Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 2 pickups feat. Jordan Mason, Rico Dowdle and more
The fantasy football season-long grind begins with the conclusion of Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season. It's time to pivot, update some key fantasy positions, find replacements for our injured stars, and stash the best available players before Week 2 kicks off again Thursday night in Miami.
We'll take you through three options at each position to assist you in optimizing your roster for this week and beyond. The primary goal is to utilize your bench spots to put yourself in the best possible position each week and give your future self the flexibility to achieve fantasy greatness.
Fantasy Football Waiver Wire pickups: Running Backs
1] J.K. Dobbins, Los Angeles Chargers
When the Chargers announced Jim Harbaugh as its new head coach, we knew it would be a paradigm shift in offensive philosophy in Los Angeles. The Chargers want to run the ball. Harbaugh brought back offensive coordinator Greg Roman, a 25-year NFL coaching veteran with ten years of experience as an offensive coordinator with a reputation to — you guessed it — run the ball.
Harbaugh and the Chargers brass selected Notre Dame's unanimous First-Team All-American Tackle, Joe Alt, with the fifth overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft to — everyone now — run the ball. But the fantasy community wasn't convinced who would run the ball during draft season.
Los Angeles said goodbye to longtime running back Austin Ekeler and poached beefer running backs from his brother John Harbaugh in J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards. Both running backs have handled large workloads in the past, but the likelihood of both being entrenched as a committee was underwhelming for fantasy managers. Dobbins and Edwards dropped in the running back dead zone despite the Chargers screaming at us they wanted to run the ball. Dobbins put to bed any doubt who will take the lead this year with an explosive 135 yards on ten carries and a touchdown against divisional rival Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. After suffering two devastating season-ending injuries in consecutive seasons, Dobbins looked strong throughout the season opener and slipped past Raiders defenders for two runs of 40-plus yards.
Dobbins is a player you can thrust into your lineup next week as the Chargers will face a poor Carolina rush defense that ranked 25th in defensive rushing DVOA last week against New Orleans and dead last in 2023 (5.7%).
2] Rico Dowdle, Dallas Cowboys
It was a foregone conclusion that Dallas would upgrade the running back position in the NFL Draft last April. Former starter Tony Pollard had already signed a free-agent deal with the Tennessee Titans last March, leaving an obvious hole to fill in Big D. Many draft experts linked running back prospects to any of Dallas' eight draft selections. But to their surprise, Jerry Jones and his front office didn't choose any of them.
Maybe Jones had a handshake agreement with longtime Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott and didn't feel like it was the position of need we all thought it was. Elliott signed with Dallas after the draft, lifting the stock of developmental player Rico Dowdle. The undrafted running back from South Carolina signed with the Cowboys in 2020, paid his dues playing on special teams, and sat behind Pollard and Elliott on the depth chart. Last year, the Cowboys released Elliott, which elevated Dowdle to the primary backup role to start the season. Dowdle finished with 361 rushing yards with two touchdowns, adding 17 catches for 144 receiving yards and two more scores through the air.
Dowdle's rise to fantasy relevance took another step in the right direction last Sunday by splitting the workload 50-50 with Elliott against the stout Browns defense. Two of Dowdle's eight rushing attempts went for first downs, and he added a catch for six yards on the day. Dowdle's low output might keep him as a mid-level waiver add, but the usage is promising enough to stash for later in the season. Cleveland was the fifth-worst matchup to opposing running backs in DVOA last year, and he will get better matchups starting this week against a 23rd-ranked New Orleans rush defense at home. The next start for Dowdle will be the first in his professional career, but buying low now and stashing him on your bench is an effective way to use your bench spots rather than holding on to extra quarterbacks, tight ends, and defenses you'll eventually drop anyway.
3] Jordan Mason, San Francisco
The biggest shocker of the fantasy week came last night, with fantasy superstar Christian McCaffrey being declared inactive a couple of hours before kickoff against the Jets on Monday Night Football. San Francisco General Manager John Lynch spoke with the media leading up to the heavyweight clash and said McCaffrey wouldn't be limited in the season opener after being listed as questionable with a calf and Achilles injury. Lynch was seemingly creating a smokescreen to ensure New York would spend considerable time preparing for the best running back in the world and not for other 49ers weapons - including premiere handcuff Jordan Mason.
The third-year veteran made his first start in his professional career and didn't disappoint the Niners Faithful in primetime on Monday. Mason's 147 rushing yards might have been a surprise for the rest of the fantasy world, but he later spilled the beans to the ESPN broadcast that he knew he would get the start four days earlier. Veteran fantasy managers who drafted McCaffrey should've had Mason on their roster long before starting preparations for Week 1 action. Suppose the McCaffrey manager slept at the wheel and Mason remained on the waiver wire. In that case, he automatically becomes a priority add as long as McCaffrey's status is murky heading into Week 2.
Fantasy Football Waiver Wire pickups: Wide Receivers
1] Rashid Shaheed, New Orleans Saints
It's always a good reminder not to overreact to the first game of the year. Especially when a team obliterates a David Tepper-owned team that is barely competitive as long as a billionaire hedge fund manager thinks he can manage a professional football team successfully. There are not a lot of conclusions you can take from a 47-10 shellacking other than the Panthers are going to be terrible — again.
And Rashid Shaheed is fast. Like, game-changing fast. Shaheed got the scoring started for the Saints and fantasy managers early on with a 59-yard missle from quarterback Derek Carr. New Orleans never looked back and cruised to its sixth consecutive opening week victory. Shaheed would finish with a solid 73 yards on three catches and should be the No. 1 wide receiver target on your waiver wire radar where available. Maybe it was a gift from the fantasy gods that Shaheed didn't explode for more points on Sunday to keep the casuals from scooping him up. If your league settings reward long-yardage touchdowns and Shaheed is still lingering, you should make him a top priority heading into Week 2.
