Monday, September 17, 2018

2018 Fantasy Football RB Waiver-Wire Options Heading Into Week 3

Every week, we examine players that may be available on your league's waiver wire that could help your team in the short and/or long term.

For a player to be listed, he must be owned in 50 percent (or less) of Yahoo! leagues. The goal is to provide recommendations of players that have a greater chance of being available on your league's waiver wire. Of course, your league's size and settings could significantly impact whether these players (or better options) are available in your particular league(s).

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With that said, here are some running back waiver-wire options that I like heading into Week 3 (Yahoo! ownership in parenthesis):

[Note: Players listed below are sorted by my preference to add.]

1. Giovani Bernard, Cincinnati Bengals (27 percent)

Through the first two games, Joe Mixon had exactly 22 touches each week as he racked up 179 rushing yards and 57 receiving yards. A knee injury sustained in Thursday night's win over the Ravens required a cleanup knee procedure that will sideline Mixon for two to four weeks.

Bernard (12) has been a distant second for touches behind Mixon (44), but he has been productive when given more of an opportunity. Over a five-game stretch last December when Mixon missed two games, Bernard totalled 507 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns as he averaged 4.75 yards per carry and hauled in 24 receptions.

2. Austin Ekeler, Los Angeles Chargers (44 percent)

Of course, Melvin Gordon is the clear "1" in the team's 1-2 rushing attack, but Ekeler has been highly involved in both of the team's games so far. In Week 2, Ekeler had 11 carries for 77 yards and three catches for 21 more after racking up 126 YFS and a touchdown in Week 1.

Effective on a per-touch basis (7.3 YPC and 13.5 Y/R this year and 5.5/10.3 last year), Ekeler would be a legit RB1 type if MG3 were to miss time. Either way, he has a chance to produce flex value especially when we move into the bye weeks in a couple of weeks.

3. Javorius Allen, Baltimore Ravens (eight percent)

After two games of the 2018 season, Alex Collins and Allen both have exactly 20 touches and Kenneth Dixon (knee) has been placed on IR. While I'd still prefer Collins over Allen, Allen should be owned in all PPR formats.

The fourth-year back has scored a touchdown and caught exactly five passes in each of the team's first two games. In his first three seasons, Allen had at least 45 catches twice and it wouldn't be a surprise if he finished with 50-plus this season.

4. Corey Clement, Philadelphia Eagles (22 percent)

With Jay Ajayi (back) missing almost two quarters and Darren Sproles (hamstring) out in Week 2, Clement had six carries for 30 yards and a touchdown with five receptions for 55 yards. It's certainly possible that Clement's role expands during the season either way, but he would clearly benefit if either Ajayi or Sproles were to miss time at future points in the season.

5. Jordan Wilkins, Indianapolis Colts (31 percent)

Marlon Mack and Nyheim Hines are also considerations in this spot, but then again, maybe none of them should be as part of a committee backfield. Mack returned from his hamstring injury and had 10 carries and one reception for a total of 36 yards. It was Wilkins, however, that led the team's backfield in touches (12) and was the most effective (64 YFS) of the bunch. The return of Robert Turbin in a couple of weeks from a PED suspension could make this three-headed committee more complicated.

6. Chris Ivory, Buffalo Bills (five percent)

At the moment, there's still a chance that LeSean McCoy (ribs) could play against the Vikings on Sunday and ESPN's Adam Schefter tweets that McCoy "should not miss more than one game, if that." Even if he does, the matchup isn't great for McCoy (or Ivory). If McCoy doesn't play, however, Ivory gets a boost in workload -- although the matchup combined with the state of the Bills offense overall leaves lots to be desired for his Week 3 outlook either way.

- More Fantasy Football Waiver-Wire Advice Heading Into Week 3

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