It’s the season of the Trashmen, as undervalued players are tearing up the fantasy world, in large part due to injuries to other players. I’ll give you tips on who to pick up and which situations to monitor in this week’s fallout!

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Texans vs Bengals

 

• Deshaun Watson is raw, but he looks poised under center and isn’t afraid to take the ball and run. Just the threat of him doing so will keep defenses honest.

 

• Watson is going to lean heavily on Hopkins while he’s learning the position(13 targets on Thursday), so the veteran WR is a safe play in all but the absolute worse matchups. No other Texan pass catcher can be depended on for the foreseeable future.

 

• D’Onta Foreman is the Texans’ most explosive back, but he and Lamar Miller had almost identical YPC on Thursday night. Miller is still the guy, AND Foreman is worth a flex play in plus matchups.

 

• I don’t know that firing OC Ken Zampese and promoting Bill Lazor will do that much to improve the Bengals offense, unless Lazor has a magic balm for Dalton’s errant arm. If anything, some consistency at the RB position will stabilize things more.

 

• Green and Eifert make for nice buy lows though, even connected to Dalton’s jerky arm.

 

Bears vs Buccaneers

 

• Most members of RW nation are already Tarik Cohen owners, but if you haven’t gotten wise to him yet, you need to make sure he’s not available in your league. Jordan Howard was seen with a sling on his arm after the game and declined to talk to reporters about it.

 

• As I suspected, Kendall Wright led the Bears in targets(10) on Sunday. Things won’t come easy against Pittsburgh next week, but he’s a high floor flex in PPR formats.

 

• Jacquizz Rodgers is only owned in 62% of leagues, meaning that 38% of fantasy owners don’t need a starting RB in a good offense on their teams… at least for the next 2 weeks.

 

• O.J. Howard had the same number of targets as Cameron Brate(3). The rumor that Brate would be the obvious choice for much of the season is not playing out that way thus far. Howard needs to be owned in most formats.

 

Bills vs Panthers

 

• The Bills’ offense is completely impotent against imposing defenses. If they can only score 6 against Carolina, we might see negative points next week against the Broncos. At least it will be a home game. Hands off all Bills save for McCoy in that one.

 

• Zay Jones had more targets(6) than all Bills except for McCoy. He’s obviously unusable in week 3, but he should be held onto if you can manage it.

 

• Olsen is out for for the next 6-8 weeks with a broken foot. Ed Dickson is next up in Carolina, but Christian McCaffrey and Devin Funchess are the beneficiaries of the unfortunate loss.

 

Browns vs Ravens

• DeShone Kizer has a cannon for an arm, but he’s still figuring out how to control it. The Browns make a great target for streaming defenses against. They face Indy this week.

 

• Corey Coleman is out for the near future with a broken hand. Rashard Higgins is pretty much the only WR they have going right now and needs to be owned. Other players who gets boosts are Duke Johnson and either of the Browns TEs – I like Njoku for his red-zone presence.

 

• Buck Allen is the back to own in B-more, as he out snapped West 42 to 15. The only thing that saved West’s day was a TD, and you know how RW feels about TD dependent players…

 

• TE Ben Watson led the Ravens in targets, catches, and yards on Sunday(8, 8, 91). I’m talking to you Greg Olsen owners.

 

Cardinals vs Colts

 

• Chris Johnson outplayed Kerwynn Williams but still only managed 44 yards on 11 carries. This is a backfield to avoid for the near future, though I guess you can pick up Johnson if you’re hurting. It may not help. This is a rotating backfield.

 

• J.J. Nelson was the play for Arizona, hope you read the Garbage Grab, but Jaron Brown actually led the team in targets with a whopping 11. With the dreadful state the running game is in, I feel fine about throwing Brown and Nelson, along with Fitzgerald into your lineups in plus matchups.

 

• Jacoby Brissett threw the ball a ton in week 2, but it didn’t amount to much. He seems to have settled in on Jack Doyle as a safety blanket – 8 catches for 79 yards, making Doyle perhaps the only Colts pass catcher I’d consider rolling with in week 3.

 

Eagles vs Chiefs

 

• The Eagles have so many weapons to throw at these days that they’re perfectly content to abandon the run – Wentz was their leading rusher on Sunday with 55 yards. LaGarrette Blount played fewer snaps than Darren Sproles and Wendell Smallwood in this one. He’s droppable in shallow leagues.

 

• A week after bursting onto the scene, Nelson Agholor faded into obscurity with a 1 catch game on Sunday. It just goes to show that his usage will be game plan dependent, and he’ll be a boom or bust player on most days.

 

• That’s more like it. Alex Smith fell back to earth this week with a pedestrian 231 yard , 1 TD game. This is closer to what you can expect from him on a weekly basis. Hope you traded him while the going was great.

 

• I hope Hunt’s performance was a loud enough answer to those who were wondering if they should “sell high” on him after week 1. He’s going to do this all year folks.

 

Patriots vs Saints

 

• I guess it shows that you get set in your ways in your old age, as Brady still hasn’t come to rely on Brandin Cooks with any regularity. Arguably the 4th option in New England right now, it may be awhile before he comes into his own. The good news for him is that Hogan, Burkhead, and Phillip Dorsett all came out of the game with questionable tags.

 

• Ted Ginn just can’t take advantage of Willie Snead‘s absence. He’s getting targets, he just can’t do anything with them. I like Brandon Coleman more than him in week 3.

