Welcome to the Fantasy Football Waiver Wire for Week 9.
Friday is Halloween, and between four teams on Bye and too many injuries to count, another scary week for fantasy managers is on tap. Last week served as a reminder that most leagues run waivers at least 24 hours too early – something I’ve railed against for years. While that’s a discussion for another time, fantasy managers were challenged when the expected playing status of Drake London, Michael Penix, Jr., A.J. Brown, Lamar Jackson, and Tyrod Taylor all changed late in the week. If that impacted you, hopefully you either had a Plan B on your roster or were able to grab someone off the post-waivers trash heap. Will we have more surprises this week after waivers run? We’ll see.
The Process: Each week, I try to identify the top Waiver Wire targets and evaluate the short- and long-term prospects of those players. I also do my best to reveal which players who are coming off a big week are fool’s gold. Finally, I look at streamers who might help you in a pinch. Note that I’m writing this column BEFORE the Week 8 Monday night game (WAS@KC).
Some players discussed won’t be available in your league. I try to list players who are available in more than 50% of leagues. But what does that even mean? A 10-team league with six bench spots will have a much larger Free Agent pool than a 14-team league with eight. Most leagues fall somewhere in between. This isn’t “one size fits all.” By way of example, I won’t list Jaxson Dart, Matthew Stafford, R.J. Harvey, Bam Knight, Kayshon Boutte, Troy Franklin, Ordonde Gadsden, or Harold Fannin, Jr., among others who probably aren’t available in any of your leagues.
WEEK 9 BYES: CLE, NYJ, PHI, TB
Week 9 Waiver Wire
Quarterback:
Quarterback availability varies widely between 1-QB and Superflex/2-QB leagues.
Justin Fields probably got dropped in quite a few leagues. Early in the week, it looked like he might get benched permanently, after he was replaced at halftime in Week 8. A knee injury to Taylor re-opened the door for Fields as the Jets’ main man. He responded with a strong, turnover-free game, engineered a late comeback, and led his team to its first win of the season. My guess is he’ll remain the starter, and he’s always got major upside due to his rushing prowess. It’s been a rough go of late, but Garrett Wilson should be back after the team’s Week 9 Bye and that’ll help. Fields is worth a swing if you need long-term quarterback help.
Sam Darnold, Aaron Rodgers, and Joe Flacco won’t be available in most Superflex leagues, but they’re the obvious places to start if you need long-term help, a streamer, or an injury replacement in a 1-QB league. I’d add them all ahead of Fields. Flacco is day-to-day with a shoulder injury, which could impact his availability for Week 9.
Michael Penix, Jr. wasn’t able to suit up for Week 8 and neither was Bryce Young. In both cases, a 37-year old backup stepped in. It’s safe to say that there won’t be a quarterback controversy in either case when starter is set to return. Both offer some QB2 upside down the road.
Just when everyone was leaving him for dead, Tua Tagovailoa went into Atlanta and lit up a strong Falcons’ defense, to the tune of 77% completions, four TD passes, a huge upset victory on the road, and a fantasy QB7 finish for the week through Sunday’s games. Who saw that coming? I know I didn’t. The Dolphins host the resurgent Ravens in Week 9, and then the Bills in Week 10, so there could be lots of garbage time, but stream Tua at your own risk.
It sounds like J.J. McCarthy could be back in as the Vikings’ starter this week. With the weapons and coaching he has, he’s worth a swing if you need QB2 help. He didn’t show a lot early in the season, before he got hurt. I’d stay away from Tyler Shough absent an emergency situation in deeper Superflex leagues.
Running Back:
Cam Skattebo’s dislocated ankle was a huge bummer. Can’t Giants fans have nice things for once? The injury required immediate surgery and likely ended his season. The next man up is Tyrone Tracy, Jr., and he’s proven to be a capable starting back in his brief career. The Giants’ offense has functioned much better since Jaxson Dart stepped in, so Tracy is in a nice spot. He’s a high priority add and if you’ve been saving free agent budget dollars, this is a very good place to spend it. Backup Devin Singletary is a bench stash, for now.
