With Week 3 of the 2023 NFL season in the books, it’s time to take a gander at the players who fantasy owners should be targeting on their waiver wires going into Week 4.
This week will be the last without byes until Week 8. After that, Week 12 will be another that won’t see any teams off. No team has a bye after Week 14.
Buy Titans TicketsWith the coming bye weeks in mind, fantasy managers can begin preparing for them now, giving them yet another reason to look to the waiver wire this week.
The teams set to be on byes in Week 5 are the Cleveland Browns, Los Angeles Chargers, Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, all of whom have at least one fantasy asset, so plan accordingly.
We’ll cover all of the most attractive players who are likely to be available in your league, as well as some streaming options at both quarterback and D/ST.
QB Jimmy Garoppolo, Las Vegas Raiders (streaming option)
Garoppolo threw for 324 yards and two touchdowns against a good Steelers defense in Week 3. He could’ve had more fantasy points if not for three interceptions.
Consider Garoppolo a good streaming option this week against a Los Angeles Chargers defense ceding the second-most fantasy points to quarterbacks.
The Raiders will also likely be trailing, forcing the Jimmy G to air it out more often than he otherwise might.
QB Andy Dalton, Carolina Panthers (POTENTIAL streaming option)
Dalton exploded for 361 yards and two scores in his 2023 debut against the Seattle Seahawks and now faces an exploitable Minnesota Vikings defense that is giving up the third-most points to quarterbacks. Adding to that, the Vikings should be playing from ahead in this game, which will force the Panthers to throw the rock more.
However, keep an eye on the status of rookie signal-caller Bryce Young, who has a chance to play this week after sitting out Week 3. Believe it or not, I trust Dalton more than Young to produce in this matchup.
QB Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers
Don’t look now, but Love has produced three 20-plus point performances to start the season, mostly thanks to eight total scores and solid rushing production that included nine carries and a score in Week 3.
Love’s Week 4 opponent, the Detroit Lions, are giving up the 14th-most points per contest to quarterbacks, and are surrendering the 11th-most rushing yards to the position.
Love is already knocking on the door of someone who should be rostered and started on a weekly basis, but he has a chance to solidify that in Week 4.
QB C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
Stroud has posted back-to-back 20-plus point performances and the Texans are more often than not going to have to air it out a ton to keep up with opponents, further making him a potential long-term option.
Stroud draws a solid matchup in Week 4, as the Steelers are a middle-of-the-road defense in terms of fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks and just let Jimmy G throw for over 300 yards and two touchdowns.
RBs Melvln Gordon and Justice Hill, Baltimore Ravens
If you’re absolutely desperate, the Ravens have a potential short-term option for you in Gordon. However, that depends upon the status of Gus Edwards, who left the Week 3 game early due to a concussion.
A Justice Hill return could also wreck whatever fantasy value Gordon has, as he’ll likely be involved upon his return.
It remains to be seen how quickly either player returns, but if they miss next week’s game, Gordon figures to step into the lead role after getting a team-high 10 carries along with two receptions on Sunday.
RBs De'Von Achane and Jeff Wilson, Miami Dolphins
How do you not at least consider grabbing a guy who dropped 50 freakin’ points in one game? That’s exactly what the rookie running back did, and now he’s back on the map after a slow start to the season.
The problem, of course, is that Achane’s increased volume and production was more a result of the insane blowout the Dolphins pulled off on the Denver Broncos.
The fact is, he’s still likely to be behind Raheem Mostert, and the eventual return of Wilson could further hurt his workload. So, while Achane is an attractive commodity this week, don’t go breaking the bank for him.
Speaking of Wilson: he’s on injured reserve through Week 4 but he could return to split work with Mostert. And, with Mostert’s injury history, the veteran back could grab a lead role down the line.
RB Ezekiel Elliott, New England Patriots
After seeing just 17 touches over his first two games, Elliot had 17 in Week 3 alone. Adding to that, he finished with just three less carries than Rhamondre Stevenson and averaged five yards per tote to Stevenson’s 3.1.
The Pats have shown they aren’t afraid to utilize Elliott in the passing game, also, after he had five catches on seven targets in Week 1.
It’ll be hard to put him in lineups but Elliott is someone worth stashing on the bench with the hope he continues to see a similar workload or even surpasses Stevenson completely. I wouldn’t bet on the latter scenario, though.
