Waiver Wire

As Week 11 of the NFL season has come and gone, fantasy football managers are already looking to make adjustments to their rosters. Injuries, surprising performances, and emerging talents often prompt the need for some shrewd waiver wire pickups. Here, we’ve compiled a list of the top 10 Week 12 fantasy football waiver wire pickups, along with a few honorable mentions to keep an eye on.

1. Zach Charbonnet, RB, Seattle Seahawks

This past weekend, the Seahawks starting RB, Kenneth Walker, suffered an oblique injury, so Charbonnet stepped up as the main RB for Seattle. Charbonnet finished the game with 15 carries for 47 yards and added six receptions on six targets for 22 yards. Charbonnet is a capable back who rushed for 2500 yards in his final two seasons at UCLA. With Seattle having a shorter week thanks to their Thanksgiving game against the Niners, I expect Seattle to not force Walker back in and allow him to rest. That elevates Charbonnet to a solid RB2 fantasy role this week.

2. Isaiah Likely, TE, Baltimore Ravens 

Likely and his teammate, who is coming up next, should likely see an uptick in work as Lamar’s number one target, Andrews, is done for the season. On Thursday, Likely only saw two targets and didn’t catch either after Andrews went down. But that shouldn’t discourage current and future Likely fantasy owners, as with 10 days of game planning, Likely should see more plays catered to him. In his season, Likely had 36 catches for 373 yards and three touchdowns, so he showed he can be a usable fantasy TE. Going into this weekend, I would use Likely as a bye-week replacement, but if he can get targets, he’ll make a good TE1.

3. Odell Beckham, WR, Baltimore Ravens

Like I mentioned above with Likely, Beckham should see a bigger workload now that Andrews is out. Andrews accounts for 20.3% of the Ravens targets this season, only behind Flowers (24%). Those targets will now be going to the other skill players on the Ravens. One of those is Beckham, who is already third on the Ravens in target percentage with 14%. Beckham should have the opportunity to have a huge game as they have a SNF game against the Chargers this week, who are terrible against the pass. Beckham could be a league winner as he gets an easy fantasy playoff schedule against teams that give up a lot of points to WRs.

4. Justin Watson, WR, Kansas Chiefs

Justin Watson had 11 targets on Monday night against the Eagles, which was a team high for the game. Patrick Mahomes does not have a lot of weapons behind Kelce, and even he dropped an easy catch on Monday. But with WRs dropping easy touchdowns (looking at you, MVS), Mahomes needs players to step up, and that’s what Watson did against the Eagles. He finished the game with five catches for 53 yards and a touchdown. With teams focusing more on Kelce, one of the WRs needs to step up, and my bet is on Watson, as he has been the WR with the most snaps and targets over the past two weeks.

5. Tanner Hudson, TE, Cincinnati Bengals

Hudson, for the third straight week, led all Bengals TEs in targets. Hudson now has 14 catches for 127 yards on 16 targets over the past three weeks. Hudson’s snap count is still worrying and is the reason why I still have him as a bye-week replacement TE. He has only played 29% of the Bengals snaps, which is less than both Smith and Sample, but with him seeing a target in 28% of his snaps, he is still a viable TE in fantasy, especially in PPR leagues since he hasn’t scored a TD yet.

6. Ty Chandler, RB, Minnesota Vikings

With Mattison not missing any time after his concussion, Chandler’s fantasy value did take a small dip. But against Denver, Chandler was the better back of the two. He had 10 carries for 73 yards as well as four catches for 37 yards. Meanwhile, starter Mattison had 19 total touches for 80 yards and a fumble. While I still think Mattison is the starter for Minnesota, Chandler should slowly creep into a bigger role right before the fantasy playoffs. His matchups late in the year are favorable, as the Raiders, Bengals, and Packers are all bad against RBs in fantasy.

7. Greg Dortch, WR, Arizona Cardinals 

Dortch had his best game of the season on Sunday against the Texans. He saw eight targets for six receptions and 76 yards; all three stats led the Cardinals. This was surprising, as Dortch replaced the injured Michael Wilson, who missed the game. Dortch is towards the bottom as he is still an unknown player this season, as this was his first real workload of the year. Right now, he is a stash-only player.

8. Michael Mayer, TE, Las Vegas Raiders

Mayer saw his second straight week of five receptions, the third time he has had at least five this season. Mayer has had good chemistry with O’Connell, as he has 12 targets in the past three games with O’Connell at QB. This past week, he caught four of his five targets for 46 yards. The four receptions were the second most of his rookie campaign. If he continues this production, then he will be a viable TE going forward this season.

