Week 2 Pickups: Riskiest Players to Avoid on Waiver Wire

There are a number of players gaining hype after Week 1 in the NFL. But there are also a few that you absolutely must avoid picking up on your fantasy football team for Week 2.

Players like Peyton Manning, Victor Cruz and Colin Kaepernick all had big games, but they're safe bets to do well week in and week out.

What about the other guys?

Do they have what it takes to put up big numbers every week? Some of them have a chance, but others are simply too risky and you should stay away from them when looking at the free agents available in your league.

It's tempting to take these guys, but here's why you should avoid these risky players.

Matt Schaub, QB, Houston Texans

I understand how tempting this addition is.

Schaub has had his moments during his career. At the same time, can you really trust the 32-year-old quarterback, who has regressed every year since 2009? If you disregard the 2011 season, when Schaub played in just 10 games, he has clearly gotten worse as the years have passed.

The Texans have an incredibly strong rushing attack with Arian Foster and Ben Tate, which means that the running backs are getting a lot of yards and, more importantly for you, fantasy points.

Three touchdowns is a great start for Schaub, but it's hard to believe he will break 25 touchdowns this season, and you would like to see a bit more production from your starting—or even backup—quarterback.

Stevan Ridley, RB, New England Patriots

The injury to Shane Vereen means that Ridley will be getting more playing time, but there's a good chance that he will be a big disappointment, especially in Week 2.

Ridley was benched in his first game after a costly fumble in the second quarter. He finished the day with nine carries and 46 yards, but the fumble made sure he had a pretty insignificant day as far as fantasy football goes.

Don't expect Ridley to be a workhorse, either. LeGarrette Blount will be getting more carries as well with Vereen out. Both backs will be facing the New York Jets this week, and the Jets are coming off an impressive defensive performance where they held Doug Martin to just 65 yards on the ground.

He may be able to put up some solid numbers down the road, but he's not what you're looking for in Week 2.

Leonard Hankerson, WR, Washington Redskins

To be honest, I didn't really know a lot about Hankerson before Week 1, and there's a good reason for that. 

Hankerson had a huge day on Monday night against the Philadelphia Eagles, grabbing five catches for 80 yards and two touchdowns. Both touchdowns came in the fourth quarter, when the game was basically over, so it's not likely we will see this happen again.

Before this game, Hankerson hadn't done much in his NFL career.

He had just 38 receptions for 543 yards and three touchdowns last year, and although he already has two touchdowns this season, there's no reason to believe that he will remain a prominent target on offense.

Sometimes a receiver gets lucky, and that's just what happened on Monday night.

If he has a couple more productive games, I'll buy in. For now, I'm staying away from him and letting someone else in my league pick him up and be disappointed this week, when the Redskins go against the Green Bay Packers.