Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Stashes to Target Ahead of Week 2 (Ep. 1693)

Summary

FantasyPros Fantasy Football Podcast Episode: Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Stashes to Target Ahead of Week 2 (Ep. 1693) Date: September 8, 2025 Featuring: Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia), Jake Seeley (The Athletic)

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Overview

This episode delivers rapid-fire, actionable advice on the best waiver wire pickups and stash candidates for Week 2 of the fantasy football season. Hosts Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia) and Jake Seeley cut through the noise of Week 1's overreactions, discussing both widely available players and deeper league fliers. The focus is weighted toward injuries, player opportunity, and strategic stashing, all with the classic FantasyPros mix of humor and banter.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Hollywood Brown: Immediate WR Pickup with a Ticking Clock

• Situation: Xavier Worthy injury opens up opportunity; Hollywood Brown posted 99 yards on 16 targets, 10 catches in Week 1.
• Availability: Rostered in only 31% of Sleeper leagues.
• Analysis:
  • Brown is an essential waiver pickup for immediate WR help, especially for those who lost Worthy or are thin at the position.
  • Caveat: His long-term value is uncertain due to health history and the upcoming return of Rashee Rice; pick up and possibly try to “flip” him after another good game.
• Quote:

  "If you need wide receiver health, you have to get [Hollywood Brown]. If you had Xavier Worthy, you have to get him...But...understand it's a limited value. So if you are in a league with some inexperienced people, try to flip them."
  – Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia), [02:24]

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2. Cedric Tillman: High-Upside WR Stash

• Situation: Coming off a strong Week 1 (five catches, 52 yards, TD), 34% rostered.
• Analysis:
  • Significant talent and big-play upside; could outscore Jerry Jeudy this season, especially with Flacco favoring him.
  • Less competition for targets in the intermediate/deep game; tight ends (like Fannin) may cannibalize the shorter-range targets from players like Jeudy but leave Tillman’s role intact.
• Quote:

  "If we got to the end of the year and Cedric Tillman had more fantasy points than Jerry, Judy...it would be a surprise to a lot of people, but it wouldn't be shocking."
  – Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia), [04:17]

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3. Quentin Johnston: Big Splash, Tempered Expectations

• Situation: Only 9% rostered, broke out in Week 1 with 7 targets, 5 catches, and 2 TDs.

• Analysis:

  • Don't overspend chasing the splash game; there’s competition from Keenan Allen, Lad McConkey, and rookie Trey Harris. Chargers may not be as pass-heavy in coming weeks.
  • Still of interest in deeper leagues given first-round draft capital and possible third-year breakout.

• Quotes:

  "We've seen this before. We've seen the Splash game from Quentin Johnson...is this the trap of week one that people are going to fall in and wish they never spent a dime on Quentin Johnson?"
  – Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia), [07:31]

  "Johnston, can he be like Tillman, a wide receiver? Four. Yeah, but...this is still going to go through lad McConkey, Keenan Allen's still going to be a factor."
  – Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia), [12:38]

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4. Trey Benson: Must-Stash RB with Season-Long Upside

• Situation: Only 54% rostered (even less on Yahoo, 39%), flashed in Week 1 for the Cardinals.
• Analysis:
  • Prime stash as James Conner ages out and Benson's share of the offense grows; standalone flex appeal expected soon.
  • One of the top 2–3 handcuff RBs with highest league-winning upside if the starter goes down.
• Quote:

  "Trey Benson could find his way into some of your lineups. And then, of course, the appeal as we know is...if we did a top five handcuffs show right now...Trey Benson would probably be...pushing for that number one spot."
  – Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia), [15:05]

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5. Juwan Johnson: Tight End Flier for Deeper Leagues

• Situation: Only 5% rostered, clear TE1 for Saints with several WR injuries and Taysom Hill banged up.
• Analysis:
  • High snap percentage and strong target volume from Spencer Rattler in Week 1.
  • Solid emergency/bye-week TE while Saints' WR corps is wounded.
• Quote:

  "He was out there like 90% of the time. And who targeted him? The ton – Spencer Rattler...as long as Rattler is at quarterback and...he's basically the [Saints'] number two [weapon]."
  – Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia), [17:51]

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6. Bonus/Deep League Stashes

