Skip to main content

Weekend Waiver Wire Stashes (Week 8 Fantasy Football)

Weekend Waiver Wire Stashes (Week 8 Fantasy Football)

How many times have you heard someone telling you to “stream” a position? Whether it be quarterback, tight end, or defense, the idea of streaming is great, provided you get the players you want off the waiver wire. The issue with streaming week-to-week is that everyone knows who you’ll be targeting in those good matchups and you might have that player swiped from underneath you, or even worse, your opponent that week may snag a player just to ensure you don’t get them.

Import your team to My Playbook for instant Lineup advice partner-arrow

We started this article so you don’t have to worry about that anymore. Each Saturday morning, you’ll head over to your waiver wire and snag the players who are lined up for good matchups the following week. They may have a brutal matchup for that current week. Great, even better. That just means they’re more likely to be available for you. By snagging them a week prior, you eliminate the need to spend a lot of FAAB dollars on the top tier defense that everyone is chasing. Here are the players who have solid Week 9 matchups on tap and are less than 40 percent owned.

Quarterbacks

Sam Darnold (NYJ) at MIA
We know to play quarterbacks against the Dolphins by now, right? How about when the ex-coach walks into his old territory he was fired from? I’m not much for narratives, but if there’s someone who’ll keep their foot on the throttle against the Dolphins, it’s Adam Gase. The Dolphins have faced just the second-fewest pass attempts in the league but have allowed the second-most fantasy points to quarterbacks. They’ve yet to hold a quarterback outside the top-15 for that particular week, including Case Keenum who threw the ball just 25 times.

Mitch Trubisky (CHI) at PHI
I know, it’s been terrible for Trubisky and the Bears. But do you really think they’re going to be able to run the ball against the Eagles? The only quarterback who didn’t have success against this Eagles team was Luke Falk. Outside of him, 5-of-6 quarterbacks have finished as top-12 options against the Eagles. Not just passing the ball, either, as both Dak Prescott and Aaron Rodgers were able to rush for 30-plus yards against them. With no one to cover Allen Robinson, we should see Trubisky have success when targeting the elite talent.

If he’s available: Gardner Minshew (JAX) vs HOU

Running Backs

J.D. McKissic (DET) at OAK
Many are excited about Ty Johnson, and rightfully so, but McKissic is going to be involved. We saw him get eight opportunities once Kerryon Johnson left the game, which is nothing to scoff at. The Raiders have been a solid unit against the run this year but have allowed the fifth-most fantasy points through the air to running backs, an area McKissic excels. Think of him as a Theo Riddick-type option in this offense and you’ll see the RB4/flex appeal.

Mark Walton (MIA) vs NYJ
As of the time this comes out, it’s possible that Kenyan Drake is already gone. Even if he’s not, the Dolphins have already started to transition to Walton who’s seen 12 and 15 touches over the last two weeks. You simply don’t find those kind of touches on the waiver wire. Yes, it’s the Dolphins, but it’s also the Jets run defense that’s allowed a league-high eight rushing touchdowns to running backs.

Alexander Mattison (MIN) at KC
Not only should Mattison be owned in every league as one of the best handcuffs in football, but he could have value in this game. Dating back to the start of last year, the Chiefs have allowed 30 running backs to record 11.0 or more PPR points against them. Doing the math, there has been just 23 games since the start of last year, so they’re allowing more than one per game. Mattison has received at least seven carries in 5-of-7 games, including each of the last three games. The Vikings won’t want to go toe-to-toe with Patrick Mahomes if he’s back, so keeping the ball grounded makes tons of sense. Worst case scenario, you stash Mattison on your bench, because he should 100 percent be owned.

Wide Receivers

DeVante Parker (MIA) vs NYJ
With Ryan Fitzpatrick under center, Parker’s seen at least seven targets in each game, including 10 last week. Even in the Josh Rosen games, Parker has finished with at least 56 yards and/or a touchdown in 5-of-6 games, with the only one he didn’t coming against Stephon Gilmore and the Patriots. The Jets have already allowed 11 wide receivers to rack up five or more receptions against them, which should provide a stable floor for Parker.

