Quarterbacks

Will Levis – (3.0% Owned)

How about that debut for Will Levis? Levis wasn’t expected to play much this season and was considered too raw of a prospect to produce this early. Not only did he show he is capable of playing at this level the former Kentucky standout was also poised and showed off his big arm. Levis finished the game with 4 passing touchdowns (3 of them went to DeAndre Hopkins) and more importantly zero turnovers. If you’re the Titans you have to play Levis the rest of the season to see if he can keep this up.

Running Backs

Zach Charbonnet – (36.1% Owned)

If you’re looking for a 2nd half breakout candidate, Zach Charbonnet may be that guy. Sure Charbonnet is still behind Kenneth Walker on the depth chart but he had his best output of the season on Sunday. He had 53 yards on just 5 carries good for 10.6 YPC and 11 receiving yards. Charbonnet is worth stashing and could end up paying off down the road.

Wide Receivers

Demario Douglas – (2.1% Owned)

Demario Douglas is set up for a big role in the Patriots offense with Kendrick Bourne now out for the season. Douglas led the New England offense with 7 targets on Sunday and that usage will only increase. Fellow wide receiver DeVante Parker also left the game with a concussion and his status this week could be in jeopardy. Douglas is an explosive receiver with upside that will also be used in the running game.

Tight Ends

Trey McBride – (14.4% Owned)

McBride exploded on Sunday for 20.5 fantasy points (Half PPR) and is the priority pickup this week. With Zach Ertz now on IR McBride will continue to get targets in the Cardinals offense. He had a massive 14 targets versus Baltimore and 10 receptions. Arizona also looks to be getting Kyler Murray back which should only help this offense going forward.

The post Week 9 Waiver Wire Pickups (2023) appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Rishi Patel

Welcome back to this NFL column where I will be giving my advice about which fantasy players you should pluck off your waiver wire each week during this NFL season. 

During each NFL season, there are usually sleepers that emerge who you should pick up off the waiver wire due to various reasons, such as better performances than expected, injuries, etc. It’s important to make good use of the waiver wire as players from here could sometimes be good depth and even a starter for your team in critical stretches. It’s hard to believe we are nearly at the midpoint of the season. Let’s look at some players you should consider for this week:

Kenneth Gainwell, RB, Philadelphia Eagles

Eagles RB starter Miles Sanders suffered a low-ankle sprain in Sunday’s loss to the Raiders and could be out for a couple of weeks as a result. This pushes 2021 fifth-round pick Kenneth Gainwell to the top of the depth chart for now. The 22-year-old hasn’t been all that effective in his rookie year but has shown spurts of brilliance. 

This includes a five receptions for 41 yards and a score performance on Sunday against Vegas and even posting 58 receiving yards earlier in the season. Gainwell will now see a lot more of the rushing workload and has receiving prowess, so he’s a solid addition. He will likely fight for carries with Boston Scott, but Gainwell has more upside. 

Michael Carter, RB, New York Jets

Look, the Jets are in shambles (as usual). Things got even worse on Sunday when rookie QB Zach Wilson went down with a PCL injury and now has to miss a few weeks. This means the Jets could lean more on their running game and that is where Carter comes in. The rookie has had modest numbers so far each week but he paces the Jets in rushing yards. 

He also has receiving abilities out of the backfield and just put up eight receptions for 67 yards on nine targets in Week 7. Though this is one of the worst offenses in the league, Carter’s dual-threat ability and expected larger role make him an intriguing addition. 

Byron Pringle, WR, Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs may be struggling this year overall, but their offense is still one of the most talented in the league. And despite having players like Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill, other guys have been stepping up this season too, like Byron Pringle. The 27-year-old has quietly put up at least three games with 55 yards this season. In Week 7, he posted five receptions for 73 yards on six targets. 

Pringle is the fourth-leading receiver on Kansas City and has been quite underrated thus far. He’s worth stashing for your team if you need depth.  

Kendrick Bourne, WR, New England Patriots

The Pats may not have a true WR1, but Bourne has certainly done enough to grab the attention of managers this season. The former 49er now has at least 58 yards in four of the past five games despite not seeing a huge number of targets. He had 96 yards in one of those contests. Bourne is showing consistency and decent production, meaning he’s a sneaky good stash right now. 

