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Fantasy Football 2022: 3 Players to Consider as the Waiver Wire Heats Up With Injuries and Plenty of Question Marks
John Clayton is a sports writer and columnist with three decades of experience who has won over 30 awards including Georgia AP's award for best sports story. Additionally, he's a former Heisman Trophy elector and member of the Pro Football Writers Association. Though his expertise is wide, John's coverage strengths are with Pro Football, College Football, and NASCAR. He covered the Colts, Pacers, Purdue, Notre Dame, and Indianapolis Motor Speedway throughout his time working as a columnist for the CNHI newspaper group in Indiana. He also spent time freelancing for the Associated Press, covering the NCAA Men's Championship Basketball Tournament and Clemson basketball along the way. Outside of his writing career, John is an avid and long-time fantasy football player. His first fantasy quarterback was Jim Everett.
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It didn’t take long for 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to shake up the fantasy football waiver wire.
Following the horrific injury to San Francisco starter Trey Lance – the player who usurped Garoppolo – fantasy managers quickly began throwing their hopes behind Garoppolo.
Here’s a look at some waiver wire and free-agent options heading into Week 3.
Jimmy G is back on top of the Niners’ QB depth chart
We still don’t know what Kyle Shanahan’s offense will look like with this hand-picked quarterback, Trey Lance.
The second-year player started in a Chicago monsoon in Week 1 and is out for the season after suffering an ankle injury on the opening drive of Week 2.
That returns Jimmy Garoppolo to the starting lineup this week, even after the 49ers sought to trade him during the offseason. He’s also returning to fantasy rosters.
About 10,000 managers added Garoppolo following Lance’s injury in NFL.com leagues, and he’s now rostered in about 20% of leagues. He led the 49ers to a win over Seattle and scored 16.6 fantasy points – and owners shouldn’t regularly expect too much more than that.
Garoppolo is a solid QB2 or a player in two-quarterback or super-flex leagues, so there may be better options with more upside in 10-team re-draft leagues. See Jared Goff (rostered in 17.3% of leagues) and Justin Fields (49.3% of leagues).
Michael Gallup is back in Big D
Reports out of Dallas said that Michael Gallup participated fully in practices heading into Sunday’s game against the New York Giants.
Gallup is returning from a knee injury he suffered in early January, so fantasy expectations need to be tempered.
Even so, Gallup will help fortify a Cowboys receiving corps behind CeeDee Lamb and is worth a roster spot. The fifth-year pro has scored 15 touchdowns in 55 games and averaged 6.9 fantasy points per game while usually working as a third or fourth option in the passing game.
Despite the surprise emergence of Noah Brown, who scored 20.1 PPR fantasy points in Week 2 (5 catches, 91 yards, TD) and 11.8 points (5 catches 68 yards) in Week 1, Gallup should work his way back toward a role as the team’s No. 2 receiver for Cooper Rush and, eventually, Dak Prescott.
Cardinals WR Greg Dortch is a new weapon for Kyler Murray
During the preseason, expectations grew for second-year wideout Rondale Moore, but he has missed the first two weeks of the regular season and could miss more time due to a hamstring injury.
That has opened the door for Greg Dortch, who is still rostered in around 5% of ESPN leagues despite 28.8 fantasy points in two games. This past week, he had four catches on as many targets for 55 yards and a touchdown in a 29-23 overtime win over the Raiders.
Dortch is second among Cardinals wideouts with 115 offensive snaps, behind Hollywood Brown’s 132.
Dortch may not stay in the lineup when Moore returns, but he seems to have earned the confidence of Kyler Murray. If that’s the case, and he’s rostered, Dortch is a flex consideration, especially as bye weeks begin soon.
Stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference
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