Fantasy Football Waiver Wire: Pickups for Week 4

Well, the dam finally burst in Week 3. Outside of some consequential quarterback and tight end injuries, we hadn't seen the serious rash of players missing time until Sunday. I tried to be exhaustive with this list to open the week, but each position starts with a player who probably needs to be rostered in close to 100 percent of leagues.

Just a reminder that we'll update this article daily with a handful of new fantasy football waiver-wire pickups. As the injury report continues to get updated throughout the week there will always be more players who emerge who will certainly make a difference, but especially early in the season, just a practical understanding of certain data points, and especially the volume, can also make a critical difference. 

Looking to upgrade your roster? Check out our trade analyzer and stay in the know with breaking news that drives every deal.

For the audio and video component of the article, I also went through a fully developed list on the RotoWire YouTube channel that you can view below.

Must Roster (Empty FAAB, Waiver Priority)

Trey Benson, Cardinals - Well, the inevitable happened. Sunday's gruesome ankle injury was confirmed to be of the season-ending variety for James Conner. Benson had been one of my most rostered players specifically because Conner has struggled to stay healthy all year throughout his career, but this was an incredibly unfortunate injury regardless. The second-year Cardinals back was already emerging as a key piece surprisingly in the passing game, and now should be set to take on the lion's share of the overall workload in the backfield. Emari Demercado should also be in consideration in deeper formats if only because I imagine he'll spell Benson in some pass-catching situations, but Benson becomes the first must-add waiver wire pick of the season in any format.

Cam Skattebo, Giants - Skattebo is already rostered in 75 percent of Yahoo leagues, but after Tyrone Tracy suffered an apparent shoulder injury in the Sunday night loss to the Chiefs, the rookie is now primed for a massive role. I expect Devin Singletary to mix in as well for however long Tracy is out, but Skattebo had quietly seemed to cement himself on top of the Giants depth chart the week prior and seems poised to be a PPR darling should he absorb the majority of the workload as expected.

Quarterback

Brock Purdy, 49ers - This is a reminder to anyone who was unable to stash him on rosters that the highly paid quarterback should be poised to make his return after a two-game absence due to an AC joint sprain on his non-throwing shoulder. Purdy is rostered already in 82 percent of leagues, so it probably doesn't matter, but with Mac Jones (knee) also banged up, I don't think the 49ers can afford to wait for their starter to be completely healed. This is also one of the best streaming matchups against a porous Jaguars defense this week. FAAB: 7 percent if you need a long-term starter

Geno Smith, Raiders - I wouldn't advise actually watching this one, but Smith has put together two fantasy QB1 performances through three weeks and faces a Chicago defense that is susceptible to the pass. As we saw against the Commanders, even in a blowout Smith can generate plenty of junk-time points and should be in a key spot to do so again Week 4. FAAB: 3 percent if you need a streamer

Matthew Stafford, Rams - This should quietly be a fascinating Week 4 game against the Colts. While Indy's defense has played well, this should easily be its toughest test against Stafford. And the veteran has played fine enough, averaging close to top-15 QB fantasy performances through the first three weeks. I don't think the Rams will play at enough of a pace to guarantee Stafford is an obvious streaming candidate, but if the Colts continue to pile on points, they might not have a choice. FAAB: 2 percent if you need a streamer

Running Back

Zach Charbonnet, Seahawks - I nearly added Charbonnet (foot) to "Must Roster" list, but this will serve as a reminder similar to Brock Purdy to check if some desperate manager was unable to stash him. Kenneth Walker is healthy, but once Charbonnet returns I expect the backfield to get back to the near 50/50 split we saw in the first few weeks. FAAB: 25 percent if available provided it's not a turf toe injury

Chris Rodriguez, Commanders - We unfortunately didn't learn much about how this backfield will split with Austin Ekeler (Achilles) done for the season as the game was effectively out of hand midway through the third quarter. Rodriguez played as many snaps as Jacory Croskey-Merritt and saw more total touches, but that could have simply been due to the blowout nature of the game. Hopefully, we'll learn more in a potentially competitive game against the Falcons next week. FAAB: 0 percent of budget

Jeremy McNichols, Commanders - In deeper leagues, I think it's outright fine to play McNichols if you're in a pinch. The pass-catching back scored a long rushing touchdown on a comically bad effort from the Raiders defense, but the veteran played 14 snaps compared to Jacory Croskey-Merritt (21) and Chris Rodriguez (21). More favorable game scripts I think will benefit McNichols, and possibly as soon as this week, but the health of Jayden Daniels (knee) also needs to be factored into the equation. FAAB: 0 percent of budget

