RADIO
In fantasy football leagues that use FAAB (free agent acquisition budget), it can be hard to know how much money to spend on key players at QB, RB, WR, or TE. Kev Mahserejian gives fantasy owners his recommendations on how to spend FAAB for Week 5.
Assisting our famous waiver wire pickups list, and our weekly waiver wire columns by position, this column focuses on suggested waiver wire bidding percentages for fantasy football owners in leagues using a Free Agent Acquisition Budget (FAAB).
As a caveat, these prices do not by any means indicate how much these free agent players will go for. Each league values players differently and will continue to do so. These values are here to provide a baseline to understand roughly how much you should be targeting to spend on a particular player. You only have so much FAAB money, spend it as wisely as possible.
We're four weeks deep into the 2019 season and reality is setting in. We're starting to figure out the identity of each team but there are still surprises and new faces popping up on our radars. Without further ado, here are our FAAB auction bidding recommendations for Week 6 below.
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FAAB Waiver Wire Bids - Quarterbacks
Jimmy Garoppolo (QB, SF) - FAAB Bid: 3-5%
60% owned
Jimmy G is not doing much this season, but that is enough for the 49ers to remain undefeated. On the backs of a great defense and complex run-game, San Francisco is taking the league by storm. This coming week, the Niners face one of their tougher tests against the Rams in Los Angeles. Despite LA's struggles, they remain worthwhile opponents who will keep the match competitive. The Niners annot just run the ball all game as they did against Cleveland on Monday night because the pace will be faster and require Garopollo to throw a respectable amount of passes. After this matchup, Jimmy G will travel to Washington to face their easiest task of the season in a game that should be over by halftime. Even with that, he could fall into two or three cheapie touchdowns making him a hold past this week.
Kyle Allen (QB, CAR) - FAAB Bid: 1-2%
10% owned
Kyle Allen is undefeated this season but has not really been asked to do much. He almost lost the Panthers their game against Houston and was adequate enough to squeeze out a win against Jacksonville. This coming weekend, he gets to face a porous Tampa Bay Secondary that just allowed Teddy Bridgewater full entrance. Allen will have his hands full targeting various wide open receivers as the Buccaneers' primary objective has been stopping the run. This is as good of a matchup as it is going to get for Kyle Allen which makes him streamable at best for this upcoming week and no further. Drop him afterward for anyone else.
Josh Allen (QB, BUF) - FAAB Bid: 5-8%
51% owned
There are going to be plenty of owners who drop Josh "The Better" Allen due to his bye week and average production this season. That is a mistake outside of extremely shallow leagues. Coming off the bye, Buffalo faces Miami, Philly, Washington, Cleveland and then Miami again. This is the best stretch of games possible for a quarterback and Allen will look to take full advantage with his arm and legs. The Bills offense as a whole is a buy/hold.
FAAB Waiver Wire Bids - Running Backs
Chase Edmonds (RB, ARI) - FAAB Bid: 15-20%
56% owned
This all depends on David Johnson's status for Week 6. If he is set to miss the game due to his back issue that flared up recently, shell out for Edmonds, if not, you should still go for it, but scale back. Edmonds is one of the best handcuffs in fantasy right now and could even carve out a role with Johnson active. Head coach Kliff Kingsbury stated that he has plans to get Edmonds more involved. Edmonds has done a lot with a little this season, amassing 127 yards on just 19 carries and while being involved in the passing game. Every Johnson owner should have Chase Edmonds.
Jonathan Hilliman and/or Elijhaa Penny (RB, NYG) - FAAB Bid: 0-5%
44% owned
Hilliman and/or Penny are only worth adding if Wayne Gallman and Saquon Barkley are doubtful to play Thursday night. Hilliman and Penny should be in line for a bulk of the team's snaps at RB but both have a low ceiling in a brutal matchup in Foxboro. The Giants are likely playing from behind for a majority of the game and will not rely on running by the second half. The only value either back possess is as a target hog if Daniel Jones opts to dump it off as the game goes on. Neither are long-term options and should not have much FAAB spent on them.
Jordan Wilkins (RB, IND) - FAAB Bid: 1-3%
6% owned
Wilkins is another very good handcuff. If anything were to happen to Marlon Mack, Wilkins would immediately take over as the lead behind a strong offensive line with a game-plan designed to feed the RB. He received quite a few carries even with Mack active this past week and could see a small share going forward. Regardless, the only way to start him is if Mack misses time, which is feasible given that he was out for parts of last season. Nyheim Hines would definitely have a larger role in this scenario, but not enough to make Wilkins un-startable.
Damien Harris (RB, NE) - FAAB Bid: 0-2%
7% owned
Sony Michel finally looked competent, and that came in a game against one of the worst run defenses in the league in the most positive game-script imaginable. Harris has yet to touch the football in a game this year and might have to wait a bit more before he gets that chance. However, he is worth owning, particularly for Michel owners because there is always the possibility that his knee acts up and Harris inherits a portion of the workload to potentially take off with, even with Rex Burkhead in the picture. Harris just feels like something Belichick is waiting to unleash.
