Ah, fantasy football… our weekly joy, obsession, and occasional heartbreak. The thrill of a last-minute touchdown. The agony of a wide receiver who can’t seem to catch a cold, let alone a football. The sweet victory of outsmarting your rival in a trade. The crushing defeat when your star running back goes down in the first quarter.
Yes, injuries are inevitable. Quarterbacks hobbling off the field. Tight ends sidelined. Wide receivers disappearing from your lineup like socks in the dryer. Your fantasy roster’s hopes and dreams can vanish in a single Sunday.
But don’t panic. That’s what the waiver wire is for. It’s your weekly lifeline, your chance to patch up the holes, gamble on the breakout candidate, and maybe—just maybe—turn a season around.
This week, we’re breaking down the players you need to know about, how much they might be worth in FAAB, and which moves make sense in both shallow and deep leagues. From the obvious adds to the sneaky sleepers, we’ve got you covered. So grab your coffee—or wings, or nachos, we don’t judge—and let’s dive in.
Quarterbacks
Daniel Jones (QB – IND): 8% Rostered | Last Week: QB2
Did we just witness one of the historic comebacks from a veteran that was seemingly down on his luck and finding his way out of the league? “Indiana Jones” did what no other quarterback has done this century: score on every possession of the game. It was a good win for the Colts with them winning their first Week 1 win since 2013, but it was against a very bad Miami Dolphins team. Jones helped his teammates also have great weeks with Michael Pittman, Jr finishing as WR8 (his highest finish since WR5 in Week 6 of 2022) and rookie Tyler Warren finishing as TE3. I’m cautious about Jones still, but he’s worth a pickup if you are rostering players like Cam Ward, Sam Darnold, or Tua Tagovailoa.
Aaron Rodgers (QB – PIT): 13.7% Rostered | Last Week: QB7
Not listed on the rankings above, I’m not sure why he can’t be ranked this week. I have been completely skeptical of Rodgers’ long-term success for quite a while now, we all have. That doesn’t change the fact that Rodgers seems to look like his old self right now, throwing for four touchdowns in Week 1 against his former team, the New York Jets. In his last two seasons that he actually played, he has finished as QB13 (2022 in Green Bay) and QB15 (2024 in New York) which is just outside of the starting quarterback range. Pick up Aaron Rodgers if you have the aforementioned quarterbacks that need a replacement.
Michael Penix, Jr. (QB – ATL): 29.3% Rostered | Last Week: QB10
Also not able to be ranked, but it looks like the Atlanta Falcons front office may have been right drafting Penix with an early first-round pick last year, even after signing veteran Kirk Cousins to a high-value contract. Penix is picking backup where he gradually left off last year with a 24 point outing against Tampa Bay. Penix is a valuable addition to your roster and should be rostered. He shouldn’t be on waivers next week, so you are going to miss out on him this year if you wait.
Running Backs
Dylan Sampson (RB – CLE): 43.4% Rostered | Last Week: RB9
I am only writing about one running back this week as this is the only one I feel comfortable picking up. The running back position kind of did well in Week 1 with staying off the injury report so far with only Austin Ekeler truly showing up on the injury report and Jonathan Taylor being limited at the end of the game. Sampson was the true running back for the Browns in his rookie debut, but the Browns finally signed fellow rookie Quinshon Judkins to his four-year deal. Sampson may have only received 12 attempts for 29 yards, but he was highly effective in the passing game bringing in all 8 targets for 64 yards. Joe Flacco can’t sling it like he once could, so dump offs to the running back may be in order in Cleveland.
Wide Receivers
Hollywood Brown (WR – KC): 35.9% Rostered | Last Week: WR9
Are you skeptical of Hollywood Brown after his very mediocre finishes since 2019? His highest finish was in 2021 when he finished as WR22, where he played 16 games. Considering what the Kansas City depth chart is looking like, Brown might be the one true target for Patrick Mahomes. Rashee Rice is suspended for another five games and Xavier Worthy is now dealing with a shoulder injury. Outside of Travis Kelce scoring a touchdown, he was ineffective on your roster as well. Brown should see an increased use of play over the next several weeks, assuming he remains healthy.
Quentin Johnston (WR – LAC): 9% Rostered | Last Week: WR3
Another wide receiver that has been very disappointing in his career, but had a stellar Week 1 of the season. Last year, Quentin Johnston was all over the place in effectiveness. He had eight double-digit games, but those were mostly sprinkled in, one being in Week 18, after your fantasy championship. After receiving 91 targets in 15 games last year, it was clear that Johnston is being featured better in the Los Angeles offense. With the addition of Ladd McConkey, it takes a lot of pressure off him directly.
Calvin Austin (WR – PIT): 4.4% Rostered | Last Week: WR16
This truly is the the article of skepticism after Week 1. Calvin Austin has never proven to be a worthy choice to be in your starting lineup, let alone on your roster. This is verified by his rostership as well with only 4.4% of rosters having him. Rodgers seemed to like him last week giving Austin six targets, one of which was a touchdown. He is worth looking at, but I wouldn’t be spending all of my FAAB on him, not yet anyways.
Kayshon Boutte (WR – NE): 2.3% Rostered | Last Week: WR17
The New England Patriots might be good at the wide receiver position this year. With veteran Stefon Diggs, that opens up a lot of the receiving options including Kayshon Boutte. With a breakout game for him against the Las Vegas Raiders, we will really see how they choose to feature him moving forward. Boutte was targeted eight times in Week 1 and without a touchdown, he still ended up with 16.3 points. Diggs and DeMario Douglas only saw seven targets and TE Hunter Henry saw eight targets as well. So Boutte could be an effective option on the offense moving forward. He’s worth taking a look at if you are in need of a receiver.
Tight Ends
Harold Fannin, Jr. (TE – CLE): 2.8% Rostered | Last Week: TE6
If you’ve been following FantasyNow+ for a little while, you know how much we love Fannin and have been telling people to draft him. But the Cleveland Browns have David Njoku, right? That doesn’t change the fact that Fannin received nine targets in just 72% of the snaps compared to Njoku’s six targets in 84% of the snaps. Fannin was featured often in the Week 1 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. Without finding the endzone, Fannin still ended the game with 13.6 fantasy points with a TE6 finish on the week. I would heavily consider adding him, but it could wait for next week as many leagues might still be thinking Njoku is the actual guy in Cleveland. Or you could be ahead of the game and get him real cheap this week.
Juwan Johnson (TE – NO): 3.7% Rostered | Last Week: TE1
What’s the best thing for a new quarterback like Spencer Rattler? A solid tight end. That’s exactly what Juwan Johnson was in Week 1 for the new New Orleans Saints quarterback. Johnson has been hit or miss over the last few years, but with a new head coach calling the plays, he could be getting Johnson more involved in the offense. Look to him getting a lot of claims this week after he finished as the top tight end, but just don’t waste all of your FAAB if you make a claim.
