Publishing early this week! I got some time during lunch to work and since I'm flying from the west coast tomorrow, I will not have time to post before my travels.
While there are 2 decent matchups that could feature in the MOTW this week (1. Cho vs. 5. Mike, 2. Simon vs. 6. David K.), I decided to focus on the waiver wire transactions that occurred overnight and how they might impact the teams down the line.
Additionally, we'll look at how some teams are doing at this point in the season. We are 4 weeks in, which is only 25% of the NFL season but almost 33% of fantasy. At this point, usually the cream rises to the top and the crap sinks. But we've had some intriguing variance.
Waiver Wire
1. Will Fuller
Won by: David K.
Waiver used: 1
Disappointed teams: 5
Impact: In his first game back, Fuller looked like he was perfectly in sync with Watson, hooking up for 2 TDs. While his yardage totals were suppressed, he should get a steady stream of targets opposite Nuk. The only problem with this pickup is that David had more pressing needs. He already has Hogan, Crowder, Thielen crowding the WR3 spot so why did he pick up another one? Sure he can use it as trade bait, but should he have improved his QB position? You should never pass on great talent who will also have great opportunity, but we'll see if this move pans out for David in the end.
Grade: B+
2. Latavius Murray
Won by: Mike
Waiver used: 3
Disappointed teams: 6
Impact: Easily the most coveted back this week, Mike got a player that should get 20+ touches in a conservative offense that might still win games thanks to its solid defense. Mike is still trying to get over the loss of David Johnson and while Latavius is not in the same stratosphere when it comes to talent, the volume he will get should help soften the blow. It's a great pick up in terms of fit and outlook for the season.
Grade: A
3. DeShaun Watson
Won by: Simon
Waiver used: 3
Disappointed teams: 3
Impact: The only QB to be requested on the waiver wire, DeShaun Watson showed his ceiling last week when he accounted for 5 TDs. Simon had just lost his backup QB in Carr for at least 3 weeks, so the timing couldn't have been better. But with a dicey RB2 and WR3 position, should he have used his waiver on Lacy or Jones? With Tom Brady as a must-start every week, Simon may have just wasted his relatively high waiver position on a guy he'll use for 1 week.
Grade: B-
4. Jaron Brown
Won by: Cho
Waiver used: 3
Disappointed teams: 2
Impact: As the number one team in the league, Cho could have just sat back this week and moved up the waiver priority list. Instead, he nabbed the WR? on the Cardinals. The Cardinals have 3 WRs that serve as 1A, 1B, and 1C between the 2 Browns and Fitz. Throw in Nelson as a speedy deep threat and the situation is quite murky. While his team does need some WR depth, especially with a shaky Marvin Jones as his WR4, we'll see if Cho shouldn't have saved his waiver for a later date.
Grade: B-
5. Eddie Lacy
Won by: Biggie
Waiver used: 3
Disappointed teams: 3
Impact: If there is such thing as a steal on the waiver wire, this might have been it. With Carsons possibly out for a long period of time, Lacy has a chance to win back the job he lost. While Biggie has Fournette and Hyde entrenched in his RB spots, he will need another RB for their byes. Additionally, Hyde has been Jekyll at time with his injuries, so some insurance can't hurt.
Grade: A-
6. Thomas Rawls
Won by: Jon
Waiver used: 3
Disappointed teams: 1
Impact: The consolation prize to the Eddie Lacy sweepstakes, Jon needed to shore up his backfield after losing Dalvin Cook (pouring one out). Rawls did perform admirably in seasons past when Marshawn was not healthy but it seems like he's still behind in the pecking order in Seattle. While Jon will get the Muscle Hamster back after his 4 week suspension, he'll need a new RB2B/RB3 after Gillislee has been nothing but disappointing after his incredible debut. Now with 6 RBs on his roster, here's to hoping one of the lottery tickets works out.
Grade: B
7. Aaron Jones
Won by: Dan
Waiver used: 3
Disappointed teams: 1
Impact: A second steal, he only falls behind on the steal chart due to the fact that TyMont may not be out for a long period of time. However, in the few snaps he played against the Bears, he looked more springy and explosive than anyone else available in the Packers backfield (and for how bad the Bears have been, they've actually looked decent against the run in competitive game situations). We'll see how many weeks Dan can use him but this could help set him up for a winning streak, even as he loses Freeman for the bye.
Grade: B+
8. Alex Collins
Won by: Eric
Waiver used: 5
Disappointed teams: 0
Impact: While he didn't have to use his waiver to get him, it might have been a safe bet as he would have been the first FA to go. Apparently he's won the starting job in Baltimore. If he can just hold onto the ball, he might be able to breathe some life into that stagnant offense.
Grade: C+
The real loser: Paul
Paul put in claims on 6 of the guys listed above and didn't win a single one. Must be disappointing.
Time to take a look at what the standings should actually look like. Here is what they should be based on the points each team has scored (the difference from their real ranking, positive numbers mean they have gotten unlucky and negative numbers means they are lucky, larger number = larger luck/unluck):
1. Cho (0)
2. Simon (0)
3. David K. (+3)
4. Jung (-1)
5. Eric (+4)
6. Dan (+1)
7. Biggie (+1)
8. Jon (-4)
9. Paul (+1)
10. Mike (-5)
11. David Y. (0)
12. Alex (0)
While the people at the top and bottom deserve to be there, the people in the middle seem like they were just randomly ordered. Mike should be nowhere close to sniffing the playoffs and even Jon shouldn't have been undefeated up until last week (coincidentally losing to Mike). Eric has the most reason to gripe as he's been scored on at a rate that would equate to playing the 3rd best team in the league every week. David K. is not far behind in the complaint line as he should be fighting for a first round bye, not a playoff spot. There's a lot of football to be played but we'll see if these early season patterns hold to produce some wacky playoff seeding or if they correct themselves and the top 6 teams really deserve to be playing for the money.
Good luck to all!
Simon Kim
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