We’re now a month through the NFL season and the fantasy football teams that are staying active on their league’s waiver-wires are likely the ones seeing the most success. With bye weeks now coming into play — along with more injuries and now potential Covid-related absences rearing their ugly heads — it’s shaping up to be a “live and die by the waiver-wire” type of season.
With that in mind, let’s go through some of the hottest pickups in IDP leagues for Week 5 of the fantasy football season.
DEFENSIVE LINE
Carl Lawson, DE, Cincinnati Bengals
Lawson man who made this waiver-wire column twice last season — both times breaking my heart and leaving me disappointed with the results. I told myself I wouldn’t go back — that I wouldn’t allow my heart to be broken again by the same player this season — but it’s 2020 and not a whole lot else can go wrong. I’ve come crawling back to Lawson in hopes that things will be different this time around.
The change for Lawson so far this season is that his playing time has been more consistent, leading to significantly better results. His snaps last season were up and down depending on who was in the lineup for the Bengals, but this year he has seen over 50% of the snap share every week, despite still starting behind Carlos Dunlap and Sam Hubbard.
This has allowed Lawson to get after the passer at a higher rate than previous seasons, which in turn has led to four sacks already this year — tying him for the second-most in the NFL. I know I can’t be the only one who has been previously burned by trusting Lawson, but the numbers are more promising than they've in the past, making me more willing to give him another shot.
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