As fantasy football continues to get underway entering Week 3 of the season, winning teams and losing teams are looking to the waiver wire to find potential contributors to their lineups. There are a few new names added to the list of top waiver wire claims entering the third week of the season in addition to some names that likely should have been added earlier but might still be available. Using ESPN’s percentage ownership and half-point PPR scoring, here are the top waiver wire targets in Week 3: Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The only thing close to matching FitzMagic’s play on the field through two weeks has been his wardrobe. Still available in 68.6 percent of leagues, expect his ownership to skyrocket after posting his second consecutive game with at least 400 passing yards and four touchdowns. He takes on a Pittsburgh Steelers defense that has been gashed twice to open the season. Hop on the train while you still can. Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals: It’s understandable to have pause when considering starting the Red Rifle, but he’s been a solid fantasy quarterback through two weeks. Coming off a four-touchdown outing against the Ravens, Dalton doesn’t have the easiest matchup, but he could be a decent start in a pinch. He’s available in 81.8 percent of leagues. Blake Bortles, Jacksonville Jaguars: Coming off a game in which he bested the Patriots defense, Bortles should be considered a startable fantasy quarterback. He seems to have a surprisingly solid rushing floor to open the season and takes on a Titans defense that shouldn’t scare the Jags offense He’s available in 89.9 percent of leagues.<doc-sep>QB: Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Weeks 1 & 2: 819 Yards, 8 TD, 1 INT, 72.3 PTS, QB1 Availability: 68.3 % The Fitzmagic is for real. After taking down two of the top four teams from the NFC in 2017, the Buccaneers hot start is no fluke. The Harvard alumnus in the pocket has thrown for 400+ yards and four touchdowns in each of the first two games. Ryan Fitzpatrick has elevated the entire aerial attack by building a rapport with deep-threat DeSean Jackson, as well as incorporating O.J. Howard into the mix. QB: Blake Bortles, Jacksonville Jaguars Week 2: 377 Yards, 4 TD, 1 INT, 32.6 PTS Availability: 89.8 % After taking down New England and Tom Brady, Blake Bortles is turning quite a few heads. A standout performance in Week 2 despite the absence of star bell-cow Leonard Fournette due to a hamstring injury required the veteran signal caller to target his young second-year receivers in Dede Westbrook and Keelan Cole. Jacksonville’s defense is already a household name, but if the other side can get going, watch out. RB: Corey Clement, Philadelphia Eagles Week 2: 30 Rushing Yards, 1 Rushing TD, 5 Receptions, 55 Receiving Yards, 19.5 PTS Availability: 77.4 % One of my favorite sleepers going into the new campaign finally took charge on Sunday afternoon despite a disappointing overall team performance. With the absence of veteran third-down back Darren Sproles, Corey Clement finished with 19.5 PTS in PPR scoring after reaching the end zone. He needs to be rostered in all leagues. WR: Keelan Cole, Jacksonville Jaguars Week 2: 7 Receptions, 116 Yards, 1 TD, 24.6 PTS Availability: 51.5 % Another one of my favorite names from the end of last season, Keelan Cole put up what should remain as the catch of the year in the Jaguars’ drubbing of Bill Belichick’s brainchild in Florida on Sunday afternoon. Although both Cole and Dede Westbrook had excellent showings, Cole is the receiver you want for the foreseeable future. WR: Tyler Boyd, Cincinnati Bengals Week 2: 6 Receptions, 91 Yards, 1 TD, 21.1 PTS Availability: 98.8 % Tyler Boyd finally came alive on Thursday Night Football in the shadow of A.J. Green’s monster three-TD outing. Boyd showed the flashes of being a second option that Andy Dalton hasn’t had since Mohamed Sanu. Definitely keep an eye on Boyd to see if he continues his stellar play into the third week of the season. WR: Calvin Ridley, Atlanta Falcons Week 2: 4 Receptions, 64 Yards, 1 TD, 16.7 PTS Availability: 63% With all of the question marks regarding Steve Sarkisian’s red-zone offense to begin the season, take note of rookie wide-out Calvin Ridley. The former member of the Alabama Crimson Tide was regarded as the best receiver in the 2018 draft class. With the injury to Devonta Freeman and Julio Jones’ issues with the end zone, Ridley could emerge as a weekly flex option with upside through the roof. WR: John Brown, Baltimore Ravens Weeks 1 & 2: 7 Receptions, 136 Yards, 2 TD, 32.7 PTS, WR23 Availability: 75.9 % John Brown has been the best player on the field for the Baltimore Ravens statistically through the first two weeks of the season. The speedster from Div. II Pittsburgh St. by way of the Arizona Cardinals has been nothing short of extraordinary for John Harbaugh in a crucial year for the Baltimore Ravens. Let it be known that the two secondaries he’s faced in Buffalo and in Cincinnati aren’t what I’d consider the cream of the crop, but he needs to be on your bench if he hasn’t already been scooped up. A match-up with the 2-0 Denver Broncos this week should prove to be a great opportunity to see if Brown torches poor defensive backs, or if the newly signed deep threat is for real. TE: O.J. Howard, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Week 2: 3 Receptions, 96 Yards, 1 TD, 18.6 PTS Availability: 78.4 % Man, have I been impressed of what I’ve seen out of the second-year tight end out of Tuscaloosa. O.J. Howard, despite a low target share, has been absolutely sensational. If Cameron Brate continues to put up duds week after week, Howard will finish as a top-7 TE.