Waiver Wire Week 2: Top Pickups and Drops After Evaluating Week 1 Box Scores
Joe TanseySeptember 11, 2024Waiver Wire Week 2: Top Pickups and Drops After Evaluating Week 1 Box Scores0 of 2
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The first two significant injuries to happen in the 2024 NFL season caused a mad dash to the fantasy football waiver wire once Week 1 ended.
Christian McCaffrey’s surprise inactive status on Monday night caught plenty of fantasy football players off guard.
McCaffrey is dealing with a calf/Achilles injury that may keep him out of Week 2’s clash with the Minnesota Vikings.
Jordan Mason should be the most popular waiver-wire pickup ahead of Week 2 because of what he did inside the San Francisco 49ers offense against the New York Jets.
Puka Nacua is scheduled to miss at least four weeks with a knee issue that will alter the way fantasy football rosters are built.
McCaffrey and Nacua will be placed on injured reserve and not dropped in most leagues, but there are some players who underperformed in Week 1 who will get the boot from fantasy rosters.
Top Pickups1 of 2
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Jordan Mason, RB. San Francisco
Mason vaulted onto everyone’s fantasy football radar with a 147-yard performance out of San Francisco’s backfield on Monday.
He was likely added in some leagues on Monday night as a last-minute replacement for McCaffrey.
He should receive a massive upswing in roster percentage by the time Sunday rolls around.
Mason is the No. 1 waiver-wire pickup for Week 2 because there are doubts about whether McCaffrey will return on turf in Minnesota.
The 49ers may wait another week to activate McCaffrey so that the consensus No. 1 overall pick in fantasy football drafts is fully healthy when he returns.
Demarcus Robinson, WR, Los Angeles Rams
Demarcus Robinson is the direct replacement for Nacua inside the Los Angeles Rams offense.
Robinson finished Sunday with four catches on seven targets for 42 yards.
He should be a frequent target of Matthew Stafford in Sunday’s clash with the Arizona Cardinals.
Cooper Kupp will still lead the Rams in all receiving categories, but Robinson proved he could be a solid No. 2 option during the second half against the Detroit Lions.
Robinson is worth the pickup and start in a flex position to help make up for Nacua’s lost fantasy production.
Top Drops2 of 2
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Cole Kmet, TE, Chicago
Week 1 was not promising for Cole Kmet’s fantasy football outlook.
The Chicago Bears tight end only had one catch for four yards on a single target in Caleb Williams’ debut.
D.J. Moore, Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze combined for 23 targets from Williams; 29 pass attempts.
Kmet also played seven fewer snaps than Gerald Everett, who many thought would be a clear backup at tight end.
Even with Odunze dealing with an injury, Kmet’s production is not guaranteed, and that has made him expendable across fantasy football leagues.
Mike Williams, WR, New York Jets
Mike Williams was on a snap count on Monday night as he works back to 100 percent.
The limited time on the field plus Allen Lazard’s breakout game made him a fantasy football afterthought.
Lazard, who has a long-standing connection with Aaron Rodgers, led all receivers on Monday night with 89 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Lazard could turn into the reliable No. 2 next to Garrett Wilson inside the Jets offense, which would relegate Williams to the No. 3 spot on the depth chart.
Williams can still be productive in his first season with the Jets, but the big games may come too sporadically to be trusted at the fantasy football level.