9. Jayden Reed, WR, Green Bay Packers 

Reed has put together back-to-back WR1 performances. Since Green Bay’s bye week, Reed has 24 targets for 19 receptions, 253 yards, and two touchdowns. With Green Bay on the edge of a playoff spot, Reed should see a lot more work, which is great for fantasy owners.

10. Jake Browning, QB, Cincinnati Bengals 

The loss of Joe Burrow is going to hurt Cincinnati, but Browning looks to be a decent backup who can help this team make a push for a playoff spot. Browning has a lot of experience as a backup and has great weapons around him that can elevate him to a better spot. He gets soft games against the Jags and the Vikings in the upcoming games.

Honorable Mentions:

• Brandin Cooks, WR, Dallas Cowboys
• Trey McBride, TE, Arizona Cardinals
• Joshua Dobbs, QB, Minnesota Vikings

In the world of fantasy football, being proactive on the waiver wire can often be the difference between success and failure. These Week 11 waiver wire pickups should help you strengthen your roster as the season progresses. Make sure to prioritize your team’s specific needs and potential long-term upside when making your choices.

Make sure to hop in our Expert Discord Chat for FREE! Ivan (idrago15) will be there answering questions all day and all night! Follow Ivan on Twitter @idragol15 and be sure to be on the lookout for future articles at https://windailysports.com/nfl/

As Week 10 of the NFL season has come and gone, fantasy football managers are already looking to make adjustments to their rosters. Injuries, surprising performances, and emerging talents often prompt the need for some shrewd waiver wire pickups. Here, we’ve compiled a list of the top 10 Week 11 fantasy football waiver wire pickups, along with a few honorable mentions to keep an eye on.

1. Noah Brown, WR, Houston Texans (Rostered%: 12 ESPN, 37 Sleeper, 26 Yahoo)

Making back-to-back appearances in my Waiver Wire article, Brown had his second great game in a row. Brown has continued to see his workload increase as injuries have plagued Houston’s top WRs. In Week 9, Brown played as the WR3 behind Collins and Dell, but in Week 10, he was the Texan’s WR2, with Collins being out despite Robert Woods returning. Brown played 56 snaps compared to Wood’s 45 snaps. We probably won’t know Collin’s status for Week 11 until Friday at the earliest, but even if Collins plays, Brown looks to have become the Texans WR3, which should see him out snap and out target Woods once again.

2. Ty Chandler, RB, Minnesota Vikings (Rostered%: 3 ESPN, 15 Sleeper, 9 Yahoo)

With Cam Akers being ruled out for the season, Chandler becomes Mattison’s backup once again. On Monday, the Vikings head coach said in his press conference that Mattison is in concussion protocol and his status for Sunday night’s game against the Broncos is up in the air. If Mattison is ruled out, then Chandler is a solid replacement for him, as his explosive style can be a huge help in the passing game. Even if Mattison is playing, Chandler will have a solid workload, as over the past four weeks, Mattison has lost snaps to his backups. He has gone from playing 71.4% of snaps in the first six games to 53.8%, while his backups have gone up from 19.4% in the first six weeks to 36.6%.

3. Jalen Guyton, WR, Los Angeles Chargers (Rostered%: 0 ESPN, 1 Sleeper, 1 Yahoo)

With Palmer still out for at least three games, the Chargers are in desperate need of a partner for Kenaan Allen. This weekend against the Lions, Guyton was second in targets for WRs, with six, only behind Allen’s 14 targets. He managed to catch four of six targets for 41 yards and a touchdown. The WR2 role is going to be filled by the committee, with him and rookie Johnston sharing the workload left by the injured Williams and Palmer. With the Chargers defense not being able to stop anyone, expect a lot of throws by Herbert and targets for Guyton.

4. Rico Dowdle, RB, Dallas Cowboys (Rostered%: 4 ESPN, 6 Sleeper, 4 Yahoo)

Dowdle was the best Cowboys running back this past weekend against the Giants. He was more effective than starter Tony Pollard, as he rushed for 24 more yards and a touchdown in three fewer carries than Pollard. Dowdle is definitely more of a stash pick-up going into this weekend, but he can become a bigger part of the Cowboys offense if Pollard continues to struggle with the RB1 workload. The schedule for the Cowboys bodes well for Dowdle if he continues to see double-digit carries, as his next three opponents are all good fantasy defenses to attack with RBs.

