It's a shockingly deep waiver wire group this week, with a headliner who deserves an aggressive bid in shallow leagues. I suspect this will be a week where I'll add a bunch of names to the mix as well, so make sure to refer back to this article throughout the week if you're in specific need of additional names at running back and wide receiver.
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For the audio and video component of the article, I also went through a fully developed list on the RotoWire YouTube channel that you can view below.
Teams with Week 9 Bye: Cleveland Browns, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Quarterback
Brock Purdy, 49ers - It's a frustratingly bleak week if you need of a streamer in deep leagues, but there are a few options for shallow formats. I anticipate Purdy will return after missing six of the last seven games, and he will have a welcoming matchup against an absymal Giants defense. Purdy is rostered in 66 percent of leagues, but this is my first choice if he's somehow available.
Sam Darnold, Seahawks - After a Week 8 bye, it's possible Darnold is somehow available. The veteran has performed well in basically every matchup against a bad defense and gets a beleaguered Commanders coming off a short week. Neither Purdy nor Darnold have especially good rest-of-season schedules, but if you're streaming the position, turn here first. FAAB: 6 percent of budget for either player if streamer needed this week; 2 percent budget in shallower league
Running Back
Tyrone Tracy, Giants - With Cam Skattebo (ankle) out for the season, Tracy immediately becomes a worthwhile back to go all in on in shallower leagues. The second-year player dipped down to 49 percent of rostered Yahoo leagues entering this week, and he should effectively absorb the Skattebo workload. I'd really like to see how good Tracy, a converted college WR, can be with similar routes/playcalls that featured Skattebo in the pass. Admittedly, Tracy hasn't been nearly as effectively in previous opportunities as you'd assume. There's a small chance the Giants could end up trading for a running back to help the development of Jaxson Dart, but that shouldn't hold you up from rostering Tracy at all costs. FAAB: 10-team leagues about 37 percent of budget, otherwise everyone go all in
Tank Bigsby, Eagles - Part of the reason I'm willing to be so aggressive on Tracy is that the waiver wire really didn't yield any other potential options. Bigsby is worth noting because Saquon Barkley evidently suffered a groin injury late in the stomping of the Giants, though the veteran said he'll be ready to play Week 10 following the team's bye. We've heard basically every player in a similar situation guarantee they'll play, so I don't particularly trust Barkley's word, but Will Shipley is also a capable back and probably splits time with Bigsby in the event the All-Pro misses time. FAAB: 1 percent of budget
Dylan Sampson, Browns - Complicating things further is the status of Quinshon Judkins, who evidently injured his shoulder in the blowout loss to the Patriots. The seriousness of the injury is unclear because Cleveland could have been playing it safe with their prized rookie ahead of the team's bye. Sampson does have a function in the offense regardless as a pass catcher, but Judkins has taken on such a significant workload that it's hard to justify rostering Sampson unless the Judkins is unable to play. We might learn more about Judkins' status depending on if the Browns trade Jerome Ford by next week's deadline. FAAB: 1 percent of budget
Samaje Perine, Bengals - Hopefully, nobody is quite this desperate, but Perine has quietly played at least 25 offensive snaps in the last four games and has compiled at least 30 total yards in every game. Those are obviously not ideal figures, but it's better than the effective "zero" stats a number of other potential options could offer, and the Bengals get a nice matchup against the porous Chicago defense in Week 9. FAAB: 0 percent of budget
Wide Receiver
Chimere Dike, Titans - It's a horrendously lost season for Tennessee, but a sliver of light might have shown on Dike, who could be emerging as the team's go-to target. The rookie fourth-round pick led the team in targets (eight) and receiving yards (93) Sunday against a banged-up Indianapolis, the latter being the second time in as many weeks Dike has posted a team high. This has, of course, come during the absence of Calvin Ridley (hamstring), but Tennessee is just as likely to sit the veteran one week before its Week 10 bye, or outright trade him with the way the season has spiraled downward. I was aggressively in on Elic Ayomanor to begin the season so I recognize if this looks like the boy crying wolf, but there simply has to be a fantasy-relevant WR on Tennessee. I'm comfortable trying to dip into the well again. FAAB: 8 percent of budget
Jayden Higgins, Texans - As a supporter of Higgins entering the year, it was really encouraging to see the second-round rookie blossom in his first real opportunity with Nico Collins (concussion) out. The 22-year-old led all Texans WRs in snaps (61) and targets en route to easily his best fantasy day of his young career, but that's about where the positives end. For one, the breakout happened with Xavier Hutchinson still operating as the team's other boundary target (53 offensive snaps) and the third-year pass catcher had significantly more air yards per target. That Jaylin Noel (more on him in a moment) and Braxton Berrios also had their moments tells me this was more about a bad San Francisco defense yielding production as opposed to a Higgins breakout. It might be only a matter of time until Higgins becomes a mainstay as the starting WR opposite Collins, but the Texans seem content forcing Hutchinson into that role handicapping a possible emergence. FAAB: 3 percent, but higher if we here Collins misses more time
Jaylin Noel, Texans - If there's one Texans WR I'd like to roster more following Sunday's win, it's the third-round rookie Noel, who has impressed in back-to-back weeks. Christian Kirk could return soon after a pesky hamstring injury kept him out the last two weeks, but I'm wondering if there just might be a changing of the guard with how electric and reliable Noel has been during Houston's offensive resurgence. The only complication is that Braxton Berrios is also seeing just enough playing time as a slot-only specialist that Noel can't sustain fantasy success with both veterans jockeying for time. I'm not sure how that situation gets resolved favorably for us in the fantasy community, and I'm not sure I have faith in Houston's offensive line holding up against difficult matchups like Denver, Jacksonville, Indianapolis, Buffalo and Kansas City in the next six weeks. FAAB: 2 percent of budget
Christian Watson, Packers - For those of you unaware, I'm a diehard Packers fan. I'd rather see all 17 of my fantasy teams lose if it means the Packers win a game every week. It just matters that much to me. So I don't know if I was just blinded by my fear of reverse jinxing something or what, but I never could have imagined Watson would look as good as he did in his season debut after returning from a January ACL tear. The Packers immediately threw his way to begin the game, but the comfort Jordan Love had targeting Watson downfield was such an encouraging sign to the offense that has missed that element with Jayden Reed (collarbone/foot) sidelined since Week 3. Watson's never been a guy who sees a bunch of volume and is obviously an injury risk, but he makes so many explosive plays that I think he might elevate immediately into fringe roster status in deeper leagues. FAAB: 4 percent of budget
Malik Washington, Dolphins - There's actually a handful of eligible WRs entering Week 9 after what appeared to be a slog of options last week. Washington is a repeat on this list from the week prior after scoring in the surprising win over the Falcons, but Thursday's matchup against the Ravens won't be easy. There's a real PPR floor that appears to be developing from the team's bubble specialist, but I'm wary there's any sort of ceiling the way the current offensive scheme is constructed. FAAB: 2 percent of budget
Tight End
Mason Taylor, Jets - It's an incredibly bleak week for tight ends. I've mentioned Taylor it feels like four weeks running, but overall I struggled to find anyone to add upon initial publishing Monday. The rookie benefited from a bit of fluky game script against the Bengals, but if I'm the Jets, the lone of bit of optimism I should have could easily be directed to featuring Taylor more after the Week 9 bye. FAAB: 0 percent of budget
