Fantasy Football Week 2 Waiver Wire: Isaiah Likely Leads List of Must-Add Free Agents
The opening week of the 2024 NFL season is in the books, and it's now time for fantasy managers to hit the waiver wire to patch up all the glaring holes that have appeared on their rosters.
Unfortunately for those who stumbled out of the gate, there aren't many options in the free-agent pile to fix these issues ahead of Week 2.
With few notable injuries or other landscape-shifting factors to speak of occurring over the weekend, managers will have to sift through the results from the openers to try and identify which performances could be indicative of sustained success and which are simply flashes in the pan.
We're here to help with that endeavor, highlighting five players who you should target with your first waiver claims of 2024. Note that all suggestions are rostered in 50 percent or fewer of Yahoo! leagues.
Fantasy points and rankings are based on FantasyPros' PPR data.
QB Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (34 Percent Rostered)
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Baker Mayfield started off Year 2 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with a bang. The veteran, who has quickly gone from potential journeyman to franchise star since joining the club, built on last year's surprise playoff run with a statement in the 2024 opener.
Mayfield went off against the hapless Washington Commanders defense, piling up a whopping 29.7 fantasy points after completing 24-of-30 throws for 289 yards and four touchdowns in a 37-20 victory.
Thanks to that sterling performance, Mayfield trailed only Josh Allen for most fantasy points at the QB position and was the third-highest scoring player overall in Week 1.
Up next for Mayfield and the Bucs is a chance for revenge against the Detroit Lions and a defense that has been susceptible to big outings from opposing signal-callers in recent years.
Mayfield fared decently well against the Lions the last time he faced them. Although he was responsible for a pair of costly interceptions—including one that ended Tampa's hopes of an NFC Championship Game berth—the gunslinger did carve up Detroit's secondary for 349 yards and three scores while connecting on 26-of-41 passing attempts.
Detroit's defense looked vulnerable to the pass in its debut on Sunday night, allowing Matthew Stafford to complete 34-of-49 throws for 317 yards. While they did limit the Los Angeles Rams quarterback to just one touchdown through the air, the Bucs may find more success during their visit to the Motor City.
While Mayfield may not be a top-three quarterback every week, he's certainly a decent bet to at least rank in the top 12 in Week 2 and in plenty of other matchups down the line. If you are looking for an option to hold you over until Jordan Love's return or simply want to upgrade your backup option, look no further than him.
RB Tank Bigsby, Jacksonville Jaguars (5 Percent Rostered)
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The Jacksonville Jaguars appear to have a timeshare in their backfield after both Travis Etienne and Tank Bigsby earned an even split of the carries with 12 apiece in the team's opener.
While this may be bad news for Etienne's managers who were hoping to see more of the same from a player who ranked as the RB3 last year, it could be a boon for those desperate for help at the position heading into Week 2.
Etienne still led the backfield by a wide margin in terms of offensive snaps—he had 37 to Bigsby's 17—but was less productive with his totes. The starter logged just 44 yards in comparison to Bigsby's efficient 73, a performance that could lend the Jags to continue feeding the second-year talent going forward.
It is worth noting that Etienne found the end zone (and fumbled another potential touchdown away) while his backup didn't score at all. Etienne was also more impactful as a pass-catcher, reeling in two of three targets for 12 yards while Bigsby didn't draw a single look. The Jags also failed to secure a win despite a large halftime lead, failing to put a single point on the board while allowing the Miami Dolphins to score 13 unanswered points in the second half.
It remains to be seen how the Jags respond to this disheartening finish in Week 2, but it's likely we'll see more of Bigsby going forward after his respectable showing. He'll get a chance to prove his 6.1 yards per carry in the opener wasn't a fluke when the vaunted Cleveland Browns defense comes to Duval on Sunday.
While starting Bigsby against the league's top defense in 2023 may not be a great play, he's at least worth rostering for his handcuff upside alone right now. If he continues to see a double-digit carry volume regularly, he could even wind up as a low-end RB2 worth starting in most formats each week.
WR Greg Dortch, Arizona Cardinals (5 Percent Rostered)
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The Arizona Cardinals were supposed to debut a high-powered aerial attack led by prized rookie Marvin Harrison Jr. in Week 1, but the No. 4 overall pick had a quiet game against the Buffalo Bills. The Cardinals still hung tough in a 34-28 loss, however, with unheralded wideout Greg Dortch picking up the slack in the passing game.
Dortch led all Arizona receivers with six catches for 47 yards and his eight targets trailed only tight end Trey McBride's nine in the contest. The slot receiver even logged a carry in the contest, although he earned only a meager four yards on the rushing play.
