Ravens built their red zone passing offense around Mark Andrews and Isaiah likely and even Kohler over the last few seasons.
29:13And all the reports of Mark Andrews have not been great in training camp.
29:17We know the other two are on different teams.
29:19I'm with you. One of the reasons why I've been aggressive in drafting Zay Flowers is because I thought this could be
29:25a reset season when it comes to his red zone usage.
29:29But, you know, maybe that's just a figment in my imagination and it's not possible.
29:33He's just too small for it. And if that's the case, then Jacoby Lane, his top 10 catches at USC were better
29:39than like any 10 catches of any other wide receiver in this class.
29:43So Lamar really hasn't had this style of a wide receiver at this age.
29:47You know, he had DeAndre Hopkins very late in his career.
29:50And so I'm interested and intrigued to see how Lamar handles like a sideline ball winner of this type of always have ISO coverage.
29:57Let's throw it up to him one on one and see what happens.
30:01Yeah. I haven't really thought about that before. But yeah, like obviously his wide receiver one for the first few was like Marquise Brown.
30:07Very different style receivers. The Flowers do his tight end.
30:10So that'll be interesting. Yeah. Okay. Houston made a move after second year wide receiver Jane Higgins went down.
30:16Let's talk Kayshawn Boutte or Booty that they made the move for with the New England Patriots.
30:21By the way, Booty was one of the better downfield ball winners.
30:24A perfect match for Drake May. It's interesting, Joel.
30:27I didn't look this up, but it wouldn't shock me at all if, you know, like Jane Higgins roster percentage was nearly identical to Kayshawn Booty's 17%.
30:34And, you know, I make that tongue in cheek point in that we didn't immediately give Kayshawn Booty the ADP that Jane Higgins had.
30:41And it's not even close. So I guess my question is, should it be close?
30:45I'm kind of leaning on the no side just because I was pretty, I was a little higher on Jane Higgins, I guess.
30:52But with Booty, I think he's like a good NFL move, but I don't know how much it's going to translate to fantasy this year.
30:59Like the Patriots obviously didn't have the volume in New England and they had some other guys there, but central more volume.
31:05But the Patriots offense was just like really perfect for him.
31:09Drake May downfield, like those deep shots was really perfect for him.
31:12So I think he is going to be more of just that outside deep threat, take the top off and help Nico Collins some potentially.
31:19Yes. But if you're playing, it is still going to be, can he get five targets and a touchdown, please?
31:25But I don't know if it's going to be like, oh, I'm confidently playing Kayshawn Booty this week.
31:30Yeah. Kayshawn Booty might be a really nice bi-week play in that regard, in terms of, hey, this might be the week
31:36that he gets the five targets and long touchdown.
31:39I also believe the Texans are going to run a lot more 12 and 13 personnel.
31:43I mean, they drafted Marlon Klein, Foster Morel. They also have Dalton Schultz on top of it.
31:48And so, yeah, Booty is going to stretch the field as Nico Collins runs these awesome crossing routes and middle of the
31:55field targets and all that type of stuff. And that's why you and I are drafting a lot of Nico Collins this offseason.
32:01Yeah. What about Ed and I? I agree. Talk about downfield ball winners.
32:05He's only rostered in 16% of Yahoo leagues right now as a part of the Jets.
32:09Yeah. I know you love him. I think I know that.
32:13But with Mitchell, I'm a believer, especially like in the best ball leagues or deeper leagues like that.
32:18Like I have faith and there's just been lots of signs.
32:21And I know like it's the Jets and Geno Smith and it's a little ugly.
32:25He's obviously the wide super two to Garrett Wilson.
32:28But Geno Smith has loved him. There's just been like constant positive talk ever since he's gotten to New York and Geno
32:34Smith and him worked out together like in Florida this year.
32:37Just things he's called him this year. He's an alpha.
32:40He's a baller. He's special. He's a great teammate.
32:43Just lots of different things. And now he had two targets to Garrett Wilson's one of the preseason.
32:48So maybe that means something. I'm joking. But you know what I mean?
32:51Like I think he can actually be like a consistent seven targets a week.
32:55And with his play style, I think that can pay off sometimes.
32:59And it works well with Smith style. I will bite your hand off right now for Adnan Mitchell gets seven targets a week.
33:05I mean, that would be incredible stuff. Look, they drafted Omar Cooper and Kenan Sadiq in round one, right?
33:11However, those two might cannibalize each other a little bit in that one can only be on the field while the other is off the field.
33:18If Cooper is the slot and Sadiq is kind of the second tight end in a way, because Garrett Wilson and Adnan
33:24Mitchell are going to be the outside wide receivers for this team, you know, and that's fantastic.
33:29The other point of this, Joel, is that they open with the Tennessee Titans.
33:33Maybe their easiest matchup of the season. So if you drafted someone like Jordan Tyson, you know, who's an IR immediate for
33:40the opening six weeks of the season, and you need to fill in that wide receiver spot in your roster.
