Overcome slow start with shrewd trades, free agents

You're 0-3. Or 1-2.

Your roster is full of under-performing stiffs like Eddie Lacy, Keenan Allen and Tom Brady, and you're already thinking, “Wait till next year.”

If that's the case, as it obviously is for about half of you, don't throw in the towel yet. There's still time to get this train moving in the right direction, and it can be accomplished via trades or shrewd free-agent pickups.

In this week's column, I'm going to spotlight players who are likely free agents in your league, or who haven't been in many starting lineups but should be right about now.

Wide receivers

• The Rams' Brian Quick (taken in 53 percent of cbssports.com leagues). Sitting at No. 18 in fantasy points among wideouts, he's the Rams' most consistent pass-catching threat and won't throw many dud performances up for your team. That's the perfect WR3 in my book.

• The Steelers' Markus Wheaton (59 percent owned). Not a fantastic start so far, but the second-year pro is on pace for 107 targets and over 900 yards. Wheaton, who is in my lineup this week, is about to start finding the end zone on a consistent basis.

• The Cardinals' John Brown (19 percent). Arizona's off this week and maybe Brown (3 TDs on 15 targets) needs to prove himself more fantasy-wise because he's just the team's third wideout. But there are reports that the rookie's snaps are going to increase, and with his speed, Brown may just work his way into fantasy relevance soon.

Running backs

What a train wreck this position has been. Missing person reports are out for LeSean McCoy, Matt Forte, Zac Stacy, Jamaal Charles, Eddie Lacy and Montee Ball.

There's probably very little help on the wire at this point, which is why it's imperative to identify potential breakout stars like Kansas City's Knile Davis immediately. This week, everybody likely grabbed San Diego's Donald Brown and many astute owners have him in their lineups as the Chargers are playing the hapless Jags.

The two players worth adding (and especially if you are a Bernard Pierce or Arian Foster owner) are Lorenzo Taliaferro and Alfred Blue. Both played well enough last week and are available in about 50 percent of leagues.

Quarterbacks

For those of you hurting at QB in deeper leagues, it time to consider giving a long look to Ben Roethlisberger or Tony Romo. The Steelers' and Cowboys' schedules are about to lighten up considerably, making these two viable options.

And next week, after Arizona is off the bye, take a look at Carson Palmer. He should be fully recovered from a shoulder injury and will be playing in some high-scoring affairs against Denver, Washington, Oakland, Philly, Dallas and St. Louis.

Good bets

• Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger vs. Tampa Bay. Most teams aren't using Big Ben as their fantasy starter, but he'll have a solid game against a so-so Bucs pass defense.

• Cowboys QB Tony Romo vs. New Orleans. Those of you who took my preseason advice to take Romo may be cursing my name after three weeks, but this is where he starts to make hay. I expect him to throw 13-16 TD passes and average 275 yards a game between Weeks 4-10.

• Niners QB Colin Kaepernick and WRs Michael Crabtree and Anquan Boldin vs. Philadelphia. Kirk Cousins and Andrew Luck just hit the Eagles with 3-TD games. Kaepernick will be a top-5 QB this week with a TD pass going to each of these receivers.

• Chargers RB Donald Brown vs. Jacksonville. Pretty hysterical stat line for Brown last week — 32 carries for 64 yards. But with Ryan Mathews and Danny Woodhead out, Brown is a lock for 12-18 points.

• Falcons RB Steven Jackson at Minnesota. Feature backs have piled up 240 yards the last two games against the Vikes. Jackson's not a sure-fire play, but watch for 70-80 yards and a TD.

• Dolphins RB Lamar Miller at Oakland. Knowshon Moreno's injury has opened the door for Miller and he's taking full advantage (15-108 vs. KC last week). Watch for another big day against the sieve-like Raiders.

• Vikings RB Matt Asiata vs. Atlanta. Just like the three RBs listed above, there's not much competition for carries in this backfield. Asiata is a good bet for 15-20 touches a game going forward, making him at worst a flex play going forward.

• Packers WR Randall Cobb at the Bears. Last time Green Bay was in Chicago, Cobb caught just 2 passes. Of course, both went for TDs and the second was a 47-yarder that gave Green Bay the NFC North title. Facing a depleted secondary Sunday, Cobb and Jordy Nelson may post other-worldly numbers.

• Texans WR DeAndre Hopkins vs. Buffalo. A top-10 fantasy receiver to this point, Hopkins will continue to shine against a Bills D that is 26th vs. the pass thus far.

• Lions WR Golden Tate at the Jets. Plugging along with WR3 numbers, Tate will exploit a defense that leaves him in 1-on-1 coverage far too often.

• Atlanta defense at Minnesota. Owned in about 50 percent of cbssports.com leagues, the Falcons rank third in D/ST points. And after this cakewalk, they get the Giants, Bears, Bucs, Panthers and Browns over the next eight weeks.

Bad bets

• Patriots QB Tom Brady at Kansas City. Twenty-eighth. That's where Brady ranks among QBs in terms of fantasy points. Drop him for any of a half-dozen other QBs and move on.

• Panthers QB Cam Newton at Baltimore. Six carries. For 26 yards. In two games. If Newton's not going to use his legs, he's just about worthless as a fantasy QB.

• Lions RB Joique Bell at the Jets. Matt Forte: 13 carries, 33 yards. Eddie Lacy: 13 carries, 43 yards. Darren McFadden: 4 carries, 15 yards. There are your feature backs who have faced the Jets thus far. Stay far, far way from Bell in this one.

• Jets RBs Chris Ivory and Chris Johnson vs. Detroit. This game figures to be about a 16-13 final. Find other options

• Eagles RB LeSean McCoy vs. San Francisco. How's this for unbelievable: TWO Cleveland running backs have more fantasy points than McCoy. You aren't sitting him, but he's not going to explode against this defense.

• Falcons WR Roddy White at Minnesota. Even if White plays, he's not a great fantasy start vs. a defense that's allowed just 3 TD passes.

• Dolphins WR Mike Wallace at Oakland. Miami's going to run in this one. A lot. Wallace's opportunities will be limited and he'll likely finish with just 40-50 yards.

jdietz@dailyherald.com