Waiver Worthy: Rashard Mendenhall and More Make Week Four Fantasy Moves

Let’s take a look at some players who are potentially on your waiver wire after Week Four and determine if they are worth owning or not:

Rashard Mendenhall—Running Back—Pittsburgh Steelers—There have been questions surrounding Willie Parker since the preseason. With Mendenhall performing as he did (165 yards rushing, 26 yards receiving and 2 TD), owners of Parker have got to be nervous unless you had already handcuffed him. At the very least, you have to believe that Mendenhall will likely see an increased role in the coming weeks. At worst, Parker (who was averaging just 3.1 yards per carry), becomes the understudy. Either way, Mendenhall is worth grabbing in any format.
Verdict: Worthy of owning in all formats.

Mohamed Massaquoi—Wide Receiver—Cleveland Browns—Bad teams spawn good statistics. It’s odd to think of, but how often are they going to be trying to get themselves back into games? Massaquoi, a second-round draft choice out of Georgia, found himself the constant focus of Derek Anderson (in his first start of the season, but we’ll get to him shortly), having 13 passes thrown his way. It led to eight catches for 148 yards and the potential that he has become the go-to guy in Cleveland (as Braylon Edwards has disappointed with just 139 yards and 0 TD). He’s a gamble, but if you are in need of a WR he’s likely one worth taking, though he’s not a player you want to be depending on every week.
Verdict: Worthy of owning as a bench option for now.

Mercedes Lewis—Tight End—Jacksonville Jaguars—We all know how temperamental tight ends can be, so I can’t get too excited about his fairly big week (four catches for 76 yards and one touchdown).  There’s someone like this nearly every week.
Verdict: Don’t bother.

Nate Washington—Wide Receiver—Tennessee Titans—There are three receivers who seem to be taking turns at being the go-to guy in Tennessee, with Kenny Britt and Justin Gage also getting plenty of looks. This week it was Washington who had the most targets (12, with Britt at 11 and Gage at five), but Gage led the way in two of the first three weeks. Not knowing who is going to be the consistent go-to guy limits the value of all of these receivers, as this is far from a Larry Fitzgerald/Anquan Boldin scenario.   Washington does have a TD in each of his last three games, but he was shaken up towards the end of last week’s game, so you never know. I’d consider him just a low-end option as a bye week replacement at this point, since there’s no guarantee he sees the ball too often.
Verdict: Grab him only if you are desperate.

Derek Anderson—Quarterback—Cleveland Browns—He’s not a starting option in one-quarterback formats, but if you are in a two-quarterback format it’s a different story.  He was extremely impressive in his first start, going 26-48 for 269 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT.  Given how bad Brady Quinn was over the first three weeks, he’s likely earned himself a lengthy look behind center. He’s proven how good he could be in the past (let’s not forget he threw for over 3,700 yards and 29 TD in 2007), and there is reason to believe that he could thrive again.
Verdict: Should be owned in all two-quarterback formats.

Hakeem Nicks—Wide Receiver—New York Giants—He had a big reception, making a nice play on a screen pass to take it 54 yards for the TD, but that was the only catch he made.  He’s not likely to move up the depth chart very quickly, with Steve Smith emerging as the main man in New York.
Verdict: Not worth owning.

Sean Ryan—Tight End—Kansas City Chiefs—It was a nice game catching five passes for 58 yards and a touchdown, but he may be the best example for what I said regarding Mercedes Lewis above. You really just never know about tight ends so don’t bother getting excited over one good week.
Verdict: Not worth owning.

What are your thoughts on these players? Which would you grab? Which would you avoid?

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