Waiver Favors: 2017 Week 3 Fantasy Football Pickups

By Ha Kung Wong  Fantasy Football Pickups

Twitter: @FBGarbageTime

As I mentioned last week, I like nothing more than helping all of you make solid waiver pickups in your Fantasy Football league and have some part in your championship run.  That’s just the type of guy I am.  You’re welcome.  Again.

So let’s get on with it with fantasy football pickups for Week 3!

As usual, all pickups are available in at least 50% of Yahoo standard fantasy football leagues (with some minor exceptions) as of Sunday evening.

Duke Johnson Jr.

RB – Cleveland Browns – 52% Owned

Everyone was talking Isaiah Crowell in the preseason.  And I didn’t have any problem with that if you needed a low end RB3/Flex starter week to week.  But Duke Johnson showed us in Week 3 why we shouldn’t forget about him, as he caught 6 of 7 targets for 81 yards adding 21 rush yards and a TD.  He doesn’t get consistent carries, but the Browns look to be behind early and often, which means plenty of targets for Johnson in comeback mode.  I wouldn’t count on the TDs as he’s only had 4 TDs in 3 years. But Johnson’s 17 targets on the season are tied for the team lead, so feel free to pick him up in 14-team leagues and deeper and most PPR leagues.

Wendell Smallwood

RB – Philadelphia Eagles – 4% Owned

We’re going deep here as the Philadelphia Eagles backfield is not something I really want to invest in when it comes to my fantasy teams, but if you’re one of those who’ve had under-performing RBs, or need to take a shot at upgrading your FLEX position, perhaps you want to consider Wendell Smallwood.  After Darren Sproles went out due to injury, Smallwood stepped in and carried 12 times for 71 yards also catching one of two targets for 9 yards.  Unfortunately, Corey Clement and LaGarrette Blount were also involved, particularly in the redzone, so there’s no guarantee that Smallwood will have any week-to-week consistency, even if Sproles is out long term.  But if you’re looking for a deep FLEX or RB4 in 14-team or deeper leagues, he’s worth a stash.

UPDATE – Sproles has a broken arm and tore is ACL.  He’s out for the rest of the season.

Jared Cook

TE – Oakland Raiders – 40% Owned

He stepped up in big games in Green Bay, and he’s starting to settle in Oakland as well.  He’s looking like a consistent, if not low-upside, week-to-week TE totaling 13 catches for 124 total yards a TD through 3 games.  If you’re have trouble at TE, you could do worse than Cook as a TE2 in 12-team and deeper leagues.

Austin Seferian-Jenkins

TE – New York Jets – 4% Owned

Deep leagues is going to be a theme this week, so don’t get too excited.  But I do want to remind you of Austin Seferian-Jenkins, who was a 2nd round draft pick of the Buccaneers in 2014.  He’s never had a breakout season with the Bucs or the Jets, but he’s shown flashes, and coming off a 2 game suspension managed to catch 5 of 6 targets for 31 yards in Week 3.  Part of the reason he was so active immediately after becoming available is the fact that the Jets literally have no one else at TE.  Seferian-Jenkins looks to be the starter moving forward, and as was seen in the Jets Week 3 win, there’s at least a non-zero chance he remains productive going forward.  So if you need a TE2 flyer or a streaming option in 14-team or deeper league, feel free to give him a look.

Ryan Griffin

TE – Houston Texans – 1% Owned

And if you miss on Sefarian-Jenkins, perhaps I can interest you in one of the only healthy TEs remaining on the Texans’ roster?  After stepping in as the TE1 in Week 3, Griffin wasted no time snagging 5 of 6 targets for 61 yards and a TD.  Stephen Anderson is still there, but Deshaun Watson appeared to have confidence in Griffin, so again, if you still need that TE2 flyer or streaming option in 14-team or deeper leagues, give him a shot.

And here are previous pickups I’ve mentioned that are still worthy of your consideration:

10-Team Leagues or Deeper

None

12-Team Leagues or Deeper

Chris Carson, Tarik Cohen, Allen Hurns, Marqise Lee, Samaje Perine, Alex Smith, Chris Thompson

14-Team Leagues or Deeper

Javorius “Buck” Allen, Geronimo Allison, Jacoby Brissett, Charles Clay, Jared Goff, Kenny Golladay, Chris Johnson, Jermaine Kearse, Cooper Kupp, J.J. Nelson, Trevor Siemian, Deshaun Watson, Kerwynn Williams

16-Team Leagues or Deeper

Nelson Agholor, Jesse James, Ben Watson

Check back every week for more Waiver Favors! 

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