Fantasy Football QB/RB FAAB Report Week 6: How Much To Spend On Roschon Johnson, Bailey Zappe, Tyjae Spears

Welcome to my weekly FAAB report article for Fantasy Football. Every week I am going to go over my favorite additions at the QB and RB positions in both shallower leagues and deeper leagues and tell you how much FAAB you should be spending and why. 

Want to make sure you don't waste your FAAB budget? Sync your fantasy teams with our Fantasy Assistant to access our Predictive Analytics, which predict the average winning FAAB bids for each week's hottest pickups BEFORE waivers are run, with accurate predictions landing each Tuesday!

Best Fantasy Football FAAB Pickups for Shallow Leagues (10 and 12 Teams)

RB Roschon Johnson FAAB Budget

The Bears' offense finally is looking good and has been for the past couple of weeks. Khalil Herbert had been leading the backfield in touches, but he suffered an injury in the Bears' Thursday night win over the Commanders and will now miss multiple weeks. This of course opens the door for the rookie Johnson to grab a much larger role in the Bears offense. The problem is, he has a concussion, so you will have to monitor his status throughout the week. If he does clear concussion protocol, he will be a huge addition while Herbert remains sidelined, and if Johnson does perform well, he could take over the RB1 role in Chicago permanently. If you roster Herbert, you are going to want to spend 8-12% of your budget on Johnson this week, if you don’t roster Herbert but you are in need of an RB, you can feel comfortable spending 5-8% of your remaining budget. 

RB Justice Hill FAAB Budget 

Gus Edwards has been the lead back for the Ravens since the injury to J.K. Dobbins, and he has done a fine job. He hasn’t run away with the job, though and in Week 5, Justice Hill saw more action than he had been and was more productive with his added opportunities. Hill averaged 4.6 yards per carry compared to the 4 yards per carry from Edwards, Hill also scored a TD and had four catches compared to none from Edwards. This looks to be becoming more of a 50/50 or 55/45 split in the Ravens' backfield, and Hill is now worthy of a pickup, even though he hadn’t done much of anything since Week 1. I would look to spend 4-6% of my remaining budget on him this week and as high as 8% if you also roster Edwards.

QB Derek Carr FAAB Budget

There were some concerns with Carr's shoulder injury, however, after what we saw in Week 5, he Is clearly healthy again. Carr looks great with Alvin Kamara now in the offense and in game shape. It also helps Carr to have a healthy Michael Thomas, which the Saints haven’t had in years. Chris Olave has proven to be a true number-one WR as well, so Carr has become a legitimate option for shallow leagues that start 1-QB. He may still be matchup-dependent in 10-team leagues, but dropping 3-5% of your remaining FAAB on Carr is a good idea whether you are doing it for depth or as a potential starter in the right matchup. 

QB Gardner Minshew FAAB Budget

Exciting rookie QB Anthony Richardson is hurt again. He has a shoulder injury that might keep him out for multiple weeks. Minshew should be added as insurance and/or a Superflex option this week. He has played very well either when he has come into a game to replace Richardson or when he has started in place of Richardson. In 1-QB formats, a bid of 3-5% on Minshew should be fine; however, you might need to spend 7-10% of your remaining FAAB to get him in Superflex. 

Best Fantasy Football FAAB Pickups for Deep Leagues (14 and 16 Teams)

QB Bailey Zappe FAAB Budget

I believe that with Mac Jones’ struggles, the Patriots will be forced to make a change officially, not just temporarily within a game. Their offense has been dreadful, and Zappe cannot be any worse, so in your 2QB/Superflex leagues, you may want insurance for your Mac Jones shares, or you may want to add depth for when your QBs are on a bye week. In a 16-team 2-QB league, you may want to spend 10% or more of your budget, because QBs just don’t become available that often. In a 14-team league, 4-7% seems reasonable. 

RB D’Onta Foreman FAAB Budget 

So, as I detailed in Roschon Johnson's blurb, Khalil Herbert is going to miss multiple weeks, and Johnson has a concussion. This opens the door for Foreman to at least be active for the Bears next game, and if Johnson is unable to go, Foreman might even get the start. He is worth a pickup no matter what in deeper leagues because he is a veteran who is bound to see touches to take pressure off the rookie Johnson. Of course, if Foreman gets a start, his value skyrockets. Place a bid between 6-9% of your remaining budget on him if you roster Herbert and 3-4% if you don’t.

RB Tyjae Spears FAAB Budget

Spears has been seeing a lot of snaps, getting more touches, and he scored a TD last week against the Colts. Even with the Titans' offense belonging to Derrick Henry, the role that Spears has carved out is big enough that he can contribute and be productive in the deeper formats.  With bye weeks having started last week, you might run into a situation where you need warm bodies in the flex spot, and Spears can serve that purpose. If Henry does suffer an injury, Spears could become a top 12-15 RB as well, so once you add him, you might want to keep him. Spending 5-8% of your remaining budget seems appropriate. 

QB Tyrod Taylor FAAB Budget

Daniel Jones is hurt. It really isn’t that surprising, considering how much he has been getting hit. The offensive line for the Giants has really let him down this year. It is worth noting though, that Taylor looked good after coming into the game for Jones. He completed nine of his 12 passes for 86 yards and ran for 14 yards. His dual-threat ability and the fact that he is a veteran QB make him worth adding in deeper leagues in case Jones misses any time and especially if Jones misses a lot of time. Bid around the same as you would for Zappe, but keep in mind that Taylor will only be relevant due to injury, while Zappe is relevant regardless.