Doing your weekly waivers in fantasy football can be more stressful than performing life-saving surgery on a loved one without any professional tools or medical knowledge. While that might be a slight exaggeration, deciding which players to add off the fantasy football waiver wire each week can be stressful.
Finding and adding the right players in shallow leagues is simple, as there are plenty of appealing options, and the waiver wire is full of talent. Unfortunately, making your waiver wire claims in deeper leagues can be a massive pain in the neck.
However, I’m here to help by giving fantasy players waiver wire targets they should add in deeper leagues in Week 2.
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Deep League Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Targets
All the players in this article are rostered in fewer than 25% of ESPN leagues.
Jaxson Dart (QB – NYG): 4.5% Rostered
Many expected Jaxon Dart to spend his rookie season as the Giants’ No. 3 quarterback on the depth chart, not seeing the field until the end of the year. However, the former Ole Miss star beat out Jameis Winston for the backup role in the preseason, making him active for Week 1. While Dart didn’t see the field on Sunday, Russell Wilson struggled, completing 45.9% of his 37 pass attempts for 168 yards and zero touchdowns, en route to scoring 11.1 fantasy points.
Furthermore, Wilson repeatedly failed to connect with Malik Nabers. The superstar wide receiver only caught five of his 12 targets (41.7%). More importantly, head coach Brian Daboll wouldn’t commit to Wilson starting next week. While Dart likely won’t be a fantasy star as a rookie, he would provide more value than Wilson when he takes over under center. The former Ole Miss star averaged 12 fantasy points per game and 0.77 fantasy points per attempt in the preseason.
Kenneth Gainwell (RB – PIT): 1.9% Rostered
Finding running backs off the waiver wire is difficult in standard-size leagues, so finding appealing options in deeper leagues is nearly impossible. However, Kenneth Gainwell had a meaningful role for the Steelers in their Week 1 win over the New York Jets. The veteran had seven rushing attempts for 19 yards and three receptions for four receiving yards, scoring 5.3 PPR fantasy points. While Jaylen Warren had more touches in the game, Gainwell played over half the snaps.
The veteran running back played 52% of the snaps in Week 1, including all but one of the 10 third-down snaps. Meanwhile, Warren was the team’s top option while in scoring position, playing 46% of the snaps, including all three inside the 5-yard line. Unfortunately, Kaleb Johnson only played 4% of the snaps and had one rushing attempt for negative yards. Until the rookie earns more of a role on offense, Gainwell should continue to see meaningful playing time.
JuJu Smith-Schuster (WR – KC): 0.9% Rostered
Unfortunately, the Chiefs can’t face the Los Angeles Chargers early in the season without seeing one of their star wide receivers leave with an injury inflicted by a teammate. Last year, Rashee Rice had a season-ending knee injury when Patrick Mahomes hit him trying to make a tackle. Meanwhile, Xavier Worthy suffered a dislocated shoulder injury when Travis Kelce ran into him on Friday night. Hopefully, Worthy’s injury isn’t significant. However, he will likely miss some time.
Therefore, Marquise Brown (50% rostered) and JuJu Smith-Schuster will have to pick up the slack with Worthy out and Rice suspended. While Brown led the team with 16 targets in Week 1, Smith-Schuster finished second with five. He caught all five for 55 receiving yards and 10.5 PPR fantasy points. While Brown is the better option, fantasy players in deeper leagues who need a replacement for Worthy should make Smith-Schuster their top priority off the waiver wire.
Jake Tonges (TE – SF): 0.0% Rostered
Raise your hand if you knew that Jake Tonges was on the 49ers’ roster 48 hours ago. Now put your hand down because clearly you’re lying. Unfortunately, George Kittle left Sunday’s win over the Seattle Seahawks with a hamstring injury. Furthermore, Jauan Jennings suffered a shoulder injury in Week 1. Therefore, Monday will be a massive day for San Francisco, as both veterans will have MRIs to determine the extent of their injuries.
BROCK PURDY. JAKE TONGES. @49ERS LEAD!
SFvsSEA on FOXhttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/CA4vq52rKd
— NFL (@NFL) September 7, 2025
While Ricky Pearsall was the star of the 49ers’ passing attack, Tonges stepped up late in the game, making two massive catches. The unknown tight end had three targets on Sunday. However, he pulled in all three targets for 15 receiving yards and a game-winning touchdown with under two minutes left in the contest. More importantly, Brock Purdy showed faith in Tonges on the game-winning touchdown. He could have fantasy value if Kittle and Jennings miss significant time.
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Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.
