2025 Updates
Waiver Wire Targets for Week 6 (2025 Fantasy Football)
Week 6 is in the books. I hope you were able to grab Dylan Sampson last week because he’s going to be tough to acquire on the waiver cycle. As a reminder, I expect Quinshon Judkins, who recently signed, to supplant Jerome Ford. Dylan Sampson will continue to be involved as a third down back and receiver.
Waiver Wire Strategy for Week 6
Top 5 Waiver Wire Targets – Week 6
Here are my Top fantasy football waiver wire pickups for Week 6:
- TE, Darren Waller
- RB, Hassan Haskins or Kimani Vidal
- TE, Mason Taylor
- RB, Michael Carter
- WR, Elic Ayomanor
Waiver Wire Pickups by Position
Quarterbacks
- Sam Darnold: 14.4% rostered – I don’t think he’ll score as well every week, but he is now 5 weeks into his new offense and playing extremely well.
- Jaxson Dart: 43,7% rostered – he came back down to earth a bit with the Saints, but he still moves the ball well and can use his legs.
- Trevor Lawrence: 25.7% rostered – I wonder if Lawrene sill begin to rush more after it paid dividends against the Chiefs. If so, he could be a steal at this point in the year.
Running Backs
- Hassan Haskins(0.5% rostered) or Kimani Vidal (0.1%) – The smart money is on Haskins to start. He and Harbaugh had history together at the University of Michigan. He looks like a tougher runner than Vidal. Though I will admit Vidal looked better last week.
- Michael Carter: 41.9% – I recommended Demercado heavily last week as you know. The horribly stupid goal line fumble aside, Demercado is the better runner. I truly don’t know what AZ is doing. Demercado has a career YPC average of 6.7(!!!) on just under 90 carries. Those long runes are not flukes. He does it all the time. Carter is a good 3rd down back, but he shouldn’t be handling the ball. That rant aside, it’s hard to believe Demercado will wrestle attempts away after blowing the game for AZ last week.
- Kendre Miller: 20.9% rostered – I’m surprised to say that he looks like a better runner these days than Alvin Kamara. It appears as though the Saitns coaching staff agrees.
- Emari Demarcado: 59.7% rostered – I was feeling smug and self assured on his breakaway TD run. Then he literally dropped the ball. What a dufus.
- Isaiah Davis: 5.8% rostered – Frankly, I expected more last week. He needs an injury to Hall to really do anything.
- Bhayshul Tuten – 36% rostered – I’m not impressed with him to this point. Making matters worse, I think fellow rook LeQuint Allen may be the better running back, though he hasn’t had an opportunity to show it yet.
- Kareem Hunt – 31.3% rostered – I think Brashard Smith will eventually limit Hunt’s value further, but he is scoring more points than Isiah Pacheco. No surprise there from my point of view.
- Kyle Monangai: 3.8% rostered – If you have an extra roster spot, it’ll be worth picking up the rookie to see if he’s further involved after the bye. I don’t think he will, but it’s worht a look.
- Joe Mixon (if you have an IR spot to stash): 58.6% rostered – The Texan backfield shifted towards Chubb in week 5 just when we all though Marks had taken it over. When Mixon comes back… whenever that will be… I think the job is his for the rest of 2025.
Wide Receivers
- Elic Ayomanor: 37.5% rostered – Ridley had the better week 5 game, but Ayomanor has been the better season-long performer in my opinion. The Titans offense might play with more confidence after stealing the game away from Arizona last week.
- Romeo Doubs: 44.9% rostered – He’s not exciting, but he’s consistent.
- Tory Horton: 4.0% rostered – One injury to Cooper Kupp and Horton will be a fantasy breakout. Otherwise, we may have to wait for the bye.
- Isaiah Bond: 0.4% rostered – I think Tillman could hurt his value this season when he returns from injury. But for now, Bond has a chance to break out.
- Ryan Flournoy: 0.1% rostered – I was impressed as anyone, but Flournoy benefitted from injuries. You can’t expect this performance every week. When Lamb isi back in the lineup, Flournoy will disappear.
- Kendrick Bourne: 6.5% – Similar to Flournoy, Bourne needed about 18 or 19 injuries to be the top 49er receiver. I don’t envision Bourne continuing to surge.
- Darius Slayton: 32.1% rostered – Slayton didn’t play well last week. He needs to step it up. By the way, the Giants gave him 3 years and $36m last offseason. I could be wrong… but maybe they should have put that $12m per year into an extension with Saquon. Call me crazy…
- Brandon Aiyuk: 34.7% rostered – He’s still a long ways away, but if you have a roster spot, he’s worth the stash. The stats that Bourne put up could go to Aiyuk in a few weeks.
