Andy’s Week 8 Waiver Wire Pick-ups

By Andrew Miley:

Andy’s Week Eight Waiver Wire
There is nothing more important to keeping yourself connected to a fantasy league than by working the waiver wire every week. Inseason management is crucial to fantasy football success. Keep those juices flowing by reading this column every week as it will provide you with a few players that might be available to improve your team. I only play in point per reception leagues (sorry for the last five years and my mindset makes it too difficult to go back for standard scoring), so consider that when reviewing my advice.

QB Blake Bortles, Jaguars

The former third overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft has certainly picked up steam in these last few weeks. Up until this past week, Bortles had, at least 33 pass attempts, in every contest this season. The young signal caller is on the large size at 6’ 5” and 245 lbs, so he is able to stand longer in the pocket to find his receivers. He has a strong arm, very mobile by stepping away from pass rushers, and gets rid of the pigskin quickly. Bortles seems to be very comfortable taking his snaps from the shotgun which gives him an extra second or two to scan the field before he makes a decision.

The quarterback is usually a running threat, but could not find room against the aggressive Buffalo defense. He does a good job of throwing sideline passes where only his receivers can get to the ball. I saw his concerted effort in getting the tight ends involved instead of relying on his talented wide outs. Bortles sells fakes well but fell out of rhythm almost the entire second half, which was partly due to the large amount of drops he encountered. His final stats of 13 completions on 29 attempts for 182 yards with two touchdowns and one interception will not invoke absolute confidence to those looking at picking him up. But remember, Bortles is a gunslinger who has two solid receivers, a decent running game, and complimentary tight ends along with a struggling defense. This, my friends, is the recipe for fantasy success. I would secure him for your bye week gauntlet and occasionally start him when the second year QB has a good matchup with a bid of 5-10% of budget.

QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, NY Jets

The fearless bearded wonder has bounced around from place to place in the last five years or so, but it seems like the quarterback found a good spot in New York. Fitzpatrick is a tough, mobile quarterback who isn’t afraid to wait until the last second to throw the ball to either of his talented wideouts in Brandon Marshall or Eric Decker. He has a strong arm which isn’t always the most accurate, but throws well on the the run while feeling backside pressure come near. The signal caller rarely drops back to pass, instead he boots on either side, cutting the gridiron in half. Patriots Rob Ninkovich appeared to have his number this past Sunday by either hurrying him or batting passes away. Despite Marshall dropping a go-ahead touchdown pass, Fitzpatrick had a good day throwing for almost 300 yards with two touchdowns completing over 56% of his passes while adding another 29 yards rushing. If Chris Ivory continues to get injured, the Jets will be forced to throw more often and Fitzpatrick can be a borderline QB1 starter for your fantasy team. I would spend about 5% to get him considering most owners do not feel he is a fantasy asset.

RB TJ Yeldon, Jaguars

Despite being a second round NFL pick, Yeldon got selected several rounds later than fellow rookie backs: Todd Gurley and Melvin Gordon in most fantasy drafts. The Jacksonville back is a smooth, gliding runner who gets low in the hole and can find the cutback lane. He has bouncy feet with good vision to read the defense while using spin moves to get away, but lacks the brute strength to break tackles. This runner has soft hands with good balance and does the most damage in open space. Yeldon has a nice burst to get away from defenders and has the patience alongside determination like he showed on his 28 yard touchdown run in London.

His lack of physicality was evident when the coaching staff pulled him in short yardage and goal line work despite Toby Gerhart‘s ineffectiveness (failed to convert four attempts at the two yard line). Yeldon ran for 115 yards on twenty carries with the 28 yard touchdown and had a catch for nine yards. After his Week Eight bye, the rookie has six games against teams that are ranked in the bottom third of the league against the run. Try to buy him low with his bye week this week or make a small trade to acquire him. If he is still on waivers, throw almost your entire bank on him.