Fantasy Football Week 2 waiver wire pickups: Top 12 WR’s

Kelvin Benjamin. 1. player. 87. In week one, Benjamin shined despite not having Cam Newton under center. Derek Anderson found the rookie on six passes for 92 yards and a touchdown.  It’s obvious that Benjamin and Greg Olsen will be the focus of the Panthers passing game and should get plenty of targets going forward.  Newton should be able to use the former-Seminole as a big red zone threat as well giving him legitimate WR2 upside for the rest of the season.. 37.0% owned. Week 2 vs Lions

player. 55. The Steelers lost Emmanuel Sanders this offseason and Mike Wallace the previous year leaving Antonio Brown starting across from no proven options coming into this season.  Wheaton looks like he’s the answer to the Steelers #2 WR question after an impressive week one finishing with 97 yards on six catches.  The Steelers offense was uneven throughout the game, but Wheaton showed enough of a connection with Big Ben Roehtlisberger that he’s a flex consideration with upside on a weekly basis.. 29.4% owned. Week 2 @ Ravens. Markus Wheaton. 2

3. player. 28. If you can’t get Benjamin or Wheaton, there’s a big drop off to the rest of these options since they are much less “sure-thing” and much more potential.  Streater starts the list after a solid opener for the Raiders working with new QB Derek Carr.  Streater led the team in targets, catches, and yards with five catches for 46 yards and a touchdown.  Carr and Streater have shown a solid connection in their limited time together and Streater could be well on his way to being the top receiver in Oakland.  He has enough upside that he should be owned in PPR leagues. . 4.3% owned. Week 2 vs Texans. Rod Streater

Week 2 vs Saints. Andrew Hawkins. 4. player. 53. Hawkins led the Browns in targets drawing 10 passes his way.  He finished with eight catches for 87 yards, and he is worth a look in PPR leagues based on the fact that he’ll continue to get plenty of targets until Josh Gordon returns.  If Gordon does get reinstated, Hawkins value will drop dramatically, but he’s worth a look in the interim for as long as Gordon is sidelined.. 9.2% owned

52. While Allen Hurns provided the big plays in the Jacksonville passing game, it will most likely be Lee who emerges as a better long-term fantasy option.  Lee will be the team’s top option while Cecil Shorts is sidelined and will continue to start when Shorts is on the field.  Hurns is worth a look, but he’s further down this list since I think the rookie out of USC will have a bigger season when all is said and done.  Lee finished week one with six catches for 62 yards and is in a better place to keep getting targets while Hurns has big-play but also big-bust potential.. 8.4% owned. Week 2 @ Redskins. Marqise Lee. 5. player

Robert Woods. 6. player. 16. With Sammy Watkins working his way into the Bills offense, Woods emerged as EJ Manuel’s favorite target with six passes his way four of which he converted to catches totaling 78 yards.  Woods is in line for plenty of work going forward, and is worth a look especially in PPR leagues.  He doesn’t have the home run potential of Sammy Watkins, but the amount of targets he receives will make him a low-risk, low-ceiling option in the Bills surprsingly effective offense (at least for week 1).. 1.5% owned. Week 2 vs Dolphins

0.5% owned. Week 2 @ Buccaneers. Brian Quick. 7. player. 51. The Rams offense did not look good on Sunday as they were dominated by the Minnesota Vikings.  The one redeemable piece in this attack may be their top receiver who appears to be Brian Quick.  The Rams will probably find themselves playing catch-up often and there may be garbage time stats for whoever draws the targets from either Shaun Hill or Austin Davis.  On Sunday, he turned his nine targets into seven catches for 99 yards.  He will be limited by his struggling offense, but could be a decent flex play if he continues to be their #1 option.

28.7% owned. Week 2 vs Texans. James Jones. 8. player. 28. Jones is still the receiver on the Raiders that I think has the most upside long-term once the Raiders give Derek Carr the freedom to take more shots down the field.  Rod Streater thrives on the underneath routes which is why he had a better game Sunday, but Jones is the better vertical threat.  He did score a touchdown on Sunday against the Jets along with three catches and 34 yards.  Jones will be fantasy relevant later in the season, but he may be behind Streater for the next couple of weeks as Carr eases into the playbook.

player. 47. Thompkins was targeted ten times in the Patriots loss to Miami even though he only finished with five catches and 37 yards.  Gronk was targeted 11 times, but no one else got more attention from Tom Brady than Thompkins.  He has potential to be a receiver worth owning as long as he stays in the oft-targeted role, but Bill Belichick changes his gameplan every week so be ready for inconsistent production if you add him to your receiving corps.. 2.4% owned. Week 2 @ Vikings. Kenbrell Thompkins. 9

Week 2 @ Redskins. Allen Hurns. 10. player. 52. Hurns exploded onto the fantasy football radar with four catches for 110 yards and a pair of scores by halftime of the Jags first game of the season against the Eagles.  Unfortunately for Jacksonville and Hurns, he was shut out in the second half and finished with those totals for the day.  His totals were good enough to make him the #2 receiver in non-PPR leagues trailing only Calvin Johnson in total points.  However, I am not as high on Hurns going forward since his role in the Jags attack isn’t that large, and he’ll be pushed to the third WR spot once Cecil Shorts returns.  Hurns proved he had big play potential, but I don’t see him realizing that potential often enough to be a weekly option worth owning outside of the deepest of leagues.. 19.8% owned

player. 31. Jernigan drew a lot of Eli Manning’s dump off looks on Monday Night against the Lions drawing seven targets, one more than Victor Cruz and four more than Reuben Randle.  Jernigan caught four of those passes for 25 yards, and he could develop into a PPR option depending on how his role changes and the Giants offense progresses. The potential for fantasy value is there.. 0.2% owned. Week 2 vs Cardinals. Jerrel Jernigan. 11

Week 2 vs Colts. Jordan Matthews. 12. player. 54. Matthews is a pick based on potential who could be a gamble that pays off big time if his role increases.  Matthews is the third WR on the Eagles who throw the ball a lot in Chip Kelly’s scheme. On Sunday, he caught a pair of passes for 37 yards on four targets outperforming #2 WR Riley Cooper.  The real value with Matthews, though, will come if either Cooper or Jeremy Maclin are sidelined making Matthews an instant flex option with upside.. 19.8% owned