What a week it was for rookie quarterbacks. When Cam Newton and Eli Manning were ruled out for Week 3, there wasn't a ton of hope for their replacements. But as we'll see, their fill-ins provided plenty of material for the 2019 Fantasy Football Week 4 Waiver Wire.
For a look at trends and targets from around the league, check out Noah Spurlock's Week 3 trends article.
And just because I want to see it again, here's last week's play of the week. After suffering finger, cheek, and shoulder injuries against the Jets, Josh Gordon came back onto the field and did this:
What a catch by @JOSH_GORDONXII! #GoPats #NYJvsNE
?: CBS
?: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app
Watch FREE on mobile: https://t.co/qnNxI5gZ8j pic.twitter.com/hkuimqxiF1— NFL (@NFL) September 22, 2019
According to NextGenStats, that catch had just a 15.8% chance of being caught, the third-lowest completion probability of any pass this season.
2019 Fantasy Football Week 4 Waiver Wire
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Quarterbacks
Daniel Jones, New York Giants (17% owned)
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When Manning got benched, there wasn't much hope for the Giants' offense. Owners even went as far as to start adding the Buccaneers defense. They were unable to hold the rookie down, as Jones produced the second-highest QB score in Week 3.
The Duke product did not look out of place in the NFL, completing 23-of-36 passes for 336 yards and two touchdowns. He added four carries for 28 yards and two more touchdowns.
To put into perspective how good he was, his first start produced 34.24 points. Baker Mayfield has 39.10 points through three games.
Jones and the Giants will take on the Redskins defense next week, who rank 28th in DVOA through two weeks.
Kyle Allen, Carolina Panthers (3% owned)
The other big Week 3 surprise was the performance of Kyle Allen. In relief of the injured Cam Newton, Allen came in and led the Panthers to their first win.
The second-year QB completed just 19 passes but threw for 261 yards and four touchdowns. Unlike Newton, Allen was able to make use of his top playmakers.
Greg Olsen looked like his old self, catching six passes for 75 yards and two touchdowns. Curtis Samuel and D.J. Moore were each on the receiving end of a TD pass, something Newton was unable to provide.
Cam has already been ruled out for Week 4, so Allen will get another start against the Texans. Houston's defense has allowed 300 yards and multiple touchdown passes in two of their three games, making Allen a low-end QB1 streamer this week.
Other Options: Jacoby Brissett (20% owned), Mason Rudolph (12% owned)
Running Backs
Wayne Gallman, New York Giants (6% owned)
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Unfortunately for Saquon Barkley owners, the All-Pro will be out for 4-8 weeks with a high ankle sprain.
Fortunately for Barkley owners, the Giants reinvigorated offense will move forward with one workhorse running back instead of a committee.
While Gallman isn't the most inspiring option available, but he did take every backfield touch after Barkley suffered his injury. He didn't do much with the touches, (five carries, 13 yards) but is in line for a bell-cow role moving forward.
Gallman does get an easy matchup with the Redskins next week, who have allowed the second-most rushing yards in the league, only behind Miami.
Jamaal Williams, Green Bay Packers (9% owned)
It was nearly a nightmare scenario for Aaron Jones owners last week. The presumed starter rushed just 10 times while Williams took received 12 carries.
Williams was also far more efficient with his carries, rushing for 59 yards while Jones gained just 19. The latter saved his day with a pair of touchdowns but the nearly even split in touches is concerning.
Head coach Matt LaFleur made good on his wish to even out touches between the two and should continue to split the carries moving forward.
Other Options: Chris Thompson (41% owned), Rex Burkhead (25% owned)
Wide Receivers
Phillip Dorsett, New England Patriots (32% owned)
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Dorsett looks to be the main beneficiary of Antonio Brown getting cut. Without Brown in Week 1, Dorsett caught four passes for 94 yards and two touchdowns. The former-Colt repeated his excellent performance in Week 3, catching six of seven targets for 53 yards and a touchdown.
Dorsett is now entrenched as the third receiver on the Patriots depth chart behind the suddenly banged-up pair of Gordon and Julian Edelman.
The Patriots have looked nearly unstoppable (against three 0-3 teams) and any consistent parts of their offense should be owned.
Golden Tate, New York Giants (37% owned)
Tate is the third and final Giant's player on the list, promise.
The slot-receiver hasn't played a game this year, thanks to a four-game suspension. When he returns, Tate will come back to a reinvigorated Giants offense and will get all the targets he can handle.
New York will lean on the passing game more often without Barkley. From 2014-2017, Tate averaged a finish of WR16, making him a rock-solid WR2.
With just one more week before he returns from his suspension, owners with bench room should add the former Lion to avoid burning a waiver spot on him prior to Week 5.
Other Options:Â Mecole Hardman (49% owned), D.J. Chark (41% owned), Dante Pettis (23% owned)
Tight Ends
Vernon Davis, Washington Redskins (20% owned)
The veteran makes his second appearance on the list after the news that Jordan Reed could retire following the slow recovery from his concussion.
Davis has received consistent targets from Case Keenum, seeing 15 through three games. The Redskins will play most games from behind, giving him plenty of opportunities to put up garbage time stats.
Earlier this year in Philadelphia, Davis showed he still has the athleticism to contribute to fantasy teams.
Jack Doyle, Indianapolis Colts (19% owned)
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Doyle has seen his targets increase every week since the start of the season. In the Colts' offensive explosion Doyle had his best game of the season, catching four passes for 46 yards.
Jacoby Brissett is coming into his own as the starter and the entire Colts' offense is starting to click.
Doyle is probably due for a poor outing here and there thanks to the threat of Eric Ebron in the red zone. However, Doyle is usually productive when healthy and should produce in a nice matchup against Oakland next week.
Other Options:Â Will Dissly (46% owned)
Deep League Special
Preston Williams, Miami Dolphins (3% owned)
Let's face it, the Dolphins are going to be down in a lot of games and Williams looked like the favorite target of new quarterback Josh Rosen.
Williams was peppered with 12 targets, catching four of them for 68 yards. It would have been a much bigger day if he hadn't dropped a 15-yard touchdown in the second quarter.
Trusting any player in the Dolphins offense is a tall task, but owners in deep leagues can take a flier on the Miami wideout as a WR4/FLEX option.
Check out the rest of our 2019 Fantasy Football content from our great team of writers.