5. Tanner Hudson, TE, Cincinnati Bengals (Rostered%: 0 ESPN, 0 Sleeper, 0 Yahoo)

If you had asked me three weeks ago who Tanner Hudson was, I would have had no idea. But over the past two weeks, he has been the most effective Bengal TE. He has led all Bengal TEs in targets over the past two weeks, with Irv Smith Jr. and Drew Sample having a combined 12 targets in that same span. He hasn’t played too many snaps in that span either, but in his 36 snaps played in those two weeks, he is seeing a target in 33% of them. If he can keep up that level of production, then Hudson becomes a lower-end starter, especially with bye weeks and injuries.

6. Keaton Mitchell, RB, Baltimore Ravens (Rostered%: 23 ESPN, 49 Sleeper, 48 Yahoo)

Mitchell had a huge uptick in season-long ownership as he went from 3% owned at a site like Sleeper to 49% owned going into the waiver wire pickups on Wednesday. This past weekend against Cleveland, Mitchell saw an increase in snap percentage played, going from playing 18% of the snaps in Week 9 to 24% in Week 10. But he actually played one less down in Week 10 compared to Week 9, as Baltimore saw 22 fewer offensive snaps. Similarly to last week’s article, I will consider Mitchell a stash pickup as his role is still small compared to Edwards and Hill. But if you are in desperate need of a RB, then Mitchell can be a fringe start, as he has had a touchdown in his past two games.

7. Luke Musgrave, TE, Green Bay Packers (Rostered%: 17 ESPN, 30 Sleeper, 24 Yahoo)

Musgrave is the Packers number one TE, but with the team struggling, he hasn’t had the production expected from him coming into the season. Over the last five weeks, he has had four games with at least four targets, including five or more in two of them. This past weekend, Musgrave was third on the Packers in snap percentage, playing in 74% of the Packers offensive snaps, only behind Watson (75%), and Doubs (82%). Musgrave will have two great chances to have a huge breakout rookie game over the next two weeks, as both the Chargers and Lions have attackable defenses. For Week 11 fantasy, Musgrave is a solid start, especially if you have a player on the bye because they get LAC this Sunday.

8. Michael Mayer, TE, Las Vegas Raiders (Rostered%: 3 ESPN, 10 Sleeper, 10 Yahoo)

The rookie TE scored his first career touchdown on Sunday night against the Jets. The game on Sunday night was an ugly one as both teams didn’t look great, but for the Raiders, Mayer was a bright spot, having found a connection with fellow rookie Aidan O’Connell. Mayer finished second on the team in targets, with five, only behind Adam’s 13 targets. Adams is the main target for any QB who starts for the Raiders, but Mayer proved during his time at Notre Dame that he can be a huge help in the passing game. With Meyers and Renfrow both struggling over the past three weeks, I expect Mayer to slip into that second weapon role for O’Connell. Over the mentioned three-week span, Mayer has only played one less snap than Meyers and has played 83 more snaps than Renfrow. In Mayer’s remaining schedule, his only tough matchups are the two games against KC; besides that, Mayer could go off as he has softer opponents.

9. Kyle Philips, WR, Tennessee Titans (Rostered%: 0 ESPN, 3 Sleeper, 1 Yahoo)

In the Titans’s first game without Treylon Burks, Phillips saw a 5% increase in his snap percentage played. He finished the game as the WR with the 4th most snaps played, but finished second in targets, only one behind DeAndre Hopkins, who had had eight. Phillips is a player to stash on your bench going into Week 11, but if he can continue to see at least five targets like he has had his last two games, then he might be worth a flex play in deeper leagues.

10. Devin Singletary, RB, Houston Texans (Rostered%: 51 ESPN, 55 Sleeper, 51 Yahoo)

Singletary took full advantage of Pierce being out this past weekend, as he had 30 carries for 150 yards and a touchdown. Pierce’s status is still unknown, so Singletary will continue to lead the Houston backfield as long as Pierce is sidelined. In his two games as the starter, Singletary has 43 carries for 175 yards and a touchdown. If Pierce is out this weekend, Singletary becomes a strong RB2 in fantasy. The Cardinals give up the fourth-most rushing yards and touchdowns to RBs. Singletary’s ownership went up before this past weekend’s game against the Bengals, but if he is available, he should be picked up by everyone, especially those who have Pierce, as he proved to be a capable backup if Pierce misses any more time in the future.

Honorable Mentions:

• Brandin Cooks, WR, Dallas Cowboys (Rostered%: 49 ESPN, 49 Sleeper, 39 Yahoo)
• Trey McBride, TE, Arizona Cardinals (Rostered%: 51 ESPN, 64 Sleeper, 59 Yahoo)
• Joshua Dobbs, QB, Minnesota Vikings (Rostered%: 39 ESPN, 60 Sleeper, 53 Yahoo)

In the world of fantasy football, being proactive on the waiver wire can often be the difference between success and failure. These Week 11 waiver wire pickups should help you strengthen your roster as the season progresses. Make sure to prioritize your team’s specific needs and potential long-term upside when making your choices.

