Fantasy
9/30/24
9 min read
Fantasy Football 2024: Week 5 Waiver Wire Targets
Week 4 didn’t exactly blow the doors off the fantasy universe, but managers are starting to see some different offenses heat up around the NFL.
As a result, we have a rather robust waiver wire report for this week. Some of these players have been written about in the past, but fortunately, there are several new names to explore as you consider ways to improve your team heading into October.
So let’s not waste too much time. Join me as we take a look at a few names to pick up off the wire in advance of Week 5 action:
Fantasy Football Week 5 Waiver Wire Adds
Justin Fields, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers
- ESPN Rostership: 33.9 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 31 percent
Another week, another rockstar fantasy performance from Justin Fields.
My advice from last week’s waiver article was to “get in now before Fields wins the job outright from Wilson and becomes too trendy of a pickup,” so here’s to hoping you got ahead of the curve.
The ex-Chicago Bear looks like an absolute tank right now, accumulating 312 passing yards and a score through the air to pair with a robust 55-yard rushing effort that netted two additional touchdowns in Week 4 vs. the Indianapolis Colts.
In fantasy terms, Fields’ production on Sunday resulted in 31.98 points, the highest single-game total recorded by a quarterback in four-point per passing touchdown scoring so far this year (as of the conclusion of the afternoon slate), per FantasyData.
While coach Mike Tomlin seems to be enjoying being coy with the media when asked about who will be the starter once Wilson’s calf heals, it’s rather apparent that Fields will be the guy. There’s no point in putting the genie back in the bottle, especially when you’re a 3-1 team that almost stayed undefeated with a resurgent 21-point second-half effort, ultimately falling short.
I’m hoping this is the last week I have to write about Fields because, dang, it’s just obvious now.
Before we pivot to our next player, it’s worth noting that early reports on Anthony Richardson, who left this same Week 4 contest with a hip injury, are positive:
Should Richardson miss time, though, go ahead and pick up Joe Flacco. The wily 39-year-old put up a respectable line of 16 completions on 26 attempts for 168 and two touchdowns vs. the Steelers in relief duty. He showed us last year down the stretch with the Cleveland Browns that he can still sling it like it’s 2012.
Rico Dowdle, RB, Dallas Cowboys
- ESPN Rostership: 43.4 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 48 percent
Sometimes, it’s easy to get caught up in everything that happened on Sunday and completely forget about events from the Thursday night game.
However, this week would be a foolish time for that to happen because the top running back on the waiver wire played several days ago and is winning the lead job in his backfield.
Veteran Ezekiel Elliott continues slipping into irrelevance (19.2 snap rate in Week 4, per Fantasy Points Data) and shows no signs of being a threat in this backfield moving forward.
On the other hand, Rico Dowdle participated in a season-high 46.2 percent of Dallas’ offensive snaps, putting together 61 total yards on 12 touches and a receiving touchdown vs. the New York Giants.
I wouldn’t expect Dowdle to contribute much more than flex-level impact in fantasy lineups moving forward, given that the Cowboys have only produced 75.3 rushing yards per game through four games.
Still, he’s definitely worth adding if you need some help. A starting running back for an NFL team being available on waivers is a gift.
Roschon Johnson, RB, Chicago Bears
- ESPN Rostership: 13.4 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 28 percent
Now, Roschon Johnson and the next running back on this list are not exactly “must-adds,” but hear me out.
The second-year bowling ball did find his way into the end zone in Week 3 vs. the Los Angeles Rams and looked good on the limited work he received (seven carries, 26 rushing yards). The weird part, however, is his teammate and lead back D’Andre Swift pulled the most Undertaker .gif-level resurgence possible on Sunday, recording 165 scrimmage yards and a touchdown on 23 carries.
The veteran I essentially declared dead in my Week 3 rankings came back to haunt me, and it does seem now that any path Johnson had to establish a more prominent role in the Bears offense is more complicated:
Indeed, completely writing off Swift’s bounceback would be misguided. Leaving off this section with a “who cares, Swift sucks, pick up Johnson everywhere” energy is irresponsible.
So let’s cut it down the middle and say that the former Texas Longhorn probably won’t crack lineups in 10 or 12-teamers if Swift continues to fight back. However, there’s still room for Johnson to build upon this effort and be a worthy add for managers in leagues with deep benches or 14 or more managers.
That seems fair.
We’re at a point in the season where any running back with a pulse carries fantasy value, given the plethora of injuries that have kept stars like Isiah Pacheco or Christian McCaffrey off the field.
