Fantasy football waiver wire Week 1 adds: 5 players you need to consider picking up

Admin September 9, 2024

While Thursday and Friday served as appetizers for the NFL season, we finally got our main course as Sunday brought action from 13 NFL games. While many of the games yielded surprising results, the hour before Sunday kickoff was arguably the most surprising part of the weekend.

Dak Prescott got a new deal. Tyreek Hill was detained by police. Ja’Marr Chase decided to play in Week 1 at the last second. Kendrick Lamar was announced as the Super Bowl halftime performer. There was a lot to take in, which made this week the perfect opportunity to take advantage of all those distractions and hit the waiver wire.

Week 1 saw a few impact performances from rather unknown players you could snag from your teammates. Here are five players to target on waivers this week.

Week 1 waiver wire targets:

TE Isaiah Likely, BAL (Rostered in 28% of Yahoo leagues)

Let’s get the obvious one out of the way first. Likely had a mammoth performance against the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday. While it could be easy to assume that star tight end Mark Andrews will get more work as the season goes on, Likely could also continue receiving tons of looks.

Likely has always been an athletic option that the Ravens have kept locked away, only ever seeing light when Andrews is injured. However, Likely was used in a variety of ways against Kansas City. He was put in the slot, out wide, in tight, everywhere on the field, meaning the Ravens probably plan on using him a lot. Outside of Andrews and Zay Flowers, there isn’t much competition for targets in Baltimore’s offense. This is the perfect opportunity for Likely to slide in right away and make an impact.

WR Greg Dortch, ARI (Rostered in 5% of Yahoo leagues)

Despite the addition of Marvin Harrison Jr., Greg Dortch was the most targeted receiver on the Cardinals, earning eight looks from quarterback Kyler Murray. In PPR leagues, Dortch could be a great FLEX option, someone who might not put up a ton of yards but will have a great floor week-in, week-out.

Furthermore, there were rumors throughout training camp that Dortch could emerge as a serious target in this Cardinals’ offense. That appears to be the case one week in. As always, tread with caution. Maybe don’t start Dortch in Week 2, but if you can stash him and keep him on your bench in case this level of work keeps up, then he could be a massive addition.

WR Brandin Cooks, DAL (Rostered in 32% of Yahoo leagues)

Despite being the surefire No. 2 option in one of the most pass-heavy offenses in the NFL, Cooks is only rostered in 32% of Yahoo leagues. He earned the second-most targets of all Dallas receivers, and that number could only go up in the near future with Jake Ferguson suffering an injury during the team’s Week 1 win against Cleveland.

WR Wan’Dale Robinson, NYG (Rostered in 10% of Yahoo leagues)

The New York Giants are not a good football team. That’s good news for their receivers though, as the team will often be playing from behind, needing to pass the ball more often than other teams. Wan’Dale Robinson was the team’s largest beneficiary of positive game script in Week 1, racking up 12 targets on the night, which led the Giants and was nearly double the next-most on the team (Malik Nabers, 7).

While it is very likely Nabers will receive more looks as he adjusts to this offense, Robinson still seems to be quarterback Daniels Jones’ favorite target. He could be a great early acquisition if he can corral a few more of his targets.

RB Tank Bigsby, JAX (Rostered in 5% of Yahoo leagues)

While Travis Etienne may have earned the bulk of the backfield workload in Jacksonville a year ago, it seems like 2024 will feature a split load. Bigsby and Etienne both garnered 12 carries during Sunday’s loss to Miami. While Etienne got the goal line carries and the receiving work, Bigsby was the more efficient back, averaging over six yards a carry, compared to Etienne’s under four.

During the offseason, there were rumors that Bigsby was going to get more of a workload, but considering the rumors also said that Bigsby would cut into Etienne’s work last year (and that didn’t happen), many fans dismissed this year’s rumors. Well, it’s time to take them seriously. Bigsby is here to stay and he could be in for a massive workload if Etienne goes down.

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