RB Roschon Johnson, Chicago Bears
Admittedly, the Bears are an absolute dumpster fire right now, but Johnson has been creeping up on Khalil Herbert for lead-back duties and actually had more carries than Herbert in Week 3. Adding to that, Johnson is seeing more usage than Herbert in the passing game.
Johnson shouldn’t be in lineups, but he’s someone worth stashing in the event his volume continues to rise.
WR Tank Dell, Houston Texans
Dell went off in Week 3 with five catches for 145 yards and a touchdown. With Stroud looking like a good quarterback over his first three games, and with the Texans needing to air it out a lot thanks to a poor rushing attack and the team likely to be trailing most weeks, Dell has a chance to be a solid contributor moving forward in an up-and-coming passing attack.
WR Michael Gallup, Dallas Cowboys
After a quiet first two weeks, Gallup had his best game since 2021 with six catches on seven targets for 92 yards. He’s the No. 2 option behind CeeDee Lamb, but there’s enough to go around to make him a flex option some weeks.
WRs Quentin Johnston and Joshua Palmer, Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers will be without veteran wideout Mike Williams for the rest of the season, which should mean more looks for guys like Johnston and Palmer.
Palmer has a history of being a fantasy asset when Chargers receivers are banged-up, and Johnston is very similar to Williams and figures to step directly into his role moving forward.
The downside for Johnston is that he’s a rookie, making him very unpredictable.
WR Adam Thielen, Carolina Panthers
Thielen went bananas in Week 3, catching 11 passes for 145 yards and a touchdown, although that was with Dalton under center rather than Young.
Even still, Thielen recorded seven catches for 54 yards and a touchdown with Young under center in Week 2 and is now WR9 through three weeks. He should be rostered and is a flex option, at worst, moving forward.
WR Romeo Doubs, Green Bay Packers
Doubs has had a knack for finding the end zone over three games, with three touchdowns under his belt. He finally had solid overall production in Week 3, with five catches for 73 yards and a touchdown.
He’s a low-end flex option as long as fellow wideout Christian Watson is sidelined. The second-year receiver was a non-participant in Green Bay’s estimated practice report on Monday, which is a bad sign for Watson’s potential to suit up.
TE Donald Parham, Los Angeles Chargers
Parham hasn’t done much in the receiving yards department but he has been a key red zone target for quarterback Justin Herbert, with the Stetson product tallying three touchdowns over three games, leading to his being TE5 overall.
Parham may see more targets in general, and even more red zone looks now that wide receiver Mike Williams is out for the season.
TE Luke Musgrave, Green Bay Packers
Musgrave is TE10 over three games and has scored at least eight fantasy points in two of three contests, including a season-high 10.9 in Week 3. Granted, that’s not great, but you could do far worse.
TE Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys
Ferguson found the end zone for the first time in Week 2 and followed that up with five catches for 48 yards. Like Musgrave, Ferguson isn’t someone to go crazy over, but he is tied for TE11 with Baltimore Ravens star tight end Mark Andrews through three games.
D/ST: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
With New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr likely to miss at least one game with a shoulder injury, Jameis Winston is set to take the reins of the offense in Week 4. Barring your fear of a revenge game, this is a juicy matchup for the Buccaneers.
Winston is prone to turnovers in bunches. Adding to that, the Bucs rank as DST5 (10.6 points per game) over three games and managed to not get steamrolled by the Philadelphia Eagles’ elite offense in Week 3.
Not only is the Bucs’ D/ST a good option this week, it has the potential to be a long-term one, also.
D/ST: Denver Broncos (streaming option)
I know, I know, the Broncos had their doors blown off (to put it nicely) in Week 3 by the Miami Dolphins, but the Dolphins are a fantastic team offensively.
The Broncos’ Week 4 opponent, the Chicago Bears, are not. Chicago is a total mess on offense right now and are ceding the second-most fantasy points to D/STs this season and are scoring just 15.7 points per contest. Justin Fields has been sacked 13 times, second-most in the NFL, and Chicago is tied for fifth in giveaways.
Don’t be afraid to give Denver’s defense a chance in Week 4, although it’s totally understandable if you can’t pull the trigger after last week’s disaster.
