Target These Pickups To Combat Injuries To Your Fantasy Football Team

Our squads are hurt, and seemingly every player is injured.

But there’s no time to sit around and lick our wounds.

Instead, let’s pull ourselves up by the bootstraps and hit the waiver wire …

QB: Jayden Daniels (elbow) > Marcus Mariota

Cupps take: “Last season, in his seven starts without Daniels, he averaged 17.4 FPPG. This would have put him as the QB14 last year.”

Pete spin: You probably can do better in shallow leagues, but Mariota is a solid pickup in deep formats like our Guillotine Leagues™. I don’t love the matchup vs. the Seahawks in Week 3, but he then gets back-to-back home games against the Colts and Giants.

RB: Jadarian Price (shoulder) > Emanuel Wilson

Cupps take: “When Price exited late with an injury, this backfield was nearly all Wilson …Wilson: 21 carries / 92 rush yd / 20.5 expected fantasy points (RB5 pending MNF).”

Pete spin: I thought George Holani was going to have this role, but it’s clearly Wilson, who now has seven red-zone carries on the year. He’s a must-add while we wait on the severity of this Price injury. If Price misses, Wilson would offer a nice spot start vs. the Commanders this week.

RB: JK Dobbins > Jonah Coleman

Cupps take: “Coleman was the primary beneficiary after Dobbins left the game early with a hamstring injury, carrying the ball 10 times for 39 yards and a touchdown, along with 3 receptions for 19 yards.”

Pete spin: The only knock on Coleman heading into the year was that he likely needed an injury to be relevant. Well, now that both Dobbins and RJ Harvey are banged up, he has a clear runway to production. If he’s available in one of your leagues, I’d go pretty hard with the bid. The Broncos have one of the best O-lines, and Coleman has a three-down skill set.

TE: Charlie Kolar (arm) / David Njoku (knee) > Oronde Gadsden

With both Kolar and Njoku going on IR on Monday, Gadsden becomes a must-add for anyone hurting at the TE position.

He ran routes on 15 of Justin Herbert’s 31 dropbacks and scored a TD. The talent has never been the question for Gadsden; it’s just been the opportunity. They might have no choice but to feature him going forward.

TE: Dallas Goedert (knee) > Zach Ertz

Goedert is going to miss a few weeks with a sprained MCL.

I know you want me to recommend the rookie Eli Stowers, but the real answer is Zach Ertz—who just signed with the Eagles practice squad and is expected to be promoted for their game on MNF vs. the Bears. He can definitely do the Darren Waller thing.

I only focused on the injury-related adds, so make sure you check out the full waiver wire piece. It includes two must-add WRs who absolutely shouldn’t be on any waivers …

FULL WEEK 3 WAIVER WIRE & FAAB ADVICE

How About Some Peace Of Mind?

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Around the Watercooler

It’s on to Week 3, and your favorite football nerds are back and bringing you the latest news, content and memes from the NFL universe …

😎 If you have Davante Adams, always remember the 21st night of September.

🙏 Update on Jaxson Dart. Prayer circle starting in NY.

👀 Malik Nabers shouldered a load on Monday. He did what?

❤️ Stream this QB? You just might love it.

💧 Is this player going from “generational talent” … to a drop?

🔔 RB surprise: Going from bench to bell cow?

🙌 Can these WR get you through an injury pinch? Possible.

📈 A quartet of players moving up and down in the dynasty rankings. Who’s rising?

🏞️ Former stud RB still has some juice. Streamable?

🤔 Maybe time to buy Drake London? His QB is about to return.

🙏 The Vikings get their QB back. Tyfys Mr. Wentz.

🎯 A couple TEs are on the cusp of something big. Target them.

🤢 This does not sound good for Alec Pierce. Woof.

💍 In case you forgot who Taylor Swift is married to … there ya go.

🛒 The Caleb Williams memes have been flowing … pretty good.

😆 He needs a new color of pants … lol.

🎁 This rookie RB could be the gift that keeps on giving.

The Number 1 Utilization Takeaway From Week 2 Is …

Parker Washington Climbs To Low-End WR1 Territory

Through two games, Washington ranks as the WR11 with 18.1 PPG. Over that span, he ranks second in the NFL with a 38% target share, trailing only Jaxon Smith-Njigba. He ranks one spot ahead of Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Those two players get elite utilization by playing all over the formation, which is what we are seeing from Washington to start the 2026 campaign. Washington has aligned from the slot on 54% of snaps and been in motion at the snap 14% of pass plays.

And Washington isn't your typical slot WR. He is pushing downfield and gobbling up air yards. He leads the team with 134 per game (50%). He ranks third in the NFL in air yards per game.

We also saw a big bump in route participation in Week 2, with Washington climbing to an elite 90%.

We can't guarantee the 90% will hold every week, but it is within his range of outcomes. Brian Thomas Jr. (shoulder) and Jakobi Meyers (thumb) were dealing with injuries in Week 2. They had route shares of 74% and 88%, respectively.

The Jaguars want to use their two-TE sets this year. They rank third in 12 personnel (32%), and Washington has an 83% route share in that grouping. That is a positive development given we were uncertain if he would rotate off in heavy sets.

Washington's historical Utilization Score comparisons have averaged 16.6 PPG, with 70% securing a top-12 season.

WR1 to WR6 season: 19%
WR7 to WR12 season: 51%
WR13 to WR18 season: 17%
WR19 to WR25 season: 9%

» Washington UPGRADES to low-end WR1 status and will climb inside the top six if we consistently get a route share in the 88-92% range.

THE FULL UTILIZATION REPORT FOR WEEK 3

Defense (DST) Streamers To Target For Week 3

Last week didn't produce fireworks as the prior week did, but we still had plenty of fun games, including several upsets of heavy favorites. We also had several notable injuries, with Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels set to miss extended time. This impacts the defense (DST) landscape, because their opponents will be more attractive streaming options when facing backup QBs. Their Week 3 opponents (Philadelphia and Seattle) do not qualify for this article, but moving forward, those may be offenses we target based on the play for Tyson Bagent and Marcus Mariota.

Let's look ahead to the best defense (DST) streamers for Week 3 fantasy football.

Green Bay Packers - 23% Rostered

I wrote about Green Bay last week, but they remain well below the 50% threshold, so they are my top defense to spotlight this week. They delivered a solid performance against the Jets, scoring five fantasy points, primarily thanks to the four sacks they recorded. They now face the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday Night Football. Atlanta has been one of the worst offenses in the NFL through two weeks and just benched Cooper Rush for undrafted rookie Jack Strand. Those two just combined for a miserable 129 passing yards, three turnovers and three sacks taken.

There is a chance that Michael Penix could start this game, which would change the recommendation, but if anyone else is at QB, then the Packers are a priority streaming option. Since this is the Thursday night game, this is the rare situation where you could roster two defenses and cut one on Thursday depending on who is starting at QB for Atlanta. You could also just cut Green Bay for another streaming defense if needed.

MORE WEEK 3 DST STREAMERS

Week 2 Overreaction: What Do I Do At QB?

If you haven’t considered another hobby other than fantasy football over the past weekend, you either have a healthy QB or you play in a six-team league where your backup is Trevor Lawrence. Kendall and Pete are joined by former NFL OC Scott Turner, as they break down all the latest NFL happenings impacting fantasy football. Catch all the episodes on the Fantasy Life Show YouTube channel by subscribing today.

REPLACEMENT OPTIONS ON THE WAIVER WIRE

Published Sep 22, 2026, 6:00 AM ET