Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

The second week is nearly in the books, and we’re here with the second installment of the Fantasy Football Weekly Waiver Wire - Pick Them Up, an article that lets you know which players are good to pick up in your league. But, a strange thing happened this week in that most of the players that had good performances on Sundays, or at least showed enough promise, are already owned in the majority of 10-team leagues. Since we want to focus on players that are currently available in leagues across the country, it made selecting the players for this weeks waiver wire difficult, especially if you’re in a 10-team league. But, after scouring the statistics, it appears there are some quality guys on the list. Some are only good pickups in deeper leagues, some are only good as spot starters, but here’s the Bruno Boys Fantasy Football Week 3 Waiver Wire - Pick Them Up.

Note: If you’re debating on who to drop to pick these guys up, you should be checking out the Bruno Boys’ article, Fantasy Football Week 3 Waiver Wire - Cut Them Loose and see if anyone on your roster is a Bruno Boys’ recommendation to drop. And, remember you can always visit our forums to get your questions answered about waiver wire candidates, players to drop or anything at all related to fantasy football.

QUARTERBACKS - PICK THEM UP

Kyle Orton (Denver Broncos)

Putting Denver Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton on this list was a difficult decision for many reasons. First, the guy isn’t always smart with the football. Secondly, he’s played against two of the worst defenses in the league in the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns in the first two weeks of the season and been less than stellar. However, Orton does have two touchdown passes and no interceptions on the season, and in the win over the Browns this past week, he connected with eight different players. Orton is not a guy that’s going to throw a lot of touchdowns and the interceptions will come, but he does have a favorable match-up this week against the Oakland Raiders. He should only be considered in deeper leagues, but Orton would make for an OK spot start this week against the Raiders.

RUNNING BACKS - PICK THEM UP

Correll Buckhalter (Denver Broncos)

Considering the Broncos only have about 152,794 running backs on their roster, we can see why it’s difficult for them to select just one. Rookie Knowshon Moreno has the most carries, but Buckhalter has played well when given the opportunity. Each week he’s had 10 touches on the ball and those have gone for a combined 163 yards and one touchdown. The problem is Denver is about to start a stretch of their schedule where they play some of the league’s toughest run defenses. Denver won’t catch a break until it meets the Kansas City Chiefs in week 13. Considering Moreno gets most of the carries, Peyton Hillis gets goal line carries and the upcoming schedule, Buckhalter should only remain a bench option in 12 and 14-team leagues.

Justin Forsett (Seattle Seahawks)

In the Seattle Seahawks’ loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday no player from Seattle had more than eight rushing attempts. Considered to be third in line behind Julius Jones and Edgerrin James, Justin Forsett stated his case with a solid performance against the 49ers. Forsett ran the ball five times for 35 yards, and he caught six passes for 57 yards. At the same time James and Jones combined for 15 total yards on 13 touches. Don’t expect Forsett to get moved up the depth chart just yet but for owners in 12 or 14-team leagues looking for a running back to stash on your bench, this is your guy.

WIDE RECEIVERS - PICK THEM UP

Percy Harvin (Minnesota Vikings)

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin barely qualifies to this list as he is owned in 93 percent of standard ESPN leagues and 83 percent of standard Yahoo! leagues. If he is still available in your league, you should go ahead and scoop him up right now as it appears Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre is taking a liking to the rookie. In two games, Harvin has eight catches for 77 yards and two touchdowns as well as four rushing attempts for 36 yards. The Vikings are still figuring out ways to get him involved in the offense, so his value will only rise from here. He’s good to pickup in any size of league for those needing another receiving option.

Johnny Knox (Chicago Bears)

A lot of people wondered before the season which Chicago Bears wide receiver would step up this season. Would it be Devin Hester, Rashied Davis or even Earl Bennett? Well, so far, one guy that’s been stepping up has been rookie Johnny Knox. Knox caught two passes for 80 yards in week one, then caught six passes for 70 yards and a touchdown in week two. His touchdown catch against the Steelers came at a clutch moment and against good coverage. Knox is a rookie and rookie receivers tend to struggle, but if Cutler continues to target him then his value will skyrocket. For now he should only be considered in deeper leagues but owners in 8 and 10-team leagues should keep their eyes on this guy.

Mario Manningham (New York Giants)

With Plaxico Burress no longer around the New York Giants needed somebody to emerge at the wide receiver position this year. They had a host of players ready to do so, but after the win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night, it’s pretty clear that Mario Manningham and Steve Smith have separated themselves from the pack. In the win over the Cowboys, Manningham caught 10 passes for 150 yards and a touchdown, including a key catch on the final drive of the game that helped set up the winning field goal. Manningham is good all-around so as long as he’s getting passes from quarterback Eli Manning, Manningham makes for a good pickup in three-receiver leagues.

Steve Smith (New York Giants)

New York receiver Steve Smith almost mirrored Manningham’s production against the Cowboys as he caught 10 passes for 134 yards and one touchdown. Besides Smith and Manningham, nobody else caught more than two passes for the Giants. Smith has shown flashes of potential in the past, but it appears, now, he is truly ready to step up and be a solid starting receiver for the Giants. For now it’s tough to say which one - either Manningham or Smith - will emerge as No. 1 receiver for the Giants. Regardless, Smith would make for a good third receiver in most leagues.