Week four of the National Football League is officially in the books. And with that, fantasy football fans are still looking towards the waiver wire to see if their team can be improved in any way. Some fantasy footballers will continue to react — or, overreact — to their players performances unjustly during this period with panic beginning to set in.

Plenty of buzz and player recommendations will surface in preparation of your league’s waiver period causing owners to make rash decisions and drop players they spent months researching, so let’s make sure to do a full complement of research before making your moves.

Before we get to this week’s potential waiver wire pickups, it’s important to note that I WOULD spend my first waiver priority on a player from the list below. Also, players listed below are in no particular order

Teams on a bye in week four: Chiefs, Saints, Seahawks, Jaguars

Recently Graduated: Jordan Howard failed to reach pay dirt, but carried the rock 23 times for 111 yards and hauled in a pair of passes on three targets for an additional 21 yards. I noted you may not want to use your top waiver priority on him, which looks like the big mistake at this point in time. Kyle Rudolph caught five passes for 55 yards and a score while Cameron Brate reeled in five passes of his own for 67 yards for a relatively decent return on your investment.

Terrance West | Ravens and Kenneth Dixon | Ravens

The Ravens made running back Justin Forsett a healthy scratch in week four leading the way for Terrance West to take on the lion’s share of carries. West ran 21 times for 113 yards and a touchdown averaging 5.4 yards per carry. He did not play a role in the passing game for the Ravens, that was left for Kyle Juszczyk who caught 6-of-7 targets for 56 yards and to a lesser extent Javorious Allen (two catches on two targets), but West has hauled in 4-of-5 targets on the season so he’s not entirely absent in those situations.

At one point, the problem for Terrance West was speculating his usage going forward. The Ravens just cut Justin Forsett, so he won’t be a threat to poach carries or earn snaps on passing downs, but fourth-round draft pick Kenneth Dixon may. Considering the news, it’s safe to suggest that Dixon is fully recovered from an MCL injury and potentially active in week five.

West is the best bet in the short-term for fake football purposes in Baltimore, but the Ravens drafted Dixon for a reason and he could be the better speculative addition to your squad for the end of this season and beyond if you’re in a keeper/dynasty format. Both backs will have a tough task on their hands in weeks six and seven, but they’ll get a kush draw in week five against the Redskins, so get West on your roster and ready to roll for a nice stream.

Consider in leagues: All
Waiver Priority Worthy: 1 and lower
Spend this much FAAB to acquire: 30%
Players I’d drop for him: Cameron Artis-Payne, Adrian Peterson, Ameer Abdullah

Robert Woods | Bills and Dontrelle Inman | Chargers

Off to see a foot specialist, Sammy Watkins is also off to the injured reserve. This means that he’ll miss a minimum of eight weeks, but the feeling is that the Bills’ chief pass catcher could be sidelined for the remainder of the season. In his stead, Robert Woods and Marquise Goodwin will likely earn the bulk of Tyrod Taylor’s targets. Woods hasn’t found the endzone just yet but he does lead the team in targets (25), receptions (18) and yards (174) through four weeks. On the other hand, Goodwin has hauled in just 4-of-15 targets for 112 yards and a score, but his 22.7 yard average depth of target (aDOT) is eye opening compared to Woods’ rather conservative 10.2 yard aDOT.

Woods is the safer option for both standard and PPR leagues, but Goodwin is a clear home run threat and a fine deeper league and DFS option. The Bills have nice matchups against the Rams and Dolphins in weeks five and six who allow the fifth and fourth-most fantasy points to opposing catchers through four weeks.

In San Diego, Travis Benjamin leads the team in receptions (21), yards (277) and touchdowns (2) while Tyrell Williams leads the Chargers in targets with 27 and is Phillip Rivers’ preferred red zone target (8). Inman, however, lead the team in targets (10), receptions (7) and touchdowns (1) in week four, so it’s clear that he’ll also be relevant in this passing attack and fake football going forward. With less mouths to feed in Buffalo, I’d be adding Woods before Inman but both are ownable in deeper formats (12+ teams)

Consider in leagues: All
Waiver Priority Worthy: 4 and lower
Spend this much FAAB to acquire: 10-15%
Players I’d drop for him: Josh Gordon, Sammy Watkins, Kevin White

Carson Wentz | Eagles and Brian Hoyer | Bears

Rookie gun-slinger Carson Wentz of the Eagles faces a Lions team in week five that surrenders the second-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. Sure, he’s still a rookie, but he’s been rather efficient with 67 completions in 103 attempts (72.8% completion %) for five touchdowns and zero interceptions. He’s worth at least a stream, but could be considered as a long-term option despite having some tough matchups.

Brian Hoyer? Yes, Brian Hoyer. He’s been the best quarterback in Chicago this season and the team gets the Colts, Jaguars and Packers — three of the top ten most generous defenses to opposing fantasy quarterbacks — in each of the next three weeks.

Consider in leagues: 12+ teams
Waiver Priority Worthy: 6 and lower
Spend this much FAAB to acquire: 5-10%
Players I’d drop for him: Trevor Siemian, Jimmy Garoppolo/Jacoby Brissett, Jay Cutler

Hunter Henry | Chargers

Antonio Gates is on the mend and could return as early as week five, but Hunter Henry has done a nice job filling in for the future Hall-of-Famer. Through three contests, Henry has hauled in 10-of-12 targets for 157 yards (15.7 yards/reception) and a touchdown. Four teams are on a bye in week five so you may need someone to get you by but be sure to keep an eye on the status of Antonio Gates throughout the week.

Consider in leagues: All
Waiver Priority Worthy: 6 and lower
Spend this much FAAB to acquire: 5%
Players I’d drop for him: Jared Cook, Vance Mcdonald, Clive Walford

Wendell Smallwood | Eagles

Lightning in a bottle, that’s the saying, right? Well the rookie out of West Virginia carried 17 times for 79 yards and a score in week three before a bye week in week four. The Eagles get Detroit in week five who’ve been a bit stingy to opposing fantasy backs but have allowed 15+ fantasy point weeks to DeMarco Murray and Jordan Howard. If I’m ranking the backs on this page, I’m going West, Dixon then Smallwood.

Consider in leagues: All
Waiver Priority Worthy: 6 and lower
Spend this much FAAB to acquire: 5-10%
Players I’d drop for him: Cameron Artis-Payne, Adrian Peterson, Ameer Abdullah

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