As the first week of the fortnight known as the Byepocalypse is upon us, with twelve teams over two weeks heading out to the beach for some R&R, we need some options to stream, and some of us need sleeper players just to field a startable lineup. Having nearly one-quarter of the league on Bye can decimate even the most well-constructed roster over the next two games, and streaming may be the key to keeping afloat in your leagues. Every week we explore three players at each fantasy football position that can help you with your streaming or spot starts. In this article, we will highlight two wide receivers available in 50% or less fantasy football leagues (per Yahoo! statistics) and normally we highlight one wide receiver is available in 90% or more leagues for you deep divers.[embedit snippet=”jeff-ads”]
Tyler Lockett at New Orleans (46% owned)
It’s been a long road since Tyler Lockett was a trendy breakout candidate for the 2016 campaign, and a road fraught with injury and ineffectiveness (mostly due to a lack of targets). Still, you can’t deny the talent, and if you want to deny the talent, you can deny the speed. Lockett travels to the fast track in New Orleans and is a good candidate to get behind the defense and score a long one. There are definite challenges to his production (Wilson’s ineffectiveness, the return of Jimmy Graham). He’s a desperation play whose upside is touchdowns only, but this week is dire for streaming wide receivers. The Saints are middle of the pack against wide receivers, but that is mostly due to scattering touchdowns against him and taking on pathetic passing attacks the last two weeks (Carolina and Kansas City).
Quincy Enunwa at Cleveland (41% owned)
Streaming every week might as well be called “pick on the Browns,” and this week is no exception. Not only is Ryan Fitzpatrick a viable streaming candidate, but his number two receiver, Enunwa, is also worth a look. He burst onto the scene on Thursday Night Football earlier this year and did little after that until last week, where here ended up with 73 and a score. Enunwa doesn’t have the profile of a weekly fantasy football option, but the Jets square up against a Browns team that has given up the fifth-most fantasy points against wide outs, including four scores over the last two weeks. Enunwa isn’t a weekly starter but is worth a spot play this week.
J.J. Nelson at Carolina (1% owned)
Arizona’s passing attack is losing targets quickly, with Michael Floyd ineffective and the Browns, Jaron and John, injured (Jaron on IR and John potentially missing this week), there’s little else in Arizona but legendary Larry Fitzgerald and Nelson. Nelson is a speedster who saw an increase in targets last week. With that many Cardinals receivers shelved or injured, the seven targets he saw last week are a good starting point.
The Cards take on the Panthers with something to prove in an NFC Championship Game rematch from last season. Unfortunately for Carolina, however, their secondary has fallen to shambles. They allow the ninth-most fantasy points per game to wide receivers this season, including five wide receiver scores in their last three games and two blowup games (Brandin Cooks going for 173 and Julio Jones going for 300—not a typo). Nelson’s speedy profile makes him apt to break one deep.