We are now two weeks into the 2022 NFL season, and that means you have had two weeks to analyze just how well or how poorly your fantasy football drafts went. With injuries already piling up and inconsistent production shrinking rosters, it is going to be important that your Week 3 waiver wire pickups only include players that are destined to help you long term.
The likes of Curtis Samuel (shoutout to his great start to the season), Jeff Wilson Jr., Devin Duvernay, Gerald Everett, and others have been solid additions via the waiver wire to your teams, helping even out the strengths and weaknesses of your roster early in the season.
For insight on the top waiver wire pickups for Week 3, listen below:
As a note about Samuel – while he is rostered on over 50 percent of rosters, try and go out and acquire him on the cheap. Yes, he has had a breakout start to the year, but others may only think of it as a momentary thing and not something that is sustainable – but it certainly can be.
All players listed below are available in around 50 percent of ESPN leagues, increasing the likelihood that you can actually add them to your waiver wire pickups for this week.
Week 3 Waiver Wire Pickups
10. Noah Brown – WR
0.8% Rostered
Dallas Cowboys
With CeeDee Lamb being the only trustable member of the Dallas Cowboys offense at this point, someone like Noah Brown needed to step up and make something happen. Well, even with Dak Prescott going down last week, Brown has cemented himself into the passing attack, catching five passes each week.
As Michael Gallup’s return is still unknown, Brown is a nice bench add at this point, and should still hold value upon Gallup’s return, even with Cooper Rush as his QB.
9. Logan Thomas – TE
19.5% Rostered
Washington Commanders
Coming back from an ACL injury suffered last season, Logan Thomas seems to have already gotten up to speed with his new quarterback, Carson Wentz. And with Wentz slinging the ball around the field like it’s nothing, Thomas has been an early beneficiary in his slow return.
Thomas has received 11 total targets this year, hauling in three receptions each game, and caught his first TD of the season in Week 2 against the Lions. With the tight end group a bit hard to pin down in fantasy football, Thomas is a solid streaming option that should have a safe floor.
8. J.D. McKissic – RB
42.0% Rostered
Washington Commanders
The Commanders are an interesting team this season, and they have some underrated pieces on their offense that provide fantasy relevance. Case and point – J.D. McKissic.
Even as Antonio Gibson commands the lion's share of carries, McKissic holds plenty of value in the passing game – he hauled in all seven targets for 54 yards against Detroit and has a safe floor with his guaranteed receiving work. As the Commanders look to solidify a pecking order on offense, McKissic is one of the more constants they have.
7. Jimmy Garoppolo – QB
1.0% Rostered
San Francisco 49ers
The unfortunate reality of Trey Lance’s season-ending ankle injury is that this season looked to be a great time for his breakout – and yet, now we are stuck with Jimmy Garoppolo re-becoming the starter.
Garoppolo is a natural plug-in option for any rosters you had Lance on, and while he is not a ‘sexy’ pick, his familiarity with the offense is what you want when looking for, at least temporarily. The 49ers have the Broncos and Rams next up on their schedule, which may scare you away from Garoppolo, but he is a safe option to add to your waiver wire pickups.
6. Nelson Agholor – WR
0.6% Rostered
New England Patriots
A dumpster fire may be an accurate phrase used to describe the offensive attack from the New England Patriots so far this season. With no real offensive coordinator leading that unit, Mac Jones has had his fair share of struggles to begin the season.
One of the lone bright spots on offense has been Nelson Agholor, who has earned 11 targets through two games so far. A 3/28 showing in Week 1 was quickly followed by a 6/110/1 stat line, with the TD coming on a superb skying catch over a defender near the sideline.
As long as the Patriots struggle to form a strong offensive attack, Agholor looks to have earned the trust of Jones to the point where he can be added as a WR4 for depth purposes.
5. Joshua Palmer – WR
40.8% Rostered
Los Angeles Chargers
In Keenan Allen’s absence, Joshua Palmer stepped into a sizeable target share Thursday and caught four of his eight targets and a TD. While not producing on the same level as what Mike Williams did, Palmer definitely carries his own weight against the Chiefs and helped them not miss Allen too much.
Palmer looks to be their tried and true WR3 on this team, something you want a slice of in a high-powered offensive attack. Look for Palmer to continue to receive an uptick in snaps with Allen out, and even with Allen returns, Palmer should continue to see a healthy amount of work as a WR3/4.
4. Gerald Everett – TE
30.7% Rostered
Los Angeles Chargers
As was the case with Thomas, Gerald Everett looks to have ascended into the weekly fantasy football streaming category as a solid safety blanket for Justin Herbert. 14 targets over the first two games is a very healthy outlook for Everett, including a 6/71 showing on 10 targets Thursday.
Everett really never became that relevant fantasy TE option with the Rams, but the Chargers had a large hole at TE that Everett looks perfect for – don’t be surprised if he is a top-15 TE over the remainder of the season.
3. Darrel Williams – RB
3.6% Rostered
Arizona Cardinals
With James Conner earning most of the touches, it has been a bit of a fight between Darrel Williams and Eno Benjamin for whatever has been left. But when Conner left Sunday’s game with an injury, Williams easily was the guy who earned the most work.
Conner’s injury does not look to be super serious, but with his checkered history of injuries, look for Williams to earn a few more touches than usual. His work across both the rushing and passing game aspects of the Arizona offense helps keep him mostly scheme-proof, something that will help boost his value.
Originally Benjamin was going to be included here as well, but with the breakdown of touches after Conner’s injury, Benjamin can still be added (4.0% rostered) but should be second priority behind Williams.
2. Carson Wentz – QB
56.7% Rostered
Washington Commanders
Somehow, someway, Carson Wentz has played himself back into relevancy for fantasy football purposes. And if you lost Lance or have inconsistency issues at QB, then adding Wentz to your waiver wire pickups for Week 3 actually looks to be a strong play.
The Commanders have become a pass-happy offensive attack, and with Wentz deciding to actually – and finally – take care of the ball, he looks somewhat inviting just sitting out on waivers. Granted, he likely will come back to being himself at some point, but for now, Wentz is a solid play moving forward.
1. Sterling Shepard – WR
10.2% Rostered
New York Giants
Outside of Saquon Barkley, there really are not a lot of trustable elements to the New York Giants offense. But Sterling Shepard looks to have played himself back into the conversation, and with no real threats behind him on the depth chart, could be an absolute steal.
14 targets (10 in Week 2) have led to 8 receptions and 100+ yards, and both Shepard and Daniel Jones have a long-standing relationship that continues to translate both on the field and for fantasy football. As long as Shepard stays healthy and continues to be given a large target share, then he can be added to your waiver wire pickups this week.
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