While these numbers aren't too impressive—Dortch finished Week 1 outside the top 30 at the WR position with 11.1 fantasy points—the usage showed that the fourth-year veteran has earned quarterback Kyler Murray's trust and could result in plenty more connections going forward.
Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon credited Buffalo's defensive scheming for shutting down Harrison (who caught just one of his three targets for four yards) and forcing Murray to look elsewhere.
"They obviously were trying to take him away," Gannon told reporters (per AZCentral's Theo Mackie). "But we had a bunch of guys catch balls, so that's how our offense is gonna be built. The ball should go where it should go depending on the coverage."
With the Bills giving the rest of the league a blueprint for limiting Harrison, teams like the Los Angeles Rams—Arizona's Week 2 foe—could follow suit by clouding the team's top receiver. While it may result in disappointing fantasy showings for the highly drafted rookie, Dortch appears to be the main beneficiary and should have ample opportunity to feast on the double coverage his teammate is drawing.
Considering the Rams just shut down star wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown and limited Sam LaPorta while letting Jameson Williams—the Detroit Lions' third option—go off for 121 yards and a score on five receptions, it's worth picking up Dortch for this Week 2 matchup and starting him with confidence.
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WR Alec Pierce, Indianapolis Colts (1 Percent Rostered)
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The Indianapolis Colts came up just short in their bid to upset the Houston Texans in an AFC South slugfest to open the 2024 campaign, but at least their offense looks like it could be one of the league's more exciting units this season.
Even with second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson only completing a mere nine of his 19 passing attempts, the Colts still amassed 212 yards and two scores through the air. The team accomplished this despite a pedestrian showing from star wideout Michael Pittman Jr. (four catches for 31 yards) and the absence of projected No. 2 WR Josh Downs, who remains sidelined with an injury.
Alec Pierce helped pick up the slack while kicking off what could be a breakout season for the third-year wideout. The 24-year-old reeled in three catches—a third of Richardson's completions—for an eye-popping 125 yards and a score. His best play came early in the contest when he beat both Derek Stingley Jr. and Jimmie Ward deep to haul in a 60-yard scoring dart.
Pierce, a second-round pick in 2022, was firmly off the fantasy radar going into 2024 after a disappointing start to his career that saw him tally just 73 receptions for 1,107 yards and four touchdowns across his first 33 games.
While Pierce's 41.7 yards per reception rate is clearly unsustainable, it now looks like he's going to be a big-play threat in this offense, especially while Downs remains sidelined. Rookie Adonai Mitchell, a second-round pick, wasn't much of a factor and had just one catch on five targets for two yards.
Managers who need receiver help should take a flier on Pierce if they have the roster space. He could be a week-winning pickup for his ability to get open deep and put points on the board, although the low volume of throws in Indy's offensive scheme could also result in some lean performances.
It's best to claim Pierce now before he becomes unattainable with another big outing in Week 2, but those who can afford to wait and see how he fares against the Green Bay Packers should do so before trusting him as a starter.
TE Isaiah Likely, Baltimore Ravens (28 Percent Rostered)
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Isaiah Likely opened the season with a massive outing against the back-to-back defending champions. While his nine-catch, 111-yard, one-touchdown showing didn't help the Baltimore Ravens knock off the Kansas City Chiefs, he was a smaller shoe size away from scoring his second touchdown and forcing overtime on the final play of the contest.
Despite his team's defeat, Likely was still one of the big winners of Week 1. He ranked as the No. 1 fantasy tight end by a wide margin, with his 26.1 points nearly doubling TE2 Foster Moreau's output during the opening slate. He massively outscored teammate and co-starter Mark Andrews, who saw just two targets—10 fewer than Likely—and caught both for 14 yards.
It seems that there may be a changing of the guard happening in Baltimore. Andrews is still a force to be reckoned with at his best, but he's now 29 years old and coming off a major ankle injury that ended his 2023 season early. The veteran also missed more than two weeks of practice after suffering an undisclosed injury in a car accident in mid-August.
While Likely will have to show his Week 1 performance wasn't a fluke, it's hard to ignore the usage he logged against Kansas City. He not only led the team with his 12 targets, but he was also able to get those looks by lining up all over the offense and creating mismatches with his unique blend of size and athleticism.
Likely spent time at the traditional tight end spot, in the slot and out wide against the Chiefs, making it pretty clear that offensive coordinator Todd Monken wants to scheme up ways to get Likely involved this season. It may not always result in such a huge fantasy outing, but that type of versatility should keep him firmly entrenched as a top-10 TE this season.
Make Likely your No. 1 priority on waivers if you were one of the many managers planning to stream tight ends after striking out on the top options in the draft.
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