- Troy Franklin: 43.5% rostered – I’m not excited by Franklin, but he’s clearly the second best Broncos receiver and he looks like he’s getting better each week even if the stats don’t prove it.
- Luther Burden III: 8.8% rostered – If he can just crack the starting lineup, he’ll be great. Anything can happen after the bye week for rookie skill players. I’m excited to see how he performs this week.
Tight Ends
- Darren Waller: 48.4% rostered – I don’t know why Miami stopped throwing to him, but 5 receptions on 5 targets for 78 yards and a TD in the first half proves Waller still has juice.
- Mason Taylor – 8.2% rostered – He’s very quietly amassing a ton of targets and yardage.
- Theo Johnson: 5.6% rostered – I noticed this in the preseason, but wasn’t sure how it’d pan out in the regular season. The Giants use Theo Johnson to work the short routes and move the chains when Nabers is out of the lineup. I don’t love that the Giaints are also giving Daniel Bellinger a lot of targets. You can’t count on a ton of TD receptions for Johnson each week, but I don’t think last week’s offensive involvement was the last we’ll see of Johnson.
- AJ Barner: 0.9% rostered – I’d rank him higher, but Elijah Arroyo looks really good as well.
- Brenton Strange – 44.7% rostered – I’m worried about his hip injury. Stay tuned.
- Harold Fannin Jr. – 23.8% rostered – Gabriel will throw plenty of passes Fannin’s way.
- Orando Gadsden II: 1.1% rostered – I like his potential, but I’d like to see more output on the field.
Defenses (DST)
- Jacksonville (vs Seattle) – 17% rostered
- LA Rams (vs Baltimore): 48.4% rostered
- LA Chargers (vs Miami): 35.3% rostered
Waiver Wire Targets for Week 5 (2025 Fantasy Football)
Week 5 is in the books. I hope you were able to grab Dylan Sampson last week because he’s going to be tough to acquire on the waiver cycle. As a reminder, I expect Quinshon Judkins, who recently signed, to supplant Jerome Ford. Dylan Sampson will continue to be involved as a third down back and receiver.
Waiver Wire Strategy for Week 5
Top 5 Waiver Wire Targets – Week 5
Here are my Top fantasy football waiver wire pickups for Week 5:
- RB, Woody Marks
- WR, Elic Ayomanor
- QB, Jaxson Dart
- TE, Darren Waller
- RB, Isaiah Davis
Waiver Wire Pickups by Position
Quarterbacks
- Jaxson Dart: 21.1% rostered – He runs. He’s been playing well as a passer, but those extra rushing yards are going to be what pushes him up the rankings. If you need a season-long answer at QB, Dart may be the best available option – even with Nabers out for the season.
- Marcus Mariota (if Daniels doesn’t start): 10.4% – he fills in for Daniels very well from a fantasy point of view.
- Carson Wentz (while McCarthy is out): 6.2% – Wentz is a better QB today than JJ McCarthy is. Wentz will score well thanks to Minnesota’s skill player personnel, but I wonder what will happen if McCarthy struggles. Will Minnesota take their lumps if McCarthy goes on a losing streak or will they try to make the playoffs?
- Trevor Lawrence: 29.2% rostered – he’s not scoring as well as I’d like, but the potential is still there.
Running Backs
- Woody Marks: 33.3% rostered – He out-snapped and out-played Chubb this week. I think Marks could be the Texans starter in 2026. My only question is if he can keep Joe Mixon off the field if/when he returns.
- Isaiah Davis: 0.3% rostered – I’m assuming as I write this that Braelon Allen tore an ACL. If that happens, then the Jets will be a two-man backfield and Davis will be one injury to Breece Hall away from being a very good fantasy back.
- Bhayshul Tuten – 47.5% rostered – Etienne is certainly the best RB on the Jaguar roster, but Tuten is a good player and could eat into snap share as the season moves on.
- Emari Demarcado: 2.5% rostered – With Benson taking over as the lead back, Demarcado is now the third down and 2-minute drill back in Arizona.
- Chris Rodriguez – 4.9% rostered – Jacory Croskey-Merritt plays roughly 30% of the snaps in Washington and is owned in 80% of the fantasy leagues. Chris Rodriguez plays roughly 30% of the snaps in Washington and owned in less than 5% of leagues. Rodriguez is a good fantasy option. He should be rostered.
- Kendre Miller: 5.6% rostered – Kamara is still the man, but Miller looks like a strong backup.
