BTD Fantasy Football: Waiver-Wire Pickups & Trade Tips

The third week of the NFL season is in the books. And it was quite eventful; the Saints and Falcons put on a show! Which meant big weeks for Drew Brees, Matt Ryan, Calvin Ridley and Alvin Kamara. The Bills shocked the Vikings and Jimmy Garoppolo is out for the year with a torn ACL. Also, are we sure the Patriots okay?

Fantasy Football Trade Tips:

1. Everyone wants to get a good deal when they are in any sort of negotiations. In Fantasy Football it can be difficult to get deals done because most people overvalue their players. Which makes sense because they drafted their team and are emotionally invested in their success. If you like a particular player try targeting them after a bad week and bank on a comeback performance.
2. As ‘bye’ weeks start in week 4 another way to get built-in value is to trade for players who have already gotten their bye week out of the way. If you trade a player who hasn’t taken their bye week you are basically getting a free-week of value out of that trade.

TOP WAIVER-WIRE PICKUPS (Sept. 25th)

Running Backs

1. Kerryon Johnson - Detroit Lions
2. Chris Carson - Seattle Seahawks
3. Aaron Jones - Green Bay Packers

Running backs are mostly staying healthy around the NFL and Leonard Fournette/Dalvin Cook look to be returning in week 4. Kerryon Johnson and Chris Carson had big weeks in week 3 and should be snagged if they haven’t been already. Aaron Jones is a solid speculative add as he’s back from suspension.

Wide Receivers

1. Calvin Ridley - Atlanta Falcons
2. Tyler Lockett - Seattle Seahawks
3. Geronimo Allison - Green Bay Packers
4. Mike Williams - San Diego Chargers

While Julio Jones was attracting most of the attention, Calvin Ridley exploded offensively. He won’t repeat that kind of performance, but he should be heavily involved in Atlanta’s offense moving forward. Lockett and Allison have consistently performed each week and don’t show signs of slowing down. Also, Williams is a touchdown machine.

Tight Ends

1. O.J. Howard - Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2. Jesse James/Vance McDonald - Pittsburgh Steelers
3. Benjamin Watson - New Orleans Saints

O.J. Howard is super talented and will have some big plays. The Steelers like to utilize their tight ends, you just never know which one is going to have a big game (McDonald vs. James). Lastly, I’m not too excited about Watson, but with Drew Brees throwing him the ball he could also have nice games.

TOP DEFENSES TO STREAM

1. SEA Seahawks vs. Arizona Cardinals
2. Green Bay Packers vs. Buffalo Bills
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Chicago Bears

If you’re looking for a defense to grab from the waiver wire to plug in your lineup look no further! Arizona and Buffalo are very bad offensively, but their rookie QBs (Allen/Rosen) give them some hope. I’d feel better about playing them if I knew Peterman and Bradford were still the starters.

DUMP EM’

1. Robby Anderson - New York Jets
2. Pierre Garcon - San Francisco 49ers
3. Jamison Crowder - Washington Redskins
4. Mohamed Sanu - Atlanta Falcons
5. Dez Bryant - Free Agent

Last week I told you to go ahead and drop Jordy Nelson and then he went and had 173 yards receiving and a touchdown, so drop with caution. I like Crowder but he’s going on a BYE week and I think there are better options. Sanu isn’t bad, but Ridley is just way better. Also, if you are holding onto Dez hoping he signs somewhere soon it’s time to let go and drop him.

BTD’s WEEK THREE RECAP:

Standings:

1. Erik Briggs (3-0)
2. Marcus Russell (3-0)
3. Justin Sattelmaier (2-1)
4. Albert Lee (1-2)
5. John Severs (1-2)
6. Patrick Moen (1-2)
7. Joe Londergan (1-2)
8. Kyle Wilson (1-2)
9. Callie Cornilles (1-2)
10. Travis Johannes (1-2)

This week was shockingly close and most games were decided on Monday Night Football. Also, it’s crazy that only 30% of the league has winning records. Come back next week for more tips and analysis after week 4 is in the books.