Joe Burrow (toe) suffered the biggest injury in Week 2, but we also lost Austin Ekeler (Achilles) for the season and Jayden Reed (collarbone) for six to eight weeks. J.J. McCarthy (ankle) is also out for Week 2, and we’re waiting to find out how long Jayden Daniels (knee), Aaron Jones (hamstring), and Justin Fields (concussion) will be out after all three were injured last week.
The waiver wire will be busy heading into Week 3, especially at quarterback, with Fantasy managers scrambling to replace Burrow and McCarthy and potentially Daniels and Fields. Daniel Jones (44 percent rostered on CBS Sports) is my favorite option, but we’ll also touch on Jake Browning (2 percent), Carson Wentz (1 percent rostered), Marcus Mariota (1 percent), and Tyrod Taylor (1 percent).
There aren’t a lot of great running backs on the waiver wire, but Chris Rodriguez (13 percent) and/or Jeremy McNichols (1 percent) might be relevant now with Ekeler out. It’s also a good idea to stash some handcuff options, including Tyjae Spears (36 percent), Blake Corum (16 percent), and Tyler Allgeier (48 percent).
Wide receiver is loaded with interesting players to add, including Wan’Dale Robinson (42 percent), Cedric Tillman (46 percent), Rashid Shaheed (51 percent), Troy Franklin (8 percent), Christian Kirk (55 percent), and Elic Ayomanor (13 percent). And we’ll look at the Packers, who could help replace Reed in Romeo Doubs (37 percent) and Dontayvion Wicks (3 percent).
At tight end, the best player to add is Juwan Johnson (54 percent), who has now played well for two weeks in a row. Johnson looks like a must-start Fantasy tight end moving forward in all leagues.
Editor’s note: For this waiver wire column, we are only looking at players rostered in less than 65 percent of CBS Sports leagues.
Week 3 Waivers
Injuries: Joe Burrow (toe), Jayden Daniels (knee), J.J. McCarthy (ankle), Justin Fields (concussion), and Brock Purdy (toe).
Check to see if available in shallow leagues: Caleb Williams (87 percent rostered), Drake Maye (86 percent), and Trevor Lawrence (70 percent). Williams has scored at least 20 Fantasy points in each of the first two games, and he has a great matchup in Week 3 against Dallas. … Maye had a breakout game with 30 Fantasy points in Week 2 at Miami, and hopefully he can stay hot in Week 3 against Pittsburgh. … Lawrence doesn’t have an easy matchup in Week 3 against Houston, but he scored 24 Fantasy points at Cincinnati in Week 2 and can be a low-end starter in all leagues moving forward.
Drop candidates: Joe Burrow (100 percent rostered) and Brock Purdy (86 percent). Burrow needs surgery and could miss three months, which could put him out until Week 15. If you don’t have an IR spot to stash him, then unfortunately, you’ll likely have to drop him in redraft leagues. … Purdy is unlikely to play in Week 3 because of his toe injury, and we don’t know when he’ll be able to return. For now, he’s droppable in one-quarterback redraft leagues.
Add in this order:
Week 3 Waiver Priority List
WAIVER WIRE
Running Backs
Injuries: Aaron Jones (hamstring), Austin Ekeler (Achilles), Joe Mixon (foot), Tyjae Spears (ankle), and Will Shipley (oblique).
Check to see if available in shallow leagues: Cam Skattebo (81 percent rostered), Trey Benson (80 percent), Brian Robinson Jr. (79 percent), and Bhayshul Tuten (75 percent). We’ll see if Skattebo is now the Giants’ best running back, but he played more snaps than Tyrone Tracy in Week 2 at Dallas and handled more carries. Skattebo finished with 11 carries for 45 yards and a touchdown and two catches for 14 yards on three targets. Tracy had five carries for 15 yards and four catches for 36 yards on five targets. I wouldn’t go overboard to add Skattebo since the Giants play the Chiefs in Week 3, but he’s worth picking up where available. … Benson and Robinson are high-end handcuffs that should be rostered in every league. Should either one get elevated into a starting role, then they would be a potential must-start Fantasy option in all leagues. … Tuten should be the No. 1 running back to add where available if he’s on waivers. In the first game after Tank Bigsby was traded to the Eagles, Tuten had eight carries for 42 yards and two catches for 32 yards and a touchdown on two targets against Cincinnati. He’ll continue to share touches with Travis Etienne, but Tuten might be a flex option while Etienne is healthy. And Tuten would be a must-start running back in all leagues if Etienne got hurt.
Drop candidates: Austin Ekeler (92 percent rostered), Kaleb Johnson (78 percent), Braelon Allen (72 percent), and Jaydon Blue (65 percent). Ekeler is out for the season, and we’ll see what happens for Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Chris Rodriguez, and Jeremy McNichols (see below). … Johnson had two carries for minus-1 yard and no targets in two games so far this season. He’s clearly behind Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell, and it’s hard to envision Johnson having a prominent role any time soon. … I’m still hopeful Allen will have a significant role this season, but the Jets looked awful in Week 2 against Buffalo. And Allen only has eight carries through two games for 20 yards and a touchdown and no catches on one target. … I’m also hopeful Blue will have a role for the Cowboys this season, but he’s been inactive for two games. And Javonte Williams looks great, so waiting on Blue doesn’t make sense in most redraft leagues.