• Jaden Higgins (Texans, WR) – Led team in yards (32) as a rookie starter; deep league dart throw.
  [19:32]
• Alec Alumanna (Titans, WR) – Already the No. 2 in Tennessee, another rookie worth a bench slot in desperate situations.
  [19:32]
• Kenneth Gainwell (RB, Steelers) – Involved in 50/50 split with Jalen Warren; not flashy, but worth a look if RB depth is depleted.
  [20:16]
• Caleb Johnson (RB, Steelers) – Expected to get more involved; watch-list candidate.
  [20:32]

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On the logic of stashing vs. flipping Hollywood Brown:

  "He is a ticking time bomb both by his health and Rashee Rice coming back."
  – Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia), [02:24]

• On rookie numbers in the NFL:

  "Dude, don't get me started on the numbers...When I see a wide receiver wearing the number four, it just pisses me off. I want you to wear 84."
  – Michael F. Florio, [05:51]

• On candy draft strategy (comic relief):

  "My house gave out the premium candy and I was out there walking miles for, like, candy that I didn't like. I could have just stayed at home."
  – Michael F. Florio, [07:17]

• Classic cautionary tale:

  "Is his name Kevin Ogletree is what you're asking. We're doing this again, for everybody that remembers 2012..."
  – Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia), [11:47]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Top Waiver Targets Overview: [00:38] – [03:29]
• Cedric Tillman Discussion: [03:29] – [05:32]
• Fun banter about numbers & candy: [05:32] – [07:26]
• Quentin Johnston Deep Dive: [07:26] – [13:21]
• Trey Benson Must-Stash RB Analysis: [13:21] – [16:13]
• Juwan Johnson/Deep TE discussion: [16:13] – [19:18]
• Rapid-Fire Deep League Stashes: [19:18] – [20:42]
• Wrap-Up and Closing Advice: [20:42] – [21:41]

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Key Takeaways

• Prioritize Hollywood Brown and Cedric Tillman for short-term and potential long-term WR help, but manage your expectations and waiver budget accordingly.
• Don’t overspend for one-week wonders like Quentin Johnston, but don’t ignore the possibility of elevated roles for rookies and breakout candidates.
• Trey Benson is the premier RB stash, especially if you play in more casual or shallow leagues where he’s undrafted.
• Juwan Johnson and the deep stashes mentioned are mainly for deep or TE-premium leagues desperate for upside.
• Adjust FAB bids based on your league's tendencies, and be ready to “flip” hot players when the time is right.
• Have fun—a little humor never hurts in fantasy football.

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For more waiver help, use the FantasyPros Waiver Wire Central tool and download the FantasyPros app.

Hosts: Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia) and Jake Seeley
Happy waiver hunting!

Transcript

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Matt Jones]

Hey, this is Matt Jones and I'm Drew Franklin and this is NFL Cover Zero. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different.

[Michael F. Florio]

Did you see the Colts pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game.

[Matt Jones]

What was that? Oh, my. We think NFL coverage should be informative and entertaining. And twice a week, that is exactly what you're going to get. Listen to NFL Cover 0 with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the iHeartRadio app podcast or wherever you get your podcast.

[Michael F. Florio]

Welcome in, everybody to fantasy Pros. This is the fantasy football podcast and it's me, Joey P. Joe P. Zapia. It's time to hit the waiver wire for week two, but we're going to hit it fast and we're going to get out. And that's what this is all about today. That's right. Waiver wire on the go express version. So get your pumpkin spice latte and get your athletics own Jake Sealey on the way out the door. Jake and I are going to go through some of the top five waiver wire pickups. And because, you know, we're just benevolent here, we're going to give you some extra bonus guys to think about as well. Jake. Cely. I know it's one of those weeks where, you know, you look up at the scoreboard. Week one, crazy things are always going on, but one of the things that always goes on is there's injuries and Xavier Worthy is going to be out for at least the short term we would imagine, or at least limited even in the best case scenario. So as of recording this Monday morning, you have to look to Hollywood Brown. He is rostered in 31% of leagues right now on sleeper. He's coming off a game where he had 99 yards, 16 targets and 10 receptions. So certainly the pivot point was very clear that Hollywood Brown was the next man up.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

It was. And I don't know if this was Travis Kelsey getting upset that Taylor Swift was excited about Xavier Worthy.

[Michael F. Florio]

Seen that meme? You seen that? It is funny.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Oh, yeah.

[Michael F. Florio]

You were excited about him. I'll show you.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

He saw him coming. Xavier didn't see Kelsey coming. I don't know if he assumed he was going to change routes, but Kelsey just bowled right through him.