Make sure to hop in our Expert Discord Chat for FREE! Ivan (idrago15) will be there answering questions all day and all night! Follow Ivan on Twitter @idragol15 and be sure to be on the lookout for future articles at https://windailysports.com/nfl/

As Week 9 of the NFL season has come and gone, fantasy football managers are already looking to make adjustments to their rosters. Injuries, surprising performances, and emerging talents often prompt the need for some shrewd waiver wire pickups. Here, we’ve compiled a list of the top 10 Week 10 fantasy football waiver wire pickups, along with a few honorable mentions to keep an eye on.

1. Tank Dell, WR, Houston Texans (Rostered%: 56 ESPN, 61 Sleeper, 49 Yahoo)

What a performance by the Texans rookie WR on Sunday against Tampa Bay! Dell saw a career high of 11 targets for six catches, 114 yards, and two touchdowns. Dell finished as the WR1 for the week in fantasy in Week 9 for the first time in his career, and it was his second top-10 finish of the season. In Week 9, Dell ran a route on 87% of CJ Stroud’s dropbacks and saw 28% of the targets on 85% of the Texans offensive snaps. Dell has slowly become fellow rookie Stroud’s favorite target, as he has now led the Texans WR room in snaps for the second straight week and third time this season. Dell is still owned in more than 35% of total leagues and should be picked up or traded for in every format.

2. Joshua Dobbs, QB, Minnesota Vikings (Rostered%: 16 ESPN, 20 Sleeper, 18 Yahoo)

Dobbs had a rough start in his first two possessions as the Vikings QB after rookie Hall left the game. In his first possession, he was sacked for a safety, and then on his next drive, he fumbled the ball on a sack. But once Dobbs finally got comfortable in purple, he led the Vikings to a come-from-behind win. For the fourth time this season, first with the Vikings, he finished the week as a Top 10 fantasy QB. Dobbs will have better weapons with the Vikings than he did with the Cardinals, so expect him to continue to put up good fantasy numbers. And another positive about Dobbs’s fantasy value is his running ability. For the third straight week, he had a rushing touchdown this week.

3. Quentin Johnston, WR, Los Angeles Chargers (Rostered%: 34 ESPN, 52 Sleeper, 34 Yahoo)

We have a next-man-up situation with the Chargers WR room. Earlier in the year, they lost WR2 Williams for the season, and they have now had to place his replacement Palmer on IR. The next guy on the list is the rookie Johnston. Coming into Monday night’s contest against the Jets, Johnston only has 12 catches for 124 yards on 21 targets. On Monday, Johnston was the WR2 for the Chargers. He struggled against a good Jets defense and only saw three targets. He has a rough schedule from now until the end of the season. But with Palmer out until at least the start of the fantasy playoffs, Johnston should be rostered in every league, as he will continue to serve as Allen’s partner.

4. Kyler Murray, QB, Arizona Cardinals (Rostered%: 36 ESPN, 61 Sleeper, 35 Yahoo)

All signs point to Murray being the starter for Week 10. The Cardinals traded away Joshua Dobbs at the deadline last week (as a Vikings fan, thank you for that), and Clayton Tune didn’t look good in his start this weekend. So the Cardinals are turning to the recovered Murray to step back into the starting role. His first start will be against the Falcons, who have been QB-friendly in fantasy this season. Murray averages over 20 fantasy points in his career, and if we can see the talent that made him a 1st overall pick, then Murray is a Top-12 fantasy QB option.

5. Jake Ferguson, TE, Dallas Cowboys (Rostered%: 59 ESPN, 74 Sleeper, 78 Yahoo)

Ferguson was a staple of my first few waiver wire articles, but I am once again going back to him because he needs to be rostered in every league. For the fifth time this season, Ferguson ended up having a starting TE-caliber performance. Against the Eagles, Ferguson had 10 targets for seven receptions, 91 yards, and a touchdown. Ferguson does get two tough matchups the next two weeks, including a game against the Giants, who in week one held him to 3.1 fantasy points in PPR leagues. But after those two, he gets a soft end of the season and a fantasy playoff schedule, which is beneficial for those with fantasy title aspirations.