2] Brandin Cooks, Dallas Cowboys
As mentioned above, Shaheed is the main priority at the position for his premiere speed upside, but Brandin Cooks is still an asset in this Dallas Cowboys offense. The veteran is entering his 11th season as a professional and is now with his fifth team in the NFL. The 30-year-old is in his second year playing with recently paid Dak Prescott and still has a solid every-down role in Mike McCarthy's offense.
Cooks is a different receiver than the burner and serious threat he once was during his time with the New Orleans, New England, Los Angeles, and Houston, but he still has enough in the tank to power past defenders and keep him relevant in today's game. Cooks had at least one reception of at least 52 yards in eight consecutive seasons but finished with only a season-high 37 yards last season. Situations change, especially when you take a backseat to an emerging superstar in CeeDee Lamb the previous year. Cooks caught a touchdown in Week 1 and will have his moments as long as he's healthy. For short-term injury replacement options, you can do worse than an every-week starter in Cooks.
3] Demarcus Robinson, Los Angeles Rams
I bet the fantasy managers who made Puka Nacua their first-round pick are tired of experts saying there weren't a lot of injuries in Week 1. There's not a worse feeling in fantasy football than searching for long-term replacements before Week 1 action concludes. Late Monday, more details on the severity of Nacua's injury came to light, and he'll be placed on I.R. with a designation to return.
Contingency plans are in order since Nacua will be out for at least the next four games, and an extended absence is possible beyond the minimum allotted timeline. It's time to waterfall your free-agent options like the ones mentioned above. Still, not everyone will have the luxury of high waiver priority. In that case, veteran Demarcus Robinson should be on your radar as he is in line for more playing time in Sean McVay's predominantly 11-personnel until Nacua returns.
Robinson gained the trust of McVay and quarterback Matthew Stafford down the stretch last year and earned a new contract on a one-year deal for $5 million for 2024. Robinson is a professional receiver who excels in spatial awareness and timing in an offense that requires both to succeed. Veteran Tyler Johnson should also garner attention after turning seven targets for 79 yards after Nacua limped to the sideline in the first half. Johnson tied for second in targets with Robinson, but most of his receiving yardage output came on one play in the second half. Both should be in play in Week 2, with divisional rival Arizona next on the schedule. The Cardinals ranked dead last in Defensive DVOA the previous year at 17.9% and turned in the worst Week 1 rank in DVOA at 46.1 % in a road loss against Buffalo.
Fantasy Football Waiver Wire pickups: Tight Ends
1] Isaiah Likely, Baltimore Ravens
How often have we had one of the top waiver options in Week 2 be a tight end to start the waiver wire season? And for that player to be a fourth-rounder from Coastal Carolina in 2022 is even wilder.
But this is the NFL. Situations change from week to week. It's not where you come from that defines your success in this league or fantasy football. Likely burst on the scene on Thursday Night Football by turning 12 targets into nine catches for 111 yards and a touchdown with 28.9 million viewers watching on NBC. Likely was a smaller shoe size from even more fantasy points than his 26.1 against the Kansas City Chiefs in primetime.
It wasn't just the fantasy points, either, as it was apparent early on that Likely would graduate from an injury fill-in to a prominent role in the Ravens offense this year. Will the Ravens continue to use more 12-personnel with All-Pro tight end Mark Andrews? Will Likely return to his usual usage once Andrews recovers fully from last year's season-ending injury and a scary car accident in the preseason? 2024 was supposed to be a solid year for the tight end position, but we witnessed some weak performances from some of the most trusted players in the league in Week 1. Don't be surprised to see Likely starting ahead of other solid options next week against Las Vegas.
2] Colby Parkinson, Los Angeles Rams
If you closely follow the Los Angeles Rams, you were probably not surprised by Sean McVay's reluctance to play his starters in preseason. Since he took over the franchise in 2017, McVay has opted to save his players for when the games count in the Win/Loss column. There was little mystery about who would be opening the season in Detroit other than who would be the final starting offensive line combination and who would start at the tight end spot.
The last time the Rams played at Ford Field in the Wildcard round, McVay started veteran Tyler Higbee before he left the game with a devastating knee injury that eventually cost him the start of the 2024 regular season opener. On Sunday night, the Rams turned to free agent acquisition Colby Parkinson, who finished with a surprising four catches and 47 receiving yards in his team debut. It was miraculous to see how efficiently the Rams offense performed after losing Nacua early to injury and the intense crowd noise anytime Los Angeles had possession.
This week, Los Angeles is a team to monitor as it reshuffles and pivots after announcing the severity of Nacua's injury late Monday. With Higbee also starting on the PUP list to start the year, Parkinson can impact fantasy lineups until the Rams get back healthy offensive weapons.
3] Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints
Unfortunately, it was an off week for the fantasy football unicorn. Too bad, because in a 47-10 game against the worst-ranked defense in the league, you would've tipped Taysom Hill to wreak havoc on the Panthers. The only takeaway was that Hill had six touches and five rushing attempts for 35 yards. Carr also looked for him in the back of the endzone, but he couldn't pull down a jump ball that could've made his day in a blowout.
The positive news is Hill will have another shot at the lowly Panthers again on November 3. In the meantime, Hill will have a much more challenging task against a Dallas Cowboys defense that made Deshaun Watson and Co. look amateurish in Week 1. It's always the everlasting fantasy conundrum with the unicorn, a proper high-ceiling option that could make or break your fantasy week. When you start him, you put your fate at the mercy of the fantasy gods every start. Godspeed.