[Michael F. Florio]

Well, you know what's funny, Jake? My daughter who plays football and she said, who do you think's wrong there? And I said, well, who's been in the offense for a decade? And she said, yeah, it's probably Worthy, he's probably somebody who saw the other.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Person Worthy wasn't looking.

[Michael F. Florio]

But you can't slow down a guy who's 6 5, you know, 250 against the guy who's, you know, he can't slow down. And if you're, you're supposed to go underneath, you don't go underneath.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Oh, you're trying to get. Yeah, whatever.

[Michael F. Florio]

I'm just saying you're standing on the tracks when the train's coming through, it's going to get ugly. And it did.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Well, if we're talking about health, I don't know that we can withstand much more health for Hollywood Brown, especially if he's going to be having 16 targets per week. But at least until she Rice gets back or he blows his hamstring or his calf or whatever because he's Hollywood Brown. I hate to say that, but. No, no, I joke and say that to say you have to get Hollywood Brown. If you need wide receiver health, you have to get him. If you had Xavier Worthy, you have to get him. He's like barely over 30% on sleeper. But all that being said is I think is also potentially one of those best case scenario, wide receiver, two threes that you potentially immediately flip. Like, I know a lot of people are like, oh, you just picked them off waivers. Of course you want to trade. I'm not going to give you anything for that. But if you are the most aggressive, don't go crazy. I wouldn't say spending 50% of your fab because it is a ticking time bomb both by his health and Rasheed Rice coming back. But if you're aggressive enough and you happen to win them and you have depth and maybe you wait one more week for another good game. But I'm just saying the point being here is when you do pick them up, you need them. Understand it's a limited value. So if you are in a league with some inexperienced people, try to flip them. Even if it's a pick them up and flip them.

[Michael F. Florio]

Yeah, I would agree. That's a very wise sentiment there. Let's get to the next guy on our list here. Coming at number two, 34% rostered. And as Jake said last week we did a show. These are the guys to stash before week one where it's going to cost you nothing. You pick them up for $0 in your fab budget and hopefully you listen to us. But if you didn't and he's still floating out there, Cedric Tillman is a guy you need to pick up for whatever reason. I don't know. Joe Flacco just doesn't like Jerry Judy, I guess. I don't know what's going on there, but Cedric Tillman has a lot of talent. He averaged 10.4 yards per reception, 52 receiving yards on five catches and a tutty. And he looked good doing it. Jake in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals. So again, we tried to get ahead of the curve last week, but if you didn't, there's still plenty of time because he's still available in almost 70% of leagues right now.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Yeah, that's the crazy thing about it. I understand. You know, people are like, well, is Joe Flacco going to be the quarterback all year? What is the Browns offense going to look like? Blah, blah, blah. The truth here is that forget all the other scenarios, just if. No matter who the quarterback is, if we got to the end of the season, and I don't remember if you and I talked about this or one of the 18,000 podcasts you and I are on, but the point being is, like I said, if we got to the end of the year and Cedric Tillman had more fantasy points than Jerry, Judy would be so shocked. Like, we would be falling out of our chairs. It would be a surprise to a lot of people, but it wouldn't be shocking. I think that's the difference here. And that's why we like Cedric Tillman, is there's more upside on a per catch basis too. Like, I do expect Judy to bounce back, but if you're talking about the upside any given week, I think Tillman's going to have the most on this team, especially if Flacco is not even going to be using Njoku as much as he was. Which, by the way, if you need a tight end stash, Fanon, I'm not going to roll him out there in week two just yet, but they're going to be using him on the underneath. But that's why I bring it up, because Fannin was doing. The whole concern that we've had for tight ends, like with the Giants and Wandell Robinson and Theo Johnson or other tight ends like that, where if they're Tyler Warren and Josh Downs, as we. Warren kind of ruined Downs with Daniel Jones, is that Fannin might ruin Jerry Judy because of what the usage is underneath. And in their intermediate game, Tillman doesn't have to worry about that. I think Tillman could be a wide receiver for the entire year.

[Michael F. Florio]

To Jake's point, if you're in deeper leagues, Fanning is a stash for Me just throwing that out there too. He looks like he could be the real deal. And that's what happens when you have kids who come to the NFL from small schools. Everyone goes, well, can you really play with this kind of competition? And then they show up and they play with that competition. Everyone goes, oh, wow, that's really interesting.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Plus, he's wearing a fullback number. What are you doing, dude?