- Kareem Hunt – 38.8% rostered – I consider him the lead back in Kansas City, though the Chiefs running game is very weak at the moment.
- Kyle Monangai: 78% rostered – I don’t think we’ve seen the best of Monagai yet in Chicago.
- Joe Mixon (if you have an IR spot to stash): 64.2% rostered – He’ll be coming back at some point. If you have an IR slot, think about stashing Mixon. But will he be able to unseat Woody Marks when that time comes?
Wide Receivers
- Elic Ayomanor: 21.1% rostered – there is no question he’s the top Titan WR moving forward.
- Wan’Dale Robinson – 8.7% rostered – I’m surprised he’s not on more rosteres already. With Nabers injured, Robinson will be needed to keep the chains moving.
- Romeo Doubs: 36.7% rostered – I usually stray away from Packer WRs, but Doubs has consistently led the team in snaps. Yeah, he caught a lot of TDs last week, but I like that he’s consistently on the field for Green Bay.
- Darius Slayton: 3.6% rostered – Slayton will have more deep opportunities with Nabers injured.
- Isaiah Bond: 0.4% rostered – The hamstring injury to Tillman opens the door for Bond in the passing game.
- Brandon Aiyuk: 36.8% rostered – it looks like Aiyuk won’t be ready for week 6 as initially thought, but the 49ers WRs are beat up and when Aiyuk plays, he should be the top WR.
- Tory Horton: 6.4% rostered – His snap percentage isn’t increasing yet, but he’s looking very good with limited opportunities. If Cooper Kupp gets hurt, which is a safe bet by the way, then Horton could start to score very well.
- Marvin Mims: 21.5% rostered – Everyone is paying attention to Franklin in Denver after a huge week 2, but that’s what Denver does. They feature a guy and then you won’t hear from him again for weeks. Mims had the better game in Week 5 and I like his position in the Denver offense better.
- Troy Franklin: 43.4% rostered – All said about Mims, I still think Franklin has a ton of potential.
- Luther Burden III: 11.9% rostered – He’s slowly being integrated further into the offense. I think he’ll be great in this offense if he can find the field more. If either Zaccheaus, DJ Moore or Odunze are inured at some point, Burden could break out. If you have roster space, he’s worth stashing. Plus, he could always be further integrated after the bye week.
Tight Ends
- Darren Waller: 9.8% rostered – I’ve been talking him up all offseason and he finally played last night. He played roughly 28% of the Dolphin snaps in his first game action and hauled in 2 touchdowns.
- Mason Taylor – 3.2% rostered – His target and reception share have been increasing the past two weeks.
- Brenton Strange – 22.6% rostered – He plays a ton of snaps and gets plenty of targets. My only gripe is that the Jaguars tend to remove him from the field in red zone situations which doesn’t make a ton of sense to me.
- Harold Fanin Jr. – 32.7% rostered – He’s on the field quite a bit for the Browns. It feels to me like a breakout game isn’t an “if”, but a “when”.
- Elijah Arroyo: 1.5% rostered – He looked exceptional on Thursday Night Football vs the Cardinals. His fellow TE, AJ Barner, will limit Arroyo’s value. But Arroyo should be on your radar moving forward.
- Orando Gadsden II: 0.1% rostered – He was the best Charger TE last week. Keep a very close eye on him.
Defenses (DST)
- Jacksonville (vs Kansas City) – 7% rostered
- LA Rams (vs San Francisco): 29.2% rostered
- Arizona (vs Tennessee): 24.6% rostered
Waiver Wire Targets for Week 4 (2025 Fantasy Football)
Week 4 is in the books. I hope you were able to grab Dylan Sampson last week because he’s going to be tough to acquire on the waiver cycle. As a reminder, I expect Quinshon Judkins, who recently signed, to supplant Jerome Ford. Dylan Sampson will continue to be involved as a third down back and receiver.
Waiver Wire Strategy for Week 4
Top 5 Waiver Wire Targets – Week 4
Here are my Top fantasy football waiver wire pickups for Week 4:
- RB, Trey Benson
- WR, Tre Tucker
- TE, Hunter Henry
- RB, Woody Marks
- WR, Elic Ayomanor
Waiver Wire Pickups by Position
Quarterbacks
- Trevor Lawrence: 34.9% rostered – I’ve watched a few of their games. Lawrence has actually looked ok. It’s his receivers that haven’t looked great. I still think he’ll turn it around.
- Marcus Mariota (if Daniels doesn’t start): 7.1% – if you need to stream a QB and Mariota is playing, he’s my favorite option.
- Carson Wentz (while McCarthy is out): 3.1% – Wentz is another temporary solution if you are in QB trouble.