Hassan Haskins, Chargers - As of Monday, I expect Haskins to fill in for Najee Harris after the veteran tore his Achilles in the win over the Broncos. Kimani Vidal will be a factor too frustratingly and at this point it's unclear how the Chargers are going to spell rookie Omarion Hampton throughout the season. I'd be truly surprised if Los Angeles doesn't trade for a complement to Hampton in the coming weeks given this team has legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. For now, Haskins probably is in position to vulture a touchdown or two. FAAB: 0 percent of budget

Zavier Scott, Vikings - Another game that probably doesn't mean much, the Vikings defense obliterated Jake Browning and the Bengals allowing Scott to compile eight carries on 16 offensive snaps. Cam Akers was predictably elevated from the practice squad and probably will be used more once he gets a bit more conditioning, but I have to hope fantasy managers have better options than this backfield. FAAB: 0 percent of budget

Wide Receiver

Tre Tucker, Raiders - This feels like the quintessential phrase "don't chase points" from the previous week. Please just watch his highlights from Week 3. Does that look like a wide receiver that was schemed work, or that he elevated to a different role? I liked Dont'e Thornton coming into the year and it seems clear Tucker has at least usurped him in that capacity, but I just don't think anyone should aggressively add him after totaling 11 targets in the previous two games. FAAB: 0 percent of budget

Elic Ayomanor, Titans - I think this is the final week Ayomanor will make an appearance in this article. He's already at 21 percent rostered in Yahoo leagues and it just seems clear that if Tennessee ever has a favorable opponent we're looking at wheels up territory for the rookie. It's frustrating Ayomanor is only averaging six targets a game, but that probably goes back to the gauntlet Cam Ward has started his career against. That changes come Week 5 with a stretch against the Cardinals, Raiders and banged-up Patriots. FAAB: 2 percent of budget

Sterling Shepard, Buccaneers - We don't know how serious the injury to Mike Evans is, but given the veteran missed three games due to a hamstring injury last year, I'm just projecting a similar lengthy absence. Chris Godwin (ankle) is poised to make his season debut Week 4, and Emeka Egbuka likely will try to gut through another game despite playing a handful less snaps against the Jets due to hip/groin injury, but Shepard needs to be on everyone's radar. The 32-year-old is exclusively a slot target for the Buccaneers, which complicates matters further, but he clearly has chemistry with his college teammate Baker Mayfield and that offense needs passing volume to beat anyone, much less a gamey Eagles in Week 4. FAAB: 0 percent of budget

Tyquan Thornton, Chiefs - I recognize wanting to poo-poo Thornton's (five catches for 71 yards and a touchdown) line against a miserable Giants secondary, but Kansas City desperately needs a target hog. The 2022 second-round pick never profiled as that type of player coming out of college, but I think it's almost a necessity with every other relevant pass catcher effectively glued near the line of scrimmage. That Patrick Mahomes even wants to make the deep-shot throws to Thornton is noteworthy, and it'll continue to matter until we have any degree of confidence Xavier Worthy is more than a shoulder-stricken decoy. FAAB: 2 percent of budget

Tight End

Hunter Henry, Patriots - I still think most weeks you're hoping Henry scores a touchdown, but New England quietly has the seventh-most passing yards in the league this season, which gives the veteran a safer floor than most. That's basically all it takes to be in consideration as a starter. FAAB: 10 percent of budget if you need a starter

Brenton Strange, Jaguars - The inverse of Henry is Strange, who led the team in targets Sunday, but otherwise isn't much of a red-zone threat. That's all it takes to be a low-end TE1 most weeks even if there's effectively no ceiling in this toothless Jaguars passing attack. FAAB: 0 percent of budget

Oronde Gadsden, Chargers - This is probably only consequential in deeper leagues, but Gadsden was quietly very effective in his season debut. With Will Dissly (knee) inactive, the rookie played 20 snaps, two fewer than named starter Tyler Conklin, and slightly less than blocking specialist Tucker Fisk. Nobody on the Los Angeles depth chart remotely profiles as a useful pass catcher, so if this a role within the offense that Greg Roman and Jim Harbaugh value in the future, Gadsden should be valued in the same way we talked about Harold Fannin to start the year. FAAB: 0 percent of budget