Sports

Justin Boone identifies under-the-radar stashes to consider adding to your roster before they become top fantasy football waiver-wire pickups in future weeks.

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While the bar might move occasionally, the general focus is to search among the group of players who are rostered in 15% of the Yahoo leagues or less.

Luther Burden III, WR, Bears (14% rostered)

DJ Moore played 94% of the Bears’ snaps on Monday night, but went to the hospital after the game for what the team called “precautionary medical attention.” His head coach Ben Johnson updated the situation on Tuesday, saying Moore is day-to-day with a groin injury.

Even with Moore being available for most of their Week 6 contest, rookie Luther Burden III was able to set career highs in targets and catches, finishing with four grabs for 51 yards. While he’s still just a part-time player on offense, it’s becoming clear that Burden can bring some juice to the Bears’ passing attack. 

If Moore were to miss any time, Burden profiles as a similar type of dynamic playmaker who is dangerous with the ball in his hands after the catch.

There’s a reason why I’ve been recommending stashing Burden in this section for a while now. He’s a second-round pick in an ascending offense. A breakout partway through his rookie campaign is certainly possible and the odds of that occurring will only be increased if Moore is sidelined.

Honorable mention: Jalen Coker, Panthers (15% rostered), Jayden Higgins, Texans (12% rostered), Christian Watson, Packers (11% rostered), Sterling Shepard, Buccaneers (11% rostered), Tez Johnson, Buccaneers (12% rostered), Tory Horton, Seahawks (6% rostered), Jordan Whittington, Rams (7% rostered), Isaiah Bond, Browns (4% rostered), Kameron Johnson, Buccaneers (2% rostered), Olamide Zaccheaus, Bears (1% rostered), Zay Jones, Cardinals (1% rostered), Michael Wilson, Cardinals (4% rostered)

Isaiah Davis, RB, Jets (4% rostered)

Davis hasn’t been given enough touches to really make a splash for fantasy, but his situation is setting up to potentially turn him into a startable asset later this season.

Braelon Allen’s knee injury is expected to sidelined him for 8-12 weeks, which puts his return close to the fantasy playoffs — if he comes back in 2025.

Meanwhile, Jets’ starting running back Breece Hall is in the final year of his contract and has been the subject of many trade rumors. If Hall is moved, then Davis would immediately become the lead back in New York.

There’s also the possibility Hall could get hurt and open up more touches for Davis.

Regardless, with multiple paths that could lead him into fantasy relevance, Davis is an intriguing stash who needs to be rostered in more leagues.

Honorable mention: Blake Corum, Rams (12% rostered), Ray Davis, Bills (11% rostered), Sean Tucker, Buccaneers (9% rostered), Kyle Monangai, Bears (5% rostered), Jarquez Hunter, Rams (1% rostered), Phil Mafah, Cowboys (0% rostered)

Michael Mayer, TE, Raiders (4% rostered)

After unsuccessfully trying to play through his knee injury, Brock Bowers has sat out the last two games and wasn’t on the practice field to start this week either.

His backup Michael Mayer also missed a pair of contests due to a concussion, but returned to the field in Week 6 and filled in admirably. The 24-year-old played 92% of the Raiders’ snaps and caught five of his seven targets for 50 yards and score.

That allowed him to finish as a fantasy TE1 on the week and he could find himself in a similar range if Bowers sits out again.

There’s no long-term value here, since the Raiders are on bye in Week 8, and Bowers will likely return at some point. But for the time being, Mayer is a strong streaming option with top-12 upside anytime he’s starting.

Honorable mention: Isaiah Likely, Ravens (7% rostered), Oronde Gadsden, Chargers (2% rostered), Taysom Hill, Saints (7% rostered), Tyler Higbee, Rams (1% rostered)

Bryce Young*, QB, Panthers (22% rostered)

*Young is above the usual cutoff to qualify for this list, but I’m making an exception since there aren’t many intriguing deep quarterback stashes this week.

Last season, we saw the Panthers find their rhythm in the second half of the season, which led to some quality fantasy results, including Bryce Young posting the ninth-most fantasy points per game over the final seven weeks.

Fresh off his second three-touchdown effort this year, Young is about to get a boost in his receiving corps with the return of Jalen Coker from injured reserve.

Coker gives Carolina a legitimate No. 2 weapon in the passing attack and can help unlock this offense.

It hasn’t looked pretty so far for Young through six weeks, but the best is yet to come. With Coker joining the team’s top target Tetairoa McMillan, we could see Young get back to flirting with low-end QB1 fantasy production.

Honorable mention: Mac Jones, 49ers (8% rostered), Spencer Rattler, Saints (7% rostered), Dillon Gabriel, Browns (5% rostered), Jacoby Brissett, Cardinals (2% rostered)