Dominating the waiver wire could catapult you into championship territory regardless of how much you struggled during the draft or while making trades. Read on for eight season-long waiver wire targets, as well as a couple of players whom you can comfortably cut loose.
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Let’s check out eight players that warrant consideration ahead of the upcoming waiver wire cycle. All players listed here are rostered in less than 35 percent of ESPN leagues and could have legitimate impacts down the stretch.
Kirk Cousins
Rostered in 24.2 percent of leagues
Cousins is a must-have player in superflex or two-quarterback leagues, but he has gone undrafted in a lot of single-quarterback formats. He’s worth rostering in all leagues with at least 12 teams due to the volume and players around him. Cousins finished as the QB11 last season while passing to an elite receiving corps headlined by Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen. He might not have Kyle Rudolph or Irv Smith Jr. at his disposal this season, but Cousins is still a very intriguing fantasy option due to his presence in such an efficient offense.
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Malcolm Brown
Rostered in 19.6 percent of leagues
Brown represents an intriguing addition due to the uncertainty of the Dolphins’ backfield. While Myles Gaskin is the top candidate for the lead role, Brown had an impressive preseason and is certainly in the mix, too. In fact, even if Gaskin does secure the job, Brown will still factor into the offense. You can’t feel comfortable starting him just yet, but he is absolutely worth rostering and should be scooped up from waivers before more people start to catch on.
Tevin Coleman
Rostered in 17.9 percent of leagues
Tevin Coleman could be cut by the end of the season. However, for roughly the first half of the season, he’ll carry fantasy relevance. That’s because Coleman is currently projected as the Jets’ starting running back. Michael Carter and Ty Johnson will try to surpass him throughout the season yet, but neither showed much dominance during the preseason. As such, Coleman has the most experience and will likely take the field with the rest of the Jets’ starters in Week 1. He is worth rostering and could even fill a FLEX spot in your lineup at some point this season.
Carlos Hyde
Rostered in 15 percent of leagues
Hyde vultured touches with the Seahawks last season, serving as a thorn in Chris Carson‘s side. Now, he’s expected to fill a similar role with the Jaguars. Hyde is the clear-cut No. 2 behind James Robinson and should see plenty of playing time as a change-of-pace back. Don’t forget that Urban Meyer will look to experiment with his skill players like they are chess pieces, which could lead to more usage for Hyde. He’s a solid handcuff option who could have low-end fantasy relevance even when Robinson is healthy. The veteran running back deserves to be rostered in more than 15 percent of leagues.
Sterling Shepard
Rostered in 19.2 percent of leagues
It really is a crime that Shepard is rostered in just 19.2 percent of leagues. Kenny Golladay, Evan Engram, Darius Slayton, and Saquon Barkley aren’t fully healthy while Kadarius Toney has struggled to acclimate to the NFL. This leaves Shepard in a great position to receive significant volume as early as Week 1. When healthy, Shepard has represented the consistency that people crave at the wide receiver position. Roster him now because his price will skyrocket after Week 1.
Bryan Edwards
Rostered in 12.5 percent of leagues
Edwards disappointed as a rookie in 2020, meaning he is all the more primed for a post-hype breakout in 2021. The second-year wideout had a fabulous training camp, making circus catches and looking like this unit’s No. 1 receiver. Meanwhile, Las Vegas released John Brown, creating even more room for someone like Edwards to thrive. He doesn’t have guaranteed production, but the upside is definitely there. He’s worth rostering with eventual FLEX-level upside.
Amon-Ra St. Brown
Rostered in 11 percent of leagues
St. Brown has flown under the radar, which is a shame considering he could lead all rookies in targets this season. It’s tough to trust an unproven player in a system captained by Jared Goff, but the rookie out of USC offers tremendous upside as a talented playmaker. Fantasy managers need to stop looking the other way whenever a Lions offensive player emerges as a breakout candidate. St. Brown could be the real deal and you can benefit from his emergence.
Gerald Everett
Rostered in 8.5 percent of leagues
Tight end can be such a frustrating position in fantasy football. However, Everett has minimal competition in the Seahawks’ offense, meaning he will pretty much see guaranteed volume this year. The 27-year-old was solid with the Rams last year while teammate Tyler Higbee underachieved. Everett finished the year with 41 catches for 417 yards and one score. He’s not an extremely appealing addition, but he should absolutely be rostered in more than one-twelfth of all leagues.
Drops
Let’s check out three players that you can comfortably cut loose from your roster. All players listed here are rostered in more than 50 percent of ESPN leagues and aren’t expected to have legitimate impacts down the stretch.
David Johnson
Rostered in 67.2 percent of leagues
The hype for Johnson is confusing. He’s an old player from a previous regime that has been demoted from first-string to third-string. Don’t forget that he plays on one of the worst offenses in football, either. Why, then, is he rostered in nearly two-thirds of leagues? It just doesn’t make sense. You can comfortably drop Johnson in most leagues with standard roster sizes.
Jalen Reagor
Rostered in 60 percent of leagues
The idea that you can drop Reagor lies less in the fact that he is going to underperform and more in the fact that there are better options available. He’s not a terrible stash in most formats, but there are other players out there who offer a greater likelihood of succeeding this season.
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