Fantasy Football Waiver Wire power rankings, Week 4: Jauan Jennings, Bucky Irving and Braelon Allen shine

Each week during the 2024 NFL season, FanSided fantasy football expert Lior Lampert creates a hierarchy of ideal waiver wire pickups. He'll base his ranks on performance, usage, coachspeak, injury news/analysis, stats, upcoming matchups, FAAB value and more. Every player mentioned is available in at least 50 percent of Yahoo fantasy leagues.

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire power rankings, Week 4

Week 3 was wacky and threw fantasy football managers for a loop. Chuba Hubbard finished as the PPR RB4, looking like the focal point of the reborn Carolina Panthers offense under veteran quarterback Andy Dalton's guidance. Dallas Goedert went from being borderline unplayable in most formats to the league's top-scoring tight end, largely because of injuries to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Remember when people were concerned about Derrick Henry's fantasy outlook after his first game with the Baltimore Ravens? We don't either. That feels like a distant memory, especially after he ran wild for 174 scrimmage yards and two touchdowns against the Dallas Cowboys. The King perpetually defies Father Time and repeatedly shows age is merely a number.

Speaking of Dalton and the Panthers, the "Red Rifle" is a name to monitor moving forward. He became the only player in the NFL this season with 300-plus yards and three touchdowns through the air in a single game. It's a small sample size, so we'll wait and see his follow-up performance before including him below.

Dumpster diving, digging for scraps

Daniel Jones has quietly been the QB10 over the past two weeks. What's fascinating is he's done most of the damage with his arm, throwing for multiple touchdown passes in consecutive contests. Is rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers' presence enough to make us change our calculus on the New York Giants passer? The rushing will come in time, considering he's rushed at least five times in every game, and the dual-threat prowess is a Konami code.

Speaking of the Giants passing attack, Wan'Dale Robinson has scored at least 9.8 PPR points in New York's first three 2024 outings. He sees eight targets per game, as many as star wideouts like D.K. Metcalf, Stefon Diggs and CeeDee Lamb. While Nabers rightfully commands most of the attention, the 2022 second-round selection is heavily involved as an underneath option for Jones.

The stash-and-save

Ty Chandler shouldn't be sitting on zero waiver wires, let alone be available in over 60 percent of Yahoo leagues. Week 3 was the Aaron Jones show, but the Minnesota Vikings continue giving their change-of-pace back healthy amounts of opportunity and reps. He's among the strongest contingency plans in fantasy and has a decent enough workload to carve out standalone value.

Through three weeks, Chicago Bears incumbent starting running back D'Andre Swift has averaged a measly 1.8 yards per carry on 37 totes. He looks like one of the worst offseason free agency signings, paving the way for Roschon Johnson to emerge. The latter logged a season-high 37 percent snap rate, which led to 12 touches and leading the team in rushing. With Travis Homer headed to injured reserve, there's suddenly one less mouth to feed in this crowded (albeit lackluster) backfield.

Anthony Richardson has typically struggled throwing to the short/intermediate areas of the field, which is where Josh Downs thrives. Nevertheless, the Indianapolis Colts slot man tied Michael Pittman for the team lead in targets (five) and ran routes early and often. As he gets further removed from the high-ankle sprain he suffered in training camp, the 23-year-old has PPR relevancy in his future.

The educated guesses

Tyler Conklin continues to have strong underlying usage that will eventually translate to fantasy production, as we saw in Week 3. He caught five of his six targets for 93 yards. No pass-catcher has yet to firmly establish themselves as Aaron Rodgers' No. 2 receiving option. Unless you believe Allen Lazard can maintain his flukey touchdown rampage, the veteran seam stretcher could fill that role.

Sitting at 3-0, Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin has no choice but to stick with quarterback Justin Fields under center. Right? The former first-round pick is playing arguably his best football as a pro, and it finally yielded fantasy points, finishing as Week 3's QB11. With at least six carries in his first three starts this season, the rushing volume provides a valuable combination of floor and ceiling.

Cole Kmet has seen his snap and target shares increase weekly since the start of the year. He caught a whopping 10 of his 11 targets for 97 yards and a touchdown in Chicago's loss to the Colts. However, Caleb Williams won't attempt 52 passes every game, but that may not matter if Keenan Allen's heel injury continues to sideline him.

The 'if you ain't first, you're last'

Najee Harris was spotted wearing a sling on his right arm, and Jaylen Warren got an MRI on his knee after Pittsburgh's Week 3 win. The Steelers' top two running backs are ostensibly banged up, potentially thrusting Cordarrelle Patterson into a three-down workhorse role. Managers needing immediate, short-term help at the position would be wise to prioritize the veteran journeyman in waivers this week.

Given that Jordan Love was relatively close to suiting up in Week 3, we'd expect the Green Bay Packers signal-caller back sooner rather than later. His return bodes well for Romeo Doubs and the team's entire offensive environment, who has a proven rapport with the talented gunslinger.

Sam Darnold has been the fourth-best quarterback in fantasy through three weeks. Still, he can be had in 70 percent of Yahoo leagues. What more must people see? Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell is an offensive mastermind and wide receiver Justin Jefferson is transcendent, so maintaining a QB1 pace feels more than sustainable.

Gotta have 'em

Cam Akers, RB, Houston Texans

Akers' fantasy day was saved by an eight-yard touchdown reception in Week 3. Regardless, Joe Mixon, Houston's starting running back, is reportedly considered "week-to-week." Meanwhile, Dameon Pierce has missed the past two games with an ankle ailment and didn't seem particularly close to returning versus the Vikings.

The Texans backfield being as wide-open as it is sans Mixon locks Akers into a sizeable amount of touches. In a blowout loss where the game script got wonky virtually immediately, the latter saw 11 opportunities. Despite their remarkable trio of receivers and the arm talent of C.J. Stroud, Houston strives for a balanced offensive attack.

Braelon Allen, RB, New York Jets

Allen has seen his touch and yardage counts increase weekly. He's no threat to Breece Hall as the lead option in the Jets backfield, but the 20-year-old has been impressively efficient. His 5.1 yards per carry ranks near the top of the NFL, earning Pro Football Focus' top rushing grade (90.0) thus far. Moreover, he's seen at least three targets in back-to-back contests, demonstrating his versatility out of the backfield.

While it's hard to trust Allen in lineups, he's done enough to merit deep-league FLEX consideration. But he becomes a set-and-forget top-10(ish) fantasy running back if Hall is ever hurt. The upside is too much to ignore, making him one of (if not) the premier bench stashes in football.

Bucky Irving, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Irving has been featured in this section of the column every week, and that won't change until his Yahoo rostership exceeds 50 percent. He's been the far superior runner compared to his counterpart, Rachaad White -- they're averaging 6.2 and 2.1 yards per carry, respectively. Following Tampa Bay's stunning Week 3 loss to the Denver Broncos, head coach Todd Bowles said the rookie tailback has "earned more reps." This could (and should) be the last call to hop on the bandwagon.

Jauan Jennings, WR, San Francisco 49ers

Jennings scoring 46.5 PPR points in Week 3 wasn't on anyone's bingo card, and reasonably so. The 27-year-old caught 11 of his 12 targets for 175 receiving yards and three touchdowns. He stepped in for the injured Deebo Samuel and became a one-man wrecking crew for a depleted 49ers offense without Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle. We know at least two of the three mentioned studs will be out again in Week 4 (and presumably beyond), making him a near must-start.

When the Niners give Jennings extended playing time, he usually rewards them. He'll continue doing so as Brandon Aiyuk works himself into game shape after missing most of training camp due to contract negotiations.