Wide Receiver Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 2

September 16, 2020

Justin Carter's fantasy football wide receiver waiver wire pickups for Week 2 of the 2020 NFL season. These are free agent WRs to add, stream and stash.

Well, we're (mostly, there are two Monday night games) done with the first week of the NFL season and the Jacksonville Jaguars and Washington Football Team have both endangered their chase for the first overall pick and Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

In terms of wide receivers, we saw a lot of the expected names -- Davante Adams, Julio Jones -- getting targeted a bunch, but we also saw some interesting names pop up among the fantasy leaders. Let's talk about those names and what they might mean.

Not all options are the same. Some players may be better in PPR or deeper leagues, so it’s not a one-size-fits-all comparison. Use your best judgment when deciding which of these players is the right fit for your roster. Check here for a complete list of our Waiver Wire Adds for Week 2 for help at all the skill positions. All players on this list here are around 30% owned or below.

Mike Williams, Los Angeles Chargers

46% rostered

I know I usually keep this to players rostered at 30% or less, but y'all, Mike Williams only being at 46% is wild. He wasn't healthy this week, and he was still targeted nine times, catching four passes for 69 yards and coming close to doing a lot better if he'd kept his feet inbounds. Williams is going to be a favorite target of Tyrod Taylor and should see his rostered rate shoot way up.

Robby Anderson, Carolina Panthers

30% rostered

When Robby Anderson went to Carolina, a big question was what his role would be vs. what Curtis Samuel's role would be. Both are fast, deep guys, and that overlap was going to mean...what, exactly? Well, through one game, Anderson looks like the big play guy, as he had six catches for 115 yards and a touchdown to Samuel's five for 38. This Panthers team projects to be pretty bad this year, which is going to offer plenty of chances for this offense to play from behind and throw the ball. Anderson's a good weekly upside play.

Parris Campbell, Indianapolis Colts

22% rostered

Well, for those of us who expected Michael Pittman Jr. to be the No. 2 guy here, oops. Campbell stepped up big time for the Colts, catching six of his eight targets for 71 yards and adding a nine-yard carry as well. He's already turning into a safe intermediate option for Rivers and is showing why he was a pretty popular sleeper as a rookie. Campbell's going to be a key piece for this team and you want him on your fantasy roster.

Laviska Shenault Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars

29% rostered

The rookie had a solid NFL debut, with three catches for 37 yards and a score plus two carries for 10 yards. Shenault's a versatile player who can line up at receiver and running back, and his role should only grow moving forward. After D.J. Chark Jr., Shenault's the most interesting skill position player on this team for fantasy, and he should be one of the higher-priority waiver claims because of his ability to adapt to different situations and the assumption that his chemistry with quarterback Gardner Minshew II will continue to grow.

Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Green Bay Packers

6% rostered

Davante Adams is going to get all the attention after his 14 catches for 156 yards and two touchdowns, but MVS was pretty involved too, catching four of his six targets for 96 yards and a score. Can Aaron Rodgers support three fantasy-relevant receivers along with Allen Lazard? It's a good question, but we saw enough for MVS to make him a worthy fantasy addition.

Scotty Miller, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

5% rostered

Looks like Tom Brady found his slot option. Miller -- a former Bowling Green State University graduate, which I only point out so I can say "Go Falcons!" -- was targeted six times against the Saints, catching five of those for 73 yards and adding six rushing yards. Miller's no Julian Edelman, but he can be a solid fantasy option in deeper PPR leagues.

Danny Amendola, Detroit Lions

2% rostered

I firmly believe that the most underrated players in all of fantasy football are undersized slot receivers. Guys like Amendola aren't going to win you your fantasy league, but they can help make sure you don't lose your fantasy league. He had five catches on seven targets in Week 1, finishing with 81 yards. Amendola's a good short-yardage option for Matthew Stafford and is someone you can plug into a PPR lineup in a pinch if you have an injury or a bye week to get through.

Russell Gage, Atlanta Falcons

1% rostered

Matt Ryan probably won't be throwing 54 passes every week. But they'll be throwing a lot, and it was interesting that Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley, and Russell Gage all had nine receptions in the opener. Gage's turned into 114 yards. In deeper leagues, Gage is not only worth being claimed on waivers, but is worth being used as a flex play in this offense.

Willie Snead IV, Baltimore Ravens

% rostered

I believe I'm contractually obligated to tell you to pick up a 1% guy who had a touchdown. Snead finished with four catches for 64 yards and the score. In deep leagues, Snead's interesting because of the lack of depth in this wide receiver corps, but beyond that I don't feel great about him.

Keelan Cole, Jacksonville Jaguars

0% rostered

Cole came out of nowhere to lead the Jaguars in targets, catching all five of his for 47 yards and a touchdown. Cole had seen his role drop in each season after his 83-target rookie year in 2017. I wasn't even sure he'd make this roster. But after a good training camp, he ended up jumping past Chris Conley and Dede Westbrook (who was a healthy scratch) in the pecking order. Now, Cole's an intriguing deep-league option on an offense that looks...good?!?!

Quintez Cephus, Detroit Lions

0% rostered

Cephus is basically a "well, if Golladay doesn't play, then he's a potential dart throw in super deep leagues" play. He was targeted 10 times in Week 1, but he finished with just three catches, so there was a pretty big discrepancy there, but three catches and 43 yards is solid for a guy who was not expected to do much of anything. Once Golladay is back, Cephus is irrelevant, but if you have an open spot -- or have Golladay on your roster -- then this isn't the worst move.

More Waiver Wire Pickups and Advice