WEEK 5: WAIVER WIRE
Every Tuesday, I will be bringing to light the best potential waiver wire additions across fantasy football. Let’s begin with some basic principles for each article and some of the qualifiers that will be used each week. First off, the minimum rostered percentage threshold that I will be using is 33.3%, so any player that is rostered in ESPN leagues above that percentage will not be written about (until near the end of the season when it gets harder to wade through the constantly thinning waiver wire.) Second, not all waiver wire additions are created equal and all are dependent on the roster you have. Each week I will be writing about players and the potential they bring to your fantasy roster, but I obviously don’t know who is on your team or what you may need in terms of roster construction. If I say a quarterback is the top waiver wire addition for the week, and you have Patrick Mahomes, that doesn’t mean you need to add that player to your team while dropping a potentially valuable player in order to do so. Third, I will frequently be using the abbreviation FAB, which refers to Free Agent Budget. This refers to the potential amount you might spend to acquire someone off the waiver wire if your league has that as a part of their system. Now, with all the rules and jargon out of the way, let’s get to it.
Damien Williams- Running Back, CHI
ESPN Roster Percentage- 10.2%
One more week of NFL games leads us to another week of leading the waiver wire article with injury reports. David Montgomery, starting running back for the Bears, left the team’s Week 4 game with a knee injury. As of Monday night, the only report we have on Montgomery’s status is that the team believes it isn’t a torn ACL, but they will need to run more tests to determine the extent of the injury. That doesn’t sound optimistic for the rest of his season, or at a minimum for his status in Week 5. Damien Williams replaced Montgomery and looked good, finishing with 8 carries for 55 yards and a TD, adding 2 receptions for 15 yards in the passing game. Williams will garner the majority of the touches in a decent matchup against the Raiders in Week 5, making him an instant flex candidate if Montgomery can't suit up. He is worth a decent FAB bid and is someone I would be willing to use my top waiver wire priority for.
Samaje Perine- Running Back, CIN
ESPN Roster Percentage- 1.5%
Again, we have another player worthy of discussion due to an injury. Joe Mixon suffered a foot injury against the Jaguars on Thursday night, but his injury status is slightly optimistic. Head Coach Zach Taylor spoke with the media Monday stating Mixon suffered a low-grade ankle sprain and is considered week-to-week. They haven’t immediately ruled Mixon out for Sunday, which leaves a little hope that he’ll be ready to take the field. Samaje Perine is the backup for Mixon and would be the running back I expect to carry the majority of the workload if Mixon is out. Perine has had little production this season, and there isn’t any indication of what will be expected of him. However, he’s a dart throw in deeper leagues and a necessary add if you roster Mixon. I don’t believe the Mixon injury is going to linger, so I would expect maybe 1-2 weeks of potential production from Perine. Because of that, I wouldn’t waste too much of my FAB budget or a top waiver wire priority in order to add him.
