Targets To Pick Up For Your Fantasy Football Roster
Fantasy

Targets To Pick Up For Your Fantasy Football Roster

In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Mike's Harder.

Published Updated

Real football is finally here, but we still have a few hours to make some last-minute moves on our fake football teams.

Alex Cupps put together a list of waiver wire adds to make before the games get rolling, and I love the seven names he compiled …

➕ Kaelon Black | 34% Rostered

Cupps’ take: “The 49ers clearly have one of the most valuable backfields across the entire league when it comes to fantasy production, and we know CMC struggles with extended injuries on occasion.”

Pete spin: This roster percentage should legitimately be 100%. Not only is he a premier handcuff, but there’s a chance he gets significant burn tomorrow night vs. the Rams with Christian McCaffrey’s outlook for Week 1 shaky.

➕ Ja'Kobi Lane | 34% Rostered

Cupps take: “Lane is a big-body outside WR, winning with a high contested-catch percentage and leveraging his athleticism to create chunk plays. This role has previously been occupied by a blend of Rashod Bateman and Devontez Walker—albeit neither of which have done particularly well.”

Pete spin: I already made a bold prediction about Lane, but I’ll re-emphasize here that he should not be on any waivers. The path for playing time in this offense is wide open. I could see him doing something similar to what Chase Claypool did as a rookie with the Steelers—62-873-11.

➕ Terrance Ferguson | 29% Rostered

Cupps take: “As the potential third receiving option in one of the best offenses in the league with an insane aDOT, it’s easy to see how T-Ferg offers game-breaking fantasy upside.”

Pete spin: The most likely thing that happens with T-Ferg is that he’s a part-time player who is volatile on a week-to-week basis. That said, he has the profile, the offensive environment and the head coach to do way more damage than that if a perfect storm occurs. He’s worth taking a peek at his Week 1 role and also holding as a contingent play (they’d have no choice but to feature him if one of their two big WRs went down).

For the four other players to add before Week 1—including a QB to stash—check out the full article.

ADDS TO MAKE BEFORE KICKOFF

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Around the Watercooler

The latest fantasy and NFL gossip, news, memes and more from your favorite football nerds …

🔥 Kickoff is here. Fantasy breakdown for tonight’s SEA vs. NE game.

🤝 Trade targets to pursue before Sunday … their prices might never be lower.

👀 More trade targets, but this time for dynasty managers.

🔮 Never too early to look at the projected NFL Draft order. Cardinals or Dolphins at No. 1?

🤔 Will MarShawn Lloyd be a bell cow? Not so fast.

⁉️ Who is the Giants RB2? You tell me …

🚑️ You might not be able to count on Rome. I don’t love the sound of that.

🔗 Who are the handcuff RBs to keep an eye on? Green Bay is a mystery.

🤔 Sometimes picking a DST streamer is easy. Who’s playing the worst offense?

⛏️ So this is why the Steelers haven’t won a playoff game in a decade. Grinding.

Upgrades & Downgrades In The Week 1 Rankings

Week 1 kicks off tonight, and Matthew Freedman has been diving deep into each position’s individual rankings. So deep that he churned out eight (8!!!) positional pieces profiling his biggest upgrades and downgrades.

There’s no better place to start when mulling over your lineup decisions, so let’s dive in:

Buy, Sell, Hold is Back For 2026

That’s right, our weekly dose of cooterdoodle offering up advice on doing everything from picking up to cutting and trading away players is back. Buy, Sell, Hold, people! Get excited!

The Week 1 edition starts 2026 off with a bang, featuring a WR getting drafted several rounds after a teammate and just might be the WR1 on their team. And it doesn’t stop there. ⤵️

YOU THOUGHT THERE WOULDN'T BE A SAINT?

Questions We Need Answered After Week 1

Drafts are done—though we know some sickos will do a lunchtime draft hours before kickoff. But for the rest of us, we can’t wait to see all the hours of study, mock drafts and podcast watching pay off. The games are here, and the other great thing after seeing real fantasy points is we get answers to all the questions we’ve had that only real action can answer. Dwain, Freedman and Cupps team up to compile the questions they want answered going into Week 1. Please subscribe to the Fantasy Football Is Life YouTube channel.

TEXANS, JAGS & COMMANDERS BACKFIELD QUESTIONS

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