I’ve been married for seven years now, but we’ve been together much longer. Through our relationship, I’ll often turn to her, look deep into her eyes and say, “You know those dogs from Homeward Bound are dead now right?” I get the death stare every time, but readers of Wright on Waivers I have a secret to tell you. I sort of love Homeward Bound. I believe this is the second time I have referenced it in my short time here at Razzball. The scene I like most (spoilers) is when Shadow comes over the hill and sees Peter after their long time apart. It gets me all misty. I mean who does not love a story of someone finally making their way back home. Our lead name in this week’s waiver article is a lot like Shadow. He still has a few journeys and walks ahead of him. It is just nice to see him taking his final trips in a familiar place. Welcome home Cam.
My goal is to keep it simple with the waiver wire recommendations in terms of layout. I will include player, team, roster percentage, free agent acquisition budget (FAAB) dollar amount (in percentage) I would use on the player, and of course a little background on why the player is suggested. The players will be listed by position in order of priority. The threshold I work with is generally less than 50% rostered in leagues. I also want to provide you something quick and easy to pull up while making your waiver claims on Tuesday or Wednesday evenings. At the bottom of every article, you will find the “waiver cheat sheet.”
QUARTERBACKS
Cam Newton | Carolina Panthers
16% Rostered | 8% of FAAB
He’s back! The biggest news of Week Ten happened before the whistles even blew on Sunday morning. Former MVP Cam Newton is back with the Carolina Panthers after a season threatening (could be ending by the time of this posting) injured reserve designation for Sam Darnold. Newton could be just the spark the 5-5 Panthers need to propel them forward as the playoff race heats up. Newton’s presence was felt immediately on Sunday, in a game he did not even start, when he both ran and threw for touchdowns. It was all the points the Panthers would end up needing to defeat the now 8-2 Arizona Cardinals. This was Newton’s first regular season game of 2021 after being released by the Patriots in favor of rookie Mac Jones. Last season Newton started fifteen games for the Patriots where he finished as the sixteenth best quarterback in fantasy. I expect Newton to be an excellent Week Eleven fill in for anyone with Matthew Stafford, the only major quarterback of note on bye this week. The next three weeks for Cam and the Panthers should be good, but he does have a difficult playoff schedule with matchups against the Bills and Saints.
Jimmy Garoppolo | San Francisco 49ers
25% Rostered | 5% of FAAB
Trey Lance | San Francisco 49ers
17% Rostered | 2% of FAAB
One of my favorite rest of season schedules belongs to the San Francisco 49ers. In the next seven weeks, they only face one team ranking inside the top fifteen against opposing quarterbacks. Their playoff schedule is a variable feast with matchups against the Atlanta Falcons and Houston Texans. For now, the job seems to be in the grips of Jimmy Garoppolo, but if the 49ers sink further to the bottom of the NFC West, the 49ers could kick the tires on Lance so keep an eye there. Garoppolo had back-to-back weeks with over 300 passing yards and multiple touchdowns before his Week Ten victory over the Los Angeles Rams. I look for him to get the yardage back in Week Eleven against the Jacksonville Jaguars who have allowed over 300 passing yards in seven out of nine games this season.
Mac Jones | New England Patriots
28% Rostered | 5% of FAAB
My favorite one-week-only replacement for Week Eleven is Mac Jones. There were good and bad things to take from the Patriots blow out win against the Cleveland Browns. Jones only threw for 198 yards with no rushing yards. Not ideal in today’s fantasy landscape. However, Jones was highly efficient with his passes, throwing for three touchdowns and no interceptions. The identity of the Patriots has started to come into focus in the past few weeks with the fantastic supporting performances of Hunter Henry and Kendrick Bourne. A rookie quarterback playing this well needs to be rostered. The Patriots play the Falcons who just allowed Dak Prescott to throw 296 yards with three total touchdowns in only three quarters of work. Jones has a great floor for this week and is worth keeping on your bench to see what happens towards the fantasy playoffs.
