Week 5 Waiver Wire: Projecting Best Adds, Drops and Future Handcuffs

With the 2016 season four weeks old, some fantasy football owners are likely panicking with how their team is performing.

The waiver wire is the easiest way to look for upgrades to your squad. Granted, it's doubtful many proven stars are available, so a mix of bravery and ingenuity will be necessary to get the most value possible.

For those owners casting their gaze to the waiver wire, the players below were available in at least 50 percent of ESPN.com fantasy leagues heading into Monday night's game between the Minnesota Vikings and New York Giants.

Top Targets

Pos.	Player	Team	Percent Owned
QB	Carson Wentz	Philadelphia Eagles	34.0
QB	Sam Bradford	Minnesota Vikings	10.0
RB	Terrance West	Baltimore Ravens	45.0
RB	Orleans Darkwa	New York Giants	32.6
RB	James White	New England Patriots	21.9
WR	Kenny Stills	Miami Dolphins	17.6
WR	Phillip Dorsett	Indianapolis Colts	43.7
WR	Markus Wheaton	Pittsburgh Steelers	37.0
WR	Robert Woods	Buffalo Bills	10.3
TE	Hunter Henry	San Diego Chargers	32.5

Carson Wentz, QB, Philadelphia Eagles

Has the Pro Football Hall of Fame completed Carson Wentz's bust yet?

The praise of the Philadelphia Eagles rookie is getting a bit out of hand. Last week, NFL Media's Brian Baldinger (via the NFL's official Twitter account) compared him to two of the best quarterbacks of the last decade:

Of course, that's not to say Wentz hasn't exceeded expectations through his first three games. He has 769 passing yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions. According to Football Outsiders, the Eagles had the No. 1 pass offense DVOA (defense-adjusted value over average) following Week 3.

Given his hot start to the year, it's surprising that Wentz is available in over half of ESPN.com's fantasy leagues. Wentz will make mistakes, because that's what rookie QBs do, but fantasy owners should feel confident that he'll continue to deliver strong numbers each week.

Don't start Wentz over one of the more elite fantasy QBs, but if you've gotten lackluster production from the position so far, inserting him at QB1 may be worth the gamble.

Terrance West, RB, Baltimore Ravens

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The Baltimore Ravens started Terrance West ahead of Justin Forsett in Week 4, and based on West's performance, Forsett won't win the starting job back anytime soon. West carried the ball 21 times for 113 yards and a touchdown.

However, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh declined to publicly name West Baltimore's starting running back, according to the Baltimore Sun's Edward Lee:

"

I'm not going to say that. I'm not going to get into all that. I just think that's great to write about, but for us, it's nothing for us to waste any energy on. We're going to put the guys out there that are playing well. Our guys know this: If you're playing hard, you're playing smart, you're playing fundamentally sound, and you're productive, you've got a chance being out there again because everybody's counting on everybody else to get the job done. If one of those things falls down, then you leave the door open for another guy to get their opportunity.

"

NFL.com's Matt Harmon doesn't see Kenneth Dixon taking the job from West:

There is some risk in adding West.

Even if Dixon isn't the starting running back, he could get enough carries to limit West's fantasy ceiling. In addition, West averaged 3.9 yards a carry when he carried the ball 171 times with the Cleveland Browns in 2014.

With that said, valuable running backs don't clutter the waiver wire every week. When one potentially comes available, owners have to jump at the chance.

Assuming West is the Ravens' primary back in the weeks to come, he'll post good enough numbers to warrant flex discussion.

James White, RB, New England Patriots

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James White is more of a deep cut for those owners who are willing to take a big risk.

Almost all of White's value comes from him catching passes out of the backfield. In 14 games last year, he carried the ball 22 times last year and had 40 receptions.

As a result, White has suffered this year in a big way with Tom Brady suspended.

The Patriots are averaging 210.8 yards a game through the air, which ranks 28th in the league. With Jimmy Garoppolo and particularly Jacoby Brissett under center, head coach Bill Belichick opted for a more conservative offense so his QBs wouldn't be asked to do too much.

