The Desai Guys continue their Waiver Wire Fantasy Football coverage this week with injury updates and replacements.
Fantasy Football Updates: Week 4 Injuries And Waiver Wire Week 5
Javonte Williams, RB – Denver Broncos
- Williams left the game against the Raiders with an apparent knee injury
- Turns out to be a torn ACL and LCL in his right knee and will be done for the rest of the season
- Major loss for the Broncos offense and the team that’s sitting at 2-2 right now
- Melvin Gordon will take the lead in carries, but he’s also leading the league in fumbles with four (includes one that led to a Raiders touchdown last week)
- Mike Boone received more touches in the offense after Williams left the game 6-2, compared to Gordon
- If you want to look elsewhere for a waiver wire replacement there are some other good names to pick up
- Guys like Nyheim Hines, Raheem Mostert, Brian Robinson, and Kenneth Gainwell
Cordarrelle Patterson, RB – Atlanta Falcons
- Dealt with a knee injury all week and ultimately played in limited action against the Browns last week
- Was put on IR after the game and will miss at least four weeks
- Atlanta likes to run the ball. They’re ranked 4th in rushing attempts and 5th in rushing yards in the NFL so far
- Rookie Tyler Allgeier could finally break out in this offense with Patterson out
- Damien Williams is eligible to come off the IR next week and could become a factor as well
- Caleb Huntley also was used heavily in the red zone and could be a touchdown vulture
Jonathan Taylor, RB – Indianapolis Colts
- Taylor seemed to have suffered an ankle injury against the Tennessee Titans
- Seen in a walking boot during practice this week and might not play in the short week
- Taylor wants to play this week, but with the Colts playing on Thursday Night Football, it might be wise to hold him out till Week 6
- In case Taylor does sit, Nyheim Hines would be the Colts player to pick up on the waiver wire but he might be on rosters already in your league
- You can also look at a deeper option in Deon Jackson
- Jackson could get more carries compared to Hines getting more passing targets in the offense
Tua Tagovailoa, QB – Miami Dolphins
- Suffered a concussion against the Cincinnati Bengals and was removed from the game
- Will be kept out of Week 5 at least, but could be more
- This has been the topic most NFL fans have been talking about with the handling of Tua’s injury from Week 3 and then suffering another one in Week 4
- In Tua’s place, Teddy Bridgewater will start and shouldn’t be considered as an option to add to your roster
- Instead, look at waiver wire options like Jared Goff, Jameis Winston, Trevor Lawrence, and Jimmy Garoppolo
Treylon Burks, WR – Tennessee Titans
- Suffered an injury in the fourth quarter of the game against the Indianapolis Colts
- Was carted off the field and is expected to miss some time with turf toe
- This is a big blow for the Titans offense as they will miss Burks’ playmaking ability
- Robert Woods becomes a player to pick up off the waiver wire and so do Austin Hooper and Kyle Phillips
- If you’re looking for non-Titans options at the receiver position, you can pick up a few good names on this week’s waiver wire
- Players like Romeo Doubs, George Pickens, Jahan Dotson, Zay Jones, and Jarvis Landry
Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 5 Picks
Waiver Wire Quarterbacks
Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. BUF (ESPN Roster Percentage – 4%)
- You know I had to do it to ’em! My boy is in and it’s his time to shine
- Now I know what a lot of people are going to say, he threw three picks how could you possibly say that was a good game?
