Week 9 Waiver Wire (Fantasy Football)

Fantasy football has that way of making us love the game or completely hate it.  It seems this year has seen some bigger swings than I remember from the last few years, but I could chalk that up to recency bias.  While fantasy football is ever-changing, there is one thing that remains consistent. This time of year is a desert wasteland on the waiver wire and injuries plus upcoming bye weeks can be disheartening.

Below are some available options that may be on your league’s waiver wire.  Percentages owned are based on Yahoo! Remember to listen to the Week 9 Waiver Wire episode for the full breakdown of each of these players as well as who Andy, Mike, and Jason prefer to target for Weeks 9 and on.

WR

Is it just me, or was the Monday night game of Miami at Pittsburgh a little odd?  The Dolphins had a 14-0 lead early in the game and the team seemed rather jolly even after losing that lead and the game.  Veteran QB Ryan Fitzpatrick showed he was no stranger an uphill battle, and fed the ball to several of his receivers. If Fitzpatrick continues to try and pepper his teammates with targets, it may be an option for you to grab one of these receivers to cover for your bye weeks.  Preston Williams had 4 receptions for 42 yards on 7 targets, DeVante Parker caught 6 receptions for 59 yards on 8 targets, and Allen Hurns annoyed Williams and Parker owners by scoring a touchdown on 1 target for 12 yards.

Sticking with this game, if you have the opportunity to pick up Diontae Johnson, I highly recommend doing so. He and Mason Rudolph have chemistry.  Johnson had 5 receptions on 7 targets for 84 yards and a touchdown, which was 2nd highest for him so far in his NFL career in targets and his highest yardage. He is currently only 12% owned in Yahoo! leagues.

MIA DeVante Parker (27% owned) & MIA Preston Williams (13% owned)
NYJ, @IND, BUF

NE Phillip Dorsett (50% owned) & NE Mohamed Sanu (78% owned)
@BAL, BYE, @PHI, DAL

DET Danny Amendola (10% owned)
@OAK, @CHI, DAL

JAX Chris Conley (3% owned)
HOU, BYE, @IND

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HOU Kenny Stills (58% owned)
@JAX, BYE, @BAL, IND

NYG Darius Slayton (4% owned)
DAL, @NYJ, BYE, @CHI

CIN Auden Tate (28% owned) & CIN Alex Erickson (7% owned)
BYE, BAL, @OAK, PIT

DEN DaeSean Hamilton (7% owned)
CLE, BYE, @MIN, @BUF

LAR Josh Reynolds (0% owned)
BYE, @PIT, CHI, BAL

KC Mecole Hardman (33% owned)
MIN, @TEN, @LAC, BYE

TEN A.J. Brown (25% owned) & TEN Corey Davis (61% owned)
@CAR, KC, BYE, JAX

BUF Cole Beasley (24% owned)
WAS, @CLE, @MIA

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PIT Diontae Johnson (12% owned)
IND, LAR, @CLE

RB

Kenyan Drake owners can finally have the opportunity to rejoice now that he has been traded to the Arizona Cardinals.  David Johnson and Chase Edmonds are both banged up and any pass-catching running back in Kliff Kingsbury offense has the chance to feast with little competition. Whether Drake can capitalize on this opportunity is up to him, but this is one of the better places Drake could have landed due to injury and the offensive system.  He is also 61% owned, but it’s worth checking the wire for him.  

With Drake’s absence in the Miami backfield, Mark Walton and Kalen Ballage now have their shot at the RB1 position, albeit in a worse offense.  Walton outproduced Ballage, rushing 11 times for 35 yards while catching 3 receptions on 6 targets for 19 yards. Ballage was limited and looked less explosive, rushing only 3 times for 8 yards and catching only 1 pass for 11 yards.

ARI Kenyan Drake (61% owned)
SF (Thurs), @TB, @SF, BYE

MIA Mark Walton (32% owned) & MIA Kalen Ballage (10% owned)
NYJ, @IND, BUF

GB Jamaal Williams (62% owned)
@LAC, CAR, BYE, @SF

WAS Adrian Peterson (52% owned) & WAS Derrius Guice (29% owned)
@BUF, BYE, NYJ, DET

DET Tra Carson (0% owned)
@OAK, @CHI, DAL

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SEA Rashaad Penny (32% owned)
TB, @SF, BYE, @PHI

SF Raheem Mostert (6% owned)
@ARI (Thurs), SEA, ARI

KC Darrel Williams (7% owned)
MIN, @TEN, @LAC, BYE

Handcuff Watch

DAL Tony Pollard (13% owned)
LAR Darrell Henderson (27% owned)
MIN Alexander Mattison (24% owned)
PIT Jaylen Samuels (18% owned) / Benny Snell (8% owned)
NYG Wayne Gallman (12% owned)
BAL Gus Edwards (4% owned)
OAK DeAndre Washington (1% owned)

TE

Fire up your Jonnu Smith! https://t.co/I32ovHXOE8

— Jason Moore (@jasonffl) October 25, 2019

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Jonnu Smith did indeed get the highest usage he’s seen so far this season with 6 receptions, 78 yards, and a TD on 7 targets.  With Delanie Walker battling a reaggravated ankle injury, Smith should remain the TE1 until Walker returns and is 19% owned.

I think Darren Fells has been the biggest surprise for me.  As fantasy football writers, we study these guys, we want them to succeed, then are ultimately disappointed if they don’t hit.  It helps when Superman Deshaun Watson is your QB. Fells saw his 2nd game of double-digit touchdowns, with one of them coming from a one-eyed Watson who narrowly escaped a sack and somehow made everyone look foolish.  Fells’ ending stat line saw 6 receptions for 58 yards on 6 targets and 2 touchdowns. When it comes to efficiency, it doesn’t get much better than that.

A word of caution on Fells.  His two double-touchdown games came against the Swiss cheese defense of the Falcons and then Week 8 against the Raiders.  Weeks 9, 10, and 11, Fells will face the 11th best Jaguars, 4th best Giants, and the 17th best Redskins. It’s fair to say he probably won’t produce monster points, but with the awful landscape of tight ends and bye weeks, he’s worth a look for your roster.

As my fellow writer, Rob Wilson points out in his 10 Things We Learned in Week 8, Zach Ertz is not a must-start anymore.  For those of us who followed this narrative during the off-season this summer, this shouldn’t come as a surprise. Who am I kidding?  Of course, it does. Dallas Goedert has continued to rack up the targets and the fantasy points going 5/3/22/1 in the Eagles’ win over Buffalo and he is still only 20% owned.

TEN Jonnu Smith (19% owned)
@CAR, KC, BYE, JAX

NYJ Chris Herndon (28% owned)
@MIA, NYG, @WAS

TB O.J. Howard (44% owned) & TB Cameron Brate (14% owned)
@SEA, ARI, NO

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HOU Darren Fells (19% owned)
@JAX, BYE, @BAL, IND

PHI Dallas Goedert (20% owned)
CHI, BYE, NE, SEA

Remember to tune into Week 9 Waiver Wire episode to get the breakdown of all these players, PLUS The Fantasy Footballers Week 9 QB and DST streamers.