After an eventful Week 8 in fantasy football filled with breakout players, disappointments, and injuries, it’s time to look ahead. With four teams on bye in Week 9, fantasy owners will need to scramble on putting in replacements as we are close to the mid-point of the season. So who are some of the early waiver wire pickups to target in Week 9 for your fantasy lineups? Let’s look at who is deserving of those priority claims.
[sv slug=”fantasy”]Early Week 9 Waiver Wire: Quarterback pickups to target for your fantasy team
Philip Rivers (Indianapolis Colts)
After starting off poorly, Philip Rivers has turned it on as of late with at least 262 passing yards and three passing TDs in each of the last two games. Despite losing T.Y. Hilton on Sunday, Rivers didn’t struggle to find Nyheim Hines for two touchdowns and being able to rack up passing yards. While the Indianapolis Colts wide receiver group has left plenty to be desired as of late, the tight end and running back units have been picking up the slack.
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The Colts have the Baltimore Ravens on tap for Week 9, who have allowed at least two passing touchdowns in each of the last two games without an interception. Rivers will provide a safe floor and could finish in the top 12-15 amongst quarterbacks in fantasy football in Week 9 and be a passable bye week filler.
Teddy Bridgewater (Carolina Panthers)
Despite disappointing in a juicy Week 8 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Teddy Bridgewater is not someone to give up on yet. He suffered a neck injury during the game and while he came back in the game, he didn’t look the same.
The extra time between his Week 8 and 9 matchups allows for him to heal up a bit more with star running back Christian McCaffrey also expected to come back. McCaffrey’s return instantly boosts Bridgewater’s floor with his elite pass-catching ability. Bridgewater will have McCaffrey, D.J. Moore, and Robby Anderson as an impressive trio to throw to, and that instantly gives him the ability to have a top-12 week at any point.
Running back waiver wire pickups to target in Week 9
Nyheim Hines (Indianapolis Colts)
After coming out hot in Week 1, Hines struggled to keep it going even after Marlon Mack’s season-ending injury. Rookie Jonathan Taylor took over and gobbled up most of the rushing work with Hines seeing his receiving role fluctuate week-to-week.
However, in Week 9, despite Taylor being healthy and expected to have even more of a firm grip on the running back touches, he took a backseat to Hines and Jordan Wilkins. Hines is the safer option between the two because of receiving ability and Hilton’s injury. Hines could easily continue to be a top two or three option in the passing game, which gives him FLEX appeal in fantasy going forward. He should once again be a top waiver wire target for leagues that he is still available.
Zack Moss (Buffalo Bills)
After being on last week’s list, Moss proceeded to continue to take on more work and impress. While he wasn’t involved in the passing game, Moss saw a lot of work in the red zone, leading to two touchdowns on the day. Moss finished Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots with 81 yards on 14 carries while Devin Singletary had 15 total touches for 92 scoreless yards.
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This looks to be a true 50/50 split, but Moss’ red zone work gives him even more value on one of the better offenses in the league. He has weekly RB3 value and could pass a top-24 option in the right matchup. Moss needs to be owned in all fantasy football leagues.
Damien Harris (New England Patriots)
With Sony Michel unavailable still and the Patriots needing some sort of spark on offense, Harris stepped up in Week 8 with his second 100-yard performance of the season. With Rex Burkhead only seeing six offensive touches and James White seeing four to Harris’ 16, it’s clear now that Harris is the lead running back for the Patriots.
Plus, with a dangerous scrambler like Cam Newton at quarterback, it opens up more for Harris. He’s a weekly 12-15 carry option with some upside even on an anemic offense like the Patriots. He is firmly on the RB3/FLEX radar and needs to be on every fantasy football roster as a top Week 9 waiver wire pickup to target.
Gus Edwards (Baltimore Ravens)
While you could make a case for either Gus Edwards or J.K. Dobbins, Edwards continues to be the one more undervalued amongst the Ravens running backs. Despite missing most of the second quarter with a minor knee injury, Edwards came back in the third quarter and still finished with one more carry than Dobbins. Edwards also scored another rushing touchdown, making it two in the last games.
His red zone role is going to give him more of a chance to be a weekly touchdown threat than Dobbins. Mark Ingram doesn’t appear to have much of a chance to return in Week 9 against the Colts, which will mean Edwards and Dobbins will split the load again. Edwards’ short-yardage and red-zone workload give him RB3/FLEX status in another tough matchup.
