In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Mike's Hard Lemonade:

It’s nice to have options.

It’s especially nice to have options when one of them is watching Tyler Huntley vs. Will Levis.

Thankfully, MNF gave us a Dolphins/Titans alternative with Lions/Seahawks.

While Levis was throwing INTs, getting hurt, and unwittingly creating memes on the sideline, Detroit and Seattle were combining for 71 points in an entertaining back-and-forth affair.

The game had it all—explosive plays, trick plays & RBs defying the laws of physics.

Despite the snooze fest in Miami, Tony Pollard (108 total yards and 1 TD) put up a very nice stat line.

Your MNF Fantasy MVP goes to Kenneth Walker, though. In addition to those acrobatics we linked to above, he went for 119 total yards and a hat trick’s worth of TDs. Impressive stuff from the dude coming off a two-week absence with an oblique injury.

We got a jam-packed newsletter for you guys today, including two WRs who needed to be added everywhere this week, so let’s dig in …

What else is in today’s newsletter?

  1. Dwain’s Utilization Report: A WR Emerges From The Pack In Green Bay
  2. Kendall Valenzuela’s Week 5 Waiver Wire Adds
  3. Watercooler: Injury Watch
  4. Ian Hartitz’s Sheesh Report from Week 4

UTILIZATION REPORT: Notes from Week 4

Dontayvion Wicks offers league-winning upside.

Wicks has reached a 70% route participation rate or higher in only three games in his young career.

  • 2023 Week 15: 15.7 fantasy points
  • 2023 Week 18: 24.1 fantasy points
  • 2024 Week 4: 23.8 fantasy points

Yes, that is a small sample, but other data also suggests Wicks can ball. Over the last two seasons, when Wicks has been on the field (395 routes), he led the team in target share by a healthy margin.

Early reports indicate Christian Watson's injury is a high-ankle sprain that could keep him out two to four games with a chance of landing on IR. 

Wicks will have an opportunity to stake his claim to the starting job while Watson is out with winnable matchups in three of the next four games against the Rams, Cardinals, and Jaguars secondaries. It is also worth noting that Wicks had already stolen routes from Watson in Weeks 2 and 3 before the injury.

While we have no guarantees Wicks won't return to a rotational platoon once Watson is healthy, opportunities to add a player like this off the waiver wire don't come along every day. At the WR position, talent is the No. 1 driver to future success, and there is a chance that Wicks is the best WR on the Packers. Yes, there is also a chance his role is short-lived, but this is the type of talent profile we should bet on. When we get it right, we change the destiny of our fantasy team.

Wicks UPGRADES to low-end WR2 status and offers WR1 upside. He is the No. 1 waiver wire priority for Week 5 and is worth 50%-plus in FAAB formats.

Chase Brown's role is trending up.

The Bengals coaching staff told us all summer that the backfield split would be close. That didn't happen out of the gate, but Brown is gaining steam over the last three games.

  • Snaps: 18%, 23%, 42%
  • Attempts: 20%, 37%, 52%
  • Routes: 12%, 12%, 33%
  • Targets: 0%, 8%, 11%

Brown even handled two out of three attempts inside the five-yard line in Week 4, supercharging his fantasy boxscore with two TDs. We don't know if Brown will overtake Zack Moss for the lead role, but he is an explosive playmaker who looks more and more comfortable, and the Bengals are scheming touches that fit his running style. That means we should be buying his 23.2-point outing.

The second-year RB will see a price surge after this performance, but I am willing to pay up, given the underlying trend and his league-leading 6.3 yards per carry. This type of player can break fantasy if his role continues to improve. Call it a buy-high situation if you need to, just go get the man.

Brown UPGRADES to mid-range RB3 status and offers contingent RB1 upside, making him a BUY LOW despite the incoming price increase.

More Utilization Takeaways From Week 4

Quench Your Hard-Earned Thirst With Mike’s Hard Lemonade 🍋 

Winning in fantasy football is hard work. You’ll need to replace your injured QB one day but get outbid in Free Agency. Next week you’ll need 5 points from your TE and see him deliver only 4. But, Mike’s Hard Lemonade wants to remind you that Hard Days Deserve a Hard Lemonade. So, the next time you work up a hard-earned thirst by leaving your highest-scoring player on the bench, it’s time to twist open a Mike’s Hard Lemonade.

