4 Players to Stash in Fantasy Football Entering NFL Week 2

If you're consistently a step ahead of the competition in your fantasy football league, it can help you win a title, and this weekly piece will aim to help you stay ahead of the pack.

The goal here is to help you identify players who could be hot waiver adds down the road as well as to point out week-ahead pickups who could prove useful.

Here are some players to consider adding now and stashing on your bench for the future.

All fantasy football projections via our numbers at FanDuel Research, and NFL odds references are to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Fantasy Football Stash Candidates for Week 2

Jaxson Dart, QB, Giants

There's certainly a chance that you're in a league where there is always going to be a viable quarterback option available to start in your Week 2 lineup. However, if you're in a deeper league or a superflex league, then it could be worth checking to see if Jaxson Dart is available to stash on your bench.

Before the season began, head coach Brian Daboll announced that the New York Giants would begin the season with veteran Russell Wilson as their starting quarterback. In Week 1 against the Washington Commanders, Wilson competed only 17 of his 37 attempts for 168 yards while finishing with the fifth-fewest yards per attempt (4.5) and fourth-worst adjusted completion percentage (66.7%) among starting signal-callers, per PFF.

Even though Daboll has revealed that Wilson will start again for the Giants in Week 2, the murmurs for Dart to start are going to grow louder if the offense continues to produce ineffective results. Although the Giants don't have a quarterback-friendly schedule and there's a scenario where Dart struggles in his rookie campaign, it wouldn't hurt to pick up Dart if you have the space on your roster in case he comes out the gate firing once he is named the starter.

Kyle Monangai, RB, Bears

On Monday Night Football, Ben Johnson made his debut as the head coach of the Chicago Bears, and the game ended with heartbreak for Chicago fans. While the Bears watched a 17-6 lead in the fourth quarter evaporate, there was some notable usage that took place in the offense, including rookie running back Kyle Monangai operating as the backup to D'Andre Swift.

Swift certainly paced Chicago's backfield with an 81.0% snap rate and 55.8% route rate while totaling 65 scrimmage yards on 20 touches, via Next Gen Stats. But with Roschon Johnson inactive due to injury, Monangai handled a 14.3% snap rate and 16.3% route rate, hauling in his lone target for 11 yards.

Along with Johnson being an inefficient back in his first two seasons in the NFL, Swift isn't an overly explosive back, as he recorded the fifth-fewest rushing yards over expected per attempt (-1.19) in Week 1 after concluding last year with the fewest rushing yards over expected per attempt (-0.69) among qualified backs. While there's a chance the Bears elect to make a move to improve their running back room at some point, Monangai has a path to meaningful touches in an offense that I believe will improve as the season progresses -- especially with Johnson expressing his trust in the rookie before Chicago's season opener.

Tre Harris, WR, Chargers

Quentin Johnston is going to be a popular waiver-wire add entering Week 2, but I wouldn't completely write off rookie Tre Harris just yet. Harris was a productive wideout at Ole Miss, and the Los Angeles Chargers used a second-round pick on him in this year's draft with the idea that he could add a vertical element to the aerial attack alongside Ladd McConkey.

In his final collegiate season, Harris posted 60 receptions for 1,030 yards and 7 touchdowns, and he also logged the 19th-most yards after the catch per reception (7.7) and most yards per route run (5.12) among receivers with 50-plus targets that year.

Similar to most rookies, Harris is going to need time to get acclimated to a new offense and the speed of the NFL, so his lack of usage in Week 1 isn't overly concerning. During the Chargers' victory over the Kansas City Chiefs last week, Harris earned the lowest snap rate (8.1%) and second-lowest route rate (9.8%) among the team's wideouts while he caught his lone target for 11 yards.

Despite Harris not seeing the field much in his debut, his role should grow as the season rolls along, and adding a pass catcher with upside who is attached to Justin Herbert isn't the worst idea.

Isaiah Likely, TE, Ravens

Near the end of July, Isaiah Likely underwent foot surgery, forcing him to miss the Baltimore Ravens' Week 1 showdown versus the Buffalo Bills. It remains to be seen when Likely will make his season debut, and a foot injury makes me a bit nervous. But I'm willing to take a chance on stashing him due to the role he could have once he returns.

Mark Andrews expectedly saw the highest snap rate (76.0%) and route rate (63.6%) among Baltimore's tight ends amid Likely's absence in Week 1. At the same time, Andrews finished with only one reception for five yards, and the Ravens ran 12 personnel (two tight end sets) at the seventh-highest rate (36.0%) in the league, with Charlie Kolar and even Zaire Mitchell-Paden getting snaps as the No. 2 tight ends.

This sort of personnel usage suggests that Baltimore wants Andrews and Likely on the field together often in a Lamar Jackson-led passing attack, and we saw what Likely could achieve with a slightly expanded role last season when he was the TE16 in fantasy football for half-PPR formats. Currently, Likely is rostered in only 12% of leagues (via Yahoo), so if he isn't able to get fully healthy by the latter part of the season, then he can be dropped and possibly added again once he's healthy.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.