NFL Waiver Wire: Week 9 Pickups

This column is geared toward "standard" 12-team leagues and based upon a $100 free-agent budget. Please, please adjust for your league based on both the number of teams (I'm in a 24-team league, for example) and budget. This column will run every Tuesday to, hopefully, accommodate the various waiver schedules. I'll update it in the comments section during the week; please keep in mind a lot can change from Tuesday to Sunday.

Players listed/discussed last week: Drew Stanton, Dion Lewis, Latavius Murray, Jalen Richard, DeAndre Washington, Kenny Stills, Bennie Fowler, Demarcus Robinson, A.J. Derby and O.J. Howard

Byes: Chicago, Cleveland, Minnesota, New England, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles Chargers

QUARTERBACK

Secondary Targets

Drew Stanton, ARI - This column usually doesn't mention players two weeks in a row, but there's an exception for Stanton this week. He has a ton working in his favor starting with the matchup. In their last four games, the 49ers have given up 33, 40, 26 and 26 points. Stanton has had an extra week to prepare coming off the bye and has a nice set of receivers to target, including the ageless Larry Fitzgerald, the Brown brothers and J.J. Nelson. Basically, this is a case of depending on the wide receivers for yards after the catch to bolster Stanton's stats. Finally, San Francisco has given up the most fantasy points to quarterbacks of any team playing this week (New England has a bye). Stanton's not a bad flier if you're a Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger or Philip Rivers owner. FAAB: $3-$6

Jimmy Garoppolo, SF - Just as this piece was getting wrapped up, of course there had to be some breaking news. Garoppolo was dealt to San Francisco in a deal that seemingly works out for both teams. The Patriots are convinced Tom Brady can play a few more years, and C.J. Beathard apparently isn't the quarterback of the future for the 49ers. Garoppolo has looked competent in his limited experience, but remember, Matt Cassel did as well in the New England system. There are a few things to keep in mind: Garoppolo is going to a new offense, which will take him a few weeks to pick up. Second, who on earth does he have at receiver to make plays for him? The only advantage he'll have once he takes over (again, at least a few weeks down the road) is that San Francisco will be playing from behind most of the season. Don't go too nuts. FAAB: $2-$4, go 3x-4x in two-quarterback leagues

Hail Mary

Ryan Fitzpatrick, TB - Jameis Winston reportedly aggravated his shoulder injury Sunday, which means he could miss some time. Fitzpatrick is one of the more capable backups in the league and has a plethora of weapons at his disposal. Jameis isn't certain to miss time; this is just a speculative add for those in two-quarterback leagues. FAAB: $1 or FCFS

RUNNING BACK

Primary Targets

Alex Collins, BAL - The Ravens' passing attack has been abysmal this season with Joe Flacco not having much to throw to and likely playing at less than 100 percent health. The ground game did get going this week with Collins eclipsing 100 yards and appearing to be the main guy in Baltimore's backfield. Most important, he's held onto the ball, a problem he had earlier this season. Expect 15-plus touches per game from Collins, who has two factors working in his favor. Coach John Harbaugh said Monday he expects Collins to get "more opportunities" coming off a game where he got 20 touches. It probably helps that Collins has averaged six yards a carry in a decent sample (80 carries). FAAB: $25-$35

Secondary Targets

Matt Breida, SF - It's hard to read the tea leaves in the 49ers backfield given all the negative reports on Carlos Hyde. With the team apparently in tank mode, it could give more touches to Breida down the stretch to see if he's an every-down back. Breida finished Sunday's game with nine touches, including a shovel pass that he took into the end zone for the lone San Francisco touchdown. Hyde isn't going anywhere at the moment, but Freida is one of the better handcuffs to have on your bench, especially if you're not a Hyde owner. FAAB: $2-$4

