Week 3 Waiver Wire (Fantasy Football)

Week 3 waivers are here! After another wild week of football, there are a lot of questions about who to target for your roster heading into Week 3. Below is a list of the players to target if you need a Week 3 pickup. Listen or watch today’s Week 3 Waivers episode of The Fantasy Footballers podcast for a full breakdown of these waiver adds, plus players to consider dropping!

Wide Receivers

It’s so nice seeing all of these names that have the opportunity for production so early in the season. It’s hard to boil these players down to just a few to target, but that is why you should listen to the Week 3 Waiver Wire podcast in addition to reading this piece.

Let’s start first and foremost with two deep threat options if you need a homerun player. These players are likely unavailable, but it doesn’t hurt to check. Arizona’s Rondale Moore is 51% rostered and has stepped into his role in the Cardinals’ offense in a big way. The Raiders WR Henry Ruggs is 60% rostered and he also came through for Las Vegas in Week 2. What stood out the most was his target share of seven looks from Derek Carr who is playing with renewed confidence this season.

Tim Patrick and Zach Pascal are two players who are both just over 30% rostered in Sleeper. Patrick didn’t see as many targets as we may like for consistency but he did find the end zone again in Week 2. Pascal is a speculative add at this point until we know more about QB Carson Wentz‘s status after Aaron Donald rolled him up like a burrito on Sunday and sprained both of Wentz’s ankles on the same play.

Finally, Minnesota’s K.J. Osborn, who was under the radar before the start of the season, has made himself a name in the Vikings’ offense. He has seen a combined 15 targets so far in 2021 with nine in Week 1 and six in Week 2. Cousins is looking his way often and Osborn is earning his trust with a 77% and 83.3% catch rate in the first two weeks respectively. He is only 9% rostered and he could be an option that provides your squad with a safe floor as well as a high ceiling.

Listen or watch today’s Week 3 Waivers episode to hear how The Fantasy Footballers are prioritizing these wideouts and who you can drop to pick them up!

Running Backs

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Team	Player	Roster %	Upcoming
HOU	Mark Ingram	62%	vs CAR @ BUF vs NE
DAL	Tony Pollard	61%	vs PHI vs CAR vs NYG
NE	James White	53%	vs NO vs TB @ HOU
PHI	Kenneth Gainwell	50%	@ DAL vs KC @ CAR
LAR	Sony Michel	49%	vs TB vs ARI @ SEA
WAS	JD McKissic	39%	@ BUF @ ATL vs NO
MIN	Alexander Mattison	39%	vs SEA vs CLE vs DET
NO	Tony Jones	34%	@ NE vs NYG @ WSH
ATL	Cordarrelle Patterson	15%	@ NYG vs WSH vs NYJ

Since we are only heading into Week 3 of the 2021 season, we still have some options for RB pickups on the waiver wire. Fair warning, this usually doesn’t last long. If you need RB help because of depth or injury issues, you may want to take advantage of these names sooner rather than later.

First and foremost, check to see if Tony Pollard of the Dallas Cowboys is available. He probably is not, but if he is… sprain that thumb smashing “Claim”. It’s very clear that Dallas is going to use both backs, at least for the foreseeable future, and Pollard has looked like the better, more explosive back so far. Ezekiel Elliott was also involved, but it’s Pollard who is getting the love between the 20s and even sometimes in the red zone.

A surprise player that I will admit that I dismissed completely until last week is Atlanta’s RB Cordarrelle Patterson. His rushing chops aren’t what make him a viable waiver option (he rushed seven times for only 11 yards although one was a touchdown), but it’s usage in the red zone and the passing game. QB Matt Ryan and the Falcons offense are struggling to put points on the board. Patterson saw six targets in Sunday’s game against the Buccaneers and turned that into five receptions for 58 yards and a receiving touchdown.

Another intriguing stat from that game was his yards per reception at 11.6 and his yards per target were just under ten. To have two touchdowns and see work in the passing game against one of the best defenses in the league is nothing to sneeze at. Patterson is only 15% rostered so if you need help at running back or want to add some depth, he is your guy.

Get the full breakdown and how much FAAB to spend on these RBs on today’s Week 3 Waivers episode.

Tight Ends

The arid landscape of the tight end landscape continues. I didn’t call it a dumpster fire since there are at least some options to take advantage of, but none of these players give me a ton of confidence.

New York Giants TE Evan Engram may or may not play in Week 3 after injuring himself in the final game of the preseason. I mention his name because he is only 34% rostered and is a stash opportunity for when he is healthy. The Giants play Atlanta, New Orleans, and Dallas over the next three weeks and Engram could be heavily involved in those matchups if he is healthy.

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However, if you want to be spicy… if you want to swing for the fences… if you want to throw caution to the wind (fantasy football is a game, after all), go for Cardinals TE Maxx Williams. Yes, I am serious. After seeing only one target in Week 1, Williams exploded last week against Minnesota with a 100% catch rate on seven targets for a whopping 94 yards. He did not find the end zone, but with numbers like that in between the 20s, I am not sure it matters. Don’t forget that he did this with DeAndre Hopkins, Rondale Moore, Christian Kirk, and Chase Edmonds on the field and seeing their giant share of targets as well.

The Cardinals offense looks more explosive than ever and doesn’t look like they will slow down anytime soon. They have two intriguing weeks coming up with Jacksonville and San Francisco, but I am not sure the matchups matter with QB Kyler Murray at the helm.

If the TE landscape is going to be gross, why not have fun with it?

If you’re doing the TE dumpster dive this week, listen/watch The Fantasy Footballers discuss these options on today’s Week 3 Waivers show.

Team DEF/ST

QB Streamers

Get the reasoning behind the QB Streamer picks from The Fantasy Footballers on the Week 3 Waivers episode! Good luck with your waiver claims!