Waivers of the Future: Week 5

Waivers of the future will focus on making decisions that improve our odds of our dynasty championship. The back of your dynasty roster should be flexible, with preferences made for players you can use in your lineup during the season.

Quarterbacks

Among the quarterbacks, there are two types of waiver options: those moving up this week and veteran backups.

Moving Up This Week

• Mitch Trubisky

Kenny Pickett suffered a bone bruise in his knee in week four. The injury is not likely to result in a lengthy absence, but he could miss week five ahead of the team's week six bye. Mitchell Trubisky would start in Pickett's absence, but the opportunity is a limited one. Pittsburgh is without Diontae Johnson, who is on injured reserve, while starting tight end Pat Freiermuth suffered a hamstring injury in week four that may force him to miss week five. Trubisky is likely already rostered in deeper formats with quarterback premium, but he will be tough to rely on during a difficult week five matchup against Baltimore.

• Drew Lock

Geno Smith suffered what appeared to be a leg injury on Monday Night Football. The injury forced him to miss some time during the game, but he returned. The team has a week five bye, so Drew Lock does not warrant a waiver bid unless there is a report before your waiver run about an extended absence for Smith.

Veteran Backups

As a general rule, you should have a limited number of backup quarterbacks on your monitor list. With roster spots tight, optimized dynasty rosters under 25 spots in Superflex or quarterback premium. If you are in 25 to 35-man rosters and have a roster spot, these quarterbacks are the premium backups:

• Tyrod Taylor, NYJ
• Mike White, MIA
• Tyler Huntley, BAL
• Cooper Rush, DAL
• Jacoby Brissett, WAS
• Taylor Heinicke, ATL
• Teddy Bridgewater, DET

Running Back

One of the keys to dynasty fantasy football is continuously optimizing your backup running back situation. The last five to ten roster spots on your roster should be very fluid, with little allegiance if the player does not offer the capacity to help your lineup. A constant churn on the back end of your roster is critical.

Moving Up this Week

The following running backs have improved this week and are available in more than 50% of MFL leagues.

• Ke'Shawn Vaughn, TB (91% available)

Ke'Shawn Vaughn had no role in the first three weeks of the season before jumping up to 30% snap share in week three. Vaughn jumped over Sean Tucker on the depth chart in week 4 and played 30% of the team's offensive stats while carrying 32% of the team's rushing workload. Vaughn has a week five bye, so he is more of a monitor in shallower formats, while he warrants a small bid in 25+ man rosters.

• Jaleel McLaughlin, DEN (71% available)

Javonte Williams suffered a hip flexor injury in week four that held him to only 8 snaps against the Chicago Bears. Samaje Perine played the lead role in Williams's absence, but Jaleel McLaughlin also was a factor. McLaughlin played fewer snaps (16) than Perine (22) but had more carries (7 to 5) and more targets (3 to 2). McLaughlin is the all-time leading rusher in college football history with 8,166 yards on 1,250 attempts with 79 touchdowns out of Youngstown State but weighed in at 187 pounds at his college pro day. We project a multiple week injury, with a potential return in week 7 for Williams, so McLaughlin warrants a small 5-10% waiver bid.

• Emari Demercado, ARI (94% available)

James Conner has been a bell cow for Arizona's offense through three weeks. Backup running back Keonatay Ingram suffered a neck injury in practice Thursday that forced him to miss week four, and the length of his absence is not known. Demercado was the primary backup in week four, and he had a season-high 24 snaps and ran 19 routes. Overall, Demercado's 36% snap share was the highest for a non-James Conner back this season. Demercado is a pure injury-away player at this point and warrants a small waiver bid in 20+ man formats where the other injury-away running backs are already rostered.

Other Backups

Other backups or free agents with high availability include:

• Rico Dowdle (51% available)
• Jordan Mason (82% available)
• Leonard Fournette (59% available)
• Keaontay Ingram (71% available)
• Trey Sermon (81% available)
• Trayveon Williams (79% available)
• Latavius Murray (55% available)

Wide Receivers

The odds wide receivers from the waiver wire will become big difference-makers on your dynasty roster are very small. For every Tyreek Hill, there are 100 Travis Fulghams. Your strategies on the wide receiver position should be to find immediate lineup help or a flip candidate.

• Tyler Boyd (33% available)

Tee Higgins suffered a rib fracture in week four, and his status is uncertain for the coming week. Tyler Boyd is widely rostered on myfantasyleague.com leagues (66%), but he warrants consideration in shallower formats where he is available. Cincinnati's offense has struggled, but Boyd is a proven performer who could step into a higher target priority in a Cincinnati offense looking to rebound.

• Braxton Berrios (83% available)

Braxton Berrios is coming off a 17-point performance in week 4 against the Buffalo Bills. Berrios has settled into the WR3 role in the Miami offense with River Cracraft out with an injury. He has been targeted on 21% of his routes this season and has been a good performer on a per-route basis in his career. Berrios is in a high-powered offense and capable of 8 targets in a game if either Tyreek Hill or Jaylen Waddle were to miss time. He is also an option for teams in need of streaming options in bye weeks.

• Trey Palmer (71% available)

Mike Evans suffered a hamstring injury in week four, which should create an opportunity for Trey Palmer to take a step forward in the offense. Palmer ran routes on 86% of the team's dropbacks in week three and 79% of the team's dropbacks in week four. Palmer was a day three rookie, so you should not rely on him until he proves his ability to produce, but an Evans absence could be an opportunity to prove himself. He warrants a small bid in formats with more than 25 roster spots.

Tight Ends

Tight end in changing circumstances who warrant waiver consideration include:

• Jelani Woods (87% available)

Jelani Woods was placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury during training camp. The tight end position has been heavily targeted in Indianapolis (10 total in week four), but the position has been a committee between Drew Ogletree, Kylen Granson, and Mo-Alie Cox, with little predictable fantasy production. Woods is not expected to come off injured reserve this week but could be a pre-emptive stash option ahead of his return in the coming weeks.