Top early fantasy football waiver adds for Week 9

NFL Week 8 is almost in the books so now is the time for fantasy football managers everywhere to start looking ahead to the Week 9 waiver wire! Whether your squad is undefeated or entirely defeated, you can always use a strong week on the waiver wire. You’re never totally out of the fantasy playoffs (unless you’re 0-8... then maybe you’re totally out).

With most of the games this week complete, here is an early look at 10 players—all under 50% rostered—who you should be targeting and working hard to get onto your fantasy team for Week 9 (percent rostered in Yahoo leagues).

RB Zack Moss, Buffalo Bills (53% rostered)

Alright, I’m breaking my 50% rostered rule already but this is your last chance to get the talented rookie running back onto your fantasy roster. Moss and Devin Singletary split the backfield touches evenly, both carrying the ball 14 times. However, when the Bills got down into the red zone, it was Moss who saw the bulk of work, leading to two touchdowns against the Patriots. The Bills offense has spent plenty of time in the red zone this season and snagging their goal line back is a must.

RB Damien Harris, New England Patriots (46% rostered)

The days of a crowded and confusing backfield in New England seem more and more to be a thing of the past. For the third game in a row, Harris led the Patriots backfield in carries, this week posting his best game of the year so far. He finished with 102 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown. This marks Harris’ second 100 yard rushing game since coming back from injury in Week 4. With so many injuries to the Patriots’ receiver group, expect this offense to be centered around the run moving forward and Harris is clearly the vital piece of it.

RB Nyheim Hines, Indianapolis Colts (29% rostered)

As a Nyheim Hines manager, I can’t say I loved watching him go off on my bench, but I can say I loved watching his red zone celebration. Gotta love the backflip. Honestly, you should be looking to roster both Hines—who is without a doubt the Colts’ passing game back—and Jordan Wilkins who led the backfield in carries with 20 for 89 yards and a touchdown. Hines gets the nod as the Colts face the Ravens in Week 9 which could lead to more passing work for Hines.

RB DeeJay Dallas, Seattle Seahawks (24% rostered)

With both Chris Carson and Carlos Hyde out, Dallas dominated the Seahawks backfield, touching the ball 23 times for 41 yards and a touchdown on the ground and 17 and a touchdown through the air. Reports are Carson will likely be ready to go for Week 9 against the Bills, but if he suffers any setbacks, Dallas is the clear back to have for Seattle. Plus, given his strong performance in the starting role, he might be in for an uptick in work, even with a healthy Chris Carson in place.

WR Marvin Jones Jr., Detroit Lions (49% rostered)

Jones hauled in two touchdowns against the Colts and was second on the team in targets with seven. The bigger news for Jones’ fantasy value is Kenny Golladay left the game early with a hip injury so that is obviously something to monitor. If Golladay is out next week—against the Vikings secondary might I add—Jones would be the Lions top receiver in a terrific matchup. That’s more than worthwhile adding to your fantasy squad.

WR Corey Davis, Tennessee Titans (47% rostered)

Ya’ll better not let me put Davis on this list again next week. If he doesn’t hit the over 50% rostered threshold after back-to-back weeks of 10 targets AND a touchdown, then I don’t know what more you want from the guy. Davis torched the Bengals for 128 yards on eight catches and scoring a touchdown. The next couple of games for the Titans are tough, but between Weeks 13 and 17, they face the Browns, Jaguars, Lions, Packers, and Texans. Perfect schedule for fantasy playoffs.

WR Mecole Hardman, Kansas City Chiefs (30% rostered)

Yes it was against the Jets, but Hardman had his best game of the season Sunday, catching seven of his nine targets for 96 yards and a touchdown. The nine targets his wildly encouraging as hopefully it’s a sign his role in the Chiefs offense will continue to grow. With a matchup against the Panthers on tap, Hardman could continue to build upon his emergence as the Chiefs number two receiver behind Tyreek Hill.

WR Curtis Samuel, Carolina Panthers (20% rostered)

The Panthers might have finally figured out how to deploy Samuel as he’s scored a touchdown and gone over 50 total yards in each of his last two games, and has seen at least nine touches in each of his last three games. Thursday night against the Falcons, Samuel got it done both receiving and rushing, catching four balls for 31 yards and a touchdown and rushing three times for 23 yards and a touchdown. The receiving and rushing ability that Samuel brings to the table makes him an extremely intriguing fantasy player, especially in PPR leagues.

WR Darnell Mooney, Chicago Bears (6% rostered)

Mooney’s been flirting with a potential breakout for a couple of weeks now and things seemed to have finally clicked between him and Nick Foles. Mooney caught five of his six targets for 69 yards and a touchdown against the Saints Sunday. This marks the sixth game in a row Mooney has seen at least five targets as he’s cemented himself as the Bears number two receiver next to Allen Robinson. With the Titans and Vikings next on the schedule, Mooney could be in for more big fantasy outings.

WR Jakobi Meyers, New England Patriots (1% rostered)

I don’t know why it’s taken so long for Meyers to see the field with regularity, but he’s more than capitalized on his situation, seeing at least six targets and going for 55+ yards in each of his last two games. Against the Bills Sunday, Meyers led the offense in targets with 10, catching six of them for 58 yards. With Julian Edelman and N’Keal Harry both out with injury for the perceivable future, Meyers isn’t a bad stash option, especially if your league has deep benches.