Hello and welcome to the Week 9 waiver wire watch!
Another weekend of NFL action is mostly in the books and congratulations, you’ve survived bye-mageddon…or so we hope. We still have the Monday night showdown between the Commanders and Chiefs to get to, but it’s not too early to start looking for ways to fortify your rosters for next week.
We’ll go over some performers that you should consider scooping off the waiver wire ahead of Week 9 and as always, we’ll classify a waiver add as someone who is rostered in 60% of leagues at the max.
Week 9 byes: Cleveland Browns, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Joe Flacco, QB, Cincinnati Bengals (51.0%)
The Bengals blew a two-touchdown lead in the fourth quarter to hand the Jets their first win of the season on Sunday but hey, you can’t really put that meltdown on Flacco. The veteran threw for 223 yards and two touchdowns for the afternoon and he even showed off his wheels with a 1-yard touchdown. How’s that for a 40-year-old? The Super Bowl 47 MVP is also fully on board with the effective “Ja’Marr Chase down there somewhere” strategy as he targeted the All-Pro 17 times on Sunday.
Flacco’s rostership has rapidly jumped from roughly 10% to just over 50% in just the last seven days, so this will most likely be the last week you can find him on the waiver wire. Get a bid in immediately if you’re interested.
Week 9 matchup: vs. Chicago Bears, 1 p.m. ET
Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Miami Dolphins (21.7%)
From the looks of it, the Dolphins apparently hit up the Panthers about how a blowout win over the Falcons can temporarily boost morale. Tagovailoa was excellent in their 34-10 victory in Atlanta on Sunday, throwing for 205 yards and four touchdowns to earn a season-high 24.2 fantasy points for the week. No turnovers, no turmoil, things will at least be calm around the struggling franchise for the next few days.
If you take away the prior two weeks of disastrous turnovers, Tagovailoa has actually been a decent add in fantasy and can be a positive in your starting lineup as long as you have other strong pieces surrounding him. Perhaps he’s someone worth looking into this week as he’s facing a Ravens defense that has been torched for most of the season.
Week 9 matchup: vs. Baltimore Ravens, 8:15 p.m. ET (Thursday night)
Samaje Perine, RB, Cincinnati Bengals (3.0%)
Flacco wasn’t the only Bengals veteran that had a nice day squandered as Perine had his best game of the season on Sunday. Even with Chase Brown getting more touches, Perine still led the team in rushing with nine carries foe 94 yards and a touchdown in what initially looked like an easy win for the team. He’s been splitting production with the starter over the past few weeks and Sunday was the first game where both backs found the end zone in the same contest this year. We’ll see if that carries over into next Sunday’s matchup against the Bears.
Week 9 matchup: vs. Chicago Bears, 1 p.m. ET
Ollie Gordon II, RB, Miami Dolphins (13.0%)
Gordon also got in on the action in the Dolphins’ blowout victory over the Falcons, taking 10 carries for 46 yards on the ground and housing a 20-yard touchdown reception. It was notably the first time the rookie received 10+ touches in a game and his snap percentage has gradually ticked up over the past few weeks. He may be in line for more reps as Miami’s abysmal campaign carries on, so keep him in mind.
Week 9 matchup: vs. Baltimore Ravens, 8:15 p.m. ET (Thursday night)
Troy Franklin, WR, Denver Broncos (35.9%)
Franklin is heating up and he was a key piece of the Broncos’ 44-24 blowout win over the Cowboys on Sunday. The second-year wideout out of Oregon ended up catching six of eight targets for 89 yards and two touchdowns for the afternoon, following up a Week 7 performance where he was targeted 10 times and also made a trip to the end zone.
The Broncos wideout has mostly flown under the radar as a top-40 receiver in all fantasy formats throughout the season and he showed that he can step up as a go-to weapon for Bo Nix even with Courtland Sutton on the field. You can definitely get yourself a quality mid-season waiver wire addition to your roster if you submit a bid for Franklin this week, so make sure you get that done.
Week 9 matchup: @ Houston Texans, 1 p.m. ET
Kayshon Boutte, WR, New England Patriots (24.5%)
The Patriots are on fire right now and second-year quarterback Drake Maye even drew some MVP chants in their 32-13 demolition of the Browns on Sunday. Boutte played a major part in the winning effort as he was explosive with three receptions for 75 yards and a touchdown. Deep shots have been the name of the game for the former LSU wideout as he entered Week 8 near the top of the league in both ADOT and yards per routes ran.
Boutte is a top-25 receiver in all fantasy scoring formats and is the only one who is rostered in less than 30% of all leagues. Everyone should be submitting a bid for this guy, especially if the Pats continue the tear that they’ve been on as of late.
Week 9 matchup: vs. Atlanta Falcons, 1 p.m. ET
Jake Tonges, TE, San Francisco 49ers (4.4%)
Hey, just because George Kittle is back and healthy doesn’t mean that Tonges won’t pop up and contribute. That was the case in the 49ers’ 26-15 loss to the Texans on Sunday when he caught a two-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter. Will he have the same level of production he did when Kittle was on IR? No, but he’s someone you could stash on your roster with the knowledge that he can step up if given the chance.
Week 9 matchup: @ New York Giants, 1 p.m. ET
Juwan Johnson, TE, New Orleans Saints (24.2%)
The Saints just didn’t have anything going for them offensively in a 23-3 loss to the Buccaneers on Sunday and that included a mid-game quarterback switch to rookie Tyler Shough. However, Johnson managed to have another solid individual outing with five receptions for 53 yards. He’s averaging roughly five receptions a game and can pad his stats with the Saints falling behind and being forced to pass in most games.
Week 9 matchup: @ Los Angeles Rams, 4:05 p.m. ET
