Full disclosure: Monday was a pretty trying day for me personally, so this might not be my most in-depth article. Putting it bluntly, these are the players I will be targeting on the Week 9 Waiver Wire in all of my leagues, and you should too! I’ll do my best to give some great reasoning, but pardon my brevity and lack of statistics. Honestly, I just didn’t want to leave any of our readers hanging.
As always, step one should be to check waivers from last week’s bye teams. Managers may have cut good players from the Chiefs and Chargers since they were both off in Week 8. Just as important is to watch the drop list on Wednesday, as the Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Steelers, and San Francisco 49ers are all on bye in Week 9. Managers might have to drop some of their good players out of desperation.
Quick Note: All players listed are available in around 50% of ESPN leagues. While not everyone plays on ESPN, studies show most do. So, if they’re available there, they’re likely available on your platform. Pick ‘Em Up!
Week 9 Waiver Wire
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Quarterbacks
Justin Fields (73% Available)
Has Justin Fields looked great? Unfortunately, no. But his legs give him plenty of fantasy upside. He was a top-5 QB in Week 8 and has a schedule that can be gashed by the run for the next month.
Marcus Mariota (76% Available) / Taylor Heinicke (90% Available)
I wouldn’t blow any FAAB on either of these two, but they both have played pretty well as of late and have Week 14 byes. They will be available to start for the next month and are decent streaming options if you want to get ahead of the crowd.
Running Backs
Khalil Herbert (52% Available)
Why is Khalil Herbert still eligible for this list? How in the world is he not rostered by every David Montgomery manager, at the very least? He was a top-20 RB against the Cowboys in Week 8 and has been the RB20 over his last three games, all with Montgomery in the lineup. He has the same favorable upcoming schedule as Justin Fields. Sign this man.
Nyheim Hines (54% Available)
Hines has been ho-hum in Indy, but there are trade rumors. The trade deadline is today at 4 pm, so as you’re reading this, he might already be on the move.
Dontrell Hilliard (92% Available)
Hilliard is still a decent RB3/4 playing behind Derrick Henry and could be a legit RB1 if Henry goes down. He is exactly what you look for in a fantasy football insurance policy.
Kyren Williams (86% Available)
This is more of a hunch, but with Darrell Henderson playing hurt and the Rams’ cupboard being bare, they might want to lean on their 5th-Round pick when he is ready to play.
Kenyan Drake (81% Available)
While JK Dobbins is on the IR, it has been tough to tell which Baltimore RB will lead the team. Three weeks ago, Drake took over and had a great game. Two weeks ago, it was all Gus Edwards. Then, last week, Edwards was hurt, and Drake took back over. While the guessing game sucks, one of these backs will likely score a TD each week and should not be sitting on waivers.
Club Fantasy will be live on Youtube this Wednesday at 7 PM EST to answer all of your lineup questions on No Punt Intended!
Wide Receivers
Rondale Moore (54% Available)
With Marquise Brown set to miss a month and DeAndre Hopkins taking all the defense’s attention, Moore is coming into his own. He’s had eight or more targets in three of his last four games, and they’re even using him in the running game. Will any of this continue when Hollywood is back? I don’t know, but that is a problem for a month from now.
Devin Duvernay (71% Available)
Rashod Bateman is hurt again, and Duvernay looks like target #2 behind Mark Andrews. Oh, and Mark Andrews is hurt.
Romeo Doubs (52% Available)
It has been a cruel guessing game on which WR will be the #1 in Green Bay, but Doubs is the current leader in that field. There will be good and bad games, but it’s best to have this young man on your roster.
Parris Campbell (68% Available)
One bad game might reduce the shine on Campbell, but even in Sam Ehlinger’s first start, Campbell broke a huge pass and a big run. He’s a WR3, but there is upside here, and he is not on bye until Week 14.
Ben Skowronek (99% Available)
Cooper Kupp is dealing with an ankle injury, and it will not be the underwhelming Allen Robinson stepping into his role if needed. Skowronek is Wal-Mart-Brand Cooper Kupp, and he could see high-end WR2 production if Kupp misses time.
Tight Ends
Greg Dulcich (66% Available)
The rookie is now at three straight games of 11 or more fantasy points to start his career. So if you’re struggling at TE, he’s worth holding through his Week 9 bye.
Isaiah Likely (98% Available)
Mark Andrews is dealing with a shoulder injury that his coach said is not “major, major.” Does that mean it’s a little major? Likely looked good in relief and put up a better performance than almost any Baltimore WR has this whole season. Even if Andrews is healthy, the Ravens will need to get this kid more involved.
Evan Engram (67% Available)
The Jaguars elected not to take their bye after their London game. That means Engram gets two more weeks of use before his week off. Those two games happen to be against Las Vegas and Kansas City, who give up top-10 points to the TE. Engram has been hit-or-miss, but he scored a TD in Week 8, and I like the schedule.
If you’re looking for Week 9 Rankings, Ryan and Austin have you covered! We do our first upload early on Tuesday and update them throughout the week!