Snatch ‘Em Up Now
If they weren’t already drafted in your league, these guys will be hot commodities on the wire this week.
Quarterbacks:
n/a. Don’t see a must-add quarterback for this week on the wire.
Running Backs:
Damien Martinez, Oregon State – Martinez is just slightly above our 30% threshold for the purposes of this article but want to include him one more time as a reminder with Oregon State coming off a bye. The freshman is now THE guy in the Beavers’ backfield, though he’ll faced the country’s No. 21 ranked run defense this week in Washington.
Wide Receivers:
Dorian Singer, Arizona – Four receiving touchdowns in the last two games and is now third in the Pac-12 in yards per game (93.3). Jayden de Laura is fourth nationally in yards per game and ninth in attempts, so there is more than enough to go around, even if Singer plays second fiddle to Jacob Cowing some weeks.
Elijah Badger, Arizona State – Badger has become one of the best WRs in the Pac-12, ranked fourth in the conference in receiving yards after consecutive 100-yard receiving performances. 28 targets in the last three games alone and gets a boost in value now that Emory Jones is no longer the starting quarterback.
Shocky Jacques-Louis / Alex Adams, Akron – Akron hit a wall this week facing the No. 1 defense in the MAC. But that didn’t stop a pair of transfer receivers from having big days, with both Adams and Jacques-Louis topping 100 receiving yards. The duo combined for 27 of the team’s 44 targets in Week 9, and account for seven of Akron’s nine receiving touchdowns for the year.
Jared Brown, Coastal Carolina – Sam Pinckney still leads Coastal for the season in targets, but Brown has arguably been the most consistent WR, now averaging 7.2 targets per game over the last five weeks with five TDs in that span.
Worth A Look
If you have the roster room, these prospects are worth a look.
Quarterbacks:
D.J. Irons, Akron – Just gunna continue to leave Irons’ name here as he’ll be helpful to any team down the stretch. A struggle against Miami (Ohio) but still managed 300 passing yards and scored 24 fantasy points. Not bad for an “off day.” Irons is now ninth in the country, averaging 40.3 attempts per game.
Taylen Green, Boise State – Green’s confidence is growing with every passing week as he threw for 300+ yards with three total touchdowns in the win over Colorado State. Matchup next week against one of the worst defenses in the country in BYU next Saturday, and some appealing matchups to close the year with Utah State and Nevada still on the docket.
Running Backs:
Jaylon Glover, Utah – No confirmation, but I think at this point Utah and Tavion Thomas need to part ways. Maybe he comes back, but we saw a spark in the Utes ground game with 4-star freshman Jaylon Glover rushing for 77 yards and a TD on 20 carries. Micah Bernard was also banged up, but its time for Utah to turn the page in the backfield to the future. If that happens, Glover has a fantastic matchup with Arizona this week.
Stacy Sneed, Houston – I still think Brandon Campbell is a good player, but Sneed has been the choice of the coaching staff the last two weeks now, finding the end-zone twice against USF. Another great matchup upcoming against an SMU defense that is 117th nationally against the run.
Logan Diggs, Notre Dame – You’re not playing a Notre Dame running back this week against Clemson, but the final three games include matchups where you could comfortably start Diggs, or Audric Estime for that matter. The ND offensive line destroyed the Syracuse defense on Saturday, rushing for over 240 yards as a team. Diggs has now gotten 20+ carries in back to back weeks.
Bucky Irving, Oregon – Still a split backfield with Noah Whittington, but Irving has now scored 18 or more points in each of the last three games. If you’re looking for a high-floor starter in a pinch, he’ll likely find the end-zone at least once as Oregon assuredly puts up 50+ on Colorado next week.
Daijun Edwards, Georgia – If/when Kendall Milton returns from injury, it doesn’t appear he’ll be getting his job back the way Edwards has been running in his place. Two more rushing touchdowns on Saturday as he’s found paydirt seven times in the last four games. Tough matchup against a Tennessee front that is a top 10 group in the country at defending the run, but we’ll trust in the talent Georgia has that they should be able to move the pile a bit.
Wide Receivers:
Jaylin Noel, Iowa State – The Cyclones rushing woes continued against Oklahoma, and we’re beginning to realize that Hunter Dekkers may not be what some thought he was at QB. That said, the WR corps continues to put up numbers with Jaylin Noel now finding the end-zone three times in the last two weeks. 21 targets combined in that span.
Jaylin Lane, Middle Tennessee – Tough to trust the Middle Tennessee offense on a weekly basis, but Lane has been excellent for the majority of the year. Now averaging 11.2 targets per game over the last month and three 100-yard performances in 2022. He’s the clear-cut WR1 for the Blue Raiders.
Nikko Remigio, Fresno State – I think it’s fair to say that Jake Haener loves Nikko Remigio. Haener has played in four games this season. The former Cal transfer topped 100 yards receiving in three of those games. Everyone on the Fresno State offense is upgraded with Haener’s return to the lineup.
Michael Sturdivant, California – Cal now has major questions at quarterback with a banged-up Jack Plummer, but JMS had another big week with 6-71-1 on nine targets. That’s now 33 targets in the last three weeks as he’s emerged as the clear WR1, this time even with Jeremiah Hunter back in the lineup.
Bryson Green, Oklahoma State – Lots to digest here with Oklahoma State. Worst performance of the Mike Gundy tenure. Running game is atrocious. Spencer Sanders injured. Jaden Bray expected to play, then not in warmups and eventually sits. That said, it appears Green is separating himself a bit with 18 targets in the last two games, and multiple 100-yard receiving performances in the month of October. Expecting a rebound against Kansas offensively, assuming Sanders plays.
