When it comes to the waiver wire, there are certainly the more obvious pickups. We cover those in our weekly waiver wire article, here. However, if you’re playing in deeper leagues or ones with much deeper rosters, this is the place for you. In this series of articles, we’ll be touching on players who are rostered in 25% or fewer fantasy football leagues.

Oftentimes, we call these players “stashes”. Many of these players are for 14+ team leagues. Either that, or in extremely deep rosters where you have a bench you could add a player and sit on them for a few weeks and hope they earn a starting role. Finally, they could be even on the waiver wire in your dynasty leagues. Hence, the stashes. Without further ado, let’s dig into the top waiver wire pickups as we head into Week 2 of the fantasy football season.

Rostered percentages below are from Sleeper as of 9/12/2023.

Fantasy Football Deep Dive Waiver Wire Pickups

Running Backs

Tyjae Spears, RB, Tennesee Titans (25% rostered)

Rookie running back Tyjae Spears is a stash option in all formats if you have the bench space. Spears lined up in the backfield on the first play from scrimmage. Ultimately, he saw a total of 34 snaps to Derrick Henry’s 30. Spears saw an uptick in volume on third down and appears to be more of a passing down back at this point.

Every year it seems the Titans have a backup for Henry who has fantasy volume. However, this year just seems different. The snap usage is extremely concerning. In the end, Spears rushed three times for 27 yards and saw four targets, only catching one for a yard. While the stat line isn’t over the top, the way the Titans used Spears is very telling of their plans. Don’t panic too much yet, but Spears is certainly worth a pickup off the waiver wire in deeper leagues.

Rico Dowdle, RB, Dallas Cowboys (3% rostered)

The Cowboys didn’t need to use their starters late into the game as they had a 40-0 lead on the Giants. As expected, Tony Pollard dominated the snaps all around. However, it’s worth noting that Rico Dowdle appears to have won the backup job. He rushed six times for 24 yards while Deuce Vaughn rushed six times for 8 yards. All in all, Dowdle looks like the handcuff to pick up off the waiver wire if you can afford the roster spot.

Jerome Ford, RB, Cleveland Browns (14% rostered)

The new backup for the Cleveland Browns with Kareem Hunt leaving in free agency is Jerome Ford. Ford saw a huge workload against the Bengals. While it could have been the game script, the Browns seem to always give the backup work. Ford rushed 15 times for 36 yards. While Nick Chubb is the unquestioned starter, he only saw 18 rushes versus Ford’s 15. While this is nothing to look into as they could be easing Chubb into the season (which probably is the reason).

Ty Chandler, RB, Minnesota Vikings (11% rostered)

Another stash option is Ty Chandler, but only as the backup for Alexander Mattison. He didn’t see much action outside three rushes for no yards and caught his only target for 18 yards. This year, Mattison is in his first full season as a starting running back with the departure of Dalvin Cook. If for some reason he misses any time, Chandler appears to be first in line for rushing attempts.

Wide Receivers

Rashid Shaheed, WR, New Orleans Saints (13% rostered)

Rashid Shaheed seems to be the WR3 heading into the season behind Chris Olave and Michael Thomas. With new quarterback Derek Carr in town, Shaheed had one of the best games of his career. Shaheed proceded to have a breakout game seeing six targets and caught five passes for 89 yards and a touchdown. Furthermore, he was the Saints kick and punt returner offering value in leagues where touchdowns in special teams count.

Tutu Atwell, WR, Los Angeles Rams (7% rostered)

Stepping up in the absence of Cooper Kupp in a big way was Tutu Atwell. Van Jefferson, Puka Nacua, and Tutu Atwell were the main three receivers going into Sunday’s game against Seattle. Atwell saw eight targets and caught six passes for 119 yards. While Kupp is out, expect Atwell to see a good share of targets to make him a Flex option in all formats. Atwell or Nacua make for great fantasy additions. Nacua is going to be the big name added this week, but Atwell can make a name for himself while Kupp is out.

Kendrick Bourne, WR, New England Patriots (2% rostered)

With Mac Jones finally having a proper offensive coordinator, the Patriot’s offense was able to move the ball on the NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles. Kendrick Bourne saw 11 targets and caught six passes for 64 yards and two touchdowns. He needs to be rostered in deeper formats. He could easily end up being the top wideout in New England by season’s end and is only two percent rostered at this moment.

Josh Reynolds, WR, Detroit Lions (5% rostered)

With Jameson Williams’ suspension lasting for six games, the Lions need help outside Amon-Ra St. Brown. Josh Reynolds is doing what he can to earn the WR2 role. He saw seven targets thrown his way and caught four of those passes for 80 yards. He saw the field most of the game and is playing for an up-and-coming Detroit offense. Reynolds would make for a good flex option in deeper formats or even dynasty managers

Tight Ends

Hayden Hurst, TE, Carolina Panthers (13% rostered)

Hayden Hurst is the TE1 in Carolina, and with a lot of question marks in the fantasy landscape of tight ends, Hurst isn’t a bad play. Hurst saw seven targets, catching five for 41 yards and the first career touchdown for Bryce Young. A tight end is always a rookie quarterback safety blanket, and it appears that is what Hurst is doing right now. Hurst is best used as a backup tight end in fantasy formats, but given the injuries to the position, he could be a streamable starter.

Durham Smythe, TE, Miami Dolphins (2% rostered)

The Miami Dolphins are stacked at wide receiver with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. Hill had the best performance on Sunday of any wide receiver. Miami does not have an established tight end going into Sunday, but Durham Smythe could be a good addition to the waiver wire in deeper formats. The tight-end market is full of injuries currently. Smythe saw seven targets and caught three passes for 44 yards. The 6’6 tight end is a big red zone target as well and could be someone worth monitoring as the season goes on.

Donald Parham, TE, Los Angeles Chargers (0% rostered)

While not the full-time starter for the Chargers, Donald Parham nearly saw 50% of snaps in Sunday’s loss to Miami. The 6’8 tight end presents himself as a big red zone target for Justin Herbert. Additionally, Parham caught all three of his targets for 21 yards and a touchdown. It’s safe to say, that this Chargers offense seems primed to be one of the top in the league. Really, even someone like Parhma catching passes in this offense is worth a pickup in your deeper fantasy football leagues.

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