10 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Targets Heading Into Week 9

The waiver wire becomes more and more of a challenge as the season goes on. We're well past the honeymoon phase, and I'm kind of hoping you used most of your budget already. It's infinitely better to pay up and get Elijah Mitchell than it is to sit and wait for...whatever's left. That said, this is actually a somewhat interesting week on the waiver wire -- especially at the quarterback position.

Here are some of the best additions you can make to your squads based on everything we know so far. I'll mostly stick to players rostered on 60% or fewer of Yahoo teams, but I'll also list some other viable pickups who may be available in more shallow or deeper leagues, too.

Quarterbacks

Justin Fields, Bears

Roster Percentage: 22%

Justin Fields finally put together a week where he looked functional as a passer.

He went 19 of 27 for 175 yards with a touchdown and an interception. The good news is that Fields really only needs to be functional with the rushing chops he's showing -- especially in Week 8. Fields is fifth in the league with 19 scrambles (according to Pro Football Reference) despite not starting the year's first two games.

The hope is that the Chicago Bears open up the playcalling somehow, whether it's through a change of philosophy or Matt Nagy's firing (though Nagy has relinquished play-calling duties already). Among quarterbacks with 125 or more pass attempts, only Davis Mills and Jacoby Brissett have fewer play-action attempts. Perhaps more criminally, Fields has just five pass attempts off of run-pass options (RPOs).

Fields is averaging 7.1 yards per attempt on passes coming off of play-action or RPOs versus just 5.6 yards per attempt on standard dropbacks. Despite this, only 26% of his passing plays are RPOs or play-action. Comparing this to Lamar Jackson and the more innovative Ravens, RPOs and play-action account for 40% of their pass attempts.

Tyrod Taylor, Texans

Roster Percentage: 6%

Tyrod Taylor was designated to return from the IR this week, but the Houston Texans ultimately deemed him unready and once again started Davis Mills. Taylor should be back soon though and also provides the desired rushing upside from a quarterback.

Taylor has also been getting the job done as a passer; he's boasted a spectacular 0.55 Passing NEP per drop back on the year.

Taysom Hill, Saints

Roster Percentage: 2%

When Jameis Winston was sidelined with an apparent serious injury, Trevor Siemian was called upon with Taysom Hill out, but Hill should be back soon and he brings the "Konami code."

Hill may not be an accomplished or technically sound passer, and he definitely takes too many sacks (10.4% sack rate), but statistically, he has 7.7 yards per attempt and a 70.3% completion percentage on his career. Hill was also about league average in 2020 with 0.10 Passing Net Expected Points (NEP) per dropback.

Others to Consider:
Taylor Heinicke (14%; Bye), Trey Lance (22%; vs. Cardinals), Tua Tagovailoa (35%; vs. Texans)

Running Backs

Boston Scott, Eagles

Roster Percentage: 19%

Boston Scott had 13 opportunities (carries plus targets), which matched Week 8 waiver wire darling Kenneth Gainwell. That's somewhat misleading, however, as Gainwell's touches came most after the game was already in hand for the Philadelphia Eagles. It looks as though Scott is getting the role we all assumed belonged to Gainwell.

Importantly, Scott ran 53.5% of Philadelphia's team routes before ceding work late in the game. Especially compared to Jordan Howard, he will be the pass-catching back if Gainwell's role remains muted. Any running back with a primary-ish role is worth an add, even if I'm hedging my bets a little bit.

Carlos Hyde, Jaguars

Roster Percentage: 6%

James Robinson was injured for a yet to be determined amount of time and when he went down Carlos Hyde seemed to immediately step into Robinson's role. Saying "gross" doesn't adequately describe the feeling of adding Hyde.

"Grossssssssssssssss" would be better.

Nonetheless, Hyde did get eight targets in Week 8 on a 66.2% snap share. Why would you want to consistently target someone who averages 3.9 yards per target on their career? That's unclear, but it is worth remembering that Hyde somehow got 88 targets back in 2017.

It will not be fun watching Hyde, and the offense is bad, but the volume should be there.

Jordan Howard, Eagles

Roster Percentage: 2%

At this point, Howard is a dart throw most did not see coming in deeper leagues.

The Eagles' backfield is crowded, but there is reason to believe the big, 225-pound back has staying power as the goal-line back beyond just a 55.3% touchdown rate (36 tuddies) in 65 career games. Howard got six red-zone opportunities compared to just one for the next highest teammate.

He played well, which likely means we have a James Conner situation in Philadelphia moving forward. Great.

Jeremy McNichols, Titans

Roster Percentage: 2%

Derrick Henry has finally worn down when the reasonable belief was he was indestructible.

Henry suffered a potentially season-ending foot injury in Week 8. He will at least miss some time, but Henry's long-term prospects are also in jeopardy.

The Titans' offense revolves around Henry, so it is any guess how they split up backfield work now. The best bet would be direct backup Jeremy McNichols.

McNichols has always been an intriguing prospect. The big four for running back prospects are size, speed, production, and pass-catching chops, and a quick glance at his PlayerProfiler page reveals he fairs well in all four categories. McNichols has sub 4.5 speed and weighs 214 pounds. He also has a 91st-percentile college dominator and an 81st-percentile college target share.

He began his career in the Tampa Bay doghouse, but he has found a home with the Titans. He won't get anywhere near Henry's carry volume, but he would get some passing game work and be in a reasonably productive offense.

Others to Consider:
Kenneth Gainwell (65%; will likely be dropped), David Johnson (48%), Rashaad Penny (20%), Jaret Patterson (2%)

Wide Receivers

Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers

Roster Percentage: 51%

Brandon Aiyuk's stay in the doghouse may finally be over.

Granted, that stay has seen him passed by Deebo Samuel and George Kittle in the 49ers' offensive hierarchy.

However, his rookie year promise makes him worth an add. He's now getting the snaps (87.0%; highest wideout on the team) and targets (7) to make him at least somewhat interesting.

DeVante Parker, Dolphins

Roster Percentage: 34%

Jaylen Waddle and Mike Gesicki have both been fantasy darlings in recent weeks for the Dolphins, but neither of them quite fits the X-receiver profile in the manner DeVante Parker does.

Waddle actually had more targets than Parker, but Waddle's targets have come at an average depth of target (aDoT) of just 5.6 yards, while Parker has a 12.9 aDoT. This goes to explain how Waddle can get 12 targets and get just 29 yards, and Parker's 12 targets went for 85 yards and 2 touchdowns.

That's tremendous upside for fantasy, and Parker is a potential starter in plus matchups sitting on plenty of wires.

Others to Consider:
Michael Gallup (44%), Darnell Mooney (42%), Rondale Moore (32%), Russell Gage (15%), Jamal Agnew (2%), Tyler Johnson (1%), Juwann Winfree (0%)

Tight Ends

Dan Arnold, Jaguars

Roster Percentage: 4%

The Jags seem intent on building an offense with their least-prolific pass catchers, so enter Dan Arnold.

Arnold had eight targets in Week 8, which might as well be dozens for a tight end. Jacksonville traded for Arnold as part of the package that send C.J. Henderson to Carolina, and they clearly want to use him; he had a 72.9% snap rate Sunday (third amongst tight ends seeing at least five targets).

If you're streaming tight ends or are just desperate for a spark with Jared Cook and Tyler Higbee just not getting it done, Arnold could have rest-of-season TE1 upside if the Jags continue to ignore Marvin Jones and Laviska Shenault.

Others to Consider:
Jonnu Smith (32%), Tyler Conklin (25%), Cole Kmet (21%), Pat Freiermuth (10%)