[Michael F. Florio]

Dude, don't get me started on the numbers. It's still, you know, old man yelling at this guy. Still. I still hate it. I. When I see a wide receiver wearing the number four, it just pisses me off. I want you to wear 84. That's what I want you to do. I don't know what the hell position.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

I'll go that far.

[Michael F. Florio]

But.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

But at least the whole thing.

[Michael F. Florio]

I don't like it.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Like, Shahid with 22. Like, at least get a one in front of there or drop. Just be two. But fanning with running out there with 44, you're a fullback. That's like, why are you having a fullback number? And nobody's gonna give you your.

[Michael F. Florio]

Dallas Clark wore 44 something. Didn't he? Didn't he wear 44? Dallas Clark did it.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Was he 44?

[Michael F. Florio]

You know what? You Google that while I intro the next player, because I want to say Dallas Clark was something in the 40s back in the day.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

I think I might be right.

[Michael F. Florio]

Well, this is what happens. This is why you stick around for the show. This is why you subscribe.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

You are correct, sir.

[Michael F. Florio]

YouTube channel. Boom. Yeah. Dallas Clark. How's that for a poll? At 9:30, get a Swedish fish.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Congratulations.

[Michael F. Florio]

Gross. I don't even like those. All right, let's get to. No, I don't like candy. I'm a chocolate guy. That's chocolate cake and cookies. Candy. Halloween time. My house was always giving out the premium candy, like the Reese's peanut butter cups and the M and M actual bars. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Like. Like at least, like, the good ones. Like the. Like the little fun people are about to be.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

People are getting so mad at us right now. Oh, yeah.

[Michael F. Florio]

Oh, my God. They're talking about something else other than football. 30 seconds, Brad.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

I was in the store. I was in the store.

[Michael F. Florio]

Did you.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Did you notice that this year. So, like, there's a 70 count bag, 80 count 110. The higher the number in the bag, the worse the candy selection in the bag is.

[Michael F. Florio]

So you.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Like, if they're all the same price, it's just. They jump up the. Like, they're like, oh, here, have Whoppers and Milk Duds and all the crap that people pull out of their bag and try to throw it in somebody else's.

[Michael F. Florio]

Yeah, but that was my frustration, is that my house gave out the premium candy and I was out there walking miles for, like, candy that I didn't like. Yeah, I could. Just stayed at home. All right, let's talk about number three on our list. Don't worry. We're back, everybody. After a little sojourn. We're going to talk about, you know, it's spooky season, and it's always spooky when things come back. You know, we've had several Halloween movies. We've had a lot of Nightmare on Elm Streets. And we've also now got Quentin Johnston coming back again, who's coming back around 9% rostered. It was a day, seven targets, five receptions, not one, but two touchdowns. So I guess he realized that catching the football happens with your hands. Jake Seeley with your hands. What do you. Now, let's be honest here. Let's talk about fab for Quentin Johnson, because certainly that's. That line is going to make him very palatable and really interesting to a lot of people. But we've seen this before. We've seen the Splash game from Quentin Johnson. Keenan Allen is there. He was also very active in this game. Lad McConkey is always going to do his thing. You do have the rookie Trey Harris here. Is this the trap of week one that people are going to fall in and wish they never spent a dime on Quentin Johnson? Or are we going to see a different version of him motivated by the fact that he's got all this crowded stuff around him and his path to playing time is now harder.

[Matt Jones]

Hey, this is Matt Jones and I'm Drew Franklin, and this is NFL Cover Zero. We think NFL coverage should be informative and entertaining, and twice a week, that is exactly what you're gonna get. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different.

[Michael F. Florio]

Did you see the Colts pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game.

[Matt Jones]

What was that?

[Michael F. Florio]

Looks like something that should not be sold.

[Matt Jones]

Oh, my.

[Michael F. Florio]

So that was my other big Colts takeaway.

[Matt Jones]

They sold that.

[Michael F. Florio]

Yes.

[Matt Jones]

Might wanna go back to the Colts stadium.

[Michael F. Florio]

Yeah. Might wanna go back to the drawing board on that.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah. I thought the shape we had with.

[Michael F. Florio]

Pretzels was working pretty well.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

It's worked for generations.

[Matt Jones]

We're just here trying to enjoy it. We hope you all will join us throughout the year and let's go.

[Michael F. Florio]

I hope I'm as youthful as Pete.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Carroll is at his age.

