Waiver Wire Wonders: Week 8

Weeding through those unwieldy waiver wires requires a keen eye and a quick trigger. Thus, Waiver Wire Wonders provides a weekly snapshot of players worthy of consideration who should be available on a good portion of league waiver wires. Enjoy those pickups...

As we near the halfway point in the fantasy football season, don't you dare go resting on those laurels. This is when the rookies start claiming their stars and the feisty vets prove they still have them. Week 8 solidified a couple of the question marks from weeks past and procreated a couple of new babies. Hit those waivers hard as the second half of the season comes to fruition folks, because the nimble fantasy players win championships.

Tedd Ginn, Jr. (WR, Dolphins) - With Chad Pennington really playing well the past few weeks and the Dolphins moving the ball better, Ginn's huge breakout day provides a perplexing add (seven catches for 175 yards). While typically one big game from a receiver would not pique too much interest, Ginn has been all over the radar screens since the Dolphins jumped on him way early in the 2007 draft. Everyone always says that the second year is when wide receivers really break out (i.e., Calvin Johnson), so Ginn's big game may not be a fluke. If you aren't deep at wide receiver, let it ride.

Donnie Avery (WR, Rams) - Bag it, tag it, and sell it to the butcher. Avery is ready for mass consumption. He made the list last week as we mentioned his big game that could have been even bigger if a couple of deep passes were on the mark. This week, he solidified his name in gold with six catches for 163 yards and a touchdown. Avery is officially looking like a stud down the stretch, so if it's not too late, grab him. You won't be sorry.

Kevin Faulk (RB, Patriots) - The trusty old utility guy in the New England offense looks -- for the time being at least -- to be the primary ball carrier in Belichick's crumbling offense. With LaMont Jordan, Laurence Maroney, and Sammy Morris all sidelined, Faulk is basically all that they have left. Should any of these guys return, Faulk's value immediately drops to his normal nil status, but if not, he is a decent fill-in if you are desperate at running back.

Leonard Weaver (RB, Seahawks) - While it is a little hard to feel confident in anyone on the Seahawks offense putting up consistent numbers with all of the injuries at the skill positions, Weaver puled off an amazing statistical day with four receptions for 116 yards and two touchdowns as well as another 13 yards on the ground. My gut says fluke on this one as Weaver did not even have 100 all-purpose yards to his name coming into Sunday's game. Still, he is certainly worth watching.

Cedric Benson (RB, Bengals) - This is the same story as last week, but I thought it was worth mentioning again. Benson got 13 carries for the Bengals, the most on the team, and turned them into 49 yards. In addition, he caught two passes for 20 yards. Benson looks like he will be getting a decent workload, so he is definitely worth a closer look if you need RBs.

Matt Jones (WR, Jaguars) - Upon first seeing Jones' big numbers of eight catches for 117 yards and a touchdown, I assumed he would be owned in a pretty high percentage of leagues. In actuality, he is only owned in about 20 percent of leagues (based on 10-team leagues). If Garrard improves down the stretch and finishes anything like he did last season, Jones should continue to benefit.

Chad Pennington (QB, Dolphins) - As I mentioned in the Ted Ginn Jr. segment, Chad Pennington continues to improve in Miami and makes for a very serviceable backup QB in deep leagues at this point. Currently, Pennington is only owned in about 40 percent of leagues -- a number that should double after this week. He posted 314 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions. That makes three games in a row with over 280 yards through the air.