Each week we highlight the top potential waiver wires that remain available in at least 50% of Yahoo fantasy football leagues. If you have urgent scheduling needs in week 8, the names below deserve attention.
Quarterbacks
Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins (45% selected)
Last season’s NFL leader in passing yardage returns to practice this week for Miami, and It’s a good bet to be back on the field in week 8. Tagovailoa obviously can’t fix everything that’s wrong with the Dolphins, but he can at least unlock Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, who went missing again on Sunday.
Tua averaged 272.0 for the YPG in 2023 and there’s no reason to think he can’t match that production during the current season. Miami heads into a matchup with Arizona, a user-friendly pass defense that comes out in a short week. It’s an excellent place for Tagovailoa to get back to work.
Recommended FAB offer (assuming a $100 budget): $7
Drake Maye, New England Patriots (16%)
Another week, another multi-touchdown game for Maye. He has passed for 519 yards and five scores in his first two starts for New England, adding 56 yards on the ground. The difficulty certainly ramps up in Week 8 when the Pats host the Jets, but there are still plenty of key matchups ahead, including games against the Rams, Colts and Cardinals.
Maye certainly missed a few throws, just like rookies, but his best moments were pretty special:
We haven’t seen a huge rushing performance from Maye yet, but we can assume it’s coming. He ran for over 1,100 yards in his last two collegiate seasons and showed plenty of upside rushing in the preseason.
fantastic: $6
Additional QB options:
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Justin Herbert commits relatively few fouls these days, limiting his weekly appeal. But he’s about to face the Saints, a team that has scored 134 points in its past four games.
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Russell Wilson had a few wild misfires on Sunday night as he finished 16-for-29, but he also ended up delivering three combined touchdowns. He fed George Pickens nine targets, which was much appreciated. Wilson may no longer be a dual-threat guy at this stage, but he can still push the ball downfield when necessary. He gets the green light for this week’s game with the Giants.
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James Winston will likely be the man behind center for the Browns the rest of the way after Deshaun Watson’s season-ending Achilles injury — and when Winston is back, the YOLO ball is back. It probably won’t be a clinic, but it won’t be uninteresting either. Dorian Thompson-Robinson power still interfering with our Winston plans, although he is dealing with a finger injury sustained in Week 7.
Running backs
Tyler Goodson, Indianapolis Colts (14%)
Indy cruised to a scrappy victory Sunday in a game in which Anthony Richardson completed just 10 passes. Goodson took the lead role in the team’s backfield, rushing for 51 yards with a 7-yard score, including:
Goodson ultimately defeated Trey Sermon in the victory, 14 to nine. If Jonathan Taylor remains unavailable for the upcoming game in Houston, Goodson could be seen as a very playable RB2. He seems to have more power than Sermon, for what it’s worth.
The expectation is that JT will practicing again this weekso that both Goodson and Sermon could soon be driven back into the shadows.
fantastic: $11
Ray Davis, Buffalo Bills (26%)
Even in a week where James Cook was active and involved, Davis still asserted himself. The rookie gave us 47 yards on six touches, scoring the game’s final touchdown. Davis is basically a runaway boulder of a ball carrier, and he also has flashy receiving skills. He’s starting to look like the kind of understudy runner who might be flex-worthy. He definitely deserves a roster spot in any twelve-team format.
fantastic: $11
Various other RB adds:
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Tyler Allgeier should already be on the list in a competitive league, probably by the manager who invested in Bijan Robinson. His continued suitability for this position is a great mystery. Allgeier is a legitimate flex option most weeks, and he would of course be a must starting back if Robinson ever misses time at any point
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Jaylen Warren is coming off a 14-touch performance and looks healthy, so he deserves to be stashed in most leagues of typical size and shape.
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Kimani Vidal claimed the understudy role in the Chargers’ backfield in Week 7, converting his six touches into 51 yards and a long receiving score. He is now one injury away from playing a huge role for a very committed team.
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If Travis Etienne (hamstring/shoulder) remains unavailable for another week or more, D’Ernest Johnson will be interesting in deeper leagues. He’s not much of a threat to Tank Bigsby if the series is still in play for Jacksonville, but the upcoming games for this team are full of horrors: GB, at Phi, Min, at Det.
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Roschon Johnson runs as the clear No. 2 in Chicago behind D’Andre Swift, filling a rotational role and having occasional goal-line responsibilities. The Bears return from their bye to a friendly series of matchups (in Was, in Ari, NE), so Johnson will likely visit the end zone again soon.