6. Keaton Mitchell, RB, Baltimore Ravens (Rostered%: 1 ESPN, 3 Sleeper, 6 Yahoo)

Mitchell has been a player mentioned all season as someone who can take control of the Ravens backfield. He finally saw extended work this weekend against Seattle, rushing for 138 yards on nine carries. Mitchell is an explosive back; we saw the rookie have an excellent last two seasons at ECU. But the reason I don’t have him as a top-three pick is because he is still the third running back on the depth chart. He only saw 17.33% of the snaps, while Justice Hill played 64% of the snaps. Mitchell is still only a stash player for me until we see if he can get more of a reliable workload and not just garbage time work.

7. Jonnu Smith, TE, Atlanta Falcons (Rostered%: 27 ESPN, 31 Sleeper, 29 Yahoo)

Despite being the Falcons backup, TE Smith has had a good season. He has 42 targets for 34 catches, 522 yards, and two touchdowns. He has had at least five targets in six of his nine games played. This weekend, Smith saw 17% target share on 57% snaps played. While Pitts is the TE with the most snaps and targets, Smith has been getting a lot of work. Smith is seeing a target in 11.1% of snaps played, which is only 2.6 less than starter Pitts. If Atlanta keeps using double TEs, then Smith will continue to be a viable TE1 in all fantasy leagues.

8. Cade Otton, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Rostered%: 8 ESPN, 10 Sleeper, 6 Yahoo)

Otton has been a bit disappointing this season; he has only two weeks where he would have finished as a starting TE in 12-team fantasy leagues. Despite not having much competition in the TE room, he has finished as a TE32 or worse three times. But since their bye four weeks ago, Otton has had a nice three-week stretch of games. In the last three games, he has averaged seven targets, five receptions, and 46.7 yards while finding the end zone twice in that span. If he can continue his production from the past three weeks, then Otton can be a viable TE1.

9. Noah Brown, WR, Houston Texans (Rostered%: 1 ESPN, 4 Sleeper, 3 Yahoo)

The second Texan’s WR to make my waiver wire list Brown, over the past three games with Robert Woods out, has had a huge uptick in production. In that span, Brown has seen 16 targets for 11 receptions, 247 yards, and a touchdown. He finished as the WR3 in fantasy this week, only behind his teammate Dell and former teammate CeeDee Lamb. While Brown will still act as the WR3 behind Dell and Collins, he has been within 3% of the total snaps played by Collins, so he is seeing a lot of action. Brown is a flex play going into week 10, but if this can continue, he can win someone a league as the Texans have an easier fantasy playoff schedule.

10. Brandon Powell, WR, Minnesota Vikings (Rostered%: 3 ESPN, 4 Sleeper, 2 Yahoo)

I am putting Powell at the end of my article because his value was a bit up in the air at the time I was writing this article. Osborn left Sunday’s game with a concussion and will need to be given the green light to participate against the Saints this week. The Vikings already have star WR Justin Jefferson, and Nailor has yet to be activated, so the next player on the depth chart is Powell.

Honorable Mentions:

• CJ Stroud, QB, Houston Texans (Rostered%: 77 ESPN, 78 Sleeper, 76 Yahoo)
• Taysom Hill, TE, New Orleans Saints (Rostered%: 39 ESPN, 59 Sleeper, 65 Yahoo)
• Pierre Strong, RB, Cleveland Browns (Rostered%: 2 ESPN, 9 Sleeper, 5 Yahoo)

In the world of fantasy football, being proactive on the waiver wire can often be the difference between success and failure. These Week 10 waiver wire pickups should help you strengthen your roster as the season progresses. Make sure to prioritize your team’s specific needs and potential long-term upside when making your choices.

Make sure to hop in our Expert Discord Chat for FREE! Ivan (idrago15) will be there answering questions all day and all night! Follow Ivan on Twitter @idragol15 and be sure to be on the lookout for future articles at https://windailysports.com/nfl/

As Week 8 of the NFL season has come and gone, fantasy football managers are already looking to make adjustments to their rosters. Injuries, surprising performances, and emerging talents often prompt the need for some shrewd waiver wire pickups. Here, we’ve compiled a list of the top 10 Week 9 fantasy football waiver wire pickups, along with a few honorable mentions to keep an eye on.

1. Will Levis, QB, Tennessee Titans (Rostered%: 1 ESPN, 7 Sleeper, 4 Yahoo)

I’ll admit it, I thought Levis was one of the worst QBs coming into the 2023 NFL Draft. But in his first career start on Sunday against Atlanta, he showed he can compete in the NFL. He had a 66% completion percentage and threw for 238 yards and four touchdowns. Levis also showed he could get out of the pocket and grab a couple of yards with his feet as he rushed for 11 yards. He is a stash play going into Week 9, as he faces a tough Pittsburgh defense that has only allowed one Top 10 fantasy QB this season. But of the five games after Pittsburgh, he gets four defenses that allow a lot of fantasy points to QBs.

