Waiver Wire: Need a quarterback? Stanton may be your man

Author:
David Gonos
Publish date:
Nov 11, 2014

After two tough weeks of byes, only six teams have their breathers still ahead of them. The Cowboys, Jets, Jaguars and Ravens sit this week, and the Steelers and Panthers close out bye weeks in Week 12. Keep that in mind as you consider trades, since you don’t necessarily want a player who hasn’t had their bye week yet.

• Catch up on the action you may have missed during NFL's Week 10

Fantasy Fast Forward: Rodgers spectacular, Ryan merely mediocre

On the up side, there should be plenty of decent players who were used as bye replacements getting cut. In other words, check out the owner of Andrew Luck and see which quarterback he used in Week 10 -- because he’ll likely cut him. The same probably goes for the Tom Brady owner, and possibly the owners of Arian Foster and Alfred Morris.

The best teams in your league should be sharpening rosters for the playoffs. They’ll look ahead to find the best defenses for Weeks 14-16 (Titans, Redskins and Giants), and they’ll dump their backups at quarterback and tight end. While your Tuesday waiver wire is important, don’t forget about the in-week waivers for when good players get cut. If you don’t like any of the players below -- or they aren’t available in your league -- then consider not picking anyone up to have top priority on one of the rejected players.

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Each week, we’ll share 8-12 players we think are worth a look in standard fantasy football leagues based on performance and upcoming matchups. Each of these players listed are owned in fewer than 30 percent of leagues on CBS Sports, ESPN and Yahoo! leagues.

Since they are barely owned in more than 30 percent of CBS leagues, you won’t see these rising players on this list: Robert Griffin III, Anthony Dixon, Charles Sims, Alfred Blue, Carlos Hyde, John Brown, Cecil Shorts, Greg Jennings, Jared Cook and Caleb Sturgis.

Quarterbacks

Drew Stanton, Arizona Cardinals (Owned in one percent of CBSSports leagues, 0.2 percent of ESPN leagues and two percent of Yahoo! leagues) – The biggest injury news coming out of Week 10 is Carson’s Palmer’s torn ACL, which makes Stanton a fantasy consideration going forward. He steps into the starting position at a difficult time, as the Cardinals face the Lions -- the toughest defense against quarterbacks this season -- and the Seahawks in the next two weeks. If you’re desperate for a starter in Week 11, Teddy Bridgewater against the Bears makes more sense, considering quarterbacks score the most points in fantasy against that Bears defense.

• MMQB: Cardinals will manage to survive without their starting quarterback

Josh McCown, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (17 percent, 3.9 percent and 14 percent) – If you find yourself in dire need of a quarterback for one week, McCown’s not a bad option. He surpassed 300 yards against the Falcons, and in the next two weeks, he faces the Redskins defense (30th against quarterbacks) and the Bears defense, which allowed six passing touchdowns to Aaron Rodgers Sunday night.

Keeping an eye on: Minnesota’s Teddy Bridgewater.

Running Backs

C.J. Anderson, Denver Broncos(three percent, 3.5 percent and nine percent) – With Ronnie Hillman out with a mid-foot sprain for a few weeks, Anderson will get a chance to show his wares against Montee Ball, who's expected to return in Week 11. Last week, Anderson rushed 13 times for 90 yards (6.9 yards per carry) at Oakland, along with 73 receiving yards, including a 51-yard touchdown catch. What will Denver do going forward depends on who is healthy each week, but one thing is for certain -- whoever gets the most touches will be a great fantasy asset.

Same old Lions? Not under the steady Caldwell; more Week 10 Snaps

Theo Riddick, Detroit Lions(23 percent, 3.1 percent and six percent) – Suddenly, Riddick is part of a three-running back committee, and he’s already healthier than Reggie Bush, who tweaked his ankle again Sunday. Unfortunately, this might be more of a pickup for the future, since the Lions face a tough Cardinals defense in Week 11, and it’s still a three-headed backfield.

Isaiah Crowell, Cleveland Browns (30 percent, 23.6 percent and 15 percent) – Can you sense a theme here? All three of the running backs I’ve mentioned here (Anderson, Riddick and Crowell) are all part of a committee of some sort. But running back beggars can’t be choosers, and if you can grab someone like Crowell, who got a couple red-zone touches in Week 10, you do it -- especially if you have players on byes like DeMarco Murray, Justin Forsett and Denard Robinson.

Keeping an eye on: Dallas’ Joseph Randle.

Wide Receivers

Robert Woods, Buffalo Bills (12 percent, 1.9 percent and three percent) – With Sammy Watkins struggling with a groin injury, and the Bills’ backfield equally hobbled, Kyle Orton is turning to Woods for help. He was targeted eight times Sunday against the Chiefs, and while the Bills’ upcoming opponent (Miami) is strong against wide receivers, he should see a similar amount of targets this week.

Fact or Fiction: Michael Floyd still has higher fantasy value than John Brown

Jarvis Landry, Miami Dolphins(seven percent, 7.6 percent and 11 percent) – We’ve had him in our “Keeping an Eye On” section for a couple weeks, and the rookie has continued to shine – even against the Lions’ top-ranked pass defense in Week 10. Landry is second on the team in catches, receiving yards and he’s tied for second in receiving touchdowns.

Keeping an eye on: Seattle’s Jermaine Kearse and N.Y. Giants’ Preston Parker.

Tight End

Austin Seferian-Jenkins, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers(seven percent, 1.2 percent and two percent) – The only tight end with more than Seferian-Jenkins’ nine targets this past week was Jimmy Graham (13). The rookie has two touchdowns over the past three weeks, and the Buccaneers’ remaining schedule is favorable for tight ends. Their next three opponents have an average defensive rank against tight ends of just 26th.

Keeping an eye on: Minnesota’s Kyle Rudolph and Buffalo’s Chris Hogan.

Kicker

Kai Forbath, K, Washington Redskins (five percent, 0.7 percent and one percent) – The Redskins are coming off a bye week, and only the Bears are allowing more fantasy points to kickers (10.11) than Washington’s next opponent, the Buccaneers (9.78). Forbath is 10-for-10 on field goals in his past four games.

DST

San Diego Chargers(25 percent, 23.6 percent and 14 percent) – Don’t expect a rousing endorsement for this defense/special teams, but if you need a replacement for the Cowboys or Ravens (bye weeks), you’re likely choosing between the Chargers (vs. OAK) and Redskins (vs. TB). Over the next two weeks, though, the Chargers DST faces two of the worst offenses in the NFL in the Raiders and Rams.