Week 9 Waiver Wire – NFL Fantasy Football

DFS Army’s Gthom goes over the the waiver wire targets for this week. These waiver wire targets are normally available in 50-percent of ESPN leagues.

Follow Gthom on the cesspool they call X, or Twitter or whatever, @GarettThomas.

 

QUARTERBACKS

Sam Howell (WAS) – 30% Ownership

Great option for 2-QB and SFLX leagues, plus Howell can be streamed in single-QB leagues. He has the third-most pass attempts, fifth-most deep ball attempts, fifth-most air yards and is the 15^th-best quarterback on a fantasy points per game basis with 16.7.

Will Levis (TEN) – 1% Ownership

19 of 29 for 238 passing yards and four touchdowns is what the rookie quarterback did during his first start. This obviously sparks a quarterback controversy in Tennessee and that could signal the end of Ryan Tannehill. In 2-QB leagues be aggressive for Levis, especially those who may have lost Kirk Cousins (MIN); the risk is worth the potential reward, but there is risk. It is too early to know if Levis is serviceable in traditional, single-QB leagues; consider him a player to stash if you feel inclined. Levis will be @PIT, @TB and @JAC over his next three games and you need stones of steel to start him in Week 9.

Daniel Jones (NYG) – 34% Ownership

What you see is what you get with Jones, 30-point upside but he has busted most weeks in 2023. Jones will have better weeks in the future since the Giants have settled down from their disastrous start. The most important thing about Jones is his rushing upside and if he is not utilizing his legs after returning from injury, he will be tough to use with confidence.

Derek Carr (NO) – 21% Ownership

Carr has a tough time breaking past 20-fantasy points in a game, but he is providing great value for 2-QB/SFLX leagues and streamers. Surprisingly enough, he leads the league in deep targets but is 26^th in fantasy points per game. He has scored 17-or-more fantasy points in his last three contests, and he is facing CHI and @MIN before going on BYE.

 

RUNNING BACKS

Emari Demercado (ARI) – 38% Ownership

20 carries and a snap percentage of 55%. This is probably your last chance to grab this high usage player with low efficiency. He will continue to see work if teammate James Conner is injured.

Tyjae Spears (TEN) – 36% Ownership

Still playing around half of all snaps and has stand-alone value in PPR leagues. Watch the news carefully because if his teammate, Derrick Henry, gets traded prior to the OCT. 31^st deadline he could be elevated into league-winning status.

Royce Freeman (LAR) – 17% Ownership

Freeman saw a slight increase in snaps in Week 8 and even found the endzone. The Rams seem keen on keeping this a split workload until starter Kyren Williams returns. Teammate Darrell Henderson should be picked up as well, but Henderson’s ownership carried him slightly above the threshold to be eligible for this article.

Leonard Fournette (BUF) – 1% Ownership

Freshly signed off the streets and will need time to get into game shape. Fournette is interesting because he will be integrated into a highly productive fantasy offense. The issue is that Fournette is an inefficient player and he requires volume, something he won’t see in Buffalo because of starter James Cook. Expect him to be a touchdown-dependent, low-end, flex option but he should be picked up.

Zach Charbonnet (SEA) – 30% Ownership

He saw 59% of snaps this past week which was the most for his season. This was likely due to Kenneth Walker being banged up coming into the game. Charbonnet looked great in his limited workload: five carries for 53 yards, then he added two catches for eleven yards through the air. The deeper the season goes, the more he will become a piece in this offense. If anything were to happen to his teammate Kenneth Walker, Charbonnet would become a potential league-winner.

 

WIDE RECEIVERS

Demario Douglas (NE) – 1% Ownership

After Kendrick Bourne tore his ACL, Douglas absorbed the usage increase. He turned seven targets into five catches and 25 yards. Douglas saw a 77% of snaps in Week 8, his most on the year, and the prior week he saw 62% of snaps (his season high at that time). Teammate DeVante Parker is in concussion protocol; JuJu Smith-Schuster lives in the doghouse; and Jalen Reagor has been nonexistent for several years now. Douglas was seeing the field more before Bourne’s injury, now Douglas seems left alone to ascend within a floundering offense.

Rashid Shaheed (NO) – 18% Ownership

Season low 27% snap participation but somehow he turned that into his best fantasy game of the season, 3/153/1 and 24.3-PPR points. He is the primary vertical threat in this offense and has the fourth-most deep targets this season. Flex worthy player on any week but is very boom-or-bust.

Jameson Williams (DET) – 28% Ownership

Still a stash candidate for managers. We saw a limited amount of Williams during the Lions’ Monday Night Football win over the Raiders. 3/16/0 on three targets is nothing special but continue to anticipate a large increase to his role. Williams is currently unstartable.

Jayden Reed (GB) – 17% Ownership

Reed saw his highest snap participation rate with 78% and he achieved 10-or-more fantasy points in each of his last two games. The Packers offense has been a dumpster fire of-late, but Reed is fourth in the NFL with 10 red zone targets.

Michael Gallup (DAL) – 36% Ownership

Gallup saw his targets decrease in Week 9, but he continues to get looks in this offense. Leading into Week 9, Gallup saw targets of 7, 6, 5 and 10, from weeks 3 – 6. The Cowboys’ offense looked great against the Rams and that could create more fantasy production for future weeks. Teammate Brandin Cooks can also be picked up, but he is not as widely available as Gallup.

Khalil Shakir (BUF) – 1% Ownership

10 targets over the last two weeks and he saw a season high snap rate of 64%. Likely an option for deeper leagues with a PPR format. A high octane offense that could see much more Shakir if an injury were to happen.

 

TIGHT ENDS

Trey McBride (ARI) – 7% Ownership

All the makings of a quality mid-season tight end that you can acquire on the waiver wire, who provides immediate value. A staggering 14 targets made up McBride’s 10/95/1 day in Week 8. While this usage is unsustainable, McBride will continue to get looks in this offense. It is worth noting that quarterback Josh Dobbs, who started when McBride went nuclear, is not starting for the Cardinals going forward, so there may be less favoritism towards McBride. The top tight end pickup nonetheless.

Michael Mayer (LV) – 7% Ownership

While Mayer sees a 2.47 target separation (6^th) and has a 7.7 ADOT (9^th), the Vegas offense has been putrid. Mayer continues to be an option because he is on the field a lot but starting him feel gross right now. Hold out until this offense gets back on track, but he can be played in desperate times.

Logan Thomas (WAS) – 39% Ownership

6/44/1 last week and Thomas continues to be a viable option at the tight end position. He is the 10^th ranked tight end in total fantasy points scored and is fourth in touchdowns at his position. The issue with Thomas is a lack of durability. Hopefully he continues to hold up for his fantasy stakeholders.

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