Week 1 of the 2022 fantasy football season is nearly in the books! And it’s time to improve our rosters on the Week 2 waiver wire. Let’s take a look at the top Week 2 waiver wire pickups and targets that fantasy managers should consider adding to their rosters.
Note: All roster percentages are from Yahoo.
Top waiver wire pickups in Week 2 | Quarterbacks
Marcus Mariota, Atlanta Falcons (9% rostered)
Yet another lesson in the value of rushing. Marcus Mariota threw for just 215 yards and zero touchdowns. He still managed to get to nearly 20 fantasy points. Why? Rushing.
Mariota took off 12 times for 72 yards and a score. Given the Falcons’ less-than-stellar offense, I don’t foresee Mariota’s rushing slowing down anytime soon. Fantasy managers unimpressed by their quarterback situation can look to Mariota for a nice floor.
Top waiver wire pickups in Week 2 | Running backs
Rex Burkhead, Houston Texans (12% rostered)
Well, so much for Dameon Pierce being the starter. 32-year-old Rex Burkhead played 72% of the offensive snaps and touched the ball 19 times. Any running back getting that level of usage needs to be rostered.
Even more encouraging is Burkhead’s passing game usage. He saw a whopping eight targets in a game where the Texans never faced negative game script. Burkhead looks like a top-36 fantasy back.
Jaylen Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers (4% rostered)
Najee Harris hurt his leg or foot at the very end of regulation in the Steelers’ overtime win against the Bengals. The severity of Harris’ injury is currently unknown, but it’s reportedly “not a big deal.” Nevertheless, in the event there’s any chance Harris will miss time, Jaylen Warren is a must-add.
Warren played every snap at running back in overtime. Mike Tomlin typically uses one back heavily. The Steelers don’t exactly have a great offensive line or a great offense in general, but any running back likely to see 15 touches a game is worth rostering. Warren appears to be that guy. We will know more by Tuesday night when waiver claims are due.
Jeff Wilson, San Francisco 49ers (16% rostered)
We know how this story goes. Elijah Mitchell is the unquestioned starter, but when he’s out, Jeff Wilson is the unquestioned starter.
Mitchell took a hard hit to his knee and appeared to suffer an MCL sprain. That’s a 4-6 week injury. While Mitchell is out, it should be Wilson as the primary back. Every starting RB in the NFL should be rostered. Wilson may be an uninspiring talent, but he can produce RB2 numbers with volume in a run-heavy offense.
Top waiver wire pickups in Week 2 | Wide receivers
Robbie Anderson, Carolina Panthers (10% rostered)
D.J. Moore and Robbie Anderson played the exact same number of snaps and ran the exact same number of routes. Anderson actually out-targeted Moore 7 to 4. That won’t be the norm, but Anderson is the clear WR2 on this team.
The Panthers won’t always be able to get away with throwing under 30 times, but Anderson put up WR1 numbers this week. In higher volume games, Anderson could be a reliable starter. He’s a priority waiver wire pickup this week.
Corey Davis, New York Jets (6% rostered)
Elijah Moore was the clear WR1 for the Jets. The WR2 role is much closer between Corey Davis, Garrett Wilson, and Braxton Berrios. In Week 1, Davis was the leader in snaps and routes run. He also led the team in targets with nine.
The Jets aren’t going to attempt over 50 passes every week, but Davis is still a starting wide receiver in the NFL. He’s a proven producer and could be a WR4. Thus, he’s worth a speculative add.
Jahan Dotson (23% rostered) and Curtis Samuel, Washington Commanders (4% rostered)
Jahan Dotson played 68 snaps, and Curtis Samuel wasn’t too far behind with 55. The Commanders ran a ton of 11-personnel. Terry McLaurin is still the team’s WR1, but he only commanded three targets. Samuel actually led the team with 10, and Dotson saw five.
McLaurin will certainly be more involved going forward, but Week 1 proved there’s enough for multiple receivers to be valuable. We’ve seen Samuel be productive before, and Dotson is a first-round rookie. Both players are worth speculative adds.
Devin Duvernay, Baltimore Ravens (30% rostered)
I feel obligated to put Devin Duvernay on here, but I really think his Week 1 performance was a fluke. Duvernay barely played 50% of the snaps and commanded just four targets. He just happened to catch two of them for touchdowns.
Duverynay is here because I know he’s going to be on a number of waiver wire columns, but I wouldn’t advise picking him up.
Zay Jones, Jacksonville Jaguars (12% rostered)
The Jaguars ran a ton of 11-personnel on Sunday, with each of Christian Kirk, Marvin Jones, and Zay Jones commanding targets. Jones played the second-most snaps and tied Kirk with nine targets for the team high.
Zay caught six passes for 65 yards. That will work as a WR3/4 in fantasy. There’s probably someone on your bench worth swapping out for Zay Jones.
Kyle Philips, Tennessee Titans (1% rostered)
Kyle Philips led all Titans in targets with nine, receptions with six, and yards with 66. He also made the crucial catch to set up the Titans’ game-winning field-goal attempt that ultimately missed. Ryan Tannehill appears to trust him. Philips’ 29% target share was the highest amongst all rookie wide receivers. This early in the season, anyone being targeted at this rate is worth a pickup.
Top waiver wire pickups in Week 2 | Tight ends
Hayden Hurst, Cincinnati Bengals (10% rostered)
This needs to be taken with a grain of salt because Tee Higgins left in the first half due to a concussion, but Hayden Hurst saw eight targets on Sunday, catching five for 46 yards.
Odds are Hurst won’t be startable most weeks, but given the state of the tight end position, he may not be much worse than whatever back-end TE1 you were previously starting.
Logan Thomas, Washington Commanders (6% rostered)
It’s pretty impressive Logan Thomas is already back from his ACL and MCL tear. Thomas wasn’t back to his 90% snap share ways, but he played the majority of the snaps. It’s only a matter of time.
A fully healthy Thomas would’ve been drafted as a top-eight tight end. It’s possible he ends up as one by midseason. The time to grab Thomas is now.