Early Week 3 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire

Here are some players you should consider grabbing off the waiver wire for Week 3.

Be on the lookout for a weekly full waiver-wire column from the SI Fantasy team. Every Sunday night, however, I will take an early look at a few options that could help you in the upcoming week or on a rest-of-season basis.

That means that a player like Terry McLaurin, who was on last week’s list, is ineligible due to our self-imposed ownership limits. Now owned in 51% of Yahoo! leagues, Washington’s rookie receiver had another productive week (5/62/1 on nine targets) and is worthy of an add if you’re in need of some wide receiver help.

With that said, here are a few waiver-wire options to consider heading into Week 3 (Yahoo! ownership in parenthesis):

Carlos Hyde, RB, Houston Texans (43% owned)

On the latest stop of his NFL tour, Hyde worked as the lead back in just his second game with the Houston Texans on Sunday. Shouldering the load with 20 carries against (one of) his former team(s), Hyde gained 90 rushing yards and now has at least 83 rushing yards in each of his first two games.

While I don’t expect such a large disparity in weekly workloads between Hyde and Duke Johnson, Johnson operated Sunday more as a change-of-pace back with just six carries (and no receptions). I wouldn’t bank on Hyde maintaining his early-season efficiency (5.76 YPC), but volume is king in fantasy football and the Deshaun Watson-led offense should be much more prolific in most weeks than they were today, which gives Hyde RB2 weekly upside going forward, especially in games where the Texans are favored.

Raheem Mostert, RB, San Francisco 49ers (16% owned)

We have seen that a Kyle Shanahan offense typically supports the viability of multiple fantasy running backs. Given the multi-week injuries to both Jerick McKinnon (knee) and Tevin Coleman (high-ankle sprain), Mostert and potentially even Jeff Wilson will have some fantasy value in Week 3 and possibly longer.

Scoring 30-plus points in back-to-back games, the 49ers ran the ball 42 times on Sunday and the trio of Matt Breida (12 carries), Mostert (13) and Wilson (10) all had double-digit carries in their 41-17 win over Cincinnati. Mostert led the backfield in touches, gaining 83 yards on 13 carries and adding three receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown as well.

DK Metcalf, WR, Seattle Seahawks (48% owned)

The rookie workout warrior has had productive outings for the Seahawks in back-to-back weeks to begin his NFL career. Against the Steelers on Sunday, Metcalf had three catches for 61 yards and scored his first NFL touchdown. In Week 1, he had four catches for 89 yards on six targets.

The Seahawks want to establish the run and that could lead to volatility of targets, but two of their next three matchups are against the Saints (Week 3) and Rams (Week 5)—two of the elite NFC teams, so Seattle may throw at a higher clip in an attempt to keep up with their high-powered offenses. In between those two games, Seattle’s Week 4 matchup should be a pace-up affair against a Cardinals team that will still be without suspended corner Patrick Peterson. After all, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens threw the ball 37 times against the Cardinals on Sunday.

DJ Chark Jr., WR, Jacksonville Jaguars (12% owned)

Before the season, I listed Chark as one of two sleepers in my AFC South Fantasy Football divisional preview. Even so, he has exceeded my expectations early on as he finished with seven catches for 55 yards and a touchdown on a team-high nine targets in Week 2.

Through the first two games of the season, Chark now has 11 catches for 201 yards and two scores. While I still prefer Dede Westbrook over both Chark and Chris Conley, it seems Chark and Conley have established a better rapport with rookie starting quarterback Gardner Minshew.

Demarcus Robinson, WR, Kansas City Chiefs (3% owned)

One week after Sammy Watkins racked up 198 yards and three touchdowns, it was Robinson’s turn to post video game-like numbers (6/172/2). With Tyreek Hill (clavicle) out for many more games, Kansas City’s most productive receiver not named Watkins may vary from week to week although Robinson ended last season with touchdowns in each of the final three regular-season games. At a minimum, the fourth-year receiver should be one of the team’s top-three receivers in terms of snaps played, and that alone makes him worth considering as a speculative add in deeper leagues.

Kevin Hanson joins SI for the 2019 season. His fantasy rankings have placed him in the Top 20 in each of the past two seasons among all the industry experts tracked by FantasyPros.com, and he has been in the Top 25 in six of the past eight years.