[Michael F. Florio]

He's a young 73.

[Matt Jones]

He is a young 73. He is spry, I would say.

[Michael F. Florio]

I wouldn't fight him.

[Matt Jones]

I would listen NFL Cover Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast.

[Dan]

I'm Dan, he's Ty.

[Matt Jones]

Hello.

[Dan]

And we're the Solid Verbal College Football podcast.

[Ty]

College football season is here and you know what that means.

[Dan]

Your team is going to break your heart three times probably before Halloween.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Uh huh.

[Ty]

But fear not, the Solid Verbal will be right there with you through every soul crushing loss and impossible comeback.

[Dan]

Join us all season long, all year long, as we ride the rollercoaster of this ridiculous sport.

[Ty]

Whether you're a diehard fan or a casual observer, we'll help you make sense of all the chaos and of course, celebrate the madness. Tune in for previews, recaps, bits you won't hear anywhere else, and all the emotional support you need as a college football fan.

[Dan]

We don't just love college football, Ty, we love live it.

[Ty]

Listen to the Solid Verbal college football podcasts on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Honey German]

Hola, it's Honey German and my podcast, Gracias Come Again is back. This season we're going even deeper into the world of music and entertainment with raw and honest conversations with some of your favorite Latin artists and celebrities. You didn't have to audition.

[Matt Jones]

No, I didn't audition. I haven't auditioned like over 25 years.

[Honey German]

Oh wow. That's a real G talk right there.

[Michael F. Florio]

Oh yeah.

[Honey German]

We've got some of the biggest act actors, musicians, content creators and culture shifters sharing their real stories of failure and success. You were destined to be a star. We talk all about what's viral and trending with a little bit of Cheeseman, a lot of laughs, and those amazing Vivras you've come to expect. And of course, we'll explore deeper topics dealing with identity struggles and all the issues affecting our Latin community. You feel like you get a little whitewashed because you have to do the code switching.

[Michael F. Florio]

I won't say whitewash because at the end of the day, you know, I'm me. Yeah. But the whole pretending and coat, you know, it takes a toll on you.

[Honey German]

Listen to the new season of Grass has come again as part of Michael Tura Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcast.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

So is his name Kevin Ogletree is what you're asking. This is we're doing this again for Everybody that remembers 2012, Kevin Ogletree, the first week for the Cowboys, two touchdowns. I think he had one for the rest of the season. So yes, that is the risk. But third year breakout for people that want to chase that, I mean that could be a thing. But whatever the narratives that you want to chase with Johnston, here's the interesting thing is you brought up Kenan Allen, is that Kenan Allen was out there in three wide, Quentin Johnson stayed out there and two, Quentin Johnson ran almost as many routes as Lad McConkey and that's the real interest here. Look, don't go crazy with your fab. If somebody wants to throw 30, 40%, let them have them. But if you want to do some teens, you need a wide receiver. You don't want to go after Hollywood Brown because you know that's a ticking clock like we talked about and you want to be a little bit more aggressive. For Quentin Johnston, it's let some else have Brown. I'm okay with it. It's going to really depend on, you know, your league, you know, the people that you play with. That's why, you know, we talk fab all the time but you know how aggressive your teams spend, how early they spend, whether they try to be budget conscious or whatever it might be. But Johnston, can he be like Tillman, a wide receiver? Four. Yeah, but that's. I still only call him a wires here. 4 Because this is still going to go through lad McConkey, Keenan Allen's still going to be a factor. I do expect more games to be more run balanced. I don't expect the Chargers to go out there every single week and all of a sudden be pass happy like they were in week one. They're facing the chafes. So I think that you look at a lot of factors here and say, okay, let's understand Quentin Johnston. He is a first round draft capital talent and you know, maybe that was an overdraft but at the same time can he be a wide receiver for. Absolutely. And I think that's what your expectations should be. So if that means 12% of your budget, cool. Would I go 30? Probably not.

