Week 2 Waiver Wire Targets! 🎯

Shout out to all the fantasy teams who picked up their first wins of the season today!

What’s in store:

• Austin Ekeler dealing with an injury? 🤨 Monitor the Chargers’ practice reports this week like a hawk.

• Which Rams receiver off the waiver wire is the right fit for you? Puka Nacua and Tutu Atwell are both strong choices.

• Is Robert Woods worth picking up off waivers? Him and Nico Collins were at the top of the target distribution in the Texans’ season opener.

• Tua leads the league in WHAT stat? Besides passing yards, of course.

• Eagles RB Rachaad Penny a healthy scratch as RB Kenneth Gainwell dominates touches in the Philadelphia backfield

  • At this point Penny is droppable with the last-minute reports indicating that Kenneth Gainwell would lead the Eagles backfield in usage coming to fruition in Week 1. Gainwell handled the large majority of the work, both on the ground and through the air, and D’Andre Swift continued to get the D’Andre Swift treatment in his new home. There’s no reason to consider dropping Swift after one concerning game, but if this trend continues and Swift doesn’t see his usage ramp up in the coming weeks, fantasy managers could be faced with a difficult decision to make in the near future regarding Swift’s status on their teams.

• Colts HC Shane Steichen says that QB Anthony Richardson could have returned to action in Week 1 despite injury

  • This is very good news for the rookie signal caller, who had a very strong fantasy outing despite leaving the Week 1 tilt against the Jaguars early after taking a hard hit at the goal line. As such, fantasy managers can expect Richardson to be available and back to 100% in Week 2, and barring any setbacks, be started as a solid QB1 with excellent upside on a weekly basis.

• Chargers RB Austin Ekeler dealing with ankle injury picked up in loss to Dolphins in Week 1

  • Here’s some interesting news coming out of Los Angeles. After splitting carries exactly in half with RB Josh Kelley, Austin Ekeler is suddenly dealing with an injury that has his status for practice this week up in the air. With Kellen Moore implementing what looked very close to the 2-man approach he utilized in Dallas against the Dolphins in Week 1, any injury to either of these running backs could prove to be a huge buff to the other. In this case, if Ekeler can’t go, Joshua Kelley would be come a must start in Week 2. We’re still well away from Sunday, but pay close attention to practice reports this week out of LA.

WR Rashid Shaheed, NO - $6

• PPR Points: 20.0 on 6 targets, 5 receptions for 89 yards and 1 touchdown
  Usage: 65.8% route participation, 41.5%, 18.2% target share
  Individual Stock: UP ; Environment Stock: Neutral
  Week 1 Game Script: Neutral
  Clear 3rd receiver behind Olave and Thomas, but one that Derek Carr wasn’t afraid to utilize. Capable of solid flex production and worth picking up, but won’t be a 1:1 replacement at anything higher than WR3 - which even then isn’t a guarantee after one week with three other quality targets in the offense including Olave, Thomas, and Juwan Johnson. He’s not a non-factor though and can cover for you if you have skill players dealing with injury.

WR Puka Nacua, LAR - $16-20

• PPR Points: 21.9 on 15 targets, 10 receptions for 119 yards and 0 touchdowns
  Usage: 77% route participation, 40% target share
  Individual Stock: UP ; Environment Stock: Trending Up.
  Week 1 Game Script: Neutral-Positive
  Unprecedented breakout in a Rams offense that was projected to struggle to move the ball. Nacua was slotted to play behind WR Van Jefferson, who not only had a bad fantasy outing, but didn’t look to be on Nacua’s level in terms of his chemistry with Stafford or his level of play – one bad drop from Jefferson in particular. Nacua looked the closest of any Rams receiver to a 1:1 Kupp replacement while he’s out, and Nacua should be prioritized as both a short and long term addition with minimal competition in the Rams offense even once Kupp returns.

WR Tutu Atwell, LAR - $5-8

• PPR Points: 17.9 on 8 targets, 6 receptions for 119 yards and 0 touchdowns.
  Usage: 79% route participation, ___% air yards share, 21.6% target share
  Individual Stock: UP ; Environment Stock: Trending Up.
  Week 1 Game Script: Neutral-Positive
  Just as highly utilized as Nacua, but saw half the targets. Not an issue for him in this game though, putting up the same number of receiving yards. Not as high a priority of a target as Nacua, but if you don’t want to break the bank for Nacua, Atwell isn’t a bad consolation prize. The usual suspects in the Rams offense (Jefferson and Higbee) combined for 8 targets on the day. It’s only Week 1, and the pendulum could swing their way in Week 2 – but Stafford looked the most comfortable throwing to Atwell and Nacua. Also worth noting - Stafford looked excellent in his first action. That alone has the arrow on the Rams offense pointing up heading into Week 2.

WR Robert Woods, HOU - $3

• PPR Points: 11.7 on 10 targets, 6 receptions for 57 yards and 0 touchdowns
  Usage: 75% route participation, 23% target share
  Individual Stock: Up ; Environment Stock: Neutral
  Week 1 Game Script: Neutral-Negative
  The Texans ran a lot of plays agains the Ravens, and the target distribution was very top-heavy in favor of Robert Woods and Nico Collins. Assuming that Collins isn’t available in the majority of leagues, and taking into account that there are plenty of appealing options on waivers above Robert Woods in priority, there’s a good chance you can scoop up the Texans WR at a good price point and take advantage of the volume he can bring in. Woods isn’t going to be a weekly starter in your lineup, but the passing offense was geared strongly in his favor against Baltimore.

Week 1 brought us plenty of exciting game action, but none more entertaining than the offensive masterpiece the Chargers and Dolphins treated us to at SoFi Stadium. new Chargers OC Kellen Moore was able to dial up an impressive run game led by Joshua Kelley and Austin Ekeler, but it was the left arm of Tua Tagovailoa that stole victory from the LA faithful and helped a lot of fantasy managers win their weeks.

Tagovailoa reprised his role as the league’s leader in average depth of target in Week 1 (12.4), which ultimately fueled his fantastic fantasy day that saw him throw for 466 yards and three touchdowns en route an overall QB1 finish among quarterbacks to play their games on Sunday.

With Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, and Mike McDaniel, Tua is in prime position to sustain a high level of scoring potential on a weekly basis throughout 2023. If the Dolphins can keep him upright, not only will Tyreek Hill have a great chance of hitting the 2000 yard mark this season, but Tua might also be able to finish as a Top-5 fantasy QB.