<doc-sep>We saw plenty of gaudy offensive performances this week that inflated fantasy point totals all across the board. Ryan Fitzpatrick and Patrick Mahomes continued making their very early-season MVP cases, while Matt Breida and Phillip Lindsay both staked their claim for a larger piece of their backfield’s pie. Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen proved that Minnesota can once again support two WR1s and no more questions linger about Travis Kelce‘s production with Kansas City’s new prolific quarterback. It wasn’t all fireworks and excitement, though. We witnessed Joe Mixon, LeSean McCoy, and Larry Fitzgerald suffer injuries this past week. Are the “next men up” in Cincinnati, Buffalo, and Arizona worth your attention? Also, which lesser-owned players made their argument for more touches or snaps during Week 2’s offensive explosion? Our featured experts share their thoughts on their favorite waiver pickups below and rank each widely unowned player with fantasy appeal as we head into Week 3. View your league’s top available players with My Playbook >> Featured Experts: Mike Tagliere – FantasyPros Bobby Sylvester – FantasyPros Jacob Gibbs – SportsLine Dan Harris – FantasyPros Jody Smith – FantasyPros *Ownership % derived from a consensus of Yahoo & ESPN leagues On a mobile device? Click here for rankings table >> Q1. How much are you willing to spend (FAAB %) on your favorite waiver wire target (or two) and why do you like him? Giovani Bernard (RB – CIN) “Bernard is what we save FAAB and the top waiver priority for. He may not be a starter the rest of the season, but three or four weeks of a workhorse is a rare opportunity. We saw Bernard in this role over a four-game stretch last year, and he finished as a top-10 fantasy running back in that time ahead of Alvin Kamara, Leonard Fournette, and Christian McCaffrey. I’d spend just shy of 30% of my FAAB to acquire a strong RB2 for the next few weeks.” – Bobby Sylvester (FantasyPros) “If there’s an injury at the running back position, you’ll immediately look to his backup for production, especially if they’ve shown the ability to produce in the NFL. Giovani Bernard has shown that ability before, and there’s little competition on the roster for touches, outside of rookie Mark Walton, who is still very raw in his development. With Mixon being out two-to-four weeks, Bernard is someone worth spending 20 percent of your FAAB on.” – Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros) “I’d be willing to spend up to 35-40% of my FAAB on Giovani Bernard. His splits as Cincy’s sole RB are high-end RB2 type numbers, especially in PPR formats. You get a starting RB for 2-4 weeks, with the upside for more if there are any complications with Mixon’s knee.” – Jacob Gibbs (SportsLine) John Brown (WR – BAL) “Undoubtedly, Bernard will be a popular, and likely expensive commodity, but Brown has scored in back-to-back games to open the season and probably has more season-long value than Bernard, who will be relegated to a reduced role once Mixon returns in two-to-four weeks. Brown has a healthy 13 targets through two games and has been used downfield and in the red zone. He’s got WR3/flex value for the rest of the season and can be a sneaky under-the-radar add while others scramble for running backs. I’d spend up to 10-12 percent of my FAAB on him.” – Jody Smith (FantasyPros) Chris Godwin (WR – TB) “This isn’t a huge waiver wire week in my opinion, so I’d doubt I’d spend much more than 5% of my budget on anyone. That money, however, would be spent on Godwin, who is the clear top add for me off the waiver wire. He not only had a touchdown in both games, but he has caught eight of his 10 targets, showing an efficiency rate that suggests that he can do a lot even without a high volume of targets. DeSean Jackson’s presence limits his upside a bit, but with a home game on tap against a mediocre Steelers defense, he’s in play as a streamer for this week at least.” – Dan Harris (FantasyPros) Q2. For owners renting a D/ST in Week 3, what readily available option (under 40%) should they target and why? “It’s the Browns, who will be playing at home against the Jets on Thursday night. If you’d told someone that the Browns would play against Ben Roethlisberger and Drew Brees to start the year, but allowed just 42 points in the two games combined, what would you have said? They were crazy? With a young and upcoming defense, they were able to sack those two quarterbacks a combined 10 times in two games. Meanwhile, the Jets have allowed five sacks, three interceptions, two fumble recoveries, and one defensive touchdown through two games. Their left tackle Kelvin Beachum is going to have his hands full with Myles Garrett on primetime