Fantasy Football: Waiver Wire week five
1. Brian Hartline (MIA WR) 25%
Meet the top fantasy scorer from Week 4! Hartline had a whopping 12 catches for 253 yards and a score. To be fair, much of Hartline’s fantasy day came on one 80 yard TD reception, but you can’t take that away from him. Hartline has oscillated between a bad game, a good game, a bad game, and then this monster game. You can call him inconsistent, but the targets are anything but inconsistent. Last week, even when Hartline disappointed with just 1 reception, he actually saw 9 targets. With this volume of targets, Hartline will be a starting fantasy option for the remainder of the year. Even if catching 1 out of 9 targets is weaksauce, it’s not like Miami has any other options, so expect to see Hartline continue to be a target monster all year! He’s already a top 5 fantasy WR through the first month of the season, and after 19 targets on Sunday, he should continue producing.
2. Greg Olsen (CAR TE) 53%
Olsen has stepped it up big time in the past 2 weeks. He was Cam Newton’s favorite target in Weeks 3 and 4, with 6 catches, 89 yards, and a tackle-breaking TD against the Falcons. He has supplanted Brandon LaFell as the primary beneficiary of all the attention paid to Steve Smith. Of all these whack-a-mole TEs, I’d rank them: Martellus Bennett, Greg Olsen, Dennis Pitta, Kyle Rudolph, Scott Chandler.
3. Leonard Hankerson (WAS WR) 11%
Hankerson didn’t light it up in Week 4, but did manage 7 catches for 57 yards on 11 targets. With Pierre Garcon still far from 100%, Hank should continue to be RG3′s #1 target going forward. Hank’s 11 targets more than doubled the 2nd leader in targets against the Bucs. As a deep threat, when Hank catches 7 balls in future games, he’s sure to end up with a whole lot more than 57 yards.
4. Andre Roberts (ARZ WR) 14%
While Hartline stole the headlines from this game, Andre Roberts was no slouch. Roberts caught 6 balls for 118 yards and 2 TDs. While defenses key in on Larry Fitzgerald, Roberts will see plenty of single coverage, and Kevin Kolb looked his way early and often. Roberts now has 4 TDs on the season, but is only averaging 57 yards per game. Add him if you’ve got room, and see if he can continue to capitalize on playing opposite Fitz.
5. Ryan Fitzpatrick (BUF QB) 47%
The other Fitz, or Baby Santa as Cory likes to call him, has steadily produced some solid fantasy numbers this year. The Harvard man has the 4th most fantasy points of all QBs so far this year! He has averaged 3 passing TDs per game so far, which is pretty incredible. When the defense took away Stevie Johnson on Sunday, Fitzpatrick showed that he could get it done without his best receiver. His resourceful nature, crappy defense, and pass-catching pair of RBs combine to form a recipe for fantasy success!
6. James Jones (GB WR) 32%
Ya know I never cared so much about another man’s groin until fantasy football. Greg Jennings was removed from Sunday’s game with a groin injury, which opened things up for the San Jose state alum, James Jones. Jones hauled in 5 balls for 56 yards and 2 TDs against the miserable Saints D. We don’t know much about how long Jennings will be out, but it’s worth adding Jones in the meantime. Here’s why I’m not going to blow my FAAB budget on him: he’s only averaging 47 yards per game on the season. And in the one game that Jennings was not in at all (Week 2), Jones actually managed negative yards, so it’s hardly like plugging in the handcuff RB when the stud is out.
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7. Domenik Hixon (NYG WR) 4%
With Hakeem Nicks ruled out early, his future is not looking good. Coach Coughlin announced Monday that Nicks’ injury just isn’t improving. This opened the door for a huge Ramses Barden game in Week 3, but it was announced that Domenik Hixon would get the start in Nicks’ place on Sunday Night. Hixon delivered with 6 catches for 114 yards. He might share snaps and targets with Barden, but as long as Nicks is out, you could probably do worse than rolling with Hixon.
8. Brandon Bolden (NE RB) 8%
Well, no one saw this one coming. Bolden ran 16 times for 137 yards and a score, as the Pats trounced the Bills. Still, it’s too early to announce that Bolden will overcome Stevan Ridley, who did just fine. Ridley had 22 carries for 106 yards. Bolden’s 8.6 YPC outshnes Ridley’s 4.8, but Ridley has been too good to bench. I’d add Bolden after this flashy statline, but wouldn’t plan on starting him anytime soon because his success on Sunday was likely situational. You never know what you’re going to get with Belichick, as Woodhead, Ridley, Bolden, and maybe eventually Shane Vereen rotate in and out, but Ridley seems like the safest best for solid production on the season.
9. Jackie Battle (SD RB) 22%
Battle started this game in place of Ryan Mathews, but Mathews was used to kill the game in the end and should eventually become the workhorse back. Until Mathews works his way back from the fumble and/or the injury, Battle could have another good game or two in his future. Against the Chiefs, Battle had 91 total yards and 2 scores, but this will probably be his best game of the year.
10. Scott Chandler (BUF TE) 28%
Chandler has always been a solid redzone threat, and cashed it in for 4 catches, 62 yards, and 2 TDs against the Patriots. He’s only averaging 43 yards per game on the season, but he’s also averaging 1 TD per game. He suffered a head injury but should be fine going forward. We’ve seen this before: the Bills offense gets off to a redhot start only to disappoint midway through the season. Still, you can add Chandler to the list of whack-a-mole TEs this year.
11. Joique Bell (DET RB) 5%
Bell only had 1 carry in the losing effort, but hauled in 6 catches for 72 yards. Mikel Leshoure struggled and might be overworked, while Kevin Smith has done absolutely nothing in the past 2 weeks. This leaves Bell as a potential option to steal some touches. I’d definitely drop KSmith for Bell at this point if any of you were holding out hope.
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