Waiver Wire Week 5: Geno Smith, Josh Reynolds Highlight Pickups to Know

Few NFL players have improved their fantasy football stock over four weeks more than Geno Smith.

The Seattle Seahawks quarterback was not expected to be drafted by many fantasy players as a backup option and now he appears to be a viable waiver-wire candidate after back-to-back 300-yard, two-touchdown performances.

Smith put up 320 passing yards and two touchdowns in Seattle's high-scoring win over the Detroit Lions on Sunday. That performance backed up a 325-yard, two-score outing from Week 3.

Smith will not be anywhere close to the top of the overall quarterback rankings, but he could be a terrific pickup with all of the injuries and lackluster performances happening across the league.

The Seahawks quarterback was not the only player with waiver-wire potential to shine in Sunday's game at Ford Field. Detroit wide receiver Josh Reynolds could be one of the hottest pickups ahead of Week 5 if Amon-Ra St. Brown is still unable to play, or limited in any capacity.

As for the running backs, the injury news continued to pile up for the top fantasy contributors. Alvin Kamara did not play in the London game, Jonathan Taylor is dealing with an ankle issue and Javonte Williams suffered a knee injury on Sunday.

Tyler Allgeier and Rachaad White were not even considered in fantasy football circles in August, but now they may be important contributors with so many top running backs dealing with injuries.

Geno Smith produced his second straight 320-yard, two-score game through the air on Sunday.

The back-to-back high outputs should put Smith on your fantasy football radar as a weekly streamer, or a bye week replacement.

Smith did not have huge numbers in Weeks 1 and 2, but he had 47 completions and a completion percentage over 80 in both contests.

Smith has at least 23 completions in every game this season and Sunday was his third game with a completion percentage over 75.

The Seahawks quarterback exploded for high numbers against Atlanta and Detroit, so his numbers may be met with some skepticism, but his accuracy may quell those question marks.

Seattle still has two incredible wide receivers in D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, and the other facets of the offense have come together nicely. Rashaad Penny and Kenneth Walker have formed a nice running back duo. Will Dissly and Colby Parkinson both have over 110 receiving yards and they combined for four scores out of the tight end spot.

Smith has two matchups with the Arizona Cardinals and a home game with the New York Giants coming up in the next five weeks. The Seahawks visit New Orleans in Week 5 and the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 7.

New Orleans is coming off its worst pass-yard concession of the young season and Arizona is one of 12 teams to give up 1,000 passing yards through four games.

If anything, Smith may help fantasy rosters over the next two weeks in matchups that could favor his team.

Josh Reynolds proved his worth with and without Amon-Ra St. Brown on the field over the last two weeks.

Reynolds followed up his 96-yard outing in Week 3 with an 81-yard performance against the Seahawks in Week 4.

Reynolds has 13 catches on 18 targets over the last two weeks inside a Detroit offense that posted 69 points in that span.

He played the most snaps of any Detroit wide receiver in Week 4. He was on the field for 84 percent of the offensive plays, which was just four percent behind tight end T.J. Hockenson.

Reynolds' long-term fantasy value could be tied to the health of Amon-Ra St. Brown, who missed Sunday's game with an ankle injury.

Reynolds was by far the top wide receiver option for Jared Goff to work with over Kalif Raymond, Quintez Cephus and Tom Kennedy.

Hockenson had the best day of any of Detroit's pass-catchers with 179 yards on eight receptions, but he is already widely rostered in fantasy leagues.

Reynolds could even have fantasy value as a WR3 or FLEX player when St. Brown comes back because of how much Goff has trusted him over the first four weeks.

The Atlanta Falcons rushing attack may be the value bin for fantasy football players entering Week 5.

Tyler Allgeier led the Falcons with 84 yards on 10 carries in the win over the Cleveland Browns.

Allgeier earned the same number of carries as Caleb Huntley and one more than Cordarrelle Patterson.

Patterson entered Sunday with a knee injury that forced him to be listed as questionable on the injury report.

When Patterson is healthy, he is the No. 1 running back inside the Atlanta offense, but there could still be room for Allgeier on the back end of fantasy football rosters.

Atlanta ran the ball 10 straight times on a drive that crossed over from the third to fourth quarter. The Falcons then ran the ball eight times on the next 10 plays on their final two drives of the game.

The commitment to the run game was made because Marcus Mariota had a 7-for-19 game in the passing attack, which hurt the fantasy values of Drake London and Kyle Pitts.

Atlanta's rushing attack will be tested in Week 5 by a road trip to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but it will be worth watching the snap counts and usage of the running backs.

If Arthur Smith loses more confidence in Mariota, he could lean on the ground game more, and that could be the case if Desmond Ridder eventually replaces the current starter.

Allgeier made a good impression in Week 4 and he could be added to fantasy rosters over the next few days with the future, not just Week 5, in mind.

The rookie out of BYU could be a great player to stash now as the injuries continue to ravage the top fantasy running backs.

Rachaad White saw his offensive snap count increase from six to 24 from Week 3 to Week 4.

White caught all five of his targets from Tom Brady for 50 yards and dove into the end zone for a rushing score on Sunday night.

White's Week 4 production could be a look into how Tampa Bay manages its running back usage for the rest of the season.

Leonard Fournette played 87 percent of the offensive snaps in Week 2 and 91 percent of the offensive snaps in Week 3. That is not sustainable for an entire season.

White fits the mold of a backup pass-catching running back that Brady has relied on throughout his career. James White made a career for himself in that role with the New England Patriots.

The rookie out of Arizona State could see an increase in snaps over the next few weeks if Brady gains even more confidence in him in the short passing game.

White's fantasy football stock is not as high as other top waiver-wire pickups right now, but he could be worth picking up now before the mass roster additions, especially in points-per-reception leagues, occur if he continues to contribute in the passing game.