Week 6 of the regular NFL season is in the books and fantasy owners are looking for bye week and/or injury replacements. We bring you our weekly list of players who might be potential waiver wire busts or who have downside. Some of these players may appear in our waiver wire suggestions but this list is designed to simply point out factors that could impact or limit their production.
Fantasy football waiver wire; Week 7: Hot players with potential downside
It’s Week 7 and fantasy owners have entered bye week mania looking to add replacements to their rosters. There are many players who are hot on the waiver wire lists who could have some potential downside. We bring you the top five list.
WR Jarrett Boykin, Green Bay Packers
With the loss of Randall Cobb to a fractured fibula, Boykin steps into his shoes and will certainly benefit from the number of snaps and targets he will see. Unfortunately, he didn't look very good after Cobb went down Sunday and only managed to snag one of six targets catch for 43 yards. James Jones has a chance to play this week but Boykin would still see the field in 3 wide receiver sets. Boykin is worth a look in deep leagues or as a low end start but could struggle to put up big numbers despite the increased workload.
WR Rueben Randle, New York Giants
Randle has a ton of upside and posted some good stats on Sunday but he also struggles at times and has been the target on the majority of Eli Manning’s interceptions this year. While not uncommon for young players to struggle in their adjustment to the NFL, running the wrong routes at this stage is a worrisome trend and should be watched. Still, he will continue to get targets and the talent means he is definitely worth a pickup and play in the majority of leagues.
RB Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants
David Wilson hasn't been very good and is now out with a neck injury. He won't require surgery but he has definitely struggled this year. Andre Brown and Da'Rell Scott are also out with injuries so enter Brandon Jacobs who now becomes the starter in the Giants backfield. Jacobs had a nice game in Week 6 against the Chicago Bears with 22 carries for 106 yards and two touchdowns but bear in mind the Giants offensive line has been one of the worst in the league this year though it did grade out much better lately. This is Jacobs' first 100+ yard rushing game since December 11, 2011, when he rushed for 101 yards and two touchdowns against the Dallas Cowboys. The 31-year-old running back will get plenty of carries but it is difficult to believe he can continue to produce at this level.
WR Percy Harvin, Seattle Seahawks
Harvin is getting healthy and is close to playing, though it isn't likely he will play until Week 8 or 9. Harvin is a hot commodity on waiver wire lists and can certainly be a playmaker either lined up at receiver or from the backfield. What role he will play in the Seahawks run heavy offense remains to be seen and there is certain to be an adjustment period to his new offense. Russell Wilson is a run first quarterback who is only averaging a little over 16 completions per game. He also averages a little over 8 carries per game and is the Seahawks second leading rusher. Golden Tate leads the Seahawks in receiving with 23 receptions for 269 yards and one touchdown. No Seahawks wide receiver has more than two touchdowns on the year.
With Julio Jones out for the year with a broken foot, his backup Harry Douglas becomes a hot commodity on the waiver wire list. Douglas is Jones' backup and with Roddy White also injured and mostly ineffective Douglas will see his targets increase. Reports about Douglas being Matt Ryan's go to guy in the red zone are encouraging but Douglas has also struggled to produce at times. Douglas has played primarily in the left slot position this season but in Week 3 against the Miami Dolphins he played outside left. He was targeted four times, caught two passes and finished with a catch rate of 25%. In Week 5 against the Jets he was targeted four times with two catches and finished with a catch rate of 50%. The past two years his catch rate has been good but in 2010 his catch rate was 42%. Still, he is going to get plenty of targets and should be owned in all leagues.
