Three weeks into your fantasy football season is much too early to be panicking about your teams – but you certainly should have a good idea of what kind of team you have going forward. Improving your roster through valuable waiver wire pickups is going to be key moving forward, as it will help plug some holes vacated by injured players.
As always, this article will include a list of players currently on less than 50 percent of all fantasy football rosters on the ESPN platform, meaning that you should have a good chance of picking up most of these players.
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Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups
10. Gerald Everett
Seattle Seahawks
10.8% Rostered
The tight end landscape is one of the most picked-through positions in fantasy football, making any sort of waiver wire pickups difficult to forecast. But playing in an offense that is predicated on throwing the ball, Seattle’s Gerald Everett looks to be on his way towards earning Russell Wilson’s trust in the offense.
Granted, he was able to haul in five passes due to playing from behind for the majority of the contest, but this marked his second week this season having scored double-digit fantasy points (in a PPR format). If you are still looking for a tight-end option and are willing to make a dart throw, you could do worse than picking up Everett, who will face off against the 49ers and Rams in his next two games.
9. Taylor Heinicke
Washington Football Team
3.5% Rostered
When Ryan Fitzpatrick went down with his hip injury earlier this year, it was late season hero Taylor Heinicke that was thrust back into the spotlight after quarterbacking the Washington Football Team into the playoffs in 2020. And so far this year, Heinicke has produced solid stats across his two games, even though WFT put up a dud overall against the Bills in Week 3.
Having thrown for almost 500 yards across his two starts, head coach Ron Rivera very much trusts Heinicke and he continuously seems to be given the full playbook to work with. Reliant on their defense to help keep them afloat in the NFC East, Heinicke joins the group of sneaky waiver wire pickups this week as Washington faces Atlanta’s porous defense in Week 4.
8. Emmanuel Sanders
Buffalo Bills
23.3% Rostered
The Buffalo Bills have a strong offense, spearheaded by QB Josh Allen. But to make this offense good, it is the wide receivers that carry that torch, and Emmanuel Sanders is a part of that group.
Having had his third consecutive game of 6+ targets this year, Sanders has begun to develop a solid rapport with Allen in a pass-happy offensive attack. With Cole Beasley, Gabriel Davis, and Sanders all fighting for WR2 reps behind Stefon Diggs, you can bet on both Beasley and Sanders to follow through on that investment.
7. Tim Patrick
Denver Broncos
14.0% Rostered
The Denver Broncos have been one of the most surprising teams this year, beginning their season 3-0, thanks to the re-emergence of Teddy Bridgewater as the team’s starting quarterback. But with both Jerry Jeudy (ankle) and now KJ Hamler (torn ACL) having suffered injuries, the number of pass catchers he has to throw to has started to dwindle.
As Courtland Sutton returns to his pre-injury form, and with Noah Fant controlling the majority of TE targets, Tim Patrick is a good look for your waiver wire pickups for the week – as Bridgewater continues to establish himself in the offense, Patrick likely will command more target, being how he is one of the ever-dwindling healthy WRs on the team.
6. Tyler Conklin
Minnesota Vikings
2.6% Rostered
As the Minnesota Vikings wait out yet another injury to Dalvin Cook, tight end Tyler Conklin has become a bonafide fantasy football weapon for Kirk Cousins in the passing game. Having earned at least four targets in each of the first three games, including eight in Week 3, Conklin looks to be the third target on this offense when Cook is out.
Tight end has never truly been a solid target for Cousins in his reads, and especially so with both Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen earning the first and second looks, respectively. But Conklin put on a show against a suspect SEA defense, which can be a showing of things to come for his role in this offense as the TE1 for the Vikings.
5. Terrace Marshall Jr.
Carolina Panthers
14.9% Rostered
With the Carolina Panthers making a trade to bolster their defensive secondary by adding CJ Henderson, they ultimately gave up a piece of their offense in tight end Dan Arnold. While Arnold did not necessarily command a huge target share in this offense, his vacated targets can now go to rookie WR Terrace Marshall Jr.
Along with those targets, Marshall can pick up some of the slack vacated by Christian McCaffrey’s injury, vaulting himself safely into the offense’s game plan. As DJ Moore clearly earns a huge workload and Robby Anderson struggles to find his groove, Marshall can be that slot target in an offense reliant on shorter and intermediate routes to fuel their offensive attack.
4. Sam Darnold
Carolina Panthers
9.0% Rostered
As the second member of the Panthers on this list, QB Sam Darnold has put together a superb start to his first season in the NFC South division, even with CMC being injured and Anderson not looking like a solid WR. But if you are needing QB depth, then Darnold is a great target for you in your waiver wire pickups for the week.
Darnold and Moore have a solid relationship (as was shown against the Texans), and while the rushing attack will take a step back, Darnold has shown his true potential in this offense – and with two upcoming games against NFC East opponents (Cowboys and Eagles), Darnold is hitting his stride at the right time for the Panthers.
3. Hunter Renfrow
Las Vegas Raiders
11.3% Rostered
As Derek Carr has produced on league-leading levels so far this season, he has looked to targets other than Darren Waller at times – namely, Hunter Renfrow. The former Clemson Tiger has earned 6+ targets each game this year, hauling in at least five of those per game and providing a solid floor for his fantasy football rosters everywhere.
Not running the flashy routes or the big gainers in this offense, Renfrow mans the underneath routes and gives Carr a safety valve – an element that has helped provide big games for both Renfrow and his QB.
2. Derek Carr
Las Vegas Raiders
50.0% Rostered
Heading into an important AFC West matchup against the Chargers in Week 4, the headlining QB option for your waiver wire pickups this week should be Carr, who has already thrown for over 1,200 yards and 6 TDs.
A good look at how Carr was going to perform this year was on full display Week 1 against the Baltimore Ravens, throwing for 435 yards on a whopping 56 attempts – with Josh Jacobs facing a nagging toe injury and Waller needing to be fed on a consistent basis, all signs point to Carr continuing his strong showing this year in a pivotal year for the Las Vegas Raiders franchise.
1. Chuba Hubbard
Carolina Panthers
11.3% Rostered
The top option for your waiver wire pickups this week is no surprise – it is going to be the guy stepping into CMC’s role in the CAR offense, rookie RB Chuba Hubbard. As McCaffrey, unfortunately, faces another injury, Hubbard will be stepping into his role and will be able to assume fantasy football relevancy in his place.
Hubbard was impressive against Houston after CMC left the game, looking like a polished back hitting holes and finding yards. The learning curve certainly will be there for him, but Hubbard will likely be given a great chance to eat against Dallas, a great matchup for him in an offense that is heavily reliant on RB production.
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