Cole Beasley (BUF) vs WAS
With bye weeks in full effect over the next few weeks, Beasley is the perfect solution as someone who won’t lose you the week. He’s now scored at least 9.0 PPR points in 5-of-6 games, providing a stable floor for his owners. The Redskins have struggled to defend the slot this year, allowing a combined 48 receptions for 533 yards and four touchdowns on 56 targets. This bodes well for Beasley, the slot-only receiver.

Diontae Johnson (PIT) vs IND
Many dropped him during his bye week, but why? Since his promotion into the starting lineup, Johnson has seen 22 targets that have turned into 16 receptions, 170 yards, and two touchdowns. It’s nearly identical to JuJu Smith-Schuster‘s 22 targets, 14 receptions, 178 yards, and two touchdowns. And now, he’s going to go against the Colts, a team who plays a zone-heavy scheme, which allows plenty of the dink-and-dunk completions that Mason Rudolph tends to lean on. It also helps that they’ve been without their free safety Malik Hooker, which allows teams to try and go over the top a bit more.

Viable alternatives: Demaryius Thomas (NYJ) at MIA, Danny Amendola (DET) at OAK, Dante Pettis (SF) at ARI

Tight Ends

Chris Herndon (NYJ) at MIA
We don’t know if he’ll be available for this game, but at the chance he is, the Dolphins are a matchup to target each and every week. They’ve allowed a league-high 77.8 percent completion-rate and 10.25 yards per target to the tight end position. Sam Darnold has seemingly gravitated to his receivers over the middle of the field and that’s the role Herndon played for him last year. We should see the connection come back relatively quickly in a matchup as good as this.

Ben Watson (NE) at BAL
Ah, the revenge game for Watson. I’m kidding, of course. But the Ravens are a good matchup for tight ends, despite the fact that they’ve allowed the ninth-fewest fantasy points per game to the position. When targeted, they’ve allowed a robust 8.72 yards per target, which will ultimately lead to fantasy success when the targets eventually start flowing. Watson saw six targets in his Patriots debut and knowing they’ve been throwing the ball nearly 40 times per game, we should expect enough targets to consider him a streaming possibility.

Last-ditch option: Noah Fant (DEN) vs CLE

D/ST

New York Jets at MIA
If there’s one area of the Jets defense that’s been lacking, it’s a pass-rush, as they’ve totaled just three sacks over their last four games. If there’s one team who can fix that, it’s the Dolphins. We’ve watched their opponents rack up at least three sacks in 5-of-6 games, and multiple turnovers in 4-of-6 games. It’s not just that for your fantasy floor, but they’ve only scored more than 10 points two times. The Jets defense should come to life and be a top-10 option in Week 9.

Philadelphia Eagles vs CHI
Any time you have a turnover-prone quarterback whose offense lacks a great ground-game going against the Eagles, you want to consider them. The Eagles will bring the pressure and actually rank first in the NFL when it comes to pressuring the opposing quarterback, and the Bears offensive line has allowed three-plus sacks in 3-of-6 games. If you’ve watched Mitch Trubisky throw the ball this year, you know a pick-six is well within the realm of possibilities.

Alternate option: Denver Broncos vs CLE


SubscribeiTunes | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | TuneIn | RSS

Mike Tagliere is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeTagliereNFL.

More Articles

Bracket Strategy 2024: Tips & Advice To Win NCAA March Madness Pools

Bracket Strategy 2024: Tips & Advice To Win NCAA March Madness Pools

fp-headshot by PoolGenius | 14 min read
2024 NFL Mock Draft: Thor Nystrom’s Picks & Predictions (2.0)

2024 NFL Mock Draft: Thor Nystrom’s Picks & Predictions (2.0)

fp-headshot by Thor Nystrom | 2 min read
5 Dynasty Rookie Draft Sleepers (2024 Fantasy Football)

5 Dynasty Rookie Draft Sleepers (2024 Fantasy Football)

fp-headshot by Jason Kamlowsky | 4 min read
13 Must-Have Fantasy Football Best Ball Draft Targets (2024)

13 Must-Have Fantasy Football Best Ball Draft Targets (2024)

fp-headshot by Derek Brown | 1 min read

About Author

Hide

Current Article

4 min read

Bracket Strategy 2024: Tips & Advice To Win NCAA March Madness Pools

Next Up - Bracket Strategy 2024: Tips & Advice To Win NCAA March Madness Pools

Next Article