This article is part of our NFL Waiver Wire series.
This article will come out every Sunday night. It's not expected to be a deep dive. Instead, we'll explore players who had atypical workload and/or opportunity during the Sunday games. We won't be paying attention to whether these players will be available in most leagues. The hope is that you become aware of the short-term usage change. If you're looking for detailed waiver wire coverage, we'll have two weekly articles to set you up. On Tuesday, Kevin Payne will publish the weekly pickups. Then on Wednesday, Dan Marcus will provide you with deep dives.
Quarterback
- Jake Browning faced a tough Pittsburgh defense. He threw for 227 yards and a TD. In superflex leagues, he may not be as bad as many of the current lower-end NFL starters. He also could get Tee Higgins (hamstring) back in the near future.
Running Back
- Samaje Perine has 10 rushes and 11 targets the last three games. After temporarily playing behind Jaleel McLaughlin, Perine has been the clear No. 2 in Denver.
- D'Ernest Johnson is the clear No. 2 RB behind Travis Etienne. In the last two weeks, Johnson has eight touches and at least 54 yards.
- Michael Carter had four rushes and four receptions against the Rams. Most of that came in garbage time. It might not be tough for Carter to overtake Emari Demercado as the change-of-pace RB to James Conner.
Wide Receiver
- In shallow leagues, it's possible Jayden Reed is available. The rookie has at least 50 scrimmage
This article will come out every Sunday night. It's not expected to be a deep dive. Instead, we'll explore players who had atypical workload and/or opportunity during the Sunday games. We won't be paying attention to whether these players will be available in most leagues. The hope is that you become aware of the short-term usage change. If you're looking for detailed waiver wire coverage, we'll have two weekly articles to set you up. On Tuesday, Kevin Payne will publish the weekly pickups. Then on Wednesday, Dan Marcus will provide you with deep dives.
Quarterback
- Jake Browning faced a tough Pittsburgh defense. He threw for 227 yards and a TD. In superflex leagues, he may not be as bad as many of the current lower-end NFL starters. He also could get Tee Higgins (hamstring) back in the near future.
Running Back
- Samaje Perine has 10 rushes and 11 targets the last three games. After temporarily playing behind Jaleel McLaughlin, Perine has been the clear No. 2 in Denver.
- D'Ernest Johnson is the clear No. 2 RB behind Travis Etienne. In the last two weeks, Johnson has eight touches and at least 54 yards.
- Michael Carter had four rushes and four receptions against the Rams. Most of that came in garbage time. It might not be tough for Carter to overtake Emari Demercado as the change-of-pace RB to James Conner.
Wide Receiver
- In shallow leagues, it's possible Jayden Reed is available. The rookie has at least 50 scrimmage yards and a TD in his last three games.
- Jonathan Mingo has 6-7 targets in his last three games. Aside from the 60 yards he had this week, he had just 26 yards in his prior two games. It's possible his volume translates into production.
- The usage might coincide with the absence of Michael Wilson, but Greg Dortch has 17 targets the last two games. When Dortch was called upon last year, he had a number of highly productive games. Just know that his usage can dry up at any time.
Tight End
- Tanner Hudson remains involved in the Bengals' offense with Jake Browning at QB. Hudson has four and five targets in the last two games. In those games, he averaged four catches for 33 yards.
- With Luke Musgrave on injured reserve, Tucker Kraft played 96 percent of the snaps this week. He was only targeted twice, but he scored a TD. For those who need a second TE, Kraft might be viable.
