FANTASY FURNACE

A Bye week and a plethora of injuries (James Jones, DeMarco Murray, Randall Cobb etc.) afford some owners the opportunity to take advantage of these Waiver Wire Pickups… Of course your waiver wire position, as always, will play a major role in who you end up with. As this article was going into publishing, all the players below were owned in just 16% or less in most leagues.

1. Nick Foles-QB-Eagles- 16% Owned- There is one thing that separates Nick Foles from Michael Vick…Consistency. Does anyone think that Michael Vick throws for 300 yards and three touchdowns without a turnover against the Buccaneers with a Darrelle Revis in the secondary? This week Foles is home where he’ll face a Dallas Cowboys team that allows close to 300 yards of offense a game and has also been inconsistent. We highly recommend grabbing Foles, a perfect pickup for those Drew Brees owners (bye) out there. Take Foles and his 133.3 QB rating from Sunday’s game vs Tampa Bay.

We are predicting a 20+ fantasy point day vs the Cowboys for #9 QB Nick Foles in Week No. 7. Photo: Rich Schultz/Getty Images

2. Joseph Randle-RB-Cowboys- 11% Owned- Safe to say that Randle will probably end up being the most added waiver wire player this week. With DeMarco Murray injured (sprained Knee), Randle becomes the Cowboys featured back in Week 7. Murray has missed nine games over the past two seasons (not including this one). Randle, just a fifth round pick, will have an opportunity to show that his 38 touchdowns and 71 receptions at Oklahoma State were no fluke. We would like to remind our readers that we selected Randle as our pre-season Sleeper for this season. We picked him because of Murray’s injury riddled past, as it was just a matter of time before Randle would become the starting back for the ‘Boys.

3. Joseph Fauria-TE-Lions-4% Owned- Fauria is becoming Matthew Stafford’s ‘best friend’ having targeted the 6′ 7″ tight end three times against Cleveland on Sunday and all three times in the end zone! Now with five touchdowns on the young season Fauria is tied for third with the most TD’s by a tight end this season. Fauria could make a fine fill-in candidate for those who will not have Jimmy Graham (bye week) starting on their roster. In all non-PPR leagues, Fauria is someone to consider in entering week No. 7.

#00 TE Joseph Fauria catching one of his three touchdowns on Sunday Oct. 13, 2013 in a win over the Browns. Photo: Matt Sullivan

4. Jarrett Boykin-WR-Packers- 3% Owned- With Randall Cobb going down with a fractured right fibula and expected to miss 6 to 8 weeks, Boykin becomes a must add for those in all formats in 12+ leagues. Targeted six times last week, with just one catch for 43 yards, you can expect him to get his fair share of passes in the weeks to come especially on a pass-happy team spearheaded by Aaron Rodgers.

5. Brandon LaFell-WR-Panthers- 13% Owned- Tailor-made for those in deeper leagues, LaFell, who just put up a season-high 107 receiving yards against the Vikings on Sunday, could make for a serviceable fill-in for those who will be without James Jones or Randall Cobb for week 7’s action. LaFell has posted three touchdowns over his last three games but buyer beware as he sees under five targets a game and so we are not touting the wideout in PPR leagues.

6. Peyton Hillis-RB-Giants- 2% Owned-

*We have gotten over 150 emails Wednesday morning concerning the signing of RB Peyton Hillis. He has been released by the Browns, last year by the Chiefs, and just a month ago by the Buccaneers. We don’t know what he has left in the tank but at 27 you would think there’s something still there. The Giants do not possess a strong offensive line so with the exception of Brandon Jacobs’ 100+ rushing yards & two TDs last week, they have the fewest rushing yards as a team in the league.

If you don’t have to give up much for Hillis he might be worth a shot given that he is essentially a low risk-high reward player at this point in his career. Just don’t have high expectations.