The injuries have escaped their quarterback containment. Week 3 was a brutal one if you were banking on De’Von Achane, Breece Hall, Justin Jefferson, Trevor Etienne, Mike Evans or, to a lesser extent, Jalen Coker or Adonai Mitchell.
There’s a reasonable chance some poor fantasy had all those guys and exploded into pieces. We won’t assume that’s you, but if you’re doing your Week 4 waiver wire research, there’s a good chance you’re in the market for at least one injury replacement. Fortunately, there are plenty of options to talk yourself into – even if landing them means signing up for a roller coaster of Sundays for the next 11 weeks.
Thus, we venture into the breach once more. I'm joined by fantasy expert and Rhode Island Scumbag, Mike "Yaj"
Boyajian, to break down the players who’ll be thrust into a larger role in Week 4, either thanks to their own skill or an opportunity created by injury elsewhere on the depth chart. We'll talk about those players, as well as the guys rostered around their level and reasonably higher, to figure out if you should add Ollie Gordon II, Kenyon Sadiq or Roman Wilson to your rosters -- and who you should drop to bring them aboard.
The rules? There's pretty much only one; players have to be 33 percent owned or less in Yahoo! fantasy football leagues. Who's going to spark a bidding war on your waiver wire this week – and who should you drop to pick him up?
RB Ollie Gordon II, Miami Dolphins (Four percent owned in Yahoo! leagues)
Achane’s injury is as serious as feared; his season is over thanks to a torn ACL. Gordon’s 20 carries are second-most on the Dolphins roster. He’s turned that into 48 rushing yards – a robust 2.4 per carry. Ooof. Welp, the opportunity will be there to prove his worth.
Does that make him a better roster option than…
Braelon Allen, New York Jets (19 percent owned)
Christian: Yes, but from an opportunity standpoint alone. Allen is flawed and only averaging 3.2 yards per touch this season. Even so, he’s a faster back than Gordon while bringing similar power traits and limited utility as a receiver.
Importantly, we’ve seen him provide NFL value before, albeit in a small sample size before injury struck in 2025. Hall will return and cut his touches back down to “if he doesn’t find the end zone, you’re cooked” status. That’s the only reason I’d lean Gordon, but it’s close.
Yaj: Yes. Honestly, I feel like these two are the Spider-Man meme. The only difference for me is the duration of each starting back’s injury. As of now, Hall sounds like he will be back at some point this season. We know for a fact that Achane is indeed done. It helps to use some FAAB or your waiver claim on a player that won’t eventually lose the role to a returning starter.
Brian Robinson, Atlanta Falcons (22 percent owned)
Christian: No. Robinson is a capable runner, even if he’s trapped behind Bijan Robinson. Gordon… kinda stinks. He had -49 rush yards over expected (RYOE) as a rookie and is on pace to be even worse this year (from -0.7 RYOE/carry to -1.1). He’s running more routes and should up his receiving chops, but hasn’t averaged better than five yards per catch as a pro. Robinson brings value as a reliever, but honestly? Maybe sit back, let everyone else bid on Gordon and sneak in a cheaper claim on Jaylen Wright if you’re dead set on filling the Achane void.
Yaj: No. Brian Robinson is a much better back talent wise. He showed on Thursday night that he can provide a semblance of standalone value a la Tyler Allgeier of years past. Gordon is only here because of his availability. Gordon could potentially be a poor man’s Jordan Mason, but if you’re not desperate, I would leave the bench alone and keep Robinson stashed.
Kaelon Black, San Francisco 49ers (50 percent owned)
Christian: No. I don’t know how many times we’ll need to say it’s not the substation, it’s Kyle Shanahan’s practices. But the Niners are injury ravaged and Christian McCaffrey’s play has backslid from a fantasy standpoint, where he’s been better as a runner and had less utility in the passing game (on pace for a mere 74 receptions. Pathetic). Shanahan needs someone to carry his offense, but putting the load only on a 30-year-old running back’s shoulders is inviting chaos.
Thus, either we’ll see Black’s snap share increase or an injury that thrusts him into the spotlight (assuming he doesn’t suffer his own along the way). You’re rooting for mess either way, but mess is better than catastrophe, which is the Dolphins’ entire brand this year.
Yaj: No. Kaelon Black is one stubbed toe away from being a game changer for fantasy managers. The 49ers are looking mighty injured after a mere three weeks, and shockingly their heavily used, injury prone RB has somehow survived the carnage. I would rather hold onto this lottery ticket (with some standalone value if Shanahan reads the tea leaves) than waste FAAB chasing a guy that might not be anything more than a low end flex.
TE Kenyon Sadiq, New York Jets (18 percent owned)
Tight end has been an embarrassment of riches in 2026, with young studs and trusted veterans coming through, especially in the red zone. That includes Sadiq, who took advantage of Adonai Mitchell and Mason Taylor’s absences en route to eight targets, seven catches, 105 yards and a touchdown in the Jets’ loss to the Detroit Lions. He’s a massive athlete with wide receiver traits. Does he belong on your roster over…
Brenton Strange, Jacksonville Jaguars (28 percent owned)
Christian: Yes. Ugh, I hate this, as Strange is one of my favorite players and capable of swinging pivotal weeks for your team. But he’s also too valuable to be a full-time receiver, which has limited his targets even as his playing a higher snap count. Meanwhile, the Jets need playmakers and will be trailing often this season as Geno Smith tries to extend his career by throwing New York back into games. The returns of Mitchell and Taylor will dent his impact, but he can turn chunk plays into dynamic fantasy scoring across all four quarters.
Yaj: Yes. We all know what Strange is. He’s reliable, provides a somewhat safe floor and a very unexciting ceiling most weeks. Sadiq on the other hand, is looking like the athletic freak pundits were very excited about right up until New York drafted him. He’s shown that talent can overcome a situation (in his case the Jets), and did so in spectacular fashion. He’s been a weapon for the Jets, especially in the red zone. If he can stay healthy, he could be a top five tight end over the rest of the season.
Terrance Ferguson, Los Angeles Rams (37 percent owned)
Christian: Yes. Ferguson’s breakout was cut short by a Week 3 ankle injury that took him off the field for a stretch in the middle of the Rams (frankly kinda bull[expletive]) loss to the Denver Broncos. Tyler Higbee won’t have 11 targets every week, but his performance shows how the Rams operate, able to plug-and-play anyone into their system to rack up points. That means Ferguson’s value is volatile and set to be dented whenever Puka Nacua returns. Even if Los Angeles runs out of 13 personnel more than anyone in the league, just seeing the field isn’t enough when you’ve got established veterans ready to siphon receiving yards away.
Yaj: Yes. Ferguson is talented in his own right, but I don’t have the stomach to deal with Sean McVay week to week. Players not named Nacua produce in an incredibly unpredictable pattern. If Puka goes out long term, this move gives me more of a pause, but as of now, I’ll take the steady production from an up and coming first rounder over the spike weeks from Ferguson simply due to the roster volatility.
Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons (86 percent owned)
Christian: (deep sigh) Yes. That’s a big jump, but Pitts is such a frustrating player, and now it can no longer be explained away by Cooper Rush’s presence at quarterback. Playing with Kirk Cousins turned him into a short-range, high-volume target. Now Cousins has brought that touch to Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer, while the former fourth overall pick has six targets in three games.
Pitts has enough value to be traded, but if you’re in a savvy league there are going to be enough managers with horror stories tied to him that finding takers could be tough. Don’t focus on sunk costs. If you need a tight end and can’t wait, jettison Pitts.
Yaj: Yes. I am not a Kyle Pitts guy. He had some stretches last year that made one believe that he was finally breaking out, but he’s regressed back to the pre-Kirk Cousins era Pitts. (Remember his best stretch last year was when Penix went on IR). Tight Ends in fantasy football are similar to defenses, in a way that half of them starting in the pre-season top 10 actually finish end of season top 10. I’ll take a chance that we found this year’s young TE stud and roll with Sadiq.
WR Roman Wilson, Pittsburgh Steelers (One percent owned)
We wrap with a deep cut. There are plenty of higher profile options out there, but Wilson has had exactly six targets every week. Aaron Rodgers turned to him early in the Steelers’ Week 3 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, and while that pace didn’t last – thanks, in part, to an interception that clanked off Wilson’s hands – it’s a promising glimpse at the former third round pick’s future. Can his consistency and rising cache make him a better pickup than…
Chris Bell, Miami Dolphins (Four percent owned)
Christian: No. Bell has been one of my favorite prospects since he was wrecking shop at Louisville. His upside is significant, and the seven targets he had in Week 3 are a positive sign that he’s feeling close to 100 percent after missing much of the preseason recovering from the torn ACL that ended his college career. The Steelers can grind games down and have a viable running attack. The Dolphins will be trailing constantly and just lost their top ground option. Miami needs someone to step up in the passing game. Bell will have so, so many opportunities to do so.
Yaj: No. Bell had seven targets last week and looked every bit the part of a WR1 in the offense. Wilson looks like he may be more consistent, but he certainly won’t provide the ceiling that Bell can provide week in and week out. For managers looking to make an upside swing, you would be better served holding Bell than dropping him for Wilson and his apparently safe floor.
Rashid Shaheed, Seattle Seahawks (38 percent owned)
Christian: Yes. I don’t understand why anyone would still have Shaheed on their roster. His value doesn’t translate to fantasy with the Seahawks. Sam Darnold threw the ball 45 times Sunday against a bad Commanders defense. Shaheed got three of those targets.
Yaj: Yes. Shaheed is no longer an upside play in the New Orleans system. Nothing he has done in Seattle has given any indication that he is going to have a reliable role in this offense. Cooper Kupp has more of a pedigree and is owned MUCH less in Yahoo (38 percent vs nine). I don’t get the fascination with this guy. I will take the steady stream of targets from Aaron Rodgers and the upside of being one of Rodgers’ guys, even though it may not be anything too exciting.
Romeo Doubs, New England Patriots (58 percent owned)
Christian: No. Is he going to turn things around and be a fantasy star? I have my Romeo Doubts. But Drake Maye is panicking and defaulting too hard toward things that work in practice with little consideration of whether they’ll work on a play-by-play basis when it counts. He’s defaulting to things that worked before, only those players either are no longer on the roster (Stefon Diggs, Kayshon Boutte) or no longer able to take defenses by surprise (Mack Hollins, Pop Douglas). At some point, the needle is going to point to Doubs, who has plenty to prove after a brutal start to his New England debut. I’d rather bet on a Maye revival than expect Aaron Rodgers to turn back the clock repeatedly en route to his 43rd birthday.
Yaj: No. Although something appears to be seriously wrong with the Patriots at the moment, but he was brought in to serve as a top-two receiver in the offense. I’m not willing to give up on him (or any of the Patriots for that matter) just yet.
If anything, we are witnessing in real time how important pre-season games can actually be for players. Do the Patriots right the ship sooner than later? I really do think so. On the other hand, what are the chances that Aaron Rodgers improves as the season wears on? Much less likely. I honestly don’t love either of these options or passing attacks at the moment, but I’ll reluctantly hold onto Doubs for now.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Fantasy football waiver wire Week 4: Add/drop candidates from Ollie Gordon to Chris Bell