football.” – Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros) “The Cleveland Browns have executed failure to begin the season as well as any professional sports team, but the defense has been impressive. We know they’ve got the pieces, and when you throw in a matchup versus a young rookie QB who had interception issues even in college, I’ll buy the Browns D/ST all day as a top streamer for Week 3.” – Bobby Sylvester (FantasyPros) “This is a gross week for streaming D/STs. I’d roll with Cleveland as home favorites against a rookie QB and hope Darnold throws a few picks.” – Jacob Gibbs (SportsLine) “The Browns have been a surprisingly effective D/ST unit thus far this season, but I’d target the other D/ST in Thursday’s game — the Jets. They dominated the Lions in Week 1, but they put up a surprisingly effective performance against the Dolphins, sacking Ryan Tannehill four times and recovering two fumbles. The Browns have allowed 10 sacks through two games already, and the Jets should be able to press him consistently. It’s a bit of a contrarian play, but I expect them to be a fine streaming option this week.” – Dan Harris (FantasyPros)<doc-sep>You can cheat death and you can hide for years without paying taxes, but you can never finish a fantasy football season without a key player getting injured. That’s why it’s always smart to be a bystander for waiver wire pickups. Whether you’re looking for a replacement for an injured starter or aiming to boost your roster after going 0-2 in the first two weeks, the waiver wire is always your friend. With that said, here are the 10 names who can help you in the coming weeks. 10. Tyler Boyd – Cincinnati Bengals WR (1.1% owned in ESPN) For the first time since 2015, Andy Dalton and the Bengals started the season 2-0 when they took down the Baltimore Ravens back in Week 2, 34-23. And for the nth time since 2017, wide receiver John Ross has let Cincy down, as the second-year wide receiver caught just one pass on four targets for eight yards in the Baltimore game. That poor performance by Ross, together with Tyler Boyd’s strong showing against the Ravens, both point to the latter’s increased role in Cincy’s passing attack. Against Baltimore, Boyd led the team with six receptions and tied A.J. Green for most targets with nine. He finished the game with a team-high 91 receiving yards and a touchdown. This season began with Ross expected as the Bengals’ WR2, but him being out-snapped and outperformed by Boyd in each of the last two games are clear signs that Dalton has found a new favorite downfield target when Green is covered. 9. Chris Ivory – Buffalo Bills RB (3.2% owned in ESPN) Chris Ivory, who scored the Bills’ first touchdown of the season when he rumbled into the end zone in last week’s 31-20 loss at the hands of the Los Angeles Chargers, should see a slight uptick in ownership with starting running back LeSean McCoy sustaining cracked rib cartilage. While McCoy is reportedly going to try to brave through the injury against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 3, he is currently deemed as questionable. That’s enough reason to scoop Ivory up from the waiver wire, as he could be Buffalo’s starter in case McCoy gets ruled out. Ivory faces some competition from teammate and fellow backup Marcus Murphy, who earned more snaps and touches than him against the Chargers, though, Ivory seems to be the Buffalo’s running back of choice during goal-line situations sans McCoy. 8. Antonio Callaway – Cleveland Browns WR (3.7% owned in ESPN) Even before the Browns’ decision to rid themselves of Josh Gordon by trading him to the New England Patriots, Antonio Callaway enjoyed the luxury of not having the problematic wide receiver around. When Gordon didn’t suit up in Cleveland’s Week 2 game against the New Orleans Saints, Callaway saw his snap count jump from 15 in Week 1 to 50, and he made sure not to waste the opportunity to shine by leading the team with 81 receiving yards to go with a touchdown to even the score in the final minutes. Even more encouraging for Callaway’s prospect of an increased role is the fact that he had more snaps in the Saints game than Rashard Higgins, meaning that he can be viewed as the No. 2 wide receiver in Cleveland behind Jarvis Landry. 7. Dede Westbrook – Jacksonville Jaguars WR (9.7% owned in ESPN) Dede Westbrook broke out with a huge 61-yard touchdown reception in last week’s 31-20 win over the Pats at home, but more than his big-play potential, it’s his enhanced role in the Jags’ passing attack that is exciting fantasy owners currently raiding the waiver wire. Westbrook had 20 more snaps in Week 2 than in Week 1 and finished the New England tilt with 83 receiving yards on four catches and five targets. Keelan Cole also saw his role expand and Donte Moncrief is still a legitimate option downfield, but again, Westbrook’s penchant for turning touches into huge plays make him an enticing addition. Up next for Westbrook and the Jacksonville is the Tennessee Titans’ defense that is giving up the second-most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers so far this season. 