RUNNING BACK-
AJ Dillon | Green Bay Packers
72% Rostered | 75% of FAAB
Now, AJ Dillion is way above the roster percentage of players I normally recommend, but it goes without saying he needs to be added. Things happen on bye weeks and players get dropped, go look at your waiver wire and see if he is there. This is a big if, but if he is there spend upwards of seventy-five percent of your FAAB or your number one waiver priority to secure him on your team. With Aaron Jones looking to miss the next few with a mild MCL sprain, Dillon is going to be getting a lot of work. Dillon had 128 total yards with two rushing touchdowns in Week Ten against the Seahawks. He has racked up double digit carries in four games this season and is averaging a respectable 4.34 yards per attempt. Dillion is also efficient in the passing game when given the work averaging 12.3 yards per reception. With Jones out, we will see Dillon close to twenty total touches each week.
Rhamondre Stevenson | New England Patriots
32% Rostered | 10% of FAAB
Last week I mentioned how much of a headache the Patriots backfield can be but said there was no denying how good Stevenson looked carrying the ball. Well, he looked even better this week with 114 total yards and two touchdowns. Stevenson had twenty-four total touches with Brandon Bolden contributing a total of six. The Patriots also tried getting some work to J.J. Taylor once they were up by two scores, but they quickly faded away from him when he was barely averaging two yards a carry. They only came back to him once the Patriots had a firm 38-7 lead. Damien Harris also did not practice on Monday leading up to the Thursday night game against Atlanta. Even if Harris returns, Stevenson has earned himself a role in this offense.
D’Onta Foreman | Tennessee Titans
4% Rostered | 10% of FAAB
Prior to Week Nine, D’Onta Foreman had not seen the field in 2021 which is not surprising figuring who he was playing behind. A Week Eight injury to star Derrick Henry left the Titans searching for identity in their running game. They went out and signed veteran superstar Adrian Peterson to the team and increased the workload for Jeremy McNichols in Week Nine. Neither performance was impressive, and it was D’Onta Foreman leading the backfield in rushing yards. In Week Ten the Titans gave even more work to Foreman and he looks to be the back to own in this committee. Foreman had seventy-eight total yards on thirteen total touches against one of the most-stingy run defenses in the NFL. The Titans host the Houston Texans next week, which is a good matchup and has the always fun “revenge game” narrative.
Wayne Gallman | Atlanta Falcons
1% Rostered | 6% of FAAB
News broke on Monday afternoon Cordarrelle Patterson could be missing the next couple of weeks with a sprained ankle. The Falcons looked terrible against the Cowboys, but it was Wayne Gallman who led the backfield in carries with fifteen to Mike Davis and Patterson’s four. All but two of Gallman’s carries came when the game was out of hand, but it is still an interesting note. I expect it to be a split backfield Thursday night against the Patriots. Davis is currently rostered in sixty-nine percent of leagues and would be worth an add over Gallman. Although, it is possible we saw a switch in the backfield on Sunday and the Falcons carries for the immediate future move in Gallman’s favor.
WIDE RECEIVER
Bryan Edwards | Las Vegas Raiders
18% Rostered | 10% of FAAB
After the departure of Henry Ruggs, I was anticipating Bryan Edwards to explode in the Las Vegas Raiders offense following their Week Eight bye. Then it did not happen. In week nine Edwards had four targets, no receptions. Just a flat-out dud of a performance against the New York Giants. In Week Ten however, Edwards did show up. Four targets once again, but with three receptions for eighty-eight yards and a touchdown. It is the kind of performance you come to expect out of a deep threat receiver. The Raiders remaining games feature some of the most vulnerable teams with allowing yardage to receivers including Cleveland, Dallas, and Washington. Look for Edwards to continue to see around five to six targets per game going forth.
Jamal Agnew | Jacksonville Jaguars
9% Rostered | 10% of FAAB
The Jacksonville Jaguars continue to find ways to get Jamal Agnew involved. This week it was his work in the running game keeping him on the fantasy radar. He had three carries for seventy-nine yards and a touchdown while catching none of his five targets. However, Agnew did see his season high in snap percentage with the Jaguars getting only one less snap than Laviska Shenault. The Jaguars look to be searching for some type of identity and while other players have either fallen short or succumb to injury, Agnew has been staying involved. For those in leagues who score return yardage, Agnew is a must-add.