[Michael F. Florio]

Okay, let's get to the next guy on our list. Before we do, quick shout out to the sponsor of today's show, fantasy finance. Fantasy finance is like fantasy football but for financial markets. You can build virtual stock or crypto portfolio, lock it in and compete in skill based contests against other players or AI Winners earn prizes from entry pools and platform rewards. No real money is traded or invested. This is a strategy game designed for competition and education. Join their discord to join their closed beta right now. The link right now is in the description. Check it out again to join their discord at Fantasy finance today. Okay, moving on to the next guy on our list, a running back that look, we know he's probably rostered in most of the leagues you're playing in, but for those 10 team leagues or those casual leagues, if you're listening to we always like to throw out somebody like that like Quentin Johnson's 9% rostered. But Trey Benson of the Arizona Cardinals is 54 rostered and he had a great run yesterday. And this was a player that I know you were in on quite a bit going into the season and a lot of other sharp people were as well. Because the insight was, hey look, at some point this James Connor train at least slows down and at some point The Trey Benson one ramps up. It didn't happen last year, but 2025 starting new I know week one can be a bit of a weird situation where we see things that aren't necessarily the truth. They're illusions. But obviously you saw enough yesterday in Trey Benson to think this is a guy we have to have on rosters right now.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Absolutely. And you know, you said it more shallow leagues you might be in a 12 team league with only a four man bench. I know a lot of people play in those because they want to try and force action on the waiver wire and trades and stuff like that. But the point being is that this should be more 70, 80% rostered like including whatever kind of league you're in.

[Michael F. Florio]

Absolutely true. I was shocked that it was only 54 on Sleeper, so very active place.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

I was shocked and that's why I brought him up. And I know like you said a lot of people are probably like ah, not my league and good because he shouldn't be out there in your league. And that's the point and that's why Trey Benson's on this list and most of all the rest of them are under 35%. But we did want to bring him up. The big part about it is the interesting usage from week one points to this might be a Jordan Mason situation as differently like more like pass catching. But some opportunities where there is a world where Trey Benson has standalone value this year and that's the interesting part is if he's a Flex RB3 and yeah, you're not going to want to start him in a full teams 16 team, everybody's out there like this first week that we had. But on buys coming up as soon as week five rolls around, injuries start to creep up as they do every single year. Trey Benson could find his way into some of your lineups. And then of course the appeal as we know is he is. If we did a top five ranking show right now, you and me, Joe, and we said who are the top five handcuffs? Trey Benson would probably be inside the top if not even pushing for that number one spot and probably number two or three. But that's why, that's why he needs to be there. And yeah, you just threw the number in there. 39 under 40 on Yahoo.

[Michael F. Florio]

Which is why I was just gonna need.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Yahoo's got to get their stuff together over there, boys. Come on.

[Michael F. Florio]

Not the Yahoo people. The people 9% rostered on Yahoo. You beat me to it. That that's even more shocking I think than the fact that it was only 54. Is it on Yahoo. But the thing with Yahoo is I think there's a larger grouping of 10 team leagues and I think you get also some of that roster percentage built into Sleeper. Think about this too guys, is you also get that built in from all the dynasty leagues that are on sleeper two where he's going to be rostered. So it's a little bit artificially bumped up there. But in those 10 team leagues, if you're playing on ESPN, if you're playing on Yahoo, he's available. I mean under. Yeah, make it, make it so none. Another guy on our list. Now look, everyone's gonna yell at us because Trey Benson too much of those. So we're gonna go dig deeper. Go to a guy who's 5% rostered. You like that. How you like them apples? Juwan Johnson, tight end of the New Orleans Saints. Look, it's not going to be pretty. The uniforms yesterday were not pretty. I hated those uniforms that they wore yesterday. I don't like alternate uniforms on week one. Again, old man yelling at the sky.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

You don't like Dijon mustard coloring for your God.

[Michael F. Florio]

And when Notre Dame wears that weird yellow gold color too, I hate it.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

It's almost a guarantee that they're gonna blow the game too.

[Michael F. Florio]

That's 100%. But Juwan Johnson, let's talk about him because this is a player that I low key, you know, in deeper situation like Scott Fishbowl. I think I have him in that roster. And a couple leagues like that, those best ball rosters where I said, you know, the quarterback Play is going to be release body. You know, Taysom Hill's got an injury. Why not Juwan Johnson? Especially with all the many ailments that befall the wide receivers in this group where you're just trying to complete some, you know, high percentage passes over the middle and get the ball moving a little bit. Why not Juwan Johnson and week one? Why not?