- First off Claypool probably should’ve had that catch and even if you disagree, it’s not like that was a god-awful throw
- The second pick was bad yeah
- The third pick was on a final game Hail Mary so that’s a wash
- Clearly, the offense is more rejuvenated in this offense and I think that will carry over to his support staff: Diontae Johnson, Najee Harris, and even Chase Claypool who’s been disappointing
- Plus look out for the George Pickens/ Pickett relationship to blossom now too
Jared Goff, Detroit Lions vs. NE (ESPN Roster Percentage – 44.1%)
- Justin Herbert, Kyler Murray, and Joe Burrow all have fewer fantasy points than Goff
- Through four weeks, Goff is ranked as the 5th ranked fantasy quarterback
- Increased his passing yardage every game this season so far and has 11 touchdowns to 3 interceptions
- This Lions offense is putting up points on the board and Goff is leading that effort
- Has a great match-up against the Patriots this week but is slowly becoming an every-week starter now
Waiver Wire Running Backs
Tyler Allgeier, Atlanta Falcons vs. TB (ESPN Roster Percentage – 16.8%)
- I talked earlier about Cordarrelle Patterson going on the IR now
- This opens the door for the 5th round rookie, Allgeier
- Allgeier has seen limited work so far, but he broke out last week against the Brown by going for 84 rushing yards on 10 attempts
- Averaging 5.35 yards per carry this season in limited action
- Allgeier should get a bulk of the carries in Patterson’s absence and should be picked up in all leagues
Brian Robinson, Washington Commanders vs. TEN (ESPN Roster Percentage – 37.4%)
- Ron Rivera said there’s a very good chance that he will play in Week 5 so he’s absolutely worth a stash on the bench in case he starts overtaking Antonio Gibson
- Gibson, while being a fine FLEX player, hasn’t gone over 50 yards since Week 1 and the Commanders could be looking for some kind of shakeup with the offense after losing three straight
- I’m not saying he’s worth a start, only if you’re reaaaallly hurting is that take justifiable, but this could be one of those pickups that look really wise come December
Waiver Wire Wide Receivers
Romeo Doubs, Green Bay Packers vs. NYG (ESPN Roster Percentage – 46.1%)
- 16 targets and 13+ performances over the past two games show me that Rodgers might’ve finally found his new guy
- Also worth noting that the Packers have not had a rookie WR with back-to-back games with a TD since Greg Jennings in 2006
- With this QB, his top option should always be considered a borderline FLEX play with real WR2 potential
Michael Gallup, Dallas Cowboys vs. LAR (ESPN Roster Percentage – 46.5%)
- Gallup saw his first action of the 2022 season in a game last week against the Commanders
- While Dallas isn’t exactly slinging the ball all over the field, having another weapon to pair with CeeDee Lamb is always welcome
- Dak Prescott is not available to play this week but is close to returning and that’s when the passing offense may see a rise
- With Prescott out, still good to get a jump on your league-mates and pick up Gallup off waiver wires one week early, instead of being one week late
Waiver Wire Tight Ends
Hayden Hurst, Cincinnati Bengals vs. BAL (ESPN Roster Percentage – 21.4%)
- Cincinnati is slowly getting this offense back on track to what we saw in 2021
- While Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase are certainly doing well, Hurst is slowly becoming the third option in the Bengals offense
- He finally found the endzone in Week 4 on Thursday night against the Dolphins
Gerald Everett, Los Angeles Chargers vs. CLE (ESPN Roster Percentage – 55.4%)
- People listen to us! We told you this all the way back in Week 1
- Everett is coming off a 14-point performance and yes a lot of it is touchdown dependent but it ALWAYS IS with this position, especially at this point in the season.
- He has 6 or more targets in 3 of 4 games and with Keenan Allen eventually coming back, I think this will actually open more of the field for him to succeed.
Waiver Wire Defenses/Special Teams
Miami Dolphins vs. NYJ (ESPN Roster Percentage – 39.1%)
- The Dolphins are surprisingly the 18th ranked defense but they are undoubtedly a talented defense still, they’ve just had a tough schedule to start the season.
- Sure, Bridgewater starting isn’t great news for them but I don’t think it will affect their value all that much.
- Zach Wilson is looking better but is still turnover prone
- I like them as a solid streaming option this week
Philadelphia Eagles vs. ARZ (ESPN Roster Percentage – 57.7%)
- Tied for the most turnovers forced (10) and lead the league in sacks (16)
- This Eagles defense is legit good and they have a very favorable schedule
- Cardinals, Cowboys, BYE, Steelers, Texans, Commanders in the next handful of weeks
Waiver Wire Kickers
Jason Sanders, Miami Dolphins vs. NYJ (ESPN Roster Percentage – 3.6%)
- No Tua means this offense might be limited, even against a team like the Jets
- Expect this offense to do well enough to get within field goal range, but lots of stalled drives are expected
Brett Maher, Dallas Cowboys vs. LAR (ESPN Roster Percentage – 4%)
Once again, listen to us people!
I called this all the way back on September 12th! A waiver wire must have.
He is now the third-ranked fantasy kicker and has scored 11+ points every week since Week 2
Even if Dak Prescott comes back this week, this should still be more than a solid bet especially if you’re still streaming kickers.