Kendrick Bourne | New England Patriots
7% Rostered | 8% of FAAB
Kendrick Bourne is coming off his first over one hundred total yards performance of the year against the Cleveland Browns. This was the best performance from Bourne since his Week Three ninety-six-yard, one touchdown performance. Bourne plays the Falcons in Week Eleven and I love him to match his Week Ten performance against their abysmal secondary.
Robby Anderson | Carolina Panthers
39% Rostered | 7% of FAAB
Earlier we mentioned Cam Newton being a spark for the Carolina Panthers and the fire should extend to wide receiver Robby Anderson. Both players seem like they are on a mission to prove their critics wrong and regain some of their past glory. Anderson caught his third touchdown of the year from Cam at the beginning of the first quarter. Anderson’s season has been very disappointing considering where most managers were drafting him. It was just last season when Anderson led the team in both targets and receptions. Anderson is worth a speculative add if available with the possibility of getting back to his 2020 ways.
Darnell Mooney | Chicago Bears
44 % Rostered | 20% of FAAB
Sometimes players get dropped on their bye weeks to make room for speculative adds. I was a little surprised when I saw Darnell Mooney was only rostered in forty-four percent of leagues. Since Justin Fields took over as starting quarterback Mooney has led the team in targets, receiving yardage, and receiving touchdowns. Prior to the bye, Mooney hauled in three receptions for forty-one yards and a touchdown. However, it was by far Fields’ most encouraging game as a starter. Mooney and the Bears face the Ravens in Week Eleven and then a quick turnaround on Thanksgiving Day to take on the Lions. Mooney should be utilized in both those games.
Wide Receiver is always deep, so here are a few more players rostered in less than 25% I would recommend rostering on your bench:
Albert Wilson
Gabriel Davis
Marcus Johnson
TIGHT ENDS
Dan Arnold | Jacksonville Jaguars
26% Rostered | 10% of FAAB
While winning will never be a constant as long as Urban Meyer is the head coach of the Jaguars (Wow! Did “The Joey” just get spicy or what?!), one shining dependability has been the usage of Dan Arnold. Throwing out his first game in Jacksonville after arriving from Carolina, Arnold has averaged 10.7 PPR points per game. The current climate of tight ends makes Arnold a must-start until the production changes.
Tyler Conklin | Minnesota Vikings
30% Rostered | 8% of FAAB
After only catching one touchdown in nine games, Tyler Conklin went out and had himself a day with two touchdowns against the Chargers. The eleven receiving yards are concerning, but his targets remained around where they have been all season. With both Noah Fant and Tyler Higbee on bye this week, Conklin has a fantastic opportunity to help fantasy managers as a good plug-in-play option.
Gerald Everett | Seattle Seahawks
20 % Rostered | 7% of FAAB
Gerald Everett was the lone bright spot in an otherwise tragic day for the Seattle Seahawks. In the first shut out of quarterback Russell Wilson’s career, Everett caught all his eight targets for sixty-three yards. It is an encouraging day for a player many were using late round picks on in 2021 fantasy drafts just hoping for a breakout. I do not see Everett leading the team in targets every week, but his performance Sunday may be enough to move him to third option on Wilson’s list as the Seahawks host the Arizona Cardinals. Since J.J. Watt’s shoulder injury in Week Seven, the Arizona Cardinals have given up thirteen points a game to the tight end position.
DEFENSE & SPECIAL TEAMS
Carolina Panthers
29% Rostered | 3% of FAAB
The Carolina Panthers are currently 5-5 with a defense who have allowed opposing offenses no more than thirteen points in their last four matchups. In Week Eleven, they host the Washington Football Team who have struggled on the road this season. Washington’s last two matchups on the road against the Packers and Broncos found the Football Team unable to put up more than ten points. I am ranking the Panthers as a top five DST in Week Eleven.
San Francisco 49ers
45% Rostered | 2% of FAAB
Even though the 49ers will be traveling east to a one o’clock matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars, I still expect their defense to perform. The Jaguars have allowed four teams to put up over thirteen fantasy points against them this season and have given up the third most points per game.
