Joe Serpico shares his top fantasy football waiver-wire pickups heading into Week 9.
Joe Flacco, QB, Cincinnati Bengals: The Bengals did not get the win, but it was another terrific performance from Flacco. He is averaging 23 fantasy points per game since taking over as the Bengals’ starter and is QB6 in the last three weeks. Ja’Marr Chase owners are loving Flacco, and the Bears’ vulnerable defense is up next. He will be a top-10 QB in my rankings again this week.
Tyrone Tracy Jr., RB, New York Giants: A devastating injury to Cam Skattebo ends his season and sets up Tracy to be the Giants’ lead back for the rest of the season. He was effective when he took over the starting job last season, finishing as RB14 from Week 5 to Week 17. His ability to catch passes makes him a solid RB2 and this week’s priority pickup. Only Devin Singletary sits behind him on the Giants’ depth chart.
Kyle Monangai, RB, Chicago Bears: D’Andre Swift was questionable entering the game against the Ravens, but it was a near 50-50 split for the Bears’ running backs. Monangai played 29 snaps compared to 31 for Swift and saw a couple goal-line carries as well. Ben Johnson’s offense has thrived with two backs and that looks to be the case in Chicago as well. The Bengals’ suspect defense is up next.
Bam Knight, RB, Arizona Cardinals: I continue to be dumbfounded by how widely available Knight is in fantasy leagues. He is the clear starter for the Cardinals, who are without Trey Benson for at least one more game. It is no guarantee that Benson is activated next week, and until that does happen, Knight is a solid FLEX play for fantasy owners. Saquon Barkley, Breece Hall and Quinshon Judkins are all on a bye, and Knight gets the Cowboys this week.
Troy Franklin, WR, Denver Broncos: Franklin was featured in this piece a few weeks back but laid a couple of eggs in the ensuing weeks. In the last two weeks, he has garnered 18 targets and has found the end zone three times. He finished as WR1 against the Cowboys in Week 8 and is drawing more looks than Courtland Sutton as of late. More importantly, he is fifth in the NFL in red-zone targets. He needs to be added by any receiver-needy teams.
Kayshon Boutte, WR, New England Patriots: Another receiver previously featured is Boutte, who has four touchdowns in the Patriots last three games. He has finished as WR4, WR20 and WR9 and has some juicy matchups on deck.
Chimere Dike, WR, Tennessee Titans: It is hard to put any stock in the Titans’ dreadful offense, but they are going to be trailing often. Dike had seven receptions for 93 yards against the Colts in Week 8 and has become Cam Ward’s favorite target with Calvin Ridley out of the lineup. Dike is a solid bye week fill-in, but it’s hard to trust anyone in Tennessee for consistent results.
Top Handcuffs (Rostered in less than 50 percent of leagues)
Tyler Allgeier, Atlanta Falcons
Kyle Monangai, Chicago Bears
Tyjae Spears, Tennessee Titans
Blake Corum, Los Angeles Rams
Kenneth Gainwell, Pittsburgh Steelers
Ollie Gordon II, Miami Dolphins
DJ Giddens, Indianapolis Colts
Ray Davis, Buffalo Bills
Tank Bigsby, Philadelphia Eagles
Jerome Ford, Cleveland Browns