playEric KarabellSep 14, 2026, 12:38 PM ETCloseEric Karabell is a senior writer covering fantasy football, baseball and basketball at ESPN. Eric is a charter member of the FSWA Hall of Fame, a BBWAA baseball Hall of Fame voter and author of “The Best Philadelphia Sports Arguments.”Multiple AuthorsOpen Extended ReactionsEach Monday, before the current NFL week ends, we will identify players worthy of your attention available in at least 50% of ESPN standard leagues. Things change quickly for player valuation and roles each week in the NFL, and free agency is a critical way to acquire players. We are here to help!Roster refreshLooking for the top recommendation at each skill position?
Look no further! Here are the players to target heading into Week 2Tyler Shough, QB, Saints (rostered in 46.7% of leagues): Shough, ranked 19th among quarterbacks in roster percentage, started slowly versus the Detroit Lions, then ended up skewering them for 23.2 PPR points. Yes, he had the aid of overtime and he didn’t face a strong secondary. Still, that’s 410 passing yards and three touchdowns.
Week 2 at the Baltimore Ravens should be tougher. Shough merely continued his fine play from late in his rookie season, when he was a borderline QB1 option for fantasy during his nine starts. He may be underrated even in standard 10-team formats.Kaelon Black, RB, 49ers (15.4%): Black, the third-round pick from Indiana, certainly looked excellent in the Week 1 rout of the Los Angeles Rams in Australia. Black turned 15 touches into 70 yards and 8.0 fantasy points, while Christian McCaffrey scored 13.8 points on his 15 touches.
Perhaps the 49ers only split the touches this way due to the unique circumstances, such as the lopsided score and/or the long travel. Perhaps Week 2 will see McCaffrey dominate the volume against the Miami Dolphins. Look, adding Black with the intention of expecting relevant fantasy numbers in Week 2 is folly. However, adding Black just in case it happens again, or that McCaffrey — with a track record of injuries — gets hurt again?
That makes sense.Jalen Coker, WR, Panthers (50.7%): Coker is just a tad on the other side of 50%, but he’s worth bending our rules just a little bit. Coker, who finished last season strong and earned himself a three-year contract, was more productive with his nine targets — catching eight passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns — than his universally-rostered teammate Tetairoa McMillan, who caught just five passes for 75 yards. This does not mean Coker will clearly outscore McMillan in Week 2, or for the month of September, or for the entire season. But it sure doesn’t mean he won’t, either.
Coker and pals hit the road for Week 2 in Atlanta, where the Panthers should be able to throw the football.Mike Gesicki, TE, Bengals (1.5%): The oft-overlooked Gesicki caught 78 yards worth of passes, including a 2-yard touchdown grab. No Bengal surpassed him in receptions, receiving yards or targets. Plus, he caught the team’s lone touchdown pass. That should not continue, obviously, with both Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins healthy.
Still, Gesicki, 30, was a relevant fantasy option as recently as two seasons ago, when he caught 65 passes. He may be relevant again.Other quarterbacksJordan Love, Packers (42.2%): Love probably deserves a bit more, um, love in fantasy leagues, but there is also a reason why 19 other passers are more popular. Love fell short of 3,400 passing yards in both of the last two seasons and he is barely a factor in the running game, with only one rushing touchdown over that span. Do not overrate his performance (387 passing yards) versus the Minnesota Vikings or assume the Packers consistently will throw more with RB Josh Jacobs absent.Malik Willis, Dolphins (21%): A dynamic runner, Willis scored more than half his fantasy points in Week 1 via his legs, with 39 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Miami’s passing game did not impress, but if Willis continues to run — and he should — a potential QB1 option lurks.Bryce Young, Panthers (11.1%): Young eclipsed 300 passing yards three times in his first 44 NFL starts, so the fact he did so in Sunday’s loss to the lopsided Chicago Bears (all offense, no defense) is relevant, but not necessarily a harbinger for the following months. The Panthers face the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2, which is still a positive matchup for someone who may be only a short-term fill-in for fantasy managers.Deep-league options/streamers Carson Wentz, Vikings (0.1%): Starter Kyler Murray left his debut early due to a concussion and we can assume he will miss at least one more week. Wentz played competently in the comeback win over the Green Bay Packers, tossing three touchdown passes. The Bears await in Week 2.
Don’t assume Wentz directs the Vikings all season long, but he is a prime streamer against a Chicago team seemingly asking for weekly shootouts.Drew Lock, Seahawks (0.1%): Starter Sam Darnold (glute) might miss several weeks, and Lock, while lacking the career credentials of Wentz, also played competently in relief in an opening-week comeback win. Just like Wentz teams up with star WR Justin Jefferson, Lock plays with the wonderful WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, someone who makes any QB look good. The Seahawks face the surprising Arizona Cardinals in Week 2.Others: I would go with Lock over Falcons fill-in Cooper Rush, even though Atlanta boasts a solid home matchup with the Carolina Panthers, who just surrendered 59 points to the Bears. We may find out later in the week that Rush isn’t starting, if lefties Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr. heal from their injuries.
In fact, now may be a wise time to add Penix. … New York Jets starter Geno Smith and Cardinals starter Jacoby Brissett are each available in 95% of leagues. Week 2 feels a bit early to rely on them, before the bye weeks, but they are competent.FAB thoughts: Presuming a $100 season-long budget for your league for waiver wire acquisition, spending big on a quarterback, with so much positional depth, is not logical. Things are different in multi-QB/Superflex formats, but even those dealing with the Darnold and Murray injuries should try to be patient.
Shough and Love are worth something ($10-15?) if you’re particularly desperate, but I would still target flex options first and try to fill in problematic QB situations with readily available and less expensive options like Smith and Brissett.Other running backs Tyler Allgeier, Cardinals (41.8%): Hotshot rookie Jeremiyah Love scored 13 fantasy points in his debut, as a rushing touchdown overcame tepid volume. This was expected, as Love was on the mend from a sprained ankle. The reliable veteran Allgeier earned 17 rushing attempts, but that may not continue for long, especially for those who believe the Cardinals will trail more in future games. Be careful here.
Allgeier is proven, but he isn’t guaranteed much. Kendre Miller, Saints (0.9%): Starter Travis Etienne Jr., among the team’s most notable free-agent acquisitions last offseason, scored 14.8 points, with more than half coming courtesy of his receiving work (7 catches, 32 yards). Otherwise, Etienne and Miller split 18 rushing attempts, with Miller scoring on a short touchdown run. We cannot assume this split continues for Week 2 or beyond — and let’s remember that Alvin Kamara (knee) may play this month, too.Deep-league options/streamersChris Rodriguez Jr., Jaguars (30.8%): Rodriguez scored only 2.3 points in his team debut, as Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence tossed four touchdown passes in the easy win over the hapless Cleveland Browns.
Bhayshul Tuten rushed 15 times. We still think Rodriguez will matter this season, but, as usual, there isn’t a lot to add this week at running back. Devin Singletary, Giants (0.3%): Starter Cam Skattebo starred, but Singletary nearly matched him for fantasy points thanks to four receptions, one of them for a touchdown. Skattebo caught nary a pass, and many question his durability (and decision-making).
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