2. Dalton Kincaid, TE, Buffalo Bills (Rostered%: 62 ESPN, 73 Sleeper, 71 Yahoo)

After missing Week 6’s matchup against the Giants, Kincaid has come back strong. In his two games after returning from injury, Kincaid has 15 targets for 13 receptions, 140 yards, and a touchdown. Knox being placed on IR makes Kincaid the clear TE1 for the Bills, and if he can be anywhere as productive as he was with Utah in college, then Buffalo has their version of Kelce/Hockenson. His ownership in season-long leagues has seen a sharp increase over the past two weeks, but he is still available in more than a quarter of all leagues, so he is a must-pick everywhere.

3. Khalil Shakir, WR, Buffalo Bills (Rostered%: 0 ESPN, 4 Sleeper, 1 Yahoo)

Shakir had a breakout game against Tampa on Thursday night. He saw a season-high in snap percentage (65), targets (6), receptions (6), and yards (92). He finished as a WR2 in fantasy with 15.2 in full PPR leagues and 12.2 in half-point leagues. 61.7% of the Bills’ offensive plays are passing plays, so Josh Allen needs players besides Davis and Diggs to target. We talked about the rookie who saw a huge jump in ownership prior to week 8, but I think Shakir, as the Bills’ WR3, will begin to see more targets with Knox being placed on IR.

4. Taysom Hill, TE, New Orleans Saints (Rostered%: 15 ESPN, 42 Sleeper, 35 Yahoo)

I feel sick writing Hill’s name in any article, but I can’t deny how he’s played the past three weeks. In full PPR leagues, Hill has been the TE6 twice and the TE3 once, which makes him a must-start TE. This weekend against Colts Hill, he didn’t have a good game as a TE but instead got his points as a ball carrier, rushing for 63 yards and two scores. Hill gets Chicago and the Vikings over the next two weeks before his bye, and both teams have struggled against TEs. The TE position is difficult to play outside the big names like Kelce, Andrews, Kittle, and Hockenson, so I’d rather take the upside Hill provides thanks to his versatility than use a TE who may or may not see more targets.

5. Josh Downs, WR, Indianapolis Colts (Rostered %: 51 ESPN, 72 Sleeper, 62 Yahoo)

Downs has been featured in almost every article I’ve written since taking over. But that is for good reason, as Downs has taken over the WR2 role with the Colts. Downs remains unowned in the majority of fantasy leagues, having as low as 51% ownership in ESPN leagues. Downs extends his streak of at least six targets and five receptions to four games. In those four games, he has 29 targets for 23 receptions, 315 yards, and two touchdowns. In that span, he is only 1 reception behind WR1 Pittman and has the same number of touchdowns but 31 more receiving yards. Downs has not only established himself as a WR2 on the Colts but also a WR2 in fantasy leagues, especially those with 12+ teams.

6. Trey McBride, TE, Arizona Cardinals (Rostered%: 8 ESPN, 28 Sleeper, 20 Yahoo)

McBride saw a season-high in just about every statistical category in week 8. He saw 14 targets and had 10 receptions for 95 yards, his first score against the Ravens. The huge uptick in production was coming as the Cardinals placed Ertz on IR during the past week. With McBride cementing himself as the TE1 for the Cardinals, he should be looked at as a TE1 in fantasy. The Arizona WRs haven’t had much success, so look for them to use McBride as one of the main weapons. He is a slightly lower priority for me this weekend, as Cleveland has a tough defense, but Atlanta, Houston, and the Rams are all good matchups for him.

7. Rashid Shaheed, WR, New Orleans Saints (Rostered%: 18 ESPN, 34 Sleeper, 36 Yahoo)

Shaheed is a lower-end waiver wire pickup. He is clearly the WR3 with the Saints, and with the return of Kamara, he is the 4th option. But that does not mean he does not provide value in season-long leagues. In three games this season, Shaheed has finished as a low-end WR1/high-end WR2 in fantasy. He is a big play threat, as he’s averaging 20.8 yards per reception. Going into week 9, Shaheed is a bye-week plugin flex play.

8. Demario Douglas, WR, New England Patriots (Rostered%: 1 ESPN, 6 Sleeper, 3 Yahoo)

It’s next man up in New England, as Bourne has been ruled out for the year and Parker is in concussion protocol. In Week 8 against the Dolphins, the rookie had a career-high of seven targets and five receptions. The rookie is also being used in WR run plays, as he has had a rush attempt in each of the last two games. Douglas gets a soft stretch of matchups from now until the end of the fantasy regular season. If his 77% snaps played a 24.1% target share in week 8 continues, then Douglas should be a lower-end flex player, especially in larger leagues.

