Waiver Wire Pickups: 2011 NFL Fantasy Football Week 3

The big news around fantasy football will be the news of Jamaal Charles tearing his ACL as he is gone for the season. While Dexter McCluster, Thomas Jones and possibly LeRon McClain are options to acquire, don’t look past weak-to-breakout receivers like Denarius Moore of the Raiders and Eric Decker of the Broncos.

More Week 3 Rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE | K/D | DL | LB | DB |  Waiver Wire | Start/Sit |

Quarterback

Rex Grossman

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	17	21

While Rex Grossman will always be an up-and-down, riverboat gambler, he’s winning games for the Redskins and playing with confidence coming into a big game against the Cowboys. Who knows how long Grossman will last as the starter, but he’s worth at least holding on your squad moving forward.

Wide Receivers

Denarius Moore

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	1	11

Throughout camp the buzz out of Oakland was all about Denarius Moore and because of injuries in front of him on the depth chart, Moore got his first start of the season against the Bills. Moore went on to post a terrific breakout debut with five receptions for 143 yards and a sweet 50-yard touchdown. On the touchdown, Moore jumped over two defenders and when I saw the play on TV, I thought it was Randy Moss on the field.

Maybe Moore won’t come close to a top-10 fantasy receiver in this career, but this won’t be his last start, and you need to jump on this kid right away. Moore should be viewed as a WR-3 option when he’s starting on the field.

Even his he has a few slow games going forward you need to keep this kid on your roster for a while as he has legit skills and will be a name who should be around for a while in fantasy leagues.

Eric Decker

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	5	11

With Brandon Lloyd battling a hamstring injury, I expect Eric Decker to be an option worth starting in Week 3 and 4 for fantasy owners. Decker has decent speed as is evidencd by his special teams touchdown in Week 1, but his two touchdown receptions last week are legit.

As you can see by the percentage owned above, Decker can still be had in most leagues, and should be one of the top two options to target off the waiver wire this week.

David Nelson

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	1	4

With Steve Johnson likely to have his groin injury linger throughout the season, David Nelson could become a regular WR-3 play in the future. As it stands right now, he’s worth considering as a starting option against the Patriots as Ryan Fitzpatrick clearly likes to go to this big target, and especially around the red zone.

Johnson will still be the top option when healthy, but the way Buffalo is throwing the football, there are points to go around.

Brandon LaFell

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	1	2

With Cam Newton throwing the football like a madman, Brandon LaFell is going to have value moving forward as he posted a solid game against the Packers Week 2. Look for LaFell to be the second and sometimes third option in the passing game behind Steve Smith and Greg Olsen, but LaFell should be worthy of holding on your roster and has a good matchup against the Jaguars this week.

Running Backs

Daniel Thomas

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	90	53

Owned in 90 percent of ESPN leagues, Daniel Thomas is probably off your waiver wire if you play in those leagues, but he is still around in 47 percent of Yahoo leagues. The Dolphins clearly cut bait on Reggie Bush as the main option in the running game and seem to favor Thomas going forward after his 100-yard performance against the Texans.

While it’s hard to trust what the Dolphins will do week to week (Sporano is on the hot seat), Thomas is a possible flex-play start against the Browns this week.

Dexter McCluster

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	7	24

While many will figure that Thomas Jones is the option to pick up in Kansas City, I would recommend you look to Dexter McCluster instead. McCluster has better spring in his step as a youthful option and the Chiefs will be playing from behind most weeks, and will need a pass-catching tailback.

McCluster shouldn’t be in your lineup this week, but he’s worth keeping for depth and bye week help.

DeMarco Murray

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	6	10

With Felix Jones suffering a separated shoulder against the 49ers, DeMarco Murray could be looking at more playing time, should Jones struggle to stay on the field Week 3. As it stands right now, the Cowboys are playing Murray and Tashard Choice about the same, but look to Murray as the better upside running back, if Jones should miss time.

Thomas Jones

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	62	34

Still around in a decent amount of leagues on Yahoo, Thomas Jones will be called upon to give the Chiefs what he has left in the tank, and that isn’t much. Jones has looked tired this year, and it appears his age has finally caught up to him on the field. McCluster is a better option to pick up, but Jones is a steady veteran and while he probably won’t have a good yard-per-carry average, he will be around in the offense.

Tight End

Scott Chandler

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	32	28

I couldn’t bring myself to recommend Scott Chandler last week after he had two touchdowns as I wanted to see if the Bills offense was really that good or if the Chiefs were that bad. Turns out it’s both as the Bills put up another 38 points against the Raiders, and the Chiefs gave up 48 to the Lions.

Chander didn’t do much Week 2, but he found the end zone and is going to be an option for Fitzpatrick going forward.

Kicker

Jason Hanson

	ESPN	Yahoo
Percentage Owned	8	21

He’s back! It seems Jason Hanson just won’t die in fantasy leagues, as the Lions are back as one of the better offenses in football, and if you need help at kicker, the veteran makes for a respectable option.

2011 Weekly Lineup Help

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