Dynasty Fantasy Football Waiver Wire: Week One
Hey, I’d like to start this week one dynasty fantasy football waiver wire advice by first asking you to please subscribe to the DLF YouTube channel! Thanks to all of you, we are so close to 8,000 subscribers, almost double where we were last year! So if you are not subscribed and would like MORE FREE content from the DLF team, the YouTube channel is the way to go!
In case you are reading this, there is one bit of information to know before you start reading names. Just like last year’s series, we will be utilizing player rostership percentages, courtesy of real dynasty rosters from 800 superflex MFL leagues. While this may not be entirely accurate for every individual league, it is very reflective of how managers view who is worthy or not of a roster spot. Now that is covered, let’s dive into the waiver wire after week one!
Players to double-check availability and immediately add:
- Eno Benjamin, RB ARI
- Jeff Wilson Jr, RB SF
- Jaylen Warren, RB PIT
- Isaiah McKenzie, WR BUF
- Sterling Shepard, WR NYG
- Hayden Hurst, TE CIN
Rex Burkhead, RB HOU
While Burkhead is the most rostered player in this entire list and I could have easily included him in the “double-check and immediately add” section, I wanted to emphasize my confidence in picking up Burkhead with a lot of FAAB this week. 1) He will probably be the hottest name on waivers in every league he’s available, so naturally he’ll be expensive, but 2) at worst, he’s a receiving back on a bad team, but at best, he’s a starting running back with volume.
While everyone was drooling over day three rookie Dameon Pierce and buying Pierce for 2023 firsts, Burkhead is the proven veteran on this team, and that showed on Sunday. He out-snapped the rookie 49-19 and out-touched him 19 to 12. They both averaged the same 3.0 yards per carry and the same 6.0 yards per reception, but Burkhead was the guy nonetheless. Most importantly, he was second on the team in targets (8) behind Brandin Cooks, with no other player seeing more than three targets. His receiving volume alone will make him a relevant fantasy asset every week, and will also be the reason why Pierce’s fantasy ceiling is limited. This is a bad team, with a bad offensive line, and subpar quarterback, so Burkhead will be involved more often than not.
Zay Jones, WR JAC
Moving over to the wide receiver position, Jones was also second on his team in targets (9) behind *alpha* WR1 Christian Kirk. While touchdowns were limited to players only named James Robinson in this game for Jacksonville, a 6-65 stat line in PPR leagues is enough to get the job done in the flex every week if you need it. It’s obvious that Zay is the best Jones on this team, and after the Jaguars shipped Laviska Shenault to Carolina, he’s going to be involved every week. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if Jones snuck into the top-36 receivers at the end of the season, similar to what Marvin Jones did last year. He’s not sexy, but he’ll get the job done.
Devin Duvernay, WR BAL
One of the storylines I am watching early on this year is who separates themselves as the WR2 in Baltimore behind Rashod Bateman. They have a motley crew of players like Demarcus Robinson, Tylan Wallace, and James Proche, but this week it was 2020 third-round pick Devin Duvernay who showed out with 4-54-2. Honestly, the WR2 in Baltimore will probably not be very relevant all year as the Ravens try to return to their strengths rushing the ball when JK Dobbins and Gus Edwards return, so this might be an outlier week for their season as a whole. But, as of right now, Duvernay has the clear advantage of being the WR2, and that is worth a roster spot in dynasty, even if he doesn’t crack your lineup every week.
Kyle Philips, WR TEN
Do you know who the best rookie receiver was in week one? It was actually Jahan Dotson, repping my Nittany Lions. But second on the list is Philips, who was at best a fourth-round pick in your rookie drafts this season, if not more likely undrafted. The fifth-round rookie gained some hype during training camp while fellow rookie Treylon Burks was struggling, and apparently that hype has translated to the real thing. Philips decidedly led the Titans in targets (9) with Burks being the next closest with five, hauling in six catches for 66 yards.
Four of his nine targets came on the final drive when Tennessee was trying to get into field goal range to win the game, including the 21-yard reception that put them inside the 30 for a field goal attempt. You could take that as “garbage time padding” as he wouldn’t have had those targets if the Titans defense prevented the Giants from driving over 70 yards to score the game-winning touchdown. Or, you could take that as Ryan Tannehill’s go-to guy in the clutch, not Treylon Burks, not Robert Woods, Kyle Philips. He’s a must-add from waivers if he is still available.
Ashton Dulin, WR IND and Kylen Granson, TE IND
I’ll be honest here; I have no idea what to do with the Indianapolis Colts receiving room behind Michael Pittman. This is another Baltimore Ravens situation where someone HAS to step up and be the number two, right? Or is Pittman really going to see 200 targets this year? Matt Ryan threw the ball 50 times, and 25 of those went to Pittman, Jonathan Taylor, and Nyheim Hines, but what about the other 25? Well, Granson and Dulin were targeted seven and six times respectively, though neither of them really did anything with those targets. Parris Campbell only saw four targets and rookie Alec Pierce only saw two. I don’t know what to make of this, but I guess both are prospective adds for little to no FAAB if you have room, just to see what happens.
Greg Dortch, WR ARI
In a similar vein, apparently Dortch (seven catches, 63 yards) is the WR1 in Arizona without DeAndre Hopkins? I actually think there was a lot at play here that made Dortch succeed for this week that scares me over the entire season, but for right now makes him an awesome pickup. The Cardinals were obviously without Hopkins, but also Rondale Moore, who injured his hamstring on Thursday during practice. Hamstring injuries are no joke early in the season, especially when Moore already has a history of such injuries in college, including in 2019 that ended his entire season. If Moore misses extended time, Dortch is the WR2 until either Moore or Nuk return, which has already shown to be a valuable role with Kyler Murray.
We all expected great things from Marquise Brown without Hopkins, but the truth is that Hollywood isn’t an alpha and probably shouldn’t be relied on as a team’s WR1. If defenses are honed in on taking out Brown and focusing on James Conner, Kyler might have to rely more on Dortch in the passing game, especially with an aging AJ Green and a limited Zach Ertz. Dortch is available in basically every dynasty league out there right now and should be added in every league that has at least 22-man rosters.
Other players I think should be rostered:
- Samaje Perine, RB CIN
- Jerick McKinnon, RB KC
- Matt Breida, RB NYG
- Dontrell Hilliard, RB TEN
- Deon Jackson, RB IND
Finally, please be sure to catch the latest Waiver Wire video on our DLF YouTube Channel!
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