Denver Broncos wide receiver Wes Welker was suspended four games and now fantasy football owners need free agent or draft replacements and some solid sleeper options and waiver wire targets include Cody Latimer, Andre Caldwell, Emmanuel Sanders and Isaiah Burse for Peyton Manning on offense and some if those players could be great options in PPR leagues.
Welker getting hit with a four game ban could be a blessing in disguise for him since he has been dealing with concussion issues, but for fantasy owners, the suspension has them scrambling for replacements. Welker was expected to have another solid season in Denver and he likely would have had the chance to be even more productive with Eric Decker now out of the offense and with the NY Jets as a free agent. Welker has the slot locked down and now someone else will have to step up for these four games while he is out.
Peyton Manning has some great weapons already with Demaryius Thomas and Julius Thomas and now players like Cody Latimer, Isaiah Burse, Andre Caldwell and Emmanuel Sanders will be expected to step up. Sanders and Latimer were looked at as sleeper picks this season even before Welker was suspended and now they are looking like some of the top surprise options in the entire league with the void Welker leaves. Latimer and Sanders each could benefit greatly from playing out of the slot and Caldwell should also get more looks with Welker out.
Latimer is the top anme to keep an eye on, as he is coming in as a rookie and should step up with Sanders to help take over the slot and the second wideout spot with Demaryius Thomas. Peyton Manning has made a career out of getting the most out of his receivers and now Latimer and Caldwell are the next ones on the list potentially. Latimer comes out of Indiana after making 72 catches for 1096 yards for a run first team and in his college career he had 15 touchdowns over the past two seasons and had over 2000 yards with 135 catches in three seasons.
Burse is a name to watch in deep leagues and he could be a major sleeper this year, as he lined up in the slot over 80 percent of the time in the preseason and that is where Welker would line up the most. Burse comes in after playing in all 13 games in each of his four seasons and he had a strng season with Derek Carr at Fresno State, making 100 catches last season for 1026 yards. Burse had good size and speed in college and that should translate and he left school with over 2500 yards and 100 catches to go along with 15 TDs.
Caldwell played in all 16 games last season and had just 16 catches for 200 yards, but he now has the chance to step up into the next slot. Sanders is a speedy option and he should end up with some TDs and big plays out of all of this. Welker said that he took the drugs by accident, but the NFL obviously doesn't care and now he is out for four games. Manning and the Broncos have a tough schedule and now they will be put to the test. Losing Welker hurts, but Thomas is a good number one and the Broncos now will get tested without Eric Decker right away.