Wide receiver waiver wire pickups in Week 9
Corey Davis (Tennessee Titans)
Is Davis having a DeVante Parker-like fifth-season breakout? It may be hasty to go that far, but Davis is certainly impressing as of late. He has two straight weeks of at least 10 targets, six receptions, and a touchdown. He is by no means the number one receiver on this offense, but he is the no-doubt number two wideout.
The Tennessee Titans defense has struggled as of late, leading the run-heavy Tennessee team to have to pass more. Davis hasn’t done enough to warrant being a must-start, but if he continues to put up solid numbers, he could sneak his way into WR3 territory. He should be on all fantasy football rosters at the very least going forward and a top waiver wire target this week.
Mike Williams (Los Angeles Chargers)
Mike Williams continues to be a frustrating player to figure out. Prior to his Week 8 five-reception, 99 yards, and one touchdown performance, he had one catch for four yards in Week 7. Before that, he had five catches, 109 yards, and two touchdowns in Week 5 and then one catch for 17 yards in Week 4. The point is, Williams is extremely hot-and-cold. However, being on a team with the young gunslinger Justin Herbert gives Williams enough of a theoretical ceiling that he should be on fantasy football rosters.
If anything were to happen to Keenan Allen, Williams becomes the top wide receiver for Herbert. Even with Allen soaking up a ton of targets, Williams is one of the better boom-or-bust options at the wide receiver position.
Marvin Jones (Detroit Lions)
Marvin Jones has been a big disappointment this season for fantasy owners. To be fair, the Detroit Lions passing game has been largely underwhelming as well. Jones has had a couple of solid games over the past two weeks with a five-reception, 80-yard performance in Week 7 and a three-reception, 39-yard, two-touchdown game this past weekend.
Kenny Golladay injured his hip and had to exit early in Week 8 and did not return. If Golladay were to miss any time, Jones becomes the top wide receiver and a top two or three option in the passing game. Jones would have WR3/FLEX appeal in that case.
In addition, the Lions have the Minnesota Vikings on tap for Week 9, who just gave up three touchdowns to Davante Adams on Sunday. That would boost his value even more if he is the number one wideout for the Lions this upcoming weekend. Assuming he’s available, Jones could be a nice waiver wire pickup for this week and going forward.
Darnell Mooney (Chicago Bears)
It’s dangerous for anyone’s health to rely on any Chicago Bears player in fantasy football outside of Allen Robinson and David Montgomery. However, if there were a third player, it would be Darnell Mooney right now. He has been consistent with at least five targets in each of his last six games, with at least three receptions and 36 yards in four of those contests.
Mooney tied his season-high in receptions (five) and established a new season-high in receiving yards (69) with his second touchdown of the year in Week 8. Mooney is the number two wide receiver for the Bears and is a high-upside WR4 right now in fantasy football.
Mooney is more of a stash and desperation FLEX play with Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd, Cooper Kupp, Robert Woods, and Travis Fulgham amongst the wide receivers on bye in Week 9.
Early Week 9 tight end pickups
Eric Ebron (Pittsburgh Steelers)
Eric Ebron has seen at least five targets in five of seven games this season. He has at least 43 yards receiving in five of those seven as well. Ebron may not have the highest ceiling of any tight end in fantasy football, but he is consistently providing top-15 value at a barren position, which is a rarity amongst tight ends. Despite the wide receiver trio of JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, and Chase Claypool, Ebron is still very much involved in a passing game that hasn’t had to be used much with a strong defense. Ebron has weekly low-end TE1 value and should be on all rosters as a top Week 9 waiver wire target.
Trey Burton (Indianapolis Colts)
Trey Burton is an interesting tight end as he is coming off his second straight week with a rushing touchdown. Yes, you read that right – a rushing touchdown. Despite all of the viable running backs that the Colts have, Burton has a rushing touchdown in two straight games. While he only had nine yards receiving on three receptions in Week 8, Burton had nine receptions, 91 yards, and a touchdown in the previous two games.
Burton will fight weekly for targets with Jack Doyle and Mo-Alie Cox, but with both of them having missed time this season, Burton could easily see a sizable role if either of them were to go down. Plus, with Hilton’s injury, the Colts will need to find players to get the ball to. Burton has proven to be capable of that and is a strong TE2 option with TE1 upside.
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Doug Moore is a fantasy football writer for Pro Football Network. Follow him on Twitter at @DMooreNFL.