Wide receivers and tight ends
Jauan Jennings, San Francisco 49ers (30%)
Jennings was unavailable on Sunday due to a hip injury, but It is believed the problem is not big enough to keep him out for another week. The Niners are now in dire need of his services after Brandon Aiyuk suffered a nasty knee injury in the loss to KC.
San Francisco has some interesting rookies in the receiver room in Ricky Pearsall and Jacob Cowing, but Jennings is a vet who already produced a monster stat line earlier this season in Week 3. He is the clear priority for waivers. this week for anyone looking for answers from the recipient. Jennings is clearly on his way to a volume boost.
Fantastic: $21
Keon Coleman, Buffalo Bills (32%)
The arrival of Amari Cooper was never going to result in the total disappearance of Coleman, but too many fantasy managers handled the situation that way. Coleman saw a season-high seven targets against Tennessee on Sunday, catching four for 125 yards. He also had a near TD from twelve yards out, plus he had the assist of the day for Buffalo. The rookie can definitely play. Coleman still has a few useful fantasy appearances ahead of him this season. If he was tossed in your league last week, consider a dumpster dive.
Fantastic: $9
Carlo Tillman, Cleveland Browns (1%)
If you absolutely insist on having a Browns receiver on your roster (not encouraged), check out Tillman. He was targeted 12 times in Sunday’s loss, catching eight passes for 81 yards, plus a two-point conversion. Tillman was on the field for 69 snaps in Week 7, easily his highest total of the year, so he’s clearly the biggest beneficiary of playing time after the Amari Cooper trade. At 6 feet tall, he is an inviting target from the outside.
David Njoku remains the Browns receiver who should interest us most as a potential fantasy starter, but Tillman has at least started the conversation.
Fantastic: $7
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Additional WRs and TEs to consider:
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The post-suspension version of Romeo Doubs has been a serious weapon. He finished as Green Bay’s leading receiver in the win over Houston, hauling in eight balls for 94 yards on a team-high 10 targets. The Packers’ hierarchy is reshuffled every week, so we can’t assume consistency from anyone, but the upcoming games against Jacksonville and Detroit provide an advantage for everyone involved.
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Tutu Atwel has caught 12 balls on 19 targets in his last two games, and he’ll likely remain involved even after Cooper Kupp returns to action (likely Thursday night). If Kupp is dealt before the deadline – which apparently is the case cannot be excluded — Atwell would have a path to value the rest of the season.
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Mecole Hardman comes from a one-catch game, so let’s not get irrationally aggressive in pursuit of a Chiefs receiver who just so happens to have recently visited the end zone. Still, he’s a true playmaker on a team in desperate need of anyone who fits that description.
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Jalen McMillan And Cade Otton are the lightly drafted Bucs pass catchers who will likely reach fantasy relevance if Mike Evans (hamstring) is sidelined for an extended period of time.
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Hunter Hendrik will certainly have its share of quiet games, but Sunday’s performance was not one of them. He caught eight passes for 92 yards on nine opportunities, leading the Pats overall.
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Taysom Hill couldn’t make it all the way back for Thursday night’s non-league loss to Denver, but he at least participated in limited practice in pre-game practices. When he returns, we can assume he will resume his usual six valuable transports per week. Hill continues to function as something other than a QB or TE, but those are the spots he qualifies in our game.
Defense
Detroit Lions (19%)
Detroit’s defense held its own against the Vikings on Sunday, even without Aidan Hutchinson in the mix. The Lions sacked Sam Darnold four times and picked him off once en route to a narrow victory. This week, Tennessee is on the schedule, which obviously means a date with a sketchy QB and an unproductive offense. The Titans currently rank second to last in total yards per game, ahead of only Cleveland.
fantastic: $2
Green Bay Packers (47%)
Green Bay’s defense hasn’t exactly been a shut-down unit so far this season, but overall it has been an opportunistic group. The Packers currently lead the NFL in takeaways (17) and they managed to hold CJ Stroud to just 86 passing yards on Sunday. Next week they will face a tired Jacksonville, a flawed and disliked team that has spent the last two weeks across the Atlantic.
FAB: $1
Kicker
Will Reichard, Minnesota Vikings (10%)
We don’t make a habit of recommending kicker pickups here, but in Reichard’s case we have to make an exception. It ticks all the important boxes. Reichard is doing his best for one of the highest scoring teams in the league, he is already past his bye, he is perfect on all attempts this season (field goals and XPs) and the rookie has a weapon quality leg. He trained a 57-yarder with a mile to spare on Sunday. Reichard should rightly be viewed as a top-three kicker for the remainder of the season and should be picked up wherever he is available.
fantastic: $2