6. Javorius Allen – Baltimore Ravens RB (18.8% owned in ESPN) Alex Collins owners were probably cursing Javorius Allen a lot for eating touches that could have been Collins’ instead, but there’s a way for them to learn to love the fourth-year pass-catching tailback: by adding him to their fantasy rosters. Allen, in fact, has been in more snaps this season than Collins, though, the nature of the team’s first two games have had a considerable effect on the timeshare. In Week 1, the Ravens annihilated Buffalo in a 44-point win. In Week 2, Baltimore needed to air it out more as they trailed the Bengals the entire game, which necessitated the Ravens’ frequent use of Allen and his ability to catch passes out of the backfield. That aside, it was also surprising to see Allen take the goal-line duty over Collins when he scored on a one-yard run against Cincinnati in the second quarter. It’s still early in the season, but the trend is in favor of Allen in terms of Baltimore’s backfield preference. 5. John Brown — Baltimore Ravens WR (24.0% owned in ESPN) Another Raven that should be lighting up the blinking on the fantasy radars is John Brown, who put together solid back-to-back outings to begin the 2018 season. The 28-year-old wide receiver topped the Ravens with 92 yards with a touchdown on four catches and 10 targets – tied for most on the team with WR1 Michael Crabtree – in Week 2’s loss to the Bengals. Brown’s also been a big-play threat, making a 44-yard reception versus Buffalo in the opener and a 92-yarder a week after. Browns is an early draft steal candidate of the season. Owned in fewer than 30 percent of ESPN leagues, there’s a big possibility that the former third-round pick is still available in your group’s waiver wire. 4. Ryan Fitzpatrick – Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB (31.4% owned in ESPN) It’s Ryan Fitzpatrick’s world, and we’re all just renting in it.<doc-sep>
Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, owned in 23% of Yahoo leagues Ride the hot hand again until it turns super cold. Fitzy is on fire as he passed for four touchdowns and over 400 yards on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles mind you! This week he gets the Steelers defense that is giving up the sixth-most points to quarterbacks. Fitzy is your man, never forget that. Andy Dalton, owned in 27% of Yahoo leagues Here’s another guy who lit up a good defense, the Ravens, but Dalton shredded them for four touchdowns and 265 yards. He gets a tough Carolina Panthers defense this week but that Carolina secondary can be thrown on. A.J. Green is back which means so is the “Red Rifle”. Running Back Corey Clement, owned in 22% of Yahoo leagues Clement is another hot hand to ride for week three, he was a holdover from last week and scored 17 points against the Buccaneers. With Carson Wentz back in the fold, he may even see more targets, plus he’s good for one touchdown a game. Austin Ekeler, owned in 44% of Yahoo leagues He’s been a lifesaver for folks dealing with guys like Mark Ingram on suspension. Go pick him up while you still can as he’s outperformed projections in each of the last two weeks. Ekeler also has a very favorable matchup with a Rams team that’s giving up the ninth-most points to running backs. Wide Receiver Geronimo Allison, owned in 31% of Yahoo leagues He’s outperformed his projections in the last two weeks as well which is a product of being in an Aaron Rodgers offense. Allison caught all six targets in week two against a great Vikings secondary. This week, it’ll be tough again with the Redskins, on the road no less, but he’s got the best quarterback in football. Give him a chance. Phillip Dorsett, owned in 24% of Yahoo leagues The Patriots had a tough beatdown at the hands of the Jaguars but this week they should be happy to know they play the Lions. Bill Belichick loves to battle his proteges and he’ll get to face off with Matt Patricia. The Lions have struggled to contain or stop anything and have given up the ninth most points to receivers. Dorsett has the speed to really hurt the back end of Detroit’s defense. Tight End Charles Clay, owned in 22% of Yahoo leagues When facing a great defense like the Vikings, just take what they give you. One area that has been trouble for the Vikings defense is dealing with tight ends. Clay is a good bet this week against a Viking defense that gives up the eighth-most points to the position. Jesse James, owned in 10% of Yahoo leagues He has outperformed his projections in each of the last two weeks and gets a divisional matchup with the Ravens. Though the Ravens are middle of the pack in terms of covering tight ends, James catches everything thrown his way and will score you a touchdown on average. That’s more than you can say with most tight ends. Defense Dallas Cowboys, owned in 14% of Yahoo leagues Give the home team a shot because their defense is legit. Though they barely outplayed the projections in week one, they bounced back in a big way on Sunday Night Football against the Giants. They had six sacks, allowed only 13 points, and recovered a fumble. Guess what? They get the Seahawks up next with a banged up offensive line and receiving corps. Kicker Graham Gano, owned in 19% of Yahoo leagues Are you like most NFL teams and need a kicker? Gano is your guy with a matchup against the Bengals, who give up the third-most points to kickers.