Add in this order:
Week 3 Waiver Priority List
WAIVER WIRE
Wide Receivers
Injuries: Xavier Worthy (shoulder), Chris Godwin (ankle), Jayden Reed (collarbone), Christian Kirk (hamstring), Brandon Aiyuk (knee), Jalen Coker (quadriceps), Christian Watson (knee), and Jalen McMillan (neck).
Check to see if available in shallow leagues: Cooper Kupp (84 percent rostered), Chris Godwin (82 percent), Khalil Shakir (81 percent), Marquise Brown (79 percent), Darnell Mooney (77 percent), and Jauan Jennings (71 percent). Kupp’s miserable game in Week 1 against San Francisco (3.5 PPR points) was followed up with 16 PPR points in Week 2 at Pittsburgh. He had seven catches for 90 yards on nine targets, and hopefully that’s the Kupp we’ll see moving forward. … Godwin (ankle) is starting to practice, although he might not return until Week 5. That said, if you can stash him now, it might be a good idea since he can still be a quality Fantasy asset when healthy. … I wouldn’t worry too much about Shakir’s down game in Week 2 at the Jets with one catch for 12 yards on two targets since the Bills only attempted 27 passes in the 30-10 win. Shakir faces Miami in Week 3, and the Dolphins secondary is terrible. He’ll bounce back and remain a low-end No. 3 PPR receiver most weeks. … Worthy could return in Week 3 at the Giants, but Brown should still have a prominent role for the Chiefs until Rashee Rice (suspension) returns. Brown only had five catches for 30 yards on five targets in Week 2 against the Eagles, but he led Kansas City in receptions. … Mooney made his season debut in Week 2 at Minnesota after missing Week 1 with a shoulder injury, but he only had two catches for 20 yards on four targets. He has the chance to be a No. 3 Fantasy receiver in all leagues as the season goes on, so add Mooney where available. … Jennings played through his shoulder injury in Week 2 at New Orleans and finished with five catches for 89 yards and a touchdown on 10 targets. He has the chance to be a No. 3 Fantasy option in all leagues when healthy and could still be San Francisco’s best receiver this season ahead of Ricky Pearsall.
Drop candidates: Jayden Reed (73 percent rostered), Rashod Bateman (62 percent), Adam Thielen (50 percent), Luther Burden III (34 percent), Demario Douglas (31 percent), and Xavier Legette (25 percent). Reed (collarbone) will miss six to eight weeks and is droppable in redraft leagues if you can’t stash him on IR. … Bateman has combined for four catches for 25 yards on eight targets through two games, and he remains touchdown dependent to help his Fantasy value. The touchdowns will come, but Bateman isn’t worth rostering in the majority of leagues heading into Week 3. … Thielen gets one more game without Jordan Addison (suspension), but Thielen has been disappointing so far with two catches for 26 yards on four targets in two games. Even with a positive matchup in Week 3 against Cincinnati, you can drop Thielen in the majority of leagues. … I’m still hopeful Burden will have a big role with the Bears, but it might not happen any time soon. Through two games, Burden has two catches for 2 yards on three targets, and there are a lot of mouths to feed in Chicago’s offense. … Douglas has not produced like I hoped through two games with three catches for 6 yards and a touchdown on eight targets, and you can drop him in most leagues heading into Week 3 against Pittsburgh. … Legette has 15 targets in the first two games of the season, but he’s combined for four catches for 8 yards. There’s no reason to roster him heading into Week 3 in the majority of leagues.
Add in this order:
Week 3 Waiver Priority List
Injuries: George Kittle (hamstring), Brock Bowers (knee), Evan Engram (calf), Isaiah Likely (foot), and Darren Waller (hip).
Check to see if available in shallow leagues: Kyle Pitts (69 percent rostered), Dalton Kincaid (66 percent), and Jake Ferguson (66 percent). Pitts was great in Week 1 with seven catches for 59 yards on eight targets against Tampa Bay, and he would benefit in a major way if Drake London (shoulder) and Darnell Mooney (shoulder) were out in Week 2 at Minnesota. … Kincaid got off to a good start in Week 1 against Baltimore with four catches for 48 yards and a touchdown on four targets. Hopefully, he can stay healthy and have a breakout season in 2025. … Ferguson had a quiet game in Week 1 with five catches for 23 yards on six targets, but he should continue to be involved with Dak Prescott and remains a low-end starter in all leagues heading into Week 2 against the Giants.
Drop candidates: Darren Waller. It was a good week for tight ends, so there’s not a lot of guys to move on from as of now. Waller didn’t play in Week 1 at Indianapolis, and we don’t know when he’ll be ready to go. Given the options on the waiver wire, anyone counting on Waller should find a replacement prior to Week 2.
Add in this order:
Week 3 Waiver Priority List
DST streamers
- Chiefs (46 percent rostered) at NYG
- Seahawks (43 percent rostered) vs. NO
- Buccaneers (40 percent rostered) vs. NYJ
- Colts (12 percent rostered) at TEN
Kicker streamers
- Spencer Shrader (41 percent rostered) at TEN
- Chris Boswell (63 percent rostered) at NE
- John Parker Romo (1 percent rostered) at CAR
- Joey Slye (3 percent rostered) vs. IND