Keep that mindset with this next rusher…
Alexander Mattison, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
- ESPN Rostership: 30.7 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 33 percent
Why the Raiders insist on feeding the ball to Zamir White instead of Alexander Mattison is completely and utterly beyond comprehension.
Mattison appeared in last week’s article as a “dart throw,” and I still stand by that assessment after he out-gained his counterpart again in Week 4 vs. the Cleveland Browns:
Another vital factoid from the Sunday bout is that White committed a costly fumble that resulted in a scoop-and-score by the Browns defense.
Will that, and the fact that Mattison has looked like the back, be enough to convince Raiders coaches to make the switch? We don’t know, unfortunately. At this point, you should be early on a potential switch rather than waiting around for it to happen.
Being early is how you beat your league mates, after all.
Mattison is likely only a bye week filler or a flex option in most leagues if he wins the job, but you need those guys on your bench for when the going gets tough.
Kareem Hunt, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
- ESPN Rostership: 21.5 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 35 percent
In keeping with the fumbling theme, perhaps it’s Hunt SZN in Kansas City?
Rookie UDFA Carson Steele appeared to be the leader of this backfield following a solid Week 3 effort, but an early first-quarter fumble landed him on the bench, paving the way for the veteran to take over.
The youngster has now fumbled twice in the Chiefs’ last three games.
If that means he’s relegated to riding the pine, that could be fruitful for Hunt, who shouldered a team-leading 14 carries for 69 yards in addition to logging a pair of catches for 16 receiving yards in Week 4 vs. the Los Angeles Chargers.
The only item of concern holding up Hunt is that Samaje Perine (five carries, 14 rushing yards, one touchdown) hasn’t completely disappeared.
If that’s the lone obstacle in front of Hunt, then it’s worth at least taking a speculative stab at him on the wire.
Wan’Dale Robinson, WR, New York Giants
- ESPN Rostership: 27.1 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 26 percent
Calling back to this past Thursday again, how about Wan’Dale Robinson?
The sleight-framed dynamo corralled 11 of 14 targets for 71 receiving yards against the Cowboys and has now recorded at least 9.8 points in point-per-reception (PPR) scoring in every game this season.
Taking a more holistic view of Robinson’s season makes his contributions even more impressive. He ranks second on the Giants in target share (25.5 percent) and trails teammate Malik Nabers in yards per route run by the slightest of margins at 0.32, per Fantasy Points Data.
Slot receivers in a Brian Daboll offense are always a fun bet to make. It’s what made Cole Beasley fantasy-relevant between 2019 and 2021 as a member of the Buffalo Bills when Daboll was the team’s offensive coordinator.
That kind of “low yardage but catches a ton of passes” archetype is valuable in PPR, and Robinson shouldn’t be ignored any longer— especially considering the 13.2 points per game he’s averaging.
Xavier Legette, WR, Carolina Panthers
- ESPN Rostership: 25 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 14 percent
A hamstring injury to veteran wideout Adam Thielen paved the way for Xavier Legette to see increased opportunity in the Panthers offense in Week 4, and the rookie didn’t disappoint.
The former South Carolina standout ended Sunday’s contest vs. the Cincinnati Bengals with 6 catches on 10 targets for 66 yards and a touchdown.
Though Legette trailed teammate Diontae Johnson in each statistical category, he wasn’t far behind and clearly established himself as Andy Dalton’s number two target.
As long as Dalton remains under center and the Panthers’ defense continues to be porous, Legette's potential for sustained future production is relatively high.
Week 5 might be too soon to start Legette, but he should absolutely be on your bench.
Tucker Kraft, TE, Green Bay Packers
- ESPN Rostership: 4.5 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 4 percent
A boom game from Tucker Kraft was inevitable.
As I alluded to way back in my Week 3 start/sit picks, the second-year tight end has been completely dominating snaps as the Packers’ starter ahead of teammate Luke Musgrave, and the only missing ingredient preventing Kraft from popping off was the return of Jordan Love from his knee injury.
Fortunately, Week 4 saw Love return to the fold, and Kraft erupted for six catches on nine targets for 53 yards and a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings.
Even more encouraging is how involved he was in the offense following the unfortunate injury to WR Christian Watson:
Any tight end who manages to be a secondary target in a passing attack is worthy of fantasy attention — most guys are lucky to be third or even fourth in line for looks.
Keep riding this train and proceed forward with Kraft in your lineup.