Evan Stewart / Moose Muhammad III, Texas A&M – A combined 24 targets between the two underclassmen with both finding the end-zone in the loss to Ole Miss. Both are now averaging well over eight targets per game over the last month or so, and their value is upgraded it appears with Conner Weigman now entrenched as the starter at QB. Florida and Auburn in the next two weeks – we like those matchups for this offense.
Longshots
Need to see more from these guys before pulling the trigger unless you are in the deepest of leagues.
Quarterbacks:
MJ Morris, NC State – The Wolfpack found their starting quarterback for the remainder of the year and for 2023 all in one night. The 4-star FR completed 20-of-29 passes for 265 yards and three scores, capping off a comeback win over Virginia Tech. Only 12 yards on the ground, but is a dual-threat, rushing for 602 yards as a high school senior. He’ll be a bigger priority in dynasty leagues but could start in a pinch with some favorable matchups the remainder of the year.
Grayson James, Florida International – Let us not forget that Grayson James was an Elite 11 quarterback when being recruited and a former 3-star prospect. He’s got talent and its starting to show with back-to-back 30-point performances. It’s also fair to say that both performances came against two of the worst defenses in the entire country so we’re not suggesting throwing all of your FAAB this way. James gets North Texas this week – a team that has won three out of four and gave Western Kentucky fits defensively.
Conner Weigman, Texas A&M – Didn’t have this game on in the forefront, but box score scouting, it looks like the Aggies have the QB to build the program around in the 5-star. 338 yards and four scores in your first ever start? That $30 million in booster money isn’t buying wins, but the talent pool is up there with any in the country.
Running Backs:
Marquis Crosby, Louisiana Tech – Strong performances in consecutive weeks for Crosby despite playing in a pass-first offense, rushing for 119 yards and two scores vs. Florida International. Don’t love the matchup this week against a Middle Tennessee defense that is limiting opponents to under four yards a carry but could start Crosby in a pinch.
D.Q. James, Wyoming – Titus Swen got injured in the first half against Wyoming, leading to the 172-pound James posting his second straight 100-yard rushing performance. We’ll see this week on any updates to Swen’s status, but Wyoming probably will look to get James involved in the offense more in preparation for 2023. Bye week upcoming for the Cowboys before traveling to Colorado State.
Brian Battie, South Florida – 106 yards and two touchdowns for the speedy Battie against Houston and gets the 107th ranked rush defense in Temple this Saturday. Slight of build at 165 pounds but looks like the coaching staff should be making it a priority to get him the football, now averaging over six yards a carry for the year.
LT Sanders, Western Kentucky – We’re seeing a more balanced offense from Western Kentucky in 2022, and this freshman running back has come out of nowhere the last two weeks with over 196 combined yards on the ground. I’d say he’s a longshot streaming option against the 129th ranked rush defense in Charlotte.
RJ Harvey, Central Florida – Could also put Harvey in the Dynasty section as he’ll potentially be a top selection next year as UCF’s RB1. We’ve been pleading for the former Virginia quarterback to get more carries as he’s averaged over seven yards a carry for the majority of the year, and that happened Saturday with 86 yards and two scores on 16 attempts. Has he taken over the job from Isaiah Bowser?
Wide Receivers:
Matt Landers, Arkansas – Landers’ playing time has been consistent all year, but we’re seeing a mini-breakout the last two games with 12 receptions and three touchdowns on 15 targets. Just more comfortable within the offense? Arkansas should be in some high-scoring affairs the final month with their upcoming schedule.
Tiaquelin Mims, Southern Miss – We might need to keep an eye on this 5-foot-9 freshman slot receiver in the coming years. Not that we’re investing highly in this passing game, but Mims has been targets 19 times in the last three weeks because of the Jakarius Caston injury, and had a 52-yard touchdown reception against Louisiana via the rocket arm of Frank Gore Jr.
Miles Marshall, Miami (Ohio) – Amazing the difference with Brett Gabbert back in the lineup. 12 of Marshall’s 18 receptions this season have come in the last two games with Gabbert returning from injury. The former Indiana transfer will be helpful to deeper rosters down the stretch here.
Sam Brown, Houston – Double-digit fantasy points in each of the last three games for the former West Virginia transfer, with 30 of his 32 targets coming in the last month.
Colbie Young, Miami – Jake Garcia only threw for 114 yards in his first start so the numbers were down across the board, but Young led the Hurricanes again with five receptions on eight targets. He is now the clear WR1 for Miami.
Amad Anderson, Temple – Adonicas Sanders did not play so there would be targets available, but this is now the second big performance from Anderson in as many weeks, topping 100 yards receiving against Navy. Double digit targets in each of the last two games.
Corey Gammage, Marshall – Solid player that has been crippled by the quarterback situation. Cam Fancher is a slight upgrade over Henry Colombi, and it’s resulted in an uptick from Gammage with over 250 receiving yards over the last two games.
Dynasty
Players to add for future seasons
Camden Brown, Auburn – I’ll need to do a bit more research here because this is not a player that I’ve studied at any point. But there have been two games now this season where the 6-foot-3 freshman has seen extended playing time. LSU and now this past week against Arkansas. Both times Brown has scored a touchdown. Name to monitor.
Joseph Griffin, Boston College – At one point in time, Jaden Williams appeared to be the next man up after Zay Flowers departs. The 6-fot-4 Griffin now looks to be the heir apparent, seeing his offensive snap counts increase dramatically the last two games. Targeted 12 times in that span.
Jordan Tyson, Colorado – We’ll see what Colorado does in the coaching market but looks like the new staff would have at least one piece to work with in freshman Jordyn Tyson who has over 200 yards receiving in the last two weeks.
