Doing your weekly waivers in fantasy football can be more stressful than performing life-saving surgery on a loved one without any professional tools or medical knowledge. While that might be a slight exaggeration, deciding which players to add off the waiver wire each week can be stressful.
Finding and adding the right guys in shallow leagues is simple, as there are plenty of appealing options, and the waiver wire is full of talent. Unfortunately, making your waiver wire claims in deeper leagues can be a massive pain in the neck.
However, I’m here to help by giving fantasy players five waiver wire targets they should add in deeper leagues in Week 3.
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Deep League Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Targets
All the players in this article are rostered in under 25% of ESPN leagues.
Spencer Rattler (QB – NO): 1.3% Rostered
While everyone expected the Saints to have an awful offense and be the laughing stock of the NFL, they have nearly won both games this season. More importantly, Rattler has had a significant role in New Orleans having a solid fantasy offense. Unfortunately, he only scored 11.5 fantasy points in Week 1 after not throwing a touchdown. However, the second-year pro was outstanding on Sunday against a talented San Francisco 49ers defense.
Rattler completed 73.5% of his pass attempts for 207 yards and three touchdowns, scoring 21.7 fantasy points, a career-high. He has also made plays with his legs, totaling 43 rushing yards on eight attempts in two games. New Orleans has some appealing fantasy matchups over the next month, facing the Seattle Seahawks, Buffalo Bills, New York Giants, and New England Patriots. Don’t be surprised if Rattler has a few top-12 finishes during that span.
Miles Sanders (RB – DAL): 3.3% Rostered
Dallas might have had the best value signing in free agency with Javonte Williams. Last week, he lucked into two rushing touchdowns but averaged only 3.6 yards per attempt. However, the veteran was significantly better in Week 2, totaling 24 touches for 130 scrimmage yards, a touchdown, and 25 PPR fantasy points. Yet, Sanders has had a role behind Williams, totaling seven touches for 19 scrimmage yards, a touchdown, and 9.9 fantasy points against the New York Giants.
Furthermore, the Cowboys have made Jaydon Blue a healthy scratch in both games this year, showing they trust the veteran duo over the rookie. Therefore, Sanders should continue to be Dallas’s No. 2 running back. The veteran has had at least 50 scrimmage yards or a touchdown in both games. Unfortunately, Williams has dealt with multiple significant injuries in his career. Sanders should be added as a handcuff with upside at the very least.
Romeo Doubs (WR – GB): 20.3% Rostered
Fantasy players must be patient with Matthew Golden. The rookie is Green Bay’s best wide receiver despite scoring only 5.1 PPR fantasy points over the first two weeks. He has been one or two plays away from significant fantasy production. However, Doubs is the best Packers wide receiver in the short term. Unfortunately, Jayden Reed suffered a fractured collarbone in the Week 2 win over the Washington Commanders, knocking him out of the lineup for several weeks.
The former Nevada star led Green Bay’s wide receivers in fantasy points last week, scoring 11.8. Furthermore, Doubs caught the first of Jordan Love’s two passing touchdowns on Thursday night. More importantly, the Packers have an excellent fantasy schedule over the next several weeks. Their next four opponents are the Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Cincinnati Bengals, and Arizona Cardinals. Expect Doubs to have an increased role on offense until Reed is back in the lineup.
DeAndre Hopkins (WR – BAL): 9.7% Rostered
Baltimore might have the best offense in the NFL. Last week, they ran for 238 yards against the Buffalo Bills, as Derrick Henry had 169 yards and averaged 9.4 yards per attempt. However, the Ravens’ rushing attack struggled on Sunday, as the superstar had only 23 rushing yards. Thankfully, Lamar Jackson had four passing touchdowns, including one to Hopkins. The former superstar wide receiver has been surprisingly good over the first two weeks of the season.
Hopkins had two receptions for 64 receiving yards and a touchdown against the AFC North division rivals. However, he nearly had two receiving touchdowns, getting ruled down just short of the goal line on his 41-yard deep ball reception. More importantly, the veteran wide receiver has replaced Mark Andrews as Jackson’s touchdown machine. He has two receiving touchdowns on four receptions over the first two weeks, while Andrews has zero on two receptions.
Elic Ayomanor (WR – TEN): 7.8% Rostered
Many fantasy players drafted Calvin Ridley as a WR2, expecting a bounce-back year from the veteran wide receiver with Cam Ward under center. While he has only seven receptions and 15.4 PPR fantasy points over the first two weeks, fantasy players shouldn’t panic on Ridley. However, Ayomanor has outproduced the veteran wide receiver. He has six receptions on 13 targets for 69 receiving yards and 18.9 fantasy points over the first two contests.
Furthermore, the former Stanford star has been Ward’s most trusted target. Ayomanor had four receptions on six targets for 56 receiving yards and 15.6 fantasy points on Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams. More importantly, he caught Ward’s only touchdown pass of the season after the rookie quarterback threw across his body to the opposite side in the end zone, trusting Ayomanor would come down with the score. Tennessee has some fantasy-friendly matchups coming up, starting in Week 3 against the Indianapolis Colts.
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Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.
