1. Rashard Mendenhall, Steelers - Whether or not Mendenhall can go this week against the Eagles (he is expected to be ready) is irrelevant. The Steelers are already done with their BYE week and you have the opportunity to get a back who should be the lead back for the Steelers within a couple of weeks. He is THE priority waiver wire claim for owners who need RB help.
2. James Jones, Packers - Believe it or not, Jones is still out there in some leagues and even if he's not and you are wondering about trading for him, the answer is yes. Jones is one of the more physical receivers in the game and if Aaron Rodgers is beginning to trust Jones more, he could end up having a huge year.
3. Jackie Battle, Chargers - Battle is going to eventually give way to Ryan Mathews as the lead ball carrier, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Battle won't continue to have good fantasy value. Right now, we see Battle in a similar role to Michael Bush in that he could end up with a decent amount of carries each week as well as a fair number of redzone carries.
4. Andre Roberts, Cardinals - Roberts has scored a TD in 3 of his first 4 games and is coming off of a very strong 6 catch, 118 yards, 2 TD performance against the Dolphins. Kevin Kolb appears more than comfortable with Roberts and it is time that you became comfortable with him as well.
5. Brandon Bolden, Patriots - I understand that by claiming Bolden owners are, in essence, at the mercy of Bill Belichick and his flighty usage of RBs, but if Bolden becomes his "cause celebre'", then he could end up having a huge impact on your team. He's worth the gamble. Worse case scenario is that he becomes a mid level backup who you can slide into the starting lineup during a BYE week massacre on your roster.
6. Greg Olsen, Panthers - Olsen has had 6 catches or more in 3 of his 4 games this year and Cam Newton clearly considers him a much more valuable and viable target this year. While he has only 1 TD to Scott Chandler's 4 in Buffalo, I still think Olsen offers the better long-term value in PPR leagues.
7. Jerome Simpson, Vikings - Since we're assuming that all of you took our advice in our Week 3 Waiver Wire Wonders column and picked up Brian Hartline, we won't have to mention him here. We will, however, tell you to add Simpson as he came right out of the gate with 4 catches and looks like the perfect vertical compliment to the Vikings offense.
8. LeGarrette Blount - Bucs - We know that many of you are desperate for RB help and Blount is a desperation add. Blount isn't going to overtake Doug Martin in terms of carries per game, but at least it looks like Tampa could be looking to rely on Blount to handle the work near the end zone.
9. Ryan Tannehill, Dolphins - Tannehill and Brian Hartline's bromance was in full bloom last week as the two shared pass-and-catch after pass-and-catch against the Cardinals. The Dolphins will likely be playing catch-up in most games which means the improving Tannehill will get plenty of chances to fling the ball around. He's not a starter, but worth consideration when you have a QB on BYE.
10. Minnesota Vikings Defense - The Vikings defense is averaging 3 sacks per game, and have 2 D/ST touchdowns this season. While their single interception isn't as high as you would like, they are keeping opposing offenses in check and have fairly soft matchups in 4 of their next 5 games including this week against the Titans.
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The NFL believes the Read/Option is here to stay |
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Updated 2014 NFL Calendar (January-May) |
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Updated 2013 NFL Calendar (June-December) |
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Curious Fits: NFC West |
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Running Backs as Blockers |