Rashod Bateman, WR, Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens have always been about the run but Lamar Jackson can make some nice throws (when he decides to). Baltimore has mostly relied on Mark Andrews and Marquise Brown but a third viable pass-catcher may have emerged in the rookie Bateman out of Minnesota. 

The 22-year-old suffered a groin injury back in August and didn’t make his NFL debut until Week 6 in the blowout win over the Chargers, where he posted 29 yards. He flashed a little more of his talent in Week 7 when he posted three receptions for 80 yards on six targets. Bateman has the potential to be the third-best receiving option behind Andrews and Brown, and he’s worth adding. 

C.J. Uzomah, TE, Cincinnati Bengals

Uzomah has been on fire in recent weeks and that continued on Sunday in a win over the arch-rival Ravens. He had three receptions for 91 yards and two scores. Overall, the 28-year-old has had five touchdowns in the last four games. One thing to note with Uzomah is his inconsistency. While he did post 91 and 95 yards in two of the past four games, he managed only 15 and 16 yards in the other two contests.

The TE is a risky option given his up and down weeks but he’s certainly worth taking a chance on if you need TE options. There is room for Uzomah to have a big game, as evidence of a few recent contests.

The post Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups For Week 8 appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Jeremy Trottier

The New England Patriots are currently seeming to trend upwards as a team after a very solid offseason and returns of players who opted out last season.  Signings like Hunter Henry, Jonnu Smith, Matt Judon, Jalen Mills, and others will help this team move forward and continue the success of an already strong franchise.  With that in mind, the wide receiver position for the Patriots is a relative unknown, and it is pretty hard to predict who will be their lead receiver.  In this article, I will be going over their three main options to lead the receiver group, as well as why they would each be viable options.

Nelson Agholor – #13

First up, we have one of the Patriots more interesting free agent acquisitions in Nelson Agholor, who had a pretty solid season last year.  The move from Philadelphia to Las Vegas clearly helped Nelson out, as he was able to perform at a pretty mid to high level compared to his previous years.  He put up the following statline last season:

• 16 games played (13 games started)
• 48 receptions in 82 targets (58.5% catch rate)
• 896 yards, 18.7 yards per reception, 8 touchdowns

One more worthy stat to note would be his yards per target, which was 10.9.  This is absolutely amazing from a receiver, as he averaged over a first down for every target he had, not every reception, every target.  Being able to get a first down on every time the ball is thrown your way (on average) shows his ability to make plays and get open to the point where he can benefit the passing game a ton.  This capability would help the Patriots a ton as his very high amount of yards per target would only go up with more receptions likely, which being WR1 would give him.

Jakobi Meyers – #16

The Patriots young receiver entering his third season this year was able to break out in 2020-2021, being given the reigns of sorts to the Patriots receiving room.  The NC state product had a relatively uneventful rookie season, however was able to take it up a notch in his sophomore season and prove he was ready to at the very least be a starter with Cam Newton at the helm.  Meyers put up the following:

• 14 games played (9 started)
• 59 receptions on 81 targets (72.8% catch rate)
• 729 yards, 12.4 yards per reception, 0 TDs, 9.0 yards per target

Something else to notice is that Meyers did not play every game, as he was inactive for two of them, and only started just one game over half the season, which makes this statline even more impressive.  You could justify nearly doubling this stat sheet (considering it will be a 17 game season, nearly double what he played last season) and get an idea of his starting production.  Overall his youth and capabilities with having really good hands and solid route trees would definitely make the WR1 position more complete.

Kendrick Bourne – #84

Finally, we have another free-agent addition in the former San Francisco 49ers receiver Kendrick Bourne.  Bourne has shown some flashes as a receiver and started 13 games in four seasons for SF.  His catch rate has pretty much consistently remained above 63% aside from his rookie year, and he has been a quality starter when placed there.  He is not an extremely flashy big-play receiver by any means, but he is reliable, and he makes plays when he needs to, which is something the Patriots desperately need.  

In 2020 he put up a decent stat line, which was comprised of:

• 15 games played (5 games started)
• 49 receptions on 74 targets (66.2% catch rate)
• 667 yards, 13.6 yards per reception, 2 touchdowns, 9.0 yards per target

I would not shoe Kendrick in for WR1 as of day one, no.  However, I think he has the potential to work into that role over time if Belichick can continue his development, as Bourne is still only 25 years of age, and has only played for four seasons.

The post Who will be the Patriots WR1? appeared first on Pro Football Mania.