 

• A.P. and Mark Ingram split carries evenly, but Ingram is more involved in the passing game. With the early emergence of Alvin Kamara, A.P. is nothing more than a low floor flex right now.

 

Titans vs Jaguars

 

• Changes are a brewin’ in Tennessee. Murray is dealing with some nagging tightness in the hamstring, leaving Henry to handle the majority of carries in the backfield this week coming. Hammy injuries can linger in older players, so don’t be surprised if Henry takes the reins and holds onto them. Make sure he’s not on waivers if he’s somehow been dropped in your league. He’s your top waiver add if that’s the case.

 

• The fact that the Titans had the game well in hand from early on kept them from throwing the ball around. Things will be better for all their WRs this week.

 

• Both Allen Hurns and Marqise Lee need to be owned in most leagues. Bortles is going to lean heavily on both of them from here on out.

 

Vikings vs Steelers

 

• Case Keenum is pee-pee armed clipboard holder who needs to be wearing a baseball cap and a concerned look on his face. Sam Bradford is slated to return in week 3, and many fantasy futures depend on it. If he can’t go, either can your Minnesota skill players, except for Cook, and even he gets a downgrade.

 

• Now THIS is the Martavis Bryant I’ve come to know and love, 91 yards and a 1 TD on 3 receptions. He doesn’t need too many chances to make your fantasy day. He’s the definition of boom or bust, but don’t hesitate to fire him up in week 3 versus the Bears.

 

• Jesse James hurt his foot on the opening drive of the game, and it showed. Unless we’re sure he’s healthy this week, I’m looking for other options.

 

Dolphins vs Chargers

 

• Ajayi IS the Dolphins running game. Only one other RB got a single carry in this one. Ajayi does have an injury history though, so be a little wary if he continues to get close to 30 carries every week.

 

• Cutler did air it out as we suspected, but he loves Jarvis Landry(15 targets) as much or more than DeVante Parker(9). Landry has been undervalued in drafts, and he’s going to make folks pay in PPR. Cutler gets a juicy matchup against the Jets in week 3, for those of you streaming QBs.

 

• So I guess the Hunter Henry freakouts were premature. He got heavy usage in week 2 and is safe to play in week 3. He’s a great pickup in leagues he may have been dropped in, especially if you’re an Olsen owner.

 

Jets vs Raiders

 

• Forte is winning the battle of the backs in New York right now. I don’t know that that’s saying much, but up against a Miami defense that shut down the run against the Chargers, I can’t trust Powell… actually, I can’t trust any Jets back against them.

 

• Kearse had a nice 2 TD game against the Raiders, but he only had 5 targets on the day – which actually led the team. If there’s a silver lining of the Jets facing Miami this week, it’s that they’ll have to go to the air when they realize the run is futile. Kearse makes for an intriguing flex.

 

• Carr isn’t afraid to go away from Cooper if he doesn’t like the coverage. He’s perfectly content to go to Crabtree , as we can see from Sunday’s matchup. Cooper may get the Norman treatment this week against the ‘Skins, so don’t get your hopes up for a bounce back.

 

49ers vs Seahawks

 

• Hoyer couldn’t even manage to break 100 yards passing against the Seahawks, and still the 49ers had a shot to win the game on the back of Carlos Hyde. They are going to run him till the wheels come off. They have to.

 

• Just as I envisioned in the week 2 Garbage Grab, Chris Carson is the favored back in Seattle, even with Rawls on the field. He’s the 1B to Henry’s 1A for waiver pickups this week if he’s still available in your league.

 

• Jimmy Graham is questionable to play in week 3 with a knee injury. All Seahawks pass catchers are viable options in his absence. I’m avoiding him even if he does manage to play, as he won’t be 100%. You need a fully healthy Graham to get anything out of him.

 

Cowboys vs Broncos

 

• It’s nice to know that Dez can produce even in tough matchups, because they aren’t going to get much easier for awhile. Treat him like a WR2 with upside for the near future.

 

• Witten has been going gangbusters this season, but temper your expectations against a Cardinals team that is infamously tough against TEs. The fact that Jack Doyle had a good day against them gives me some hope.

 

• I’m treating C.J. Anderson like a RB1 until he proves me otherwise. He ran roughshod over a stout Cowboys front.

 

• Trevor Siemian is turning himself into a streaming option before our very eyes. He’s not flashy, but he’s startlingly consistent behind a good running game. I’m starting him in a pinch in week 3.

 

Rams vs Redskins

 

• True to form, Cousins continues his lull to start the season. Don’t expect much from him until week 5 at the earliest.

 

• Chris Thompson is Washington’s best back, until Perine gets his feet under him, and he needs to be owned in all formats.

 

• No fracture for Kelley, as some thought. He’ll be day to day going into week 3.

 

• Reed is also day to day with a bruised chest. At least it’s not his toe. He should be good to go this week.

 

• Todd Gurley looks like the best back in the league on a play by play basis. I think he’s back to 2015 form.

 

• Kupp led the Rams WRs in targets(6) and is a safe bet to do so again in a short week against the 49ers.

 

Packers vs Falcons

 

• Cobb is day to day, but we’re unsure about Nelson’s status as of yet. Adams gets a big boost this week, and Geronimo Allison will be worth a flex if either one of those guys can’t go.

 

• Bennett led all Packers in targets(11) in week 3, after Nelson and Cobb exited the game.

 

• It’s unsexy as hell, but Mohamed Sanu needs to be on rosters. He’s doing too much in the Falcons offense to be ignored in fantasy.