With Brady officially eligible to return to the team, the offense should be back to normal, which means White could see an uptick in his targets each week.

Especially for owners in point-per-reception leagues, White could be a nice value addition off the waiver wire.

Kenny Stills, WR, Miami Dolphins

Jim Rogash/Getty Images

Kenny Stills only caught one pass in Week 4, but he made it count. He scored the only touchdown for the Miami Dolphins in their 22-7 defeat to the Cincinnati Bengals. The NFL shared a replay of the score on Twitter:

Somewhat worrying for Stills and his fellow wideouts, Bleacher Report's Jason Cole reported Miami's staff is losing faith in quarterback Ryan Tannehill:

Even if head coach Adam Gase is souring on Tannehill, his only recourse is to rely on a running game that features Arian Foster and Jay Ajayi. Tannehill is the lesser of two evils.

Stills is unlikely to get a high volume of receptions each week, but his big-play ability could be enough to make him worthy of fantasy consideration, similar to Pittsburgh's Martavis Bryant the last couple of years before his indefinite suspension. Stills' 22.8-yard-per-reception average is second to Indianapolis' Phillip Dorsett among qualified receivers.

The 24-year-old had 27 receptions for 440 yards and three touchdowns last year. Fans should at least expect an improvement over that with Rishard Matthews gone.

Although Stills is unlikely to be more than a WR2/flex option, that wouldn't be a bad return. He's a good depth option to have on your bench and start when the right matchup comes along.

Long-Term Additions

Position	Player	Team	Percent Owned
QB	Cody Kessler	Cleveland Browns	1.1
QB	Paxton Lynch	Denver Broncos	0.8
RB	Mike Gillislee	Buffalo Bills	0.8
RB	C.J. Spiller	Seattle Seahawks	7.4
RB	Kenjon Barner	Philadelphia Eagles	1.0
WR	Dontrelle Inman	San Diego Chargers	0.7
WR	Jeremy Kerley	San Francisco 49ers	3.5
WR	Brian Quick	Los Angeles Rams	0.2
WR	Adam Humphries	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	8.3
TE	Austin Hooper	Atlanta Falcons	0.4

Going out and immediately adding any one of the 10 players above would be a bad idea. There's a reason none of them is owned in 10 percent of ESPN.com's leagues.

Having said that, they could emerge as solid targets off the waiver wire for fantasy owners looking to shore up their bench.

Based on how this season has unfolded, it's only a matter of time before Cody Kessler suffers an injury that forces him to miss half the season. The rookie quarterback looked good in his first two starts, throwing for 467 yards, one touchdown and an interception.

Corey Coleman's broken hand was a bummer for Cleveland and leaves Kessler down a dynamic downfield target. Josh Gordon's availability is up in the air as well after he voluntarily checked into rehab.

If he continues building on the progress he has already made, Kessler could be a good replacement for fantasy owners who will be without their regular starter during bye weeks.

Philadelphia running back Kenjon Barner has only carried the ball 14 times this year, but on those 14 carries, he's averaging 6.1 yards. Ryan Mathews has battled injuries throughout his NFL career, and in the event he goes down, Barner could see his role in the Eagles offense grow.

Just as everyone expected, Adam Humphries is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' second-leading receiver. Humphries won't usurp Mike Evans as the No. 1 target in the passing game, but should he maintain his surprisingly good start—19 receptions and 205 yards—he'll be a good addition for owners desperate for receiving help.

Pos.	Player	Team	Percent Owned
QB	Marcus Mariota	Tennessee Titans	39.4
RB	Justin Forsett	Baltimore Ravens	62.5
RB	Dwayne Washington	Detroit Lions	34.1
WR	Victor Cruz	New York Giants	45.5
WR	Mohamed Sanu	Atlanta Falcons	53.4
TE	Dennis Pitta	Baltimore Ravens	65.0