Top Week 3 waiver wire pickups: Is Jerome Ford worth a shot?

While injuries are commonplace in the NFL and always seem to come in waves early in the season, the tenor of this season was changed when Nick Chubb suffered a horrific knee injury on Monday Night Football. Much like the Browns, many fantasy managers quickly need to pick up the pieces if they still hope to make something of a season that had so much promise not long ago.

The waiver wire is not a cure-all by any stretch, but it is an important part of a manager's toolkit. Waiver-wire moves should be made for a reason - be it to add high-upside depth for later in the season or to improve your chances of winning the upcoming week.

To help as many readers as possible in the weeks ahead, I will try to avoid recommending players coming off a 10-catch or three-touchdown game because it should be incredibly obvious to most that they need to be on a roster at that point.

The players listed below are available in at least 75 percent of ESPN leagues and stand at least a decent chance of making some kind of impact in the coming weeks:

Week 3 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire: Top quarterbacks to pick

1] Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers

Week 2: 317 yards passing, one touchdown and 17 yards rushing

Don't look now, but the Mayfield redemption tour appears to be alive and well. Tampa Bay has not faced the stingiest defenses by any means yet (Vikings and Bears), but it is noteworthy that he has played error-free ball through two games for the first time in his six-year NFL career.

Chicago Bears v Tampa Bay Buccaneers

After a season in which Philadelphia ranked among the most stingy pass defenses, the Eagles have already surrendered an average of 340 passing yards and 3.5 touchdowns despite facing Mac Jones and Kirk Cousins.

Philadelphia is unlikely to struggle against the pass all season long, but the Eagles are already down two of their top three corners (James Bradberry and Avonte Maddox).

If Bradberry struggles to return this week from the concussion that sidelined him in Week 2, then Mayfield could have a field day targeting whichever receiver (Mike Evans or Chris Godwin) doesn't draw Darius Slay in coverage.

ESPN ownership: 10.4 percent

Other potential strong add(s): Mac Jones, Patriots (12.5 percent); Sam Howell, Commanders (9.4 percent)

---

Week 3 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire: Top running backs to pick

1] Jerome Ford, Browns

Week 2: 16 carries for 106 yards; three catches for 25 yards and a touchdown

First and foremost, we wish Chubb the best in what will almost certainly be a long road to recovery. Regarding his injury and how his absence affects the fantasy football world, there will be a lot of speculation in the coming days about available running backs - such as Kareem Hunt - signing with the Browns; even if it happens, Ford's new role should remain largely unaffected.

Browns' Jerome Ford set to be handed more opportunities after Nick Chubb's injury

Cleveland had ample opportunity to address the running back position in the offseason and stuck with the 2022 fifth-round draft pick as Chubb's primary backup, so any move at this point would almost certainly be to provide depth at the position and not serve as a challenge to Ford's standing as the team's featured back.

Chubb is one of the best in the game, so Ford cannot be expected to play at the same elite level. However, the explosive second-year back is in a great environment for fantasy production (i.e. great offensive line and overall supporting cast, mobile quarterback, great defense, etc.) and should be considered the early favorite to be the best waiver-wire add/late-round draft pick of the season.

ESPN ownership: 9.5 percent

Other priority add(s): Tyjae Spears, Titans (12.9 percent)

Other potential strong adds (especially in deeper leagues): Kendre Miller, Saints (5.9); Ty Chandler, Vikings (4.5); Sean Tucker, Buccaneers (2.5); Rico Dowdle, Cowboys (1.6); Elijah Dotson, Chargers (1.1); Latavius Murray, Bills (0.6), Craig Reynolds, Lions (0.6); Pierre Strong, Browns (0.2)

---

Week 3 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire: Top wide receivers to pick

1] Nathaniel (Tank) Dell, Texans

Week 2: Seven catches for 72 yards and one touchdown on 10 targets

The Texans trail only the Rams in terms of how often they are utilizing three receivers (or more) through two weeks and figure to be playing from behind a lot this season, so C.J. Stroud will likely throw enough to keep three pass-catchers viable in fantasy.

Dell was widely considered a slot-only option for Houston as recently as a month ago due to his 5-8 and 165-pound frame but lined up mostly on the perimeter (71.1 percent).

Houston Texans v New England Patriots

The No. 70 overall selection in April's draft has been targeted on an impressive 20 percent of the routes he has run (14 of 70), which is impressive considering the fact he has to compete with Nico Collins (25.9 percent), Robert Woods (20.4) and Dalton Schultz (11.8).

Dell is doing the majority of his work in the short passing game (57.1 percent of his targets have come in the 0-9 yard range), which figures to lead to steady work as Collins becomes a more central part of defensive game plans.

ESPN ownership: 3.9 percent

Other priority add(s): Jonathan Mingo, Panthers (14.6 percent); Rashod Bateman, Ravens (12.5)

Other potential strong adds (especially in deeper leagues): Marvin Mims, Broncos (7.2); Robert Woods, Texans (6.4); Josh Reynolds, Lions (4.8); Isaiah Hodgins, Giants (4.7); DeVante Parker, Patriots (3.9)

---

Week 3 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire: Top tight ends to pick

1] Jake Ferguson, Cowboys

Week 2: Three catches for 11 yards and a touchdown on four targets

Consecutive 11-yard efforts are less than inspiring, but those numbers are not exactly what everyone should be focusing on: Ferguson has run a route on 33 of Dallas' 62 pass plays and has been targeted on a third of them. (For some perspective, Travis Kelce drew a target on 25 percent of the routes he ran in 2022.)

New York Giants v Dallas Cowboys

Ferguson is not in Kelce's class, but the underlying metrics do not lie: Dak Prescott loves throwing to him, especially in the red zone. (He leads the league with seven targets inside the 20.)

The biggest barrier between Ferguson and a potential breakout season might end up being the Cowboys' defense being so good that Prescott does not have to throw it more than 31 times per game (his current average).

Ferguson may not be needed much this week either (Dallas visits the Cardinals), but three straight games against the Patriots, 49ers and Chargers may force the Cowboys out of their conservative shell and lead to high-end production from the second-year tight end.

ESPN ownership: 12.4 percent

Other potential strong add(s): Hayden Hurst, Panthers (21.6 percent); Taysom Hill, Saints (6.9); Cade Otton, Buccaneers (1.1)