Tra Carson (RB, GB) - FAAB Bid: 0-1%
0% owned
Bleh, the handcuff to a handcuff. Tre Carson should only be owned in the deepest leagues for any Aaron Jones or Jamaal Williams owners. He was underwhelming against the Cowboys but played a significant role as the RB2 in a run-heavy offense. Carson's not even worth the one percent bid but it felt mean to just leave zero up there.
FAAB Waiver Wire Bids - Wide Receivers
Mohamed Sanu (WR, ATL) - FAAB Bid: 5-8%
42% owned
SANUUUUUUUU. He figured to be the odd-man-out in Atlanta with Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley eating up most of the receiving targets, but nope. He AND Austin Hooper are thriving alongside the elite WR duo thanks to the Falcons' deranged game-scripts. The Atlanta defense is so bad that it is supporting multiple elite fantasy receiving options and keeping Devonta Freeman afloat in PPR. There is something to be said for that kind of atrocity. Nevertheless, Sanu should be owned in all PPR leagues due to his target share along with the fact that he leads all WRs on this team in snaps.
Auden Tate (WR, CIN) - FAAB Bid: 3-5%
22% owned
Auden Tate is not very good, however, that does not matter when he is getting targeted at least six times per game and in the endzone consistently. He's a slower, big body receiver who needs volume to thrive because there is not much that occurs after the catch. He's played almost every snap over the past two weeks and will be heavily involved until A.J Green returns. Temporarily, he is a fine flex/WR3 in deeper PPR leagues.
Preston Williams (WR, MIA) - FAAB Bid: 2-4%
8% owned
Preston Williams is Josh Rosen's boy. They go way back, and that matters (to a degree). Built-in rapport is hard to find and can occasionally lead to a QB force-feeding targets. Williams is a talented receiver who fell in drafts due to "off-the-field" issues but has produced so far in 2019 with this terri-bad Dolphins roster. He's seen between 5 and 12 targets through the first month of the season and should continue to have a large target-share, especially if Miami opts to trade one or both of Davante Parker and Kenyan Drake. He can create separation at the LOS and win jump-balls. The touchdowns might be low, yet even then, he is a great cheap WR add in 12-plus team leagues.
N'Keal Harry (WR, NE) - FAAB Bid: 0-3%
6% owned
The Patriots are desperate for playmakers. The offense is dull and predictable. This team would not be undefeated if their defense was even a tick below historically great. Harry was their first-round pick for a reason. They clearly believed in him enough to select him with that draft capital and once he is cleared to return from IR, there is not much in his way from finding a role. Harry's ability to make plays with the ball in his hands opens up a brand new facet for Brady and Co. and could unleash a potential sleeping giant. He is a worthwhile IR stash right now if your roster is not decimated by injuries.
Zay Jones (WR, OAK) - FAAB Bid: 0-2%
3% owned
His recent trade to the Raiders is double-edged. On one hand, he may now consistently see more than half of his team's snaps in a given week, on the other, he has Derek Carr throwing to him, an actual downgrade from Josh Allen. Jones could have value in deep leagues if Carr decides to throw more than five yards downfield on a regular basis. That is wait-and-see for now but still worth grabbing Jones just to speculate.
FAAB Waiver Wire Bids - Tight Ends
Gerald Everett (TE, LAR) - FAAB Bid: 5-8%
10% owned
Everett had his breakout game this past Thursday against the Seahawks. Everett's season thus far has underwhelmed but his recent target share is promising. 19 targets over the past two weeks is nothing to scoff at, especially with Tyler Higbee back in the mix. If Brandin Cooks is out against the 49ers, Everett should continue to see a bloated workload.
Dawson Knox (TE, BUF) - FAAB Bid: 3-5%
16% owned
Knox's snaps have risen since the start of the season to a point where he hit a career-high of 72 percent in Week 5. He is becoming a solid receiving option for Josh Allen and will have the benefit of the Bills' upcoming schedule to boost some value.
Chris Herndon IV (TE, NYJ) - FAAB Bid: 3-5%
29% owned
He is finally back from suspension and gets to face a Cowboys' team that is not particularly strong at defending tight ends. The defense's biggest hole is at the safety spots and that could be exploited this week if the Jets are smart. Herndon built a great rapport with QB Sam Darnold last season and will look to improve on it as the season progresses.
FAAB Waiver Wire Bids - Defense/Special Teams
Washington Redskins Defense - FAAB Bid: 2-3%
4% owned
Hear me out...they're playing the Dolphins. Not only that, but they fired their head coach and might be fired up for the first time in years for some semblance of change. There is legitimate talent on this Washington defense and they heavily outmatch the Miami offense, particularly in the trenches. Fire them up even though they are on the road.
Dallas Cowboys Defense - FAAB Bid: 2-3%
54% owned
The Jets should be getting their starting QB back but that does not matter when they have virtually no OL and a poor offensive gameplan. Darnold will get sacked a few times and might turn the ball over once or twice if this game gets out of hand. The Cowboys are competent enough to not mess this opportunity up.
