The Long Night is over. Football is back! Let's get the season rolling with a look at the waiver wire. Sure, you likely just finished your draft, but you should always stay on top of the best adds to keep your roster from getting stale.
Here is the Week 1 waiver wire breakdown:
Shallow League Additions
Obvious adds: Devin Singletary, Justice Hill, Justin Jackson, Anthony Miller - Singletary should have been drafted in every league even before the Bills cut LeSean McCoy, but make sure he's not out there on your league wire before you go any further down this column... Hill and Jackson are the highest upside fantasy RB4 stashes out there and both have low-end standalone FLEX value in Week 1. Jackson is somehow still available in over 70 percent of NFL.com leagues... Miller is a super sneaky WR4 PPR play to open the year. Trey Burton (groin) is less than 100 percent and may not be ready to play on Thursday night against Green Bay. Miller will operate as Chicago's primary slot wideout and it's notable that Trubisky was far better targeting his slot wideouts (9.1 YPA; 103.7 rating; 68 percent completions) than his receivers split out wide (7.0 YPA; 82.4 rating; 62 percent completions) in 2018.
Marquise Goodwin and Deebo Samuel, SF, WR - After George Kittle, San Francisco's pecking order in the pass game is up in the air entering Week 1. Dante Pettis reportedly struggled during the preseason, kicking the door wide open for Marquise Goodwin and Deebo Samuel to push for the No. 1 wide receiver status. HC Kyle Shanahan will likely use a rotation here unless someone truly breaks free, but both Goodwin and Samuel need to be stashed. I don't have any confidence starting either in 10- or 12-team leagues yet, but Goodwin or Samuel could start fast to open the season with three appetizing matchups against Tampa Bay, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh.
Albert Wilson, MIA, WR - The Dolphins may not be a good real life team this season, but that doesn't mean at least one of their pass catchers won't have weekly fantasy value. Without Kenny Stills, Miami has vacated 42 percent of their targets from last season -- leaving plenty of room for someone to break out. The problem is selecting the right wideout. DeVante Parker, Preston Williams, and Jakeem Grant will all work in the Dolphins receiver rotation, but Wilson is easily my favorite dart of them all. Per PFF's Scott Barrett, no quarterback has targeted their slot wideouts more often than Ryan Fitzpatrick has over the past decade. Back healthy after offseason hip surgery, Wilson will work as Miami's primary interior receiver this season.
Carlos Hyde, HOU, RB - Now on his fifth team in three years, Hyde is hoping his tour around the NFL ends with strong play in Houston. Hyde has finished last in yards per carry compared to his teammates on each of his past three teams that he played snaps for, turning his 413 attempts in this span into just 1,509 yards on the ground (3.65 YPC). I don't believe Hyde is a threat to Duke Johnson's workload -- especially on passing downs -- but the Texans No. 2 back is one injury away from an every-down role in a top tier offense.
Other targets: Frank Gore, BUF, RB; Chris Thompson, WAS, RB; D.K. Metcalf, SEA, WR
Deep League Additions
Dare Ogunbowale, TB, RB - The Bucs' backfield led by Peyton Barber is a gross fantasy situation, but Ogunbowale reportedly has the third-down role on lock and is a free dart into what should be a high scoring, pass-heavy attack. Ogunbowale caught 60 balls in 27 games over his final two seasons at Wisconsin.
Cole Beasley, BUF, WR - This is a PPR-only play, but the Bills likely want Josh Allen to take fewer deep shots this season after he led all QBs, by far, in deep attempts per game as a rookie. Buffalo's target distribution is wide open after John Brown.
KeeSean Johnson, ARI, WR- The Cardinals are expected to use '10-personnel' (4WR) more than any team in the NFL this season after HC Kliff Kingsbury used the formation on over 60 percent of his plays last year at Texas Tech. Injuries to fellow rookies Hakeem Butler (finger; IR) and Andy Isabella (knee) have opened up a potential full-time role for Johnson opposite starters Christian Kirk and Larry Fitzgerald.
Other targets: Miles Boykin, BAL, WR; Mike Gesicki, MIA, TE**
Quarterback Streamer
Matthew Stafford (at ARI) - You shouldn't need a QB streamer in Week 1, but if you do, look no further. If Stafford can't get loose for a top-15 fantasy finish against the Cardinals razor thin secondary in the season debut, it won't bode well for his season-long prospects. Not only will Arizona be down all-world CB Patrick Peterson (suspension) in the season opener, No. 2 corner Robert Alford broke his leg during the preseason and is on injured reserve. Arizona allowed the 10th-fewest fantasy points per pass attempt last year, but Tramaine Brock, Byron Murphy, and Chris Jones are ill-equipped to deal with Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones' talent on the boundary.
Other targets: Jimmy Garoppolo (at TB), Josh Allen (vs. NYJ), Mitchell Trubisky (vs. GB)
Tight End Streamer
Darren Waller (vs. Broncos) - The Raiders cut Luke Willson during 53-man cut downs, leaving Darren Waller alone atop of the depth chart. Waller will walk into an every-down role Week 1, and even though the Broncos have one of the best defenses in the league, they quietly allowed the sixth-most PPR points per target to tight ends last year.
D/ST Streamers
Seattle Seahawks (vs. Bengals) - Seattle is over 75 percent available on NFL.com ahead of a gorgeous Week 1 home draw against an under-manned Bengals offensive line that may be without LT Cordy Glenn (concussion). Both Jadeveon Clowney and Ezekiel Ansah are expected to play in the opener.
Dallas Cowboys (vs. Giants) - Not only do the Cowboys get the Giants one-dimensional offense at home in Week 1, but they also follow up their great opening matchup with dates against the Redskins and Dolphins talent-deficient offenses in Weeks 2-3. Dallas' talented front-seven should especially expose Washington and Miami's issues in the trenches.
Cleveland Browns (vs. Titans) - Why wouldn't you want to target a Marcus Mariota-led offense in a tough road matchup in Week 1?
- -- Graham Barfield is a fantasy editor and analyst for NFL.com. Catch him on the Fantasy LIVE podcast with Marcas Grant and Michael Fabiano, Fantasy LIVE on NFL Network, on Fantasy League One, and follow him on Twitter @GrahamBarfield. *