Tyjae Spears continues to get more and more of the work, and in Week 8 he and Tony Pollard had 12 touches apiece. Spears did more with his, turning them into 82 total yards and a rushing TD. He should be added in all formats with the trade deadline approaching, and Pollard a possible target.
Quinshon Judkins left the Browns’ Week 8 game at New England late, with a shoulder injury. Cleveland is on a Bye in Week 9, and it’s possible Judkins won’t miss any time. But if he does, Dylan Sampson and Jerome Ford would be in line for a lot more work. Sampson got the base work in Judkins’s absence, and I like them in that order.
Depth adds: Tyler Allgeier, Ollie Gordon, II, Kyle Monangai, Tank Bigsby (it sounds like Saquon Barkley could’ve returned to Sunday’s game, so he should be fine after his Week 9 Bye), Bhayshul Tuten, Jaydon Blue, Brian Robinson, Jr., Kenneth Gainwell, Emmanuel Wilson, and Blake Corum.
Wide Receiver
I mentioned Travis Hunter last week, but with the Jags on Bye in Week 8 he might still be out there in a lot of leagues. We’ve seen plenty of rookie wide receivers pop after their Bye Week and Hunter is a candidate to do just that and especially with Brian Thomas, Jr. struggling (and even being rumored as a trade candidate, which I don’t believe).
Christian Watson’s return from IR flew under the radar, but there he was back on the field Sunday night, having a pretty typical Christian Watson game (4-85, on four targets). He’s a boom-or-bust big-play merchant who will often disappoint in Green Bay’s crowded target tree (and especially once Jayden Reed returns), but Jordan Love can chuck it deep, and you could do much worse. He’s a viable WR3/Flex option and is worth adding.
Tez Johnson led Tampa in catches and yards in Week 8, and is a nice add with the Bucs so banged up at receiver.
Malik Washington’s name has appeared in this column multiple times. His route participation trended back down this week, but he found the end zone, and should continue to see decent volume with Tyreek Hill and Darren Waller out of the lineup. Miami will often be playing from behind and that helps the case.
Elic Ayomanor’s name has appeared multiple times in this column, but he hasn’t hit. True story: Ayomanor wasn’t the first wide receiver drafted by the Titans in 2025. That honor goes to University of Florida return specialist Chimere Dike, who the team grabbed with the first pick of Day 3, at the very top of Round 4. Dike has led the Titans in receiving in each of the last two weeks, and while that might not be saying much given how anemic their offense is, he does have 11-163-1 in his last two games, on 12 targets. He also had a season-high 89% snap share in Week 8. The recent bump in usage came with Calvin Ridley (hamstring) out. Still, Dike could be another one of those rookies who pops late and helps fantasy managers down the stretch, and he’s a sneaky add and especially in leagues that reward return yards.
Others to consider for depth: Luther Burden III, Keon Coleman, Jalen Coker, Jayden Higgins, Mack Hollins, Tyler Lockett (just signed by Las Vegas), and Rashod Bateman.
Tight End:
Cade Otton disappointed in Week 8, but so did the entire Buccaneers’ offense, which didn’t need to do much thanks to the defense. His four catches and 40 yards were both second on the team. I expect him to have a nice target share going forward with so many injuries to the receivers. Note that he’s on Bye in Week 9.
Theo Johnson continues to get plenty of looks from Jaxson Dart, so I’ll list him here again.
Others to consider if you need a streamer or depth at TE: Elijah Arroyo, Mason Taylor (on Bye this week), Juwan Johnson, and Dalton Schultz.
PK and D/ST Streamers, Week 9: (ranked outside the Top-14 for the week):
PK: J. Karty (vs. NO), J. Myers (@WAS), E. McPherson (vs. CHI), C. Little (@LV).
D/ST: JAC (@LV), BAL (@MIA).
Good luck with your waiver claims!
***This column appears each Monday right here at Big Blue View. Each Thursday, my weekly fantasy preview with my rides, fades and sleepers (start/sit) appears here, and on Fridays you can find my weekly Giants Props of the week, also right here. ***
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