9. Kyler Murray, QB, Arizona Cardinals (Rostered%: 32 ESPN, 57 Sleeper, 56 Yahoo)

Kyler Murray was a full participant in practice prior to the Week 8 game against the Ravens, but the Cardinals decided to stick with Dobbs as the starter. Now that he’s gone, the Cardinals have also announced that either Murray or rookie Tune will start Week 9. But I do expect Arizona to throw him out there at some point if it’s not this Sunday for two reasons. The first is that Arizona needs to know what they have in Murray prior to using a first-round pick on a QB for the third time in seven years. The second reason is trade value; the last time we saw Murray, he was struggling in 2022. So the Cardinals need to put him on the field to draw interest from the other 31 teams.

Honorable Mentions:

• Jayden Reed, WR, Green Bay Packers (Rostered%: 17 ESPN, 26 Sleeper, 17 Yahoo)
• Michael Gallup, WR, Dallas Cowboys (Rostered%: 36 ESPN, 22 Sleeper, 17 Yahoo)
• Pierre Strong, RB, Cleveland Browns (Rostered%: 4 ESPN, 16 Sleeper, 10 Yahoo)

In the world of fantasy football, being proactive on the waiver wire can often be the difference between success and failure. These Week 9 waiver wire pickups should help you strengthen your roster as the season progresses. Make sure to prioritize your team’s specific needs and potential long-term upside when making your choices.

Make sure to hop in our Expert Discord Chat for FREE! Ivan (idrago15) will be there answering questions all day and all night! Follow Ivan on Twitter @idragol15 and be sure to be on the lookout for future articles at https://windailysports.com/nfl/

As Week 6 of the NFL season has come and gone, fantasy football managers are already looking to make adjustments to their rosters. Injuries, surprising performances, and emerging talents often prompt the need for some shrewd waiver wire pickups. Here, we’ve compiled a list of the top 10 Week 7 fantasy football waiver wire pickups, along with a few honorable mentions to keep an eye on. This week’s edition of Waiver Wire Pickups will feature a lot of RBs that are likely to see an uptick in workload.

1. Keaontay Ingram, RB, Arizona Cardinals (Rostered%: 9 ESPN, 40 Sleeper, 20 Yahoo)

Ingram looks to be the RB who’ll take on the majority of the workload that opened up now that starter James Conner is out. In his first start against the Rams this past Sunday, Ingram had 12 touches for 51 yards, which was the most from all three RBs that had snaps. The Cardinals were down almost the entire second half, so he wasn’t able to get a lot of running touches but was able to get two receptions in the passing game. Ingram isn’t as good as Conner, so he is more of a plug-and-play for bye weeks. But if Arizona can keep up with their opponents, Ingram can become a flex option since he will be the one who gets the majority of rushing plays.

2. Chubba Hubbard, RB, Carolina Panthers (Rostered%: 46 ESPN, 65 Sleeper, 59 Yahoo)

Hubbard had a great day filling in for the injured Miles Sanders. He had 19 carries for 88 yards and a score against the Dolphins. The Panthers have a bye week this week, but Hubbard should still be a priority on the waiver wire. Even if Sanders uses the bye week to return Week 8, Hubbard is still a viable option, as he only averages 8 less snaps when Sanders is available. There is also no guarantee that Sanders will be back by Week 8.

3. Jordan Mason, RB, San Francisco 49ers (Rostered%: 1.5 ESPN, 4 Sleeper, 7 Yahoo)

With McCaffrey looking to be out at least this Monday against the Vikings, Mason and Mitchell look to step up as the lead backs. Mitchell has been with the 49ers longer than Mason and would seem like the better option to be the main back, but he has been out two weeks prior to Week 6. In his absence, Mason has been a solid backup for McCaffrey, and even this past week with Mitchell returning, Mason played 15 snaps compared to Mitchell’s seven. I expect Mason to lead the backfield against the Vikings as Mitchell slowly gets back to full strength.

4. Zach Evans, RB, Los Angeles Rams (Rostered%:.4 ESPN, 5 Sleeper, 4 Yahoo)

Starter Kyren Williams and backup Ronnie Rivers have both been ruled out for at least one week. So the Rams need to turn to their third and fourth RBs, who are rookie Zach Evans and veteran Royce Freeman. While I like Freeman, I prefer Evans in this situation. The rookie was an explosive back during his time at Ole Miss and TCU, averaging 6.9 yards per carry. Evans is a lower-end RB2 in bigger leagues and a solid flex option in all leagues.