Hail Mary

Corey Clement, PHI - Clement might have passed Wendell Smallwood on the depth chart, logging 10 carries to Smallwood's one Sunday. Clement's extra work could have been due to the game being a blowout, and Smallwood could go back to a bigger role as soon as this week. Either way, it's not a good matchup against Denver's stout run defense. Still, if anything were to happen to LeGarrette Blount, it's likely Clement would take over as the early down back, as he's more suitable to run between the tackles than Smallwood. FAAB: $2-$4

WIDE RECEIVER

Primary Targets

Sterling Shepard, NYG - Shepard is 56 percent owned in Yahoo leagues, so there's a good chance he's not on the waiver wire. If he is, he should be the top wide receiver add this week given his situation. He will be the top option in an offense depleted of wide receivers (outside of tight end Evan Engram) when he returns from his ankle injury and should get plenty of targets the rest of the season. He's more than familiar with the offense than team's other receivers – it is never a good sign when receivers have to ask the quarterback in the huddle which routes to run, as Eli Manning reported. Watch for news on Shepard's health this week to make sure he's all the way back, which he should be. FAAB: $15-$25

Juju Smith-Schuster, PIT - It appears the Steelers are ready to move forward from Martavis Bryant and willing to turn to the 20-year-old Smith-Schuster as the second receiving option. Juju's talent was perfectly summed up in one play Sunday night when he took a 97-yard pass to the house, angling his way over the final 20 yards to the end zone. Perhaps the most telling stat was his 10 targets, as offensive coordinator Todd Haley appears to be making a concerted effort to get the ball in his hands. He'll make an impact down the stretch, especially with defenses keyed on stopping Antonio Brown and Le'Veon Bell. Unfortunately, Juju is owned in 49 percent of Yahoo leagues. FAAB: $15-$25

Secondary Targets

Robby Anderson, NYJ - Anderson appears to be the top receiving option for Josh McCown and the Jets. He's probably the fastest guy in the field with a 4.36 40 speed, which gives him the ability to easily get behind defenses. The Jets' receiving tree is narrow, and the team should be playing from behind most of the season, helping his fantasy prospects. Be careful this week, though. Tre'Davious White, who is having an excellent rookie season, likely will cover Anderson. FAAB: $4-$8

Jamison Crowder, WAS - Crowder put up a monster stat line in PPR formats against the Cowboys with nine catches for 123 yards. Many will be excited to pick him up, but his game logs suggest this was an anomaly. He had 13 targets Sunday, nearly doubling his previous high of seven. In his previous three games he totaled six catches for 36 yards, including a week when he caught one pass for -7 yards. Many will point at the Jordan Reed injury as a plus, but those targets could just as easily go to Vernon Davis, and Josh Doctson likely won't get only one target per game. FAAB: $3-$6

Hail Mary

Tre McBride, CHI - McBride probably wasn't on the fantasy radar for most owners heading into Sunday's game with the Saints. However, he finished with the most receiving yards for either team (3-92) and appears to have some rapport with Mitch Trubisky. McBride only garnered five targets to Kendall Wright's eight, suggesting it's hard to get too excited about the second receiving option in a run-heavy offense. Still, in deeper leagues he warrants consideration as he demonstrated the ability to make a big play on a couple occasions Sunday.

FAAB: $1 or FCFS

Calvin Johnson, DET - A report surfaced that at least two teams were interested in trading for Johnson. It's really, really unlikely Calvin comes out of retirement, but for those in super-deep leagues it's worth a gamble to take a flier on him. This "report," which hasn't been corroborated by anyone of any importance, could be a ruse from the Lions trying to get any value for Johnson. If the Patriots (down Julian Edelman and now maybe Chris Hogan) picked up the phone and talked to Johnson … (Note the trade deadline is Tuesday at 4 p.m. EDT.) FAAB: FCFS

TIGHT END

Secondary Targets

Vernon Davis, WAS - Jordan Reed has already been ruled out this week, and it's likely the latest injury (hamstring) will force him to miss multiple weeks. There are a lot of mouths to feed in the Washington offense, but it's notable that the one game Reed missed this season (Week 3 vs Oakland) Davis went 5-58-1.