33:45I think you and I can agree that Adnan Mitchell, and maybe even the next thing we're going to bring up here
33:52in Dunstaven Wicks could be the two most likely outcome players and maybe upside players versus even the wide receivers that we
33:58opened with, with like Denzel Boston and Keenan Allen that are more rostered on Yahoo right now.
34:03Yeah. Tennessee and New York is pretty disgusting, but I don't mind it.
34:06I think there's going to be like one of those big receivers that's questionable right now.
34:11And it's like five or six of them where it's like, oh, they'll be good by week one.
34:16There's probably going to be one that isn't, and Mitchell could be a nice villain.
34:20Okay, let's talk Dunstaven Wicks then. Beat writers have said things, quote, like, Makai Lemon is expected to get playing time right
34:27off the bat, but it's more likely that Devante Smith and Dunstaven Wicks receive the bulk of the targets while the rookie gets his footing.
34:34It sounds like, Joel, that he has locked down the wide receiver two spot in camp.
34:38And a lot of it is with Lemon missing all of OTAs, most of the training camp.
34:43I think it's going to be Lemon will start in the slot, get his feet wet, and we'll take time there.
34:49But I think people will be surprised that Wicks is like on the field more than Lemon to start.
34:55I agree. This is a short view play because when you draft a rookie like Makai Lemon, even in fantasy, that's a post-buy bump type player.
35:02We know that rookies can define second halves of fancy seasons, but they're going to give Wicks a ton of routes and a ton of snaps early on.
35:10So I think you can do worse than the Eagles that are projected to win a number of their early games and
35:16score a fair amount of points, even in this new passing offense, that the drumbeat for Dunstaven Wicks has been quite loud.
35:23So look, it was even frustrating when it was AJ Brown and Devante Smith together, that one of those guys might miss out.
35:29But again, if you are really in need of an immediate starter, if your league is super deep, Dunstaven Wicks is a name to keep in mind.
35:37Okay. Let's talk the two Dolphins rookie wide receivers.
35:40Caleb Douglas is rostered on 11% of leagues. Chris Bell, 4% of leagues.
35:43Straight up, Joel, do you have a preference of the two?
35:46Not really. I think I lean Douglas just because of the ACL tear and them being rookies, slow start for Bell.
35:52So I think right now, if I had to roster one, especially earlier on the season, it'd be Douglas.
35:58Okay. I'm going to do the opposite. I know that Caleb Douglas popped up here for an awesome catch in the preseason,
36:04nearly had another one on the sideline that he couldn't get two feet in bounds.
36:08I know he's the one that has flashed in training camp and has been at nearly every single practice.
36:14But Chris Bell, to me, is another deep cut that could really pay off for us as much as a Dolphins wide
36:20receiver could in weeks like seven, eight, nine here.
36:23From Joel Shad, okay? Quote, we're going to put our chips on Chris Bell leading the team in receiving yards this year.
36:29So Chris Bell is a fun player in terms of yards off the catch, a unique style to his game.
36:35So I wonder in a couple of weeks, Joel, if we're going to be talking about Chris Bell a lot more.
36:41Yeah. I'm sure if we have one of these waiver shows, we'll probably be talking a lot of Miami receivers out the year, I bet.
36:48At least a couple. At least a couple. Yeah.
36:50Maybe our prediction is that both Miami receivers make at least four appearances on this episode, one way or another, after a really nice week.
36:57And we can't time the good weeks from the bad weeks at all.
37:01Okay. Let's close with Devon Bell. He's the name that's filling in the starting lineup here for Jordan Tyson.
37:07Give me your thoughts. I like it kind of.
37:09In those leagues where it's like PPR, especially with Tyson, I think he's a nice, like solid fill in for Tyson.
37:15In the meantime, mainly just because of the offense in general, there's been like a lot of positive talk about Vela where
37:21he got traded mid season last year. It didn't do anything, but now with the off season with the team, all of
37:28that, but the offense overall is fast paced. It's high volume.
37:31It's a lot of those quick targets, all those deep targets.
37:34So there's lots of volume to be had for Vela in those PPR leagues where he's not going to crush, but I
37:40think he has a really good shot of being like getting you a solid 10 points when you need it.
37:46We've done it. Joel, this was a great start.
37:49It'll get even better as we go along. In future versions of this, we're going to do a cut list at the end too.
37:55So some names that are rostered in the majority of Yahoo leagues out there that we think people should cut bait on at this moment.
38:03I just don't want to do that to your rosters right now after you think a optimistic thought on every single one
38:09of them because you drafted them for a reason.
38:11So we're going to let the chips fall in week one.
38:15We'll be back here to deliver the bad news next Monday night.
38:18Joel, thanks for doing this with me all season long.
38:21Thank you. Where they can find you and your work because I know on socials, you're at Fancy Smith with a Y in Smith.
38:28Yep. On Twitter, XFantasySmith, just Joel Smith on TikTok and Instagram.
38:31So come watch videos. I'll have about four or five social videos a week, if not more.
38:36There it is. All right, everyone. Thanks for tuning in.
38:39We'll see you next time.
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