Waiver Wire and FAAB Advice: Week 5 (2020 Fantasy Football)
Joshua Kelley, Los Angeles Chargers (57% rostered; at Saints)
Austin Ekeler had a gruesome injury on Sunday against the Buccaneers and was seen using a crutches and knee brace to get around after the game. While the team is hopeful he may be able to return by the end of the season, I’m not so sure that will happen given the severity of the injury. Joshua Kelley will step into an immediate fringe RB1 role and should see 15-25 touches per game while Ekeler is out. Justin Herbert is giving life to this offense and Kelley, who was already seeing goal-line work, will have a solid floor of catches moving forward. Kelley is a high floor, high ceiling play the rest of the season. If he’s available I’d spend 50% - 65% of FAAB to land him as he could be a league-winner if Ekeler remains sidelined for the rest of the season.
Justin Jackson, Los Angeles Chargers (9% rostered; at Saints)
Justin Jackson is looking at change of pace and potentially third-down duties in the absence of Austin Ekeler and should be flex-worthy for the remainder while Ekeler is out. I see his role being similar to Nyheim Hines for the rest of the season. While he won’t have the highest ceiling, he will have a nice floor in the form of check-downs from Herbert and should see 5-10 touches per game while Ekeler is out. With potentially season-long value, I’d spend 15% of FAAB trying to land Justin Jackson.
D’Ernest Johnson, Cleveland Browns (0.4% rostered; versus Colts)
While Kareem Hunt is the obvious replacement for Nick Chubb and projects as an RB1 for the duration of Chubb’s time away from the team, D’Ernest Johnson will also be fantasy relevant for as long as Chubb is away from the team. Kareem Hunt isn’t exactly healthy at the moment as he’s dealing with a groin injury. D’Ernest Johnson actually out-touched Hunt after Chubb went down finishing with 13 rushing attempts for 95 yards to Hunt’s 11 attempts for 71 yards (Hunt did score two touchdowns). Given Chubb’s placement on IR and Hunt’s current injury predicament, I’d spend 25% of FAAB trying to land Johnson (up to 40% if you are the Chubb manager). And this recommendation isn’t solely based on volume; D’Ernest Johnson has some shimmy:
D'Ernest Johnson can move. pic.twitter.com/W6EHe6i7Ge
— The Fantasy Football Sackos (@TheFFSackos) October 6, 2020
Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals (25% rostered; at Ravens)
I cannot tell you how excited I am about Tee Higgins and his prospects for the rest of the season. All you managers who missed out on Justin Jefferson, Tee Higgins is your man. His slow takeover of the number two role behind Tyler Boyd has begun as his snap-shares have steadily increased since the beginning of the season. In Week 3, Higgins was second on the team in targets and first in snaps with 55. In Week 4, the Bengals were able to lean on the run more against the Jaguars as the team was ahead by two scores early in the second half. With an upcoming schedule of @BAL, @IND, and vs. CLE, I think it is safe to say that the Bengals will be in catch-up mode and not coasting to victory. It’s also worth mentioning that the Bengals have an appealing playoff schedule other than their Week 15 tilt against the Stleers (DAL, @PIT, @HOU). Get Higgins everywhere and look for his role to expand as the season moves on. I’d recommend spending 15-20% of FAAB to land Higgins.
Zach Pascal, Indianapolis Colts (2% rostered, at Browns)
I dropped T.Y. Hilton to pick up Zach Pascal. Pascal is playing a larger snap percentage than T.Y. (81% compared to 58% in Week 2, 93% compared to 52% in Week 3, and tied at 75% in Week 4) and Pascal led the team with 8 targets in Week 4. Parris Campbell is done for the year and Michael Pittman Jr. should be out until at least Week 8, securing continued usage for Pascal in the immediate future. With an appealing schedule ahead for the next few weeks (@CLE, CIN, and @DET), you could do a lot worse than putting Zach Pascal at your flex spot. The best part? You can get him for really cheap as he’s currently flying under the radar. I’d recommend only putting down 5% of FAAB to land Pascal.
Teddy Bridgewater, Carolina Panthers (9.8% rostered, at Falcons)
Through the first 4 weeks of the season, Teddy Bridgewater is completing the highest percentage of passes in his career (74%). The Carolina Panthers play the Falcons in 2 of their next 4 games. The Falcons are giving up the most fantasy points to the quarterback position in the league, averaging almost 33 points given up each week. Bridgewater will make a fine stand-in for anyone dealing with bye weeks or covid-related delays. The best part? You don’t need to spend much, if any, FAAB to land the guy. However, if you’re concerned he will be prioritized by someone else in your league dealing with QB issues, I’d wager 2-3% of FAAB to land him.
Dalton Schultz, Dallas Cowboys (32.6% rostered, vs. Giants)
Dalton Schultz is a league-winning calibert tight end. He had 4 receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown on 8 targets against the Browns in Week 4, and he has 28 targets through the first 4 weeks of the season. That’s more targets through 4 weeks than Mark Andrews (TE3), Noah Fant (TE4), and Tyler Higbee (TE7). On pace to finish the season with 110+ targets, I don’t see anything changing for Schultz any time soon and see him as a volume-based TE1 in one of the league’s most potent offenses. I’d recommend spending 30% FAAB, getting your guy, and not looking back. Save a horse ride a Cowboy.
