Scott Engel is in his 11th season as the official Fantasy Football writer and analyst for Seahawks.com. He is an inaugural member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association's Hall of Fame. Scott is a four-time FSWA award winner and a 10-time nominee, including being a finalist for the 2020 FSWA Fantasy Football Writer of the Year Award, which he won previously. Scott was the No. 1 most accurate fantasy football draft ranker at tight end and No. 6 at running back on fantasypros.com in 2021. You can find more of his fantasy football analysis at The Game Day this season.

We're calling an audible in the Seahawks Fantasy Insider column this week. We usually begin with an in-depth waiver wire rundown before moving on to weekly fantasy football lineup picks. But the free agent list was thin in terms of impact performers this week, so the approach has been revised to better optimize your roster for Week 3. We have included early-season trade targets, key Week 3 starting recommendations, and players that may still be available on free agency after your league's first waiver run of the week. Consult this unique positional rundown and head into Week 3 with an improved outlook.

Week 3 Fantasy Football Guide: Who To Acquire And Start

Running Backs

-Start Rashaad Penny in Week 3. The Falcons have allowed 58 points in two games. Penny will get some chances to finish off scoring drives with touchdown runs, and the Seahawks could be headed to their highest point total of the season so far. An encouraging offensive outlook means that Penny should provide quality fantasy production as a yardage source and TD threat.

-Start Dameon Pierce with confidence this week. He carried 15 times for 69 yards in Week 2 and may be headed for a breakout performance against a Bears defense that has allowed 189.5 rushing yards per game so far this season.

-Trade for Leonard Fournette before he faces the Packers this week. Green Bay has allowed 153 rushing yards per game in the first two weeks.

-Trade for Jets rookie Breece Hall. He rushed for 50 yards in Week 2 and caught a 10-yard TD pass. Hall might find his way into your fantasy lineup in the next few weeks. He should eventually be the most productive fantasy RB on an improving Jets offense.

-Add Marlon Mack. He could be a notable contributor to the 49ers' backfield starting this week. San Francisco has been dealing with RB injuries, and Mack will be utilized to complement Jeff Wilson. He could also potentially see an expanded workload at any time.

-Add Kenneth Walker III if you see him land on your free agent list. Smart fantasy players take a patient approach with many rookies, and Walker can have tremendous upside if he is called on to take on a significant workload at any point this season.

-Trade for Travis Etienne. The Chargers have allowed receiving TDs to RBs in each of the first two weeks, and Etienne is a versatile and dynamic playmaker who will start to produce more for fantasy purposes as the season progresses.

-Start Nyheim Hines at a flex position this week. He leads the Colts with 10 receptions and should be very busy in Week 3. Matt Ryan will utilize him frequently as Indianapolis tries to keep pace with Kansas City.

-Start Kareem Hunt in Week 3. The Steelers have allowed 116 receiving yards to running backs, fourth-most in the league. Hunt will get his turn to shine after Nick Chubb delivered big numbers in Week 2.

-Add Atlanta rookie Tyler Allgeier and stash him. The Falcons gave him 10 carries in Week 2 and may look to give him more work in the weeks ahead as a complement to Cordarrelle Patterson.

Wide Receivers

-Start DK Metcalf this week and watch him come through with his best performance of the season so far. The Falcons have allowed an NFL-high five TD receptions to wide receivers in the first two weeks.

-Start Darnell Mooney as the Bears face the Texans. He should show off his better form of the 2021 season, when he finished with 1,055 receiving yards. Houston has allowed 421 receiving yards to WRs in two games, fourth-most in the league.

-Trade for JuJu Smith-Schuster this week. He had six receptions for 79 yards on eight targets in the season opener and will bounce back after a three-catch outing in Week 2. As he gets more comfortable in the Kansas City offense, Smith-Schuster will become a frequent target for Patrick Mahomes, which means he will be a fantasy lineup regular very soon.