Running Backs
- Trey Benson: 54.8% rostered – Benson could very well be a top 10 back this season. I said last week it looked like he was taking over the starting job anyway.
- Woody Marks: 8.9% rostered – It looks like Mixon will return at some point, but for now, it looks like Woody Marks may be taking the starting job away from Nick Chubb.
- Bhayshul Tuten – 48.1% rostered – Tuten found the end zone, though he’s still
- Chris Rodriguez – 1.6% rostered – He looks like the 2nd best back in a three-man committee for Washington.
- Jeremy McNichols – 3% rostered – and McNichols would be the third best of the three.
- Kyle Monangai: 7.6% rostered – The Bears running game is leaving a lot to be desired, but Monangai figures to be the short yardage back. He’s played Roschon Johnson completely off the field.
- Kareem Hunt – 31.6% rostered – He is still gaining a lot of touches for Kansas City’s sputtering offense
- Tahj Brooks: 0.4% rostered – Brooks looks like he passed Perine as the backup in Cincinnati
- Joe Mixon (if you have an IR spot to stash): 65.5% rostered – He’ll be coming back at some point. If you have an IR slot, think about stashing Mixon.
- Emari Demarcado: 0.2% rostered – Benson is clearly the best back in Arizona, but Demercado could have a much larger role now that Conners is out of the picture.
- Hassan Haskins: 0.0% rostered – Najee Harris is out. I think they’ll want to give rookie Omarion Hampton some rest, so Haskins could have more involvement than you may think.
- Antonio Gibson: 0.6% rostered – Rhamondre Stevenson can’t get his fumbling under control. Gibson was poised for a larger role and then he promptly fumbled as well. All said, Gibson is more sure handed so I think he’ll have a larger role moving forward.
Wide Receivers
- Tre Tucker: 2.2% rostered – He had a huge week 3, but he has been much more involved in the Raiders offense than I thought. He’s been better than Donte Thornton, a player I liked quite a bit coming into the season.
- Elic Ayomanor: 21.1% rostered -0 He and Cam Ward have great chemistry. Ayomanor is getting better by the week.
- Ced Tillman – 43.9% rostered – The Browns have had two tough opponents in a row, but things will be better for this passing game moving forward and Tillman looks like the est of hteir WRs.
- Tory Horton: 1.1% rostered – Over the last two weeks, Horton has looked better than Cooper Kupp. Jaxon Smith-Njigba is absolutely the best WR in Seattle, but Horton could offer flex value later in the year.
- Troy Franklin: 49.2% rostered – It’s hard for any receiver outside of Courtland Sutton to have consistency in Denver.
- Wan’Dale Robinson – 58.9% rostered – He should be better once the Giants inevitably switch to Jaxson Dart.
- Calvin Austin III: 10.7% rostered – The Steelers won’t throw for a lot of yards, but TDs are in play. Austin is developing into a solid fantasy option.
- Christian Kirk: 21.8% rostered – He looked good in his return.
- Hunter Renfrow – 7.1% rostered – He has a lot of production in limited snaps. If he can get on the field more often, Renfrow will pay dividends.
- Kayshon Boutte 23.2% rostered – he’s largely disappointed after his week 1 performance, but Boutte continues to lead WRs in snaps. That counts for something, though my patience is wearing thin.
- Luther Burden III: 9.3% rostered – Zaccheaus is holding his onfield performance back.
Tight Ends
- Hunter Henry: 48.9% rostered – dating back to last year, Henry is the only receiving option for the Patriots that has performed well at all.
- Harold Fanin Jr. – 39.9% rostered – Don’t worry about a tough performance vs the Packers. The Packers D is playing well against everyone.
- Brenton Strange – 21.3% rostered – So far, he’s had the surest hands among Jaguar pass catchers. He largely dominates snaps at the TE position as well.
- Mason Taylor – 3.5% rostered – He took a step forward in production this week (a baby step). I’d like it more if Fields was throwing the ball, but still, Taylor should be watched.
- Orando Gadsden II: 0.1% rostered – This is more of a lottery ticket play. Gadsden looked good as the Chargers adjust to having Will Dissly out of the lineup.
Defenses (DST)
- LA Chargers (vs NY Giants) – 12.5% rostered 0
- Jacksonville (vs San Francisco) – 5.1% rostered
- LA Rams (vs Indianapolis): 32.6% rostered
UPDATE 5 – FINAL RANKINGS
Custom Sheet, Auction Values and Draft Strategy Guide
Rankings Updated After NFL Roster Cuts – 8/28/25