Players to Drop for Week 2 Waiver Wire Pickups

For as important as it is to know which players you should target on the waiver wire, it's just as crucial to know who you can drop from your team to make space.

You don't want to cut ties with high-upside players too early, but you also don't want duds hanging around taking up valuable bench space.

With that in mind, here are five players, all rostered in at least 50 percent of Yahoo! fantasy football leagues, that you can drop to make space for Week 2 wavier wire pickups.

1. Kerryon Johnson, RB, Detroit Lions

Kerryon Johnson's fantasy outlook took a big hit in Week 1. / Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Kerryon Johnson's fantasy value heading into the season was tied to the uncertainty around how much of a role rookie RB D'Andre Swift would receive in the Detroit Lions backfield. The Lions made things even cloudier by signing Adrian Peterson, and the results in Week 1 were not encouraging for Johnson. Johnson played the fewest snaps of the group (20, vs. 24 for Peterson and 34 for Swift). Swift was the clear leader as a receiving back (5 targets vs. 3 for Peterson and 0 for Johnson) and Peterson's 14 carries beat out Johnson's 7 and Swift's 3 as the leader for ground work. That leaves Johnson as the odd man out, with no real fantasy value.

2. Marlon Mack, RB, Indianapolis Colts

Marlon Mack's injury makes him an easy player to drop. / Michael Hickey/Getty Images

This one is an absolute no-brainer, as Marlon Mack is done for the season with a torn Achilles tendon. As of Tuesday morning he's rostered in 63 percent, though, so he's apparently still worth mentioning here.

3. Mecole Hardman, WR, Kansas City Chiefs

Limited volume in Week 1 seriously downgrades Mecole Hardman's fantasy outlook. / Focus On Sport/Getty Images

Mecole Hardman was a high-upside, low-floor draft pick in fantasy this year, and for now he belongs on the waiver wire. In Week 1 he played largely the same role we saw in 2019, and he was both out-snapped and out-targeted by three Kansas City Chiefs wideouts (Tyreek Hill, Sammy Watkins and Demarcus Robinson). Barring an injury to Hill or Watkins, there's not much of a chance Hardman is going to crack your starting lineup.

4. Jordan Howard, RB, Miami Dolphins

Jordan Howard's fantasy outlook fell as part of a committee backfield in Week 1. / Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

As a running back that doesn't get much receiving work in a weak offense, Jordan Howard's fantasy value was tied to his potential to dominate the rushing work for the Miami Dolphins. This didn't happen in Week 1. He was sidelined with a hamstring injury, and Myles Gaskin ended up leading the backfield in touches (13) and snaps (39). Even if Howard does't miss any time, his upside is so limited that there's not much reason to keep him stashed on your bench.

5. Phillip Lindsay, RB, Denver Broncos

A Week 1 injury crushes Phillip Lindsay's fantasy value. / Dustin Bradford/Getty Images

Phillip Lindsay was seeing some decent volume as the Denver Broncos' No. 2 RB on Monday night, but he got hurt and Melvin Gordon went on to serve as the workhorse. The injury is reportedly turf toe, and that's the kind of injury that can really linger and hamper a running back. Considering Lindsay's best-case is getting a solid RB2 workload, the injury risk easily outweighs his potential upside, making him worth a drop.

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Jason Schandl is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Jason Schandl also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username Jaymun. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.