5. Kendrick Bourne, WR, New England Patriots (Rostered%: 20.4 ESPN, 22 Sleeper, 17 Yahoo)

Bourne has established himself as the main target for whoever is playing QB for New England. In Week 6, he set a season high in receptions (10) and yards (89). His lack of touchdowns does hurt his value a bit, as he has not reached the end zone since Week 1. Bourne would be a stash play going into Week 7 against the Bills. But after this week, he gets favorable matchups against Miami, Washington, and Indianapolis, who are all bad against WRs in fantasy. Managers should pick him up this week, as he’ll be a good WR2 and Flex option going into his last three games before the bye week.

6. Josh Downs, WR, Indianapolis Colts (Rostered %: 10.9 ESPN, 50 Sleeper, 33 Yahoo)

Another week of Downs not being as highly owned as he should be. In two games with Minshew as his starting QB, Downs has seen 20 targets for 13 receptions, 78 yards, and a touchdown. Only Pittman has seen more targets (25) than him in those two games. For the first time, Downs played a higher percentage of snaps than Pierce this past week, as he played three more snaps. Despite playing 63 fewer snaps than Pierce through six weeks, Downs has twice as many targets. Downs is a WR2 going forward for fantasy, especially with Richardson being ruled out for the rest of the season and Minshew becoming his new QB.

7. Rashee Rice, WR, Kansas City Chiefs (Rostered%: 32.7 ESPN, 55 Sleeper, 45 Yahoo)

The rookie WR has begun to make a name for himself with KC. Through his first six games of his career, Rice has been one of the top two WRs targeted by Mahomes in all but one game. He has also led the WR room in targets in half of the Chiefs games. Rice also leads the WR room in TDs with two and only sits one behind Kelce for the Chiefs lead in receiving touchdowns. He is a lower-end Flex play currently, but he is the KC WR that I have the most confidence in as the season goes on.

8. Michael Mayer, TE, Las Vegas Raiders (Rostered%: 1.5 ESPN, 12 Sleeper, 5 Yahoo)

The third straight rookie that I will talk about is Mayer. Over the past three weeks, Mayer has taken control of the starting TE position with the Raiders. In Week 4, he had an even split with Hooper with 37 snaps each, but over the past two weeks, he has played in 99 snaps compared to Hooper’s 60 snaps. Against New England this past week, Mayer finished second on the team with seven targets, only behind Meyers eight targets. Mayer gets a strong run of matchups over the next six weeks prior to the Raiders’ bye week. They get games against Chicago, Detroit, Miami, and the Jets, who are all teams that allow good games against TEs. Mayer is a lower-end Flex play but can be used as a starting TE going forward.

9. Craig Reynolds, RB, Detroit Lions (Rostered%: 6.6 ESPN, 2 Sleeper, 2 Yahoo)

The Lions backfield is hurting right now as both Montgomery and Gibbs are dealing with injuries. The top healthy RB for Detroit is now Reynolds. Against the Bucs this past Sunday, Reynolds had 12 touches for 43 yards. His stats aren’t mind-blowing, but he did play most of the game as a backup behind Montgomery prior to the injury. If he gets the start in the Lions next game, then he should be able to put up better figures. With how explosive the Lions offense is, Reynolds is a solid RB2 option, especially if Montgomery is ruled out.

10. KJ Osborn, WR, Minnesota Vikings (Rostered%: 67.1 ESPN, 72 Sleeper, 65 Yahoo)

In the Vikings first game without Justin Jefferson, Osborn tied rookie Addison in targets with five. With JJ out for at least three more games, Osborn should continue to be the Vikings WR with the most targets. Osborn played in 93% of the Vikings offensive snaps, which was the highest percentage of all Vikings WRs and TEs. If he is still available in any of your leagues, then you should pick him up, as he is a great WR2 fantasy option.

Honorable Mentions:

• Dalton Schultz, TE, Houston Texans (Rostered%: 63 ESPN, 56 Sleeper, 51 Yahoo)
• Jaylen Warren, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers (Rostered%: 63.3 ESPN, 66 Sleeper, 59 Yahoo)
• Wan’Dale Robinson, WR, New York Giants (Rostered%: 5.2 ESPN, 29 Sleeper, 18 Yahoo)

In the world of fantasy football, being proactive on the waiver wire can often be the difference between success and failure. These Week 7 waiver wire pickups, along with the honorable mentions, should help you strengthen your roster as the season progresses. Make sure to prioritize your team’s specific needs and potential long-term upside when making your choices.

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