Week 9 Waiver Wire: Mike Washington Jr. Took the Raiders’ Backfield

Mike Washington Jr. handled 25 of the Raiders’ 31 running back opportunities in Week 8, which is the sort of number that should pull you away from your coffee and toward the waiver screen.

Washington has the best combination of availability and immediate workload, but the receiving role is thin, Ashton Jeanty still exists, and San Francisco is waiting. Spend with purpose.

Roster percentages and matchups come from NFL.com’s Week 9 waiver report. Week 8 usage comes from RotoWire’s snap and opportunity recap.

1. Mike Washington Jr., RB, Las Vegas Raiders

Washington is rostered in 18% of ESPN leagues and gets San Francisco this week. The matchup isn’t why he’s first. The workload is.

He played 63% of the offensive snaps, including 71% on first and second down, and took 25 of the Raiders’ 31 running back opportunities. He out-carried Jeanty 25 to two. We can argue about efficiency after we finish picking up the guy who just received 81% of his backfield’s work.

The receiving floor is weak, so a negative game script could turn this into a long afternoon of Washington running into bodies while your PPR total develops a cough. That keeps him below ALL IN territory. Twenty-five carries, however, can survive plenty of ugliness.

FAAB: 25%. Redraft: Add in every twelve-team league and start him as an RB2 or flex. Dynasty: Add, but price him as a back with a fresh opportunity, not a permanent starter.

2. Tyler Allgeier, RB, Arizona Cardinals

Sixteen touches will do just fine, especially when he played every second-half snap and Jeremiyah Love is listed Out with an ankle injury.

The problem arrives Wednesday. If Arizona’s other backs return to practice and the backfield starts filling up again, an aggressive bid ages like gas-station sushi. If the absences hold, Allgeier could walk into most of the available work against Seattle.

FAAB: 18%. Redraft: Add, then check Wednesday’s practice report before treating him as more than a flex. Dynasty: Add or hold, with the expectation that his weekly value will move with the health of Arizona’s backfield.

3. Antonio Williams, WR, Washington Commanders

He caught five of seven targets.

That’s the profile I want from a receiver rostered in 16% of leagues. The production wasn’t built on one busted coverage or a touchdown doing all the cosmetic work. Williams stayed on the field and earned the ball.

The Rams come to Washington in Week 9. Williams belongs in the flex conversation, especially in PPR, and his role carries more weight than the usual waiver receiver who caught a deep ball and now has half your league acting like it discovered electricity.

FAAB: 15%. Redraft: Add as a PPR flex with room to climb. Dynasty: Strong add, particularly for rebuilding teams that can wait on the role beyond this week.

4. Dylan Sampson, RB, Cleveland Browns

Sampson is the PPR specialist hiding at 12% rostership. He played 56% of the snaps compared with Quinshon Judkins’ 39%, ran a route on 54% of Cleveland’s dropbacks, and earned a 20% target share. Six catches on eight targets produced 62 receiving yards.

That role depends on Cleveland trailing, which is less a concern than it sounds. Sampson doesn’t need to take the entire backfield if the passing work keeps landing in his lap.

FAAB: 13% in PPR, 8% in standard. Redraft: Add as a PPR flex and matchup-dependent RB3. Dynasty: Add wherever available because receiving work gives him more paths to relevance.

5. Keenan Allen, WR, Indianapolis Colts

His Week 8 target share was 23%, close to his roughly 22% season rate.

That’s Keenan Allen’s entire act. He doesn’t need to win a beauty contest or sprint past everyone. He finds the soft spot, catches the football, and leaves standard-league managers wondering why their six-yard reception is worth so little.

Dallas makes him an immediate PPR play. The smaller route share limits the ceiling, but the targets have remained stubbornly useful.

FAAB: 11%. Redraft: Add and start as a PPR flex. Dynasty: Add for contenders; rebuilding teams shouldn’t spend much on the short-term floor.

6. Adonai Mitchell, WR, New York Jets

Mitchell produced the loudest underlying receiving line on this list: a 29% target share, nine targets, and 219 air yards. He did that while playing 61% of the snaps and running a route on 74% of dropbacks.

Two hundred nineteen air yards at 11% rostership is the kind of number that makes everyone feel brilliant until they see Kansas City on the schedule. Mitchell also remained third among Jets receivers in playing time, so the role hasn’t caught up with the ceiling yet.

This is an upside claim, not a safe one. He could turn those air yards into a week-winning score, or he could leave them floating over your lineup like the smell from a bad decision.

FAAB: 9%. Redraft: Add for bench upside, but don’t force him into Week 9 lineups. Dynasty: Strong add because the ceiling matters more than this week’s playing-time uncertainty.

7. Mike Gesicki, TE, Cincinnati Bengals

Fantasy tight ends continue to treat our lineups like a public restroom, so Gesicki reaching season highs in both snap share and route participation qualifies as progress. He played 67% of the snaps, ran routes on 72% of dropbacks, and drew six targets.

The touchdown risk remains because this is still tight end, where one trip to the end zone turns a four-target afternoon into a parade.

At least the routes are there. We can get down to Gesicki business. That pun cost you nothing