Week 2 Takeaways
WAIVER WIRE TARGETS
This week’s waiver wire targets are listed by position, in order of priority.
LB Christian Elliss, New England Patriots
Elliss made the list last week, though he’s worth highlighting again, as his lower Week 1 production likely led IDP managers to overlook him. Elliss once again played an every-down role and, this time, delivered high-end IDP production, making him worthy of rostering in most IDP formats.
LB Demetrius Knight Jr., Cincinnati Bengals
Knight’s increased playing time this season is a significant step up from last year (73%), and he can now be considered in a wider range of IDP formats.
LB Pete Werner, New Orleans Saints
Werner should be considered a speculative add in non-shallow formats in case his increased snap share was just a matchup-based result.
ED Lukas Van Ness, Green Bay Packers
Van Ness needed to step up this season after a quiet first three years in the league, with Micah Parsons out of the mix on this defensive line. He’s done just that through two games, and should at least be rostered as depth in non-shallow formats.
DT Deone Walker, Buffalo Bills
The first two weeks of the season have been very impressive so far for Walker, and with high-end pass-rush metrics and playing time to back up his strong play, he should be added in most DT-required formats.
ED Za’Darius Smith, Atlanta Falcons
Smith’s playing time increased this week with Samson Ebukam suffering an injury. Smith has been productive over two games on a very needy Falcons defensive line, and he could be worth rostering as depth if Ebukam misses time.
ED Princely Umanmielen, Carolina Panthers
With Pat Jones and Trevis Gipson both currently injured, Umanmielen has an opportunity to capitalize on his pass-rush upside while those two starters are out. He’ll be more of a deeper short-term option for now.
S Michael Taaffe, Miami Dolphins
Taaffe appears to be the first Miami safety to lock down a full-time role this season, as he played all snaps before garbage time and tied for the team lead in tackles. Taaffe had strong usage for IDP, and can be considered in non-shallow formats.
S Chuck Clark, Detroit Lions
With Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph on IR, and now Avonte Maddox done for the year, Clark is the lone full-time safety in Detroit, and saw decent deployment in Week 2. He can be added in deeper formats as a short-term fill-in until the starters return.
S Lathan Ransom, Carolina Panthers
Nick Scott suffered an injury this week, which pushed Ransom into a full-time starting role. He played mostly deep, so he’ll be more of an option for deeper formats as long as Scott is out.
S Jaden Hick, Kansas City Chiefs
It’s possible that Chamarri Conner returns soon, which would keep Hicks lower on the priority list. If not, Hicks’ usage was really strong for IDP production, and he could even be a spot starter if Conner misses another game.
S Hunter Wohler, Indianapolis Colts
Wohler should be considered a speculative add for deeper leagues as the team appeared to bench rookie A.J. Haulcy late in this week’s game. If that’s the case going forward, Wohler would be the ideal fit as the team’s strong safety and could be a productive option for as long as Haulcy is benched.
Be sure to check out last week’s IDP waiver targets listed in the report here.