-Start Adam Thielen in Week 3. Detroit ranks 27th in the NFL in passing defense after two weeks, and the Minnesota passing game will get back on track after a loss at Philadelphia on Monday night. Thielen should find the end zone, as he has 24 TD receptions over the past two seasons and the Vikings will want to keep him involved in the offensive flow.

-Trade for Tennessee rookie Treylon Burks. He had a 27-yard reception in Week 1 and a 16-yard catch and run in Week 2. His flashes of promise are soon going to turn into quality fantasy production. He will deliver the first strong fantasy performance of his career in Week 3 against the Raiders' 28th-ranked pass defense.

-Add Green Bay's Sammy Watkins. He caught a 55-yard pass from Aaron Rodgers in Week 2 and finished with 98 receiving yards. He appears to be the Packers' top big-play threat right now, although rookies Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs should be stashed for later-season potential if you have the roster room.

-Add Steelers rookie George Pickens. He had an impressive preseason and the Steelers may start to get him the ball more often in an effort to spark the passing game. He is another first-year player that will start to emerge as a more productive fantasy player in the weeks ahead.

-Add New England WR Nelson Agholor. He caught six passes on six targets for 110 yards, including a 44-yard TD, in Week 2. Agholor is the best downfield playmaking threat among all of the Patriots' WRs, and Mac Jones must continue to target him to keep the passing game operating respectably. Take the flier on Agholor if he is a free agent to see if he can build on last week's performance.

-Add Detroit's D.J. Chark if he pops up on your free agent list this week. Keep a watch to see who other teams in your league release, as you always should, and pick Chark up if he is dropped. The Lions are going to be involved in many high-scoring affairs this season. Chark should start to deliver quality fantasy production as opposing defenses focus heavily on Amon-Ra St. Brown and D'Andre Swift.

-Trade for D.J. Moore. He has six catches for 86 yards in two games. But he should soon start to show that he is the same type of 1,100-yard guy we have known over the past few seasons while he catches six-plus TD passes in 2022.

-Start Sterling Shepard. He caught a 65-yard TD pass in the season opener and had six receptions on 10 targets in Week 2. The Giants will continue to feed him the ball often as their clear No. 1 pass-catcher.

Quarterbacks And Tight Ends

-Start Kirk Cousins in Week 3. He will bounce back from his Monday night performance at Philadelphia in what should be a shootout with the Lions. Minnesota and Detroit clearly have the two best passing games in the NFC North this season and this week's matchup should be a fun one for fantasy production.

-Add and Start Jared Goff if you need a replacement for an injured QB. He may be available in your league, and Goff is coming off a four-TD outing, He does have a good supporting cast of playmakers around him in Detroit this season and we have noted the potential for a good amount of points in Lions-Vikings this week.

-Trade for Joe Burrow. He threw one TD pass in Week 2, but better times should be ahead. He will be ready to provide a good statistical outing in Week 3 vs. the Jets as the Bengals aim for their first win of the season.

-Start Derek Carr in Week 3. Tennessee has allowed six TD passes, second-most in the AFC.

-Start Geno Smith in superflex and two-QB leagues. He should be good for at least two TD passes against Atlanta. As noted in this week’s Seahawks Mailbag, Smith has earned the trust of the coaches to start opening up the passing game more.

-Add Cole Kmet if he is released by another team in your league this week. He should deliver his first quality fantasy outing of the season in Week 3 vs. Houston.

-Trade for T.J. Hockenson. He regained recognition as a fantasy TE1 this week against Minnesota. He remains an important part of the Detroit passing game.

-Add Robert Tonyan. He has recovered from a major knee injury and his role in the Green Bay passing game will increase in the weeks ahead.

-Start Tyler Higbee in Week 3. The Cardinals have allowed the most TDs (three), receiving yards (212) and receptions (19) to TEs over the first two weeks of the season.

For more fantasy football analysis from Scott Engel, visit The Game Day for his weekly sleepers and more waiver recommendations.