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Well, and that's the thing. So I was kind of the chicken and the egg argument, like, is it Spencer Rattler targeting Joanne Johnson a ton or is it the fact that he had no wide receivers left? Like, that's what I was going to. So at least in week one, you're definitely more right. I wasn't super high on Juwan Johnson because it's like, hey, he's got a healthy Chris Olavi and Rashid Shahid. What do they need Dwayne Johnson for that much? And this is also the Saints. And I know it's a different offensive coordinator, different system, but it's like they use multiple tight ends and I know a lot of them are banged up right now. But the good part about it is Juwan Johnson left the field. Like that's the appeal here is like he was out there like 90% of the time. And who targeted him? The ton Spencer Rattler. So that's the other part I bring up. If they turn to Tyler Schuck at some point, maybe this doesn't continue. But as long as Rattler is at quarterback and as long as Foster Moreau and all the rest are banged up and he's basically the number two, it was like Olave and actually he was the one yesterday for all intents and purposes. But a top two option with Rattler? Look, we might not have George Kittle. We might have other tight end situations where you went chasing in week one. We might have David and Joku all of a sudden back right out the window. Like, the last year was exciting. We finally got in Joku and then it's like, oh, well, that was fun. That's dead. As we already brought up Harold Fannin. So I think that's just. If you need a tight end, throw them on the end of your bench and see what happens with, you know, maybe no George Kittle this week. Johnson, the target volume is just going to help him continue to be a tight end one.

[Michael F. Florio]

I don't know about that. Maybe. I don't think we'd have George Kittle this week. So again, some important guys out there.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

So painful. I have him as so many leads.

[Michael F. Florio]

I haven't been one and of course it's flex with you. So it's just the worst. So let's talk about before we get out, we got about a minute left here. Let's talk about some bonus guys and some deeper leagues that people might want to stash as well.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

I think the people are going to grow in at the third one just like you did. But the first two are rookies that are running out there as the two. Jaden Higgins, Good news everybody. He led the Texans in receiving yards. Bad news, that was 32 yards. But he's out there as the 1 and the 2. Similar to that for the Titans. Alec Alumanna is running out there as the two. Like there was a question of he was at the three and like okay, that's cool, he's already the three. Joe brought him up last show and I agree with him is these are both rookies out there as their twos for their team and then if you need running back help, this is why I threw it out there. I do think Caleb Johnson is going to get more involved as things go forward. But Kenneth Gainwell was in a 5050 split with Jalen Warren. Forget the contract, forget the excitement. Jalen Warren is just Jalen Warren. I, I, I was on this like, hey, guess what? Jalen Warren's finally going to break out and finally be the guy. The Steelers gave him the contract. They're not even using Caleb Johnson. And all that was like, nope. You know what the answer is? They're just going to turn the Cannon game well, 50% of the time. So again, this is the deeper leagues. These are for the people that might need running back help depending on what happened in week one and going into week two. But Kenneth Gainwell, until Caleb Johnson's a thing, I mean he's the one that has the Nashee Harris role, which is insane to say. I don't know, man.

[Michael F. Florio]

I just don't know what I'm going to buy out of that game yesterday. It was very entertaining, way more than I thought it was going to be. But I can't get there with Kenneth Gainwell.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

How about we bookend Sunday with the we had one of the most entertaining games in the past five years of the Bills and Ravens. But we started with one of the most entertaining games that nobody saw coming.

[Michael F. Florio]

Nobody saw coming.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Jets and Steelers.

[Michael F. Florio]

It was a actually a very entertaining week one. There was that lackluster in the middle.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

A lot of 4pm games.

[Michael F. Florio]

4Pm games. Lackluster to say the least. But you're right, the bookends were Very exciting. And of course, we're gonna be here every single week doing waiver wire. And if you need more help on the waiver wire, make sure you use the tools. Don't be a tool. Use the waiver wire central tool [e-mail] MyPlaybook Download the fantasy Pros app today. It'll give you suggestions to help you add the right players to your team and who to drop to make sure you win a fantasy championship. Don't forget to subscribe to fantasy bros. YouTube. We're trying to get to 300,000 this year and we could do it with your help and that'll do it for us. But the story of the game goes on. For Jake Seely of the Athletic, I'm Joey P. We'll see you next time, kids. Happy hunting on the waiver wire.

[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

Thanks for listening to the Fantasy Pros Fantasy Football Podcast. If you love the show, the best free way to support us is by leaving a positive review on apple [e-mail] review or on Spotify. Follow us on X Instagram and TikTok at fantasypros and subscribe to our YouTube channel at YouTube.com fantasypros.

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[Michael F. Florio]

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[Matt Jones]

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[Joey P. (Joe P. Zapia)]

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