Find Mike’s Hard Lemonade near you at www.MikesHard.com

Dontayvion Wicks Headlines Players To Target Ahead of Week 5

Week 5 is here and that means so are bye weeks. As if we didn't have enough injuries to worry about, right? We saw key players go down in Week 4, but now we also have to focus on essential fantasy football starters who get the week off (and it is a doozy).

The teams on a bye include the Detroit Lions, Los Angeles Chargers, Philadelphia Eagles, and Tennessee Titans. The Lions and Eagles will hit fantasy managers a little bit harder, but hopefully, you can find a decent pickup on the waiver wire this week. As always, the names are in order of priority and all players listed are below 40% rostered.

Good luck!

Dontayvion Wicks, Packers (14% rostered, Yahoo)

We never want to see injuries, but unfortunately, as Dwain mentioned previously, Christian Watson exited with an ankle injury during Sunday's game. Once he was out, wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks stepped up in a huge way. This is THE waiver wire add of the week. Wicks had an 80% route participation rate, 35% air-yards share, and 24% target share—which led the team. 

He finished catching five of 13 targets for 78 yards and two touchdowns. Coming into the season many fantasy drafters were cautious about drafting Wicks because of how many weapons this Packers team has, but now is the time to get Wicks on your team. We'll see how long Watson is out, but don't expect Wicks to give this new role up without a fight.

Xavier Legette, Panthers (14%)

Adam Thielen was placed on IR with a hamstring injury last week and will miss at least the next four games. Rookie receiver Xavier Legette stepped up in his absence and finished Sunday's game against the Bengals with an 88% route participation, 25% target share and 30% air yards share. Legette caught six of his 10 targets for 66 yards and one touchdown and also added two rushes for 10 yards. 

With bye weeks coming up, this is the perfect receiver to target on the waiver wire (if you miss out on Wicks).

More Adds Ahead of Week 5

The latest fantasy nuggets, silliness, and NFL gossip from our merry band of football nerds:

🤗 The real reason for Kyle Pitts? The friends we made along the way.

🚑️ Updates on two important RBs. Jonathon Brooks and Nick Chubb.

🔮 Claudia and Thor break down Heisman Trophy Odds. Who you got?

😭 Doug Pederson refuses to take an L. Bad look here.

🚀 The Niners are getting reinforcements soon. What a story.

🤝 Dwain and Ian talk Utilization Report and Waiver Wire Pickups in this jam-packed show.

✅ Pick up Dontayvion Wicks. Who else? The Fantasy Life Waiver Wire Tool can help you out.

🤯 An insane play from Ja’Lynn Polk. ICYMI on Sunday.

Week 4 Sheesh Report: A Surging WR Missed An Even Bigger Day …

The Eagles RB special: Down at the one-yard line, and no TD

Getting all the way to the one-yard line but failing to score a TD is objectively a sheeshy feeling—particularly when fantasy managers are forced to watch someone else vulture away the score that was SO CLOSE to belonging to them.

Here’s the full list of Week 4’s players who managed to get the football within three feet of the goal line, but not quite across the plane, and ultimately didn’t score later on the same drive:

Plenty of these guys still put up solid numbers, but fantasy managers can certainly imagine what it would've been like had they managed to gain just one single yard more on those respective runs. Sheesh.

Speaking of productive performances that were nearly so much bigger…

Panthers WR Diontae Johnson almost had a MASSIVE day

Hand up: I actually just copy-pasted this transition from last week … because it once again applies!

Kudos to the Bengals defensive backs for at least making the pair of near-miss TDs contested-catch situations, but there's nobody to blame but Johnson for dropping that absolute pearl down the sideline that coulda, shoulda, woulda been good for an additional 35-plus yards.

Maybe next time, Diontae, but rest assured you weren't the only pass-catcher to leave some production on the field last week …

More beyond-the-boxscore notes that made fantasy managers say "Sheesh!"