Waiver Wire Watch: Week 8

Oct 20, 2014

Editor’s Note: We’re happy to announce that 4for4 Contributor Pat Fitzmaurice (formerly of Pro Football Weekly) is back on the Waiver Wire Watch this year. He will continue to work in conjunction with Senior Editor John Paulsen to compile this list of the top pickups each week.

Here is a look at the top waiver wire pickups for Week 8. To be eligible for discussion, the player must be owned in 50% or fewer Yahoo leagues, though we’ll stretch the rules a bit for the RB position, which is usually very thin. We’ll also include suggested bid prices (with a $100 budget) for those leagues that use Free Agent Acquisition Budgets. Of course, player value depends on league characteristics and team needs. Players are listed by position in order of importance. For extremely shallow or extremely deep leagues, be sure to review our Rest-of-Season Rankings (updated every Tuesday) to get an idea of how to value players not on this list.

* Players with an asterisk next to their name were mentioned in last week’s Waiver Wire Watch.

Washington QB Robert Griffin III ($10)

RG3 is expected to begin practicing by midweek, and it’s possible (though not probable) he could start for Washington when they face the Cowboys in Dallas on Monday night. Griffin, who’s been out since dislocating his left ankle in Week 2, has seen his Q rating in the D.C. area rise in recent weeks, as fans have aborted previous hopes that Kirk Cousins might represent an upgrade at quarterback. Cousins was benched Sunday after committing a pair of first-half turnovers against Tennessee, and Washington managed to overcome a four-point halftime deficit and pull out a 19-17 victory with backup Colt McCoy running the offense. Owned in only 30% of Yahoo leagues, RG3 certainly isn’t without his blemishes, but his potential upside in an offense laden with pass-catching weaponry makes him the most attractive of the widely available quarterbacks. Realize, however, that RG3’s status for Week 8 could be in limbo all week, and with a Monday-night game, the team might not announce a starting quarterback before Sunday’s games begin. In other words, any fantasy owner in dire need of a starter for this week should probably pursue a different waiver-wire QB.

Next up: Cowboys, Vikings, BYE

Cardinals QB Carson Palmer* ($10)

Available in 58% of Yahoo leagues, Palmer has an attractive matchup this week against the Eagles, who have allowed 13 TD passes and are giving up 256.5 passing yards per game. Having put together solid back-to-back performances, Palmer seems to be over the nerve issue in his arm that sidelined him for three games – or at least it isn’t affecting him in any discernible way. He’s thrown for 503 yards and four TDs in the two games since he returned to the lineup. Palmer has had two TDs and at least 250 yards in each of his three starts this year.

Next up: Eagles, Cowboys, Rams

Buccaneers QB Mike Glennon* ($6)

There was a six-game stretch last season when Glennon never attempted more than 25 passes in a single game. In three starts this season, he’s averaging 39.3 passing attempts, owing largely to a weak Buccaneers defense that’s been forcing the Tampa Bay offense to keep the pedal to the metal. Glennon attempted 44 passes in his last game, a blowout loss to the Ravens in Week 6 in which he piled up 314 yards and two TDs worth of garbage stats. Glennon has been taking his shots downfield, too: He’s completed just 54.2% of his throws in his three starts, yet he’s averaging a healthy 7.33 yards per attempt. With a good pair of receivers in Vincent Jackson and Mike Evans, a defense that has the Bucs constantly playing from behind, and a very manageable schedule, is it a stretch to think that Glennon could be a top-15 or even (gulp) top-10 quarterback the rest of the way?

Next up: Vikings, Browns, Falcons