Braelon Allen or Ollie Gordon? Week 4 Waiver Wire Rankings, FAAB Advice & Top Pickups (Ep. 2225)

This episode of the FantasyPros podcast is a Week 4 waiver deep-dive built around a running back logjam created by three separate injuries — Devon Achane's season-ending ACL tear, Breece Hall's undefined but ominous-sounding injury, and the resulting opportunities for Braelon Allen and Ollie Gordon. Hosts Jake Seeley and Pat Fitzmaurice use this chaos as the spine for the show, then work through wide receiver, streamer, and keep/cut calls, with the shared conclusion that Week 4 waivers are thin at the top but require aggressive FAAB spending on runway-based backs.

The arguments

Braelon Allen is the priority add over Ollie Gordon, and both hosts land there. Fitzmaurice argues Allen benefits from a functional Jets offensive line and a clear role, while Jalen Wright is a bigger threat to Gordon's touches than Isaiah Davis (zero offensive snaps this year) is to Allen's; Seeley agrees but says his answer flips to Gordon only if Hall's absence is confirmed as short (one to two weeks) versus a longer, murkier Achane-adjacent Miami timeline.

Miami's backfield may just be unrosterable chaos regardless of injury length. Fitzmaurice is skeptical of paying up for Gordon given his 2.7 yards-per-carry career average and the likelihood of an ongoing Gordon/Wright split; he even suggests Wright could end up the better value pickup than Gordon himself, especially with Jarquez Hunter now in the mix as a wildcard.

Both backs deserve a top waiver-priority burn, no debate. Seeley says he'd use his number-one waiver on Allen, Gordon, and Wright alike given how many backs are getting hurt league-wide (Kenneth Gainwell, Jaylen Warren mentioned as recent casualties); Fitzmaurice agrees for anyone thin at the position, tying FAAB bids to team need rather than a fixed rule.

Alvin Kamara's volume still matters even though his efficiency doesn't, and Kendre Miller is the sneaky play behind him. Both hosts note Kamara is next man up for touches if Achane is out, but Fitzmaurice flags Miller (a third-round pick who's squeezed out Devin Neal when healthy) as a lower-cost bet on New Orleans, while Seeley pushes Brian Robinson Jr. as the handcuff to secretly roster regardless of Bijan Robinson's health, given how violently his price would spike if Bijan got hurt.

Chris Bell, not Keenan Allen, is the long-term wide receiver stash, but they split on the best Week 4 actual start. Seeley wants Bell now that Calvin Ridley's injury opens snaps in Miami, citing Bell's pre-injury first-round draft profile and a strong showing once healthy; Fitzmaurice counters that for a pure one-week play, Keenan Allen's matchup against a leaky Commanders secondary (11 passing touchdowns allowed) makes him the better start even though Bell has more season-long upside.

Kenyon Sadiq is this week's unanimous top streaming tight end, but his ceiling depends on health around him. Both hosts like Sadiq after a big Sunday against a Lions defense that's allowed touchdowns to six different tight ends, but Seeley cautions that Adonai Mitchell's return would cut into snaps and targets, capping Sadiq's ceiling; without Mitchell, Seeley considers him a fringe TE1.

Several highly-rostered names should be cut outright given the injury/opportunity math. Both hosts agree to drop Brian Thomas Jr. (83% owned, buried behind Jacoby Myers and now Josh Cameron), Quentin Johnston (71%, already being dropped last week), Justin Herbert if you can't stash him, and Chris Godwin given Jayden Daniels's expected multi-week absence; they're split only on Travis Achane-caliber committee backs and Marshawn Lloyd/Tyler Allgeier calls, where Allgeier gets a hold recommendation as Jeremiah Love's clear injury replacement.

What it means for your roster

• Add Braelon Allen with a $15–30 FAAB bid (both hosts' range); treat this as a top-priority claim if you rostered Breece Hall or are starting a replacement-level back like Tyjae Spears.
• Add Ollie Gordon in the $7–27 range, but temper expectations — both hosts think a Gordon/Jalen Wright committee is plausible, so consider bidding on Wright instead at a discount if Gordon's price gets bid up past 20%.
• Speculatively add Kendre Miller for single digits in Kamara-owned leagues; he's the sneaky New Orleans back to grab before news breaks on a bigger role.
• Stash Chris Bell for $4–6 if available as a long-term WR3/4 dart throw, but start Keenan Allen this week specifically for the Commanders matchup if you need immediate production.
• Cut Brian Thomas Jr., Quentin Johnston, Chris Godwin, and Justin Herbert (if you can't carry two QBs) — all deemed dead weight given current role/opportunity, even with double-digit roster percentages.
• Stream Kenyon Sadiq at tight end and Matt Gay or Tyler Bass at kicker, but monitor Adonai Mitchell's health before committing long-term FAAB to Sadiq.