It might be an easier column to write if I listed the weekly injuries and then signed off. This 2026 season has been brutal where injuries are concerned. I know I do not need to tell you or your fantasy lineup that, but it feels somewhat cathartic to write it down. You know the season has taken a strange but interesting turn when there are stories about Austin Ekeler reuniting with the Commanders and the Commanders are one of the teams not to be decimated by RB injuries. Make it make sense.
Week 3 players lost to injury: Baker Mayfield, De’Von Achane (done for the season), Breece Hall, Travis Etienne, Jonah Coleman (do not @ me about him being the Waiver Add of Week 3…he had enough FAAB spent on him to lower the national debt), Justin Jefferson, Jalen Coker, Mike Evans. Players we saw come back in Week 3: Sam Darnold, Zay Flowers, DJ Moore, Michael Pittman, Brock Bowers.
With those lists out of the way, we need to decide how we are going to handle these injuries. While trading is always an option, good luck finding a trade partner willing to help you at cost. Most trades this early in the season will probably see you trading a stud for two players to fill in while your injured players heal. I guess that leaves the waiver wire to come to your rescue. Let’s find some names that can help you triage your lineup heading into Week 4.
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WAIVERS:
ADD OF THE WEEK = Ollie Gordon – 3% rostered: This recommendation is much more about the position than it is the player. Is the player serviceable? Sure, he is. Is the player one that moved the needle in 2025 when handed an opportunity to start for the Dolphins? No, not really. At this point I suspect there are rosters without a basic starting RB corps, so Ollie Gordon it is. Miami does not throw the ball often, so I am comfortable recommending their next starting RB. Keep an eye on the health of Jaylen Wright – 2% rostered (foot, stinger) as the week moves forward. He might be the better addition here. Gordon had 17 carries with Achane out and Wright inactive.
QB: Geno Smith – 9% rostered: Through three weeks, Geno has been a legitimate starting fantasy QB. With the Baker Mayfield dislocated thumb, you can do worse than adding Geno who has a nice run of games on the schedule. He is currently averaging ~20 points per contest.
Honorable Mention/Cheaper Options:
Kirk Cousins – 14% rostered: Two games, nine touchdowns. Not bad for a guy brought in to mentor the Heisman winner. Seriously, what more could you ask for from a guy that is free on your waiver wire? Cousins’ schedule is tougher than Geno Smith’s, so he is listed below Geno in this column.
Sam Darnold – 37% rostered looked good with 4 TDs and has Jaxon Smith-Njigba, so he is in play to be an injury replacement QB. His schedule is tough which could mean additional passing opportunities. Sure, Lock tossed three TDs to Jaxon Smith-Njigba, but do not expect that each week. I think that is much more about JSN and the Arizona defense than it is about Drew Lock being a Top 10 fantasy QB.
Marcus Mariota – 3% just carved up the vaunted Seattle defense for three TDs while showing he still has some legs under him. Another replacement level QB with a decent upcoming schedule.
RB: Braelon Allen – 19% rostered: With Breece Hall ruled out near the end of Week 3, there is a decent change we see Allen as the RB1 for the Jets offense currently ranked in the top third of the league in rushing yards to start the season.
Honorable Mention/Cheaper Options:
Alvin Kamara – 11% rostered and Kendre Miller – 1% rostered are in a good offense and will see their touches increase with Etienne reported to miss time in Week 4 due to a hamstring injury sustained in Week 3. Trust when I say I do not like or trust either of these names, but they do play in a nice offense and have a friendly upcoming schedule. If you must fill a RB slot, then you must at least consider these names.
Emmett Johnson – 36% rostered: Deep stash only. Johnson is the one RB I would consider adding as a just in case insurance policy for the Chiefs. He is not a player you can start now but could return massive numbers should Kenneth Walker III miss time.
WR: Dontayvion Wicks – 50% rostered: The Eagles looked out of sorts on MNF. Wicks did not post great numbers. Nobody posted great numbers. I still like the player moving forward. I would not pay FAAB to acquire him at this point. Only add him for free in deeper formats.
Honorable Mention/Cheaper Options:
Rather than bore you with invented explicative comments about middling WRs, I will simply give you a list to consider. These are players that stepped in, possibly stepped up (a little) for their team in Week 3: Keon Coleman, Keenan Allen, Mack Hollins, Malik Washington, Tre Harris, Ryan Flournoy, Pat Bryant, Ted Hurst III, Cooper Kupp. As noted with other players in this column, these are all ‘in case of emergency, break glass’ players versus anyone you want to rely on long-term.
TE: Kenyon Sadiq – 19% may have just had his coming out party in Week 3. Not only did Sadiq drop 7-105-1 on the Lions, on the road, but he looked more like a pass catching option than he did an in-line blocking TE. With AD Mitchell injured, and Garrett Wilson seeing the most defensive attention, this might be the last week you can acquire Sadiq below his true value.
Darren Waller – 14% rostered: Two straight weeks of double-digit PPR points from Waller. We have to consider him at this point.
As mentioned above, it has only been one week, so if you lost, got blown out even, relax. It will be OK. There is no need to rush to drop any specific player.
Follow me @stiles08 on X and send questions comments at the bottom of this article. Make sure you jump around the Razzball site for all your fantasy football needs. We have a ton of free content to include our Slot Versus Wide tool additional articles from our crack team of writers.
-Stiles-
Mattay!!!!!!
Thanks, as always, for your great column. And sorry about the inuries for all of us.
Anyway, one of my leagues is a whacky guillotine with no bench spots. I might have the opportunity to grab Gordon for Doubs in my flex spot . . . does that make sense? Especially considering how Maye has looked?
Thankyasir!!!!
It absolutely makes sense. Doubs is not worth a roster slot. Gordon and possibly Jaylen Wright are much more valuable.
Would you trade away Mike Evans and Jardarian Price for Jameson Williams and Rhamondre? I have Gibbs out week 6 and that is a factor here in my thinking.
I would certainly consider it with the Evans rib injury and the lackluster performance by Price (and his fumbling). Jameson has not returned value but should do so in the future. He runs very hot and cold. I would prefer a nice floor option over him but can see acquiring him with Rhamondre who is still the lead back for NE.
Any idea why my football questions to you are always under review/moderation? Been on the site for years. Pepper Gray on baseball all the time
All questions that come into the site start in Word Press and must be “approved” to flow to the page for the writer to address.