Will Fuller is likely out for the season with a torn ACL, so here are five options to replace him off the fantasy football waiver wire.
The Houston Texans’ offense had a nice outing against the Miami Dolphins Thursday night, led by five touchdown passes from Deshaun Watson and residual nice games from wide receivers DeAndre Hopkins (six catches for 82 yards and two touchdowns) and Will Fuller (five receptions for 124 yards and a touchdown).
But Fuller went down with a right knee injury in the fourth quarter, and all indications point to a season-ending torn ACL. With three 100-yard games in the seven he played this year, and a touchdown in those same three games (and another in Week 3), Fuller was a fantasy factor as a WR2/WR3 who now has to be replaced by his owners.
Solid wide receivers can typically be found on the waiver wire, and the clarity on Fuller’s status helps (as disappointing as it is). So with that, here are five options to replace Fuller off the waiver wire in your fantasy league.
5. Martavis Bryant/Seth Roberts, Oakland Raiders
With Amari Cooper gone to the Cowboys and Marshawn Lynch out, there’s a significant chunk of targets available in the Raiders passing game now. Tight end Jared Cook (83 percent owned on Yahoo!) and wide receiver Jordy Nelson (73 percent owned on Yahoo!) are worth checking on coming out of a Week 7 bye, but Bryant and Roberts are far more widely available.
Bryant has struggled with drops this year, but an elevation into a starting role automatically raises his fantasy stock. The Raiders are likely to be passing the ball plenty, and their next two games are favorable matchups against the Indianapolis Colts and San Francisco 49ers. Bryant is worth considering as a plug-and-play WR3/flex option the next two weeks, and in standard scoring leagues he’s a worthy add based on potential alone.
Roberts was still in concussion protocol earlier this week, but he should be cleared in time for Sunday’s game against the Colts. He’s more of wait-and-see waiver wire add, to see how his role takes shape without Cooper, but there’s some immediate appeal to Roberts as a flyer in deeper PPR leagues.
Bryant-Yahoo! Ownership: 13%
Bryant-ESPN Ownership: 8.4%
Roberts Yahoo! Ownership: 0%
Roberts-ESPN Ownership: 0.2%