Fantasy football is an inexact science. Every week, there are players who completely defy metrics such as ADP and absolutely ball out despite virtually nobody expecting much out of them. At this point in the season, those lesser-known names who put up impressive numbers become intriguing waiver wire adds. Here are the players who made the cut in Week Two fantasy football.
Before we get on with the list, let us first note that there are players who come out of nowhere from a fantasy standpoint throughout the season. So this will be a weekly column highlighting them in much the same way that the “That Helps No One” segment on NFL Network’s fantasy football show does so. It’s a tribute to those who got virtually no love in drafts and inspire kneejerk reactions from those looking to give their team a jolt, for better or worse.
Quick note: in discussing ownership percentages, we will be using data from Yahoo Sports leagues.
Week Two Fantasy Football Surprise Sensations
Josh Allen
The second-year Buffalo Bills quarterback came into the team’s Week Two road clash with the New York Giants having already dispatched the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in the season-opener. That victory came in comeback fashion as Buffalo triumphed 17-16 despite trailing 16-0 late in the third quarter. Allen’s fantasy numbers weren’t bad as he posted 17.96 points, a total bolstered by a touchdown run. That element of Allen’s game certainly heightens his stock. And in the Bills decisive 28-14 win over the Giants, he punched it in on the ground once more while adding 253 passing yards and a touchdown toss.
In the end, he finished with 22.22 points, good enough for seventh among quarterbacks in Week Two. Though his ownership rate isn’t microscopic at 41 percent, it was the lowest among signal-callers who tallied at least 20 fantasy points last week. With the Bills’ first home game against a Cincinnati Bengals team who just got torched by Jimmy Garoppolo, Allen will certainly garner a lot of waiver wire interest from players whose quarterbacks have underperformed in the first two weeks of 2019.
With 206 passing yards on the day, Josh Allen has surpassed 200+ yards passing in seven consecutive games–the longest streak by a Bills QB since Jim Kelly in 1992. pic.twitter.com/4Yrqzquryd
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) September 15, 2019
DeMarcus Robinson
Tyreek Hill suffered a sternoclavicular injury early in the Kansas City Chiefs Week One win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. It certainly gave those who drafted him a great deal of angst. But with a generational talent like Patrick Mahomes behind center, it offered other members of K.C.’s receiving corps a huge opportunity. Sammy Watkins made the most of it against Jacksonville. And a week later against the Oakland Raiders, it was Robinson’s turn to become Mahomes’ favorite target.
The fourth-year man out of Florida was part of a four-touchdown barrage in the second quarter after the Chiefs initially trailed their AFC South rivals 10-0. Two of his six catches resulted in touchdowns of 44 and 39 yards and he finished the game with 29.20 points in standard leagues. That led all wideouts in Week Two and what qualifies him for this list is the fact that he was owned in only seven percent of Yahoo leagues. With Hill possibly out for another four weeks, expect that number to skyrocket.
Patrick Mahomes told Jim and Tony that Demarcus Robinson would have a big game today.
He's a man of his word. pic.twitter.com/SN5GnKp72k
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) September 15, 2019
Jeff Wilson, Jr.
Expectations are obviously high for San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo given the gargantuan contract he received. But it appears the rushing attack is also primed for success in 2019. So far, the Niners are averaging 178.5 yards on the ground per game, good enough for fourth-best in the league. They’re doing it with a multi-pronged approach that primarily features Matt Breida and Raheem Mostert. But Wilson certainly made an impact in their dominating road win over the Bengals.
The undrafted free agent out of North Texas only accounted for 34 total yards. But San Fran called his number in the red zone and he answered with touchdown runs of two and four yards. His 15.40 fantasy points in Week Two were good enough for seventh among running backs. Not bad for someone owned in exactly zero percent of Yahoo leagues. Suffice it to say there will be some people who’ll take a gamble on the waiver wire despite the timeshare nature of the Niners backfield.
@NFLFantasy @adamrank If you look up #thathelpsnoone in the dictionary, you'll see a picture of Jeff Wilson Jr.
— Joel Cheney (@bigdaddyjoeleo) September 15, 2019
Will Dissly
Dissly seems to be reprising his role from last year as a fantasy surprise. Drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft, the Washington product impressed mightily in NFL debut by catching three passes for 105 yards and a touchdown. With tight end being such a top-heavy position with respect to fantasy production, he immediately became a sexy waiver wire add especially for those looking to stream. Though he did put up 13.20 points in PPR leagues the following week, he totaled just nine receiving yards the following two games before a patellar tendon injury ended his season.
Fast forward to 2019 and Dissly is teasing fantasy owners once more. Though he was fairly quiet in Week One, that wasn’t the case this past Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Dissly caught all five of the passes Russell Wilson threw his way, accounting for 50 yards and two touchdowns. That made him the second-most productive tight end of Week Two behind Mark Andrews of the Baltimore Ravens. But it didn’t help many owners since he had an ownership rate of just four percent in Yahoo leagues. And he’s a cautious waiver wire add given that the Seahawks Week Three opponent, the New Orleans Saints, have given up very few fantasy points to tight ends thus far.
Russell Wilson put the ball only where Will Dissly could find it 👐 pic.twitter.com/V9xneo9o7L
— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) September 15, 2019
Eddy Piñeiro
Chicago Bears fans undoubtedly want to move on from Cody Parkey‘s disastrous “double post” miss in the NFC wild-card game that cost them a potential win over the Philadelphia Eagles. After releasing him, they acquired Piñeiro in a trade with the Oakland Raiders who initially signed the undrafted free agent in 2018. The Florida Gators product might be just what the doctor ordered if his Week Two performance was any indication.
Piñeiro went a perfect 3/3 from field goal range including two from beyond 50 yards. It culminated with a 53-yard bomb as time expired to give the Bears a pulse-pounding 16-14 road win over the Denver Broncos. This after Denver took a 14-13 lead with 31 seconds left after deciding to go for two and converting it. Piñeiro finished as Week Two’s second-highest scoring kicker in fantasy despite an ownership rate of just two percent in Yahoo leagues. With Chicago playing the Washington Redskins next week, it might be best to stash him if you do decide to claim him on waivers as the ‘Skins are giving up just 6.5 points per game to kickers thus far.
WHAT AN ENDING!
Eddy Pineiro nails this at the buzzer to give Chicago the win!#CHIvsDEN (via @thecheckdown) pic.twitter.com/Uz1lHx7x8G
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 15, 2019
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defense
The Bucs pulled off one of the more surprising results of Week Two when they knocked off the home-standing Carolina Panthers on Thursday Night Football. Though the primary story was the beleaguered Jameis Winston outplaying former NFL MVP Cam Newton, Tampa’s defense deserves mentioning. The unit forced three sacks and six quarterback hits. Though they managed just nine fantasy points, only five teams bested that mark in Week Two. With just one percent of Yahoo fantasy owners rostering the Bucs defense, they should garner quite a bit of waiver wire interest. That’s especially true considering they’re welcoming the reeling New York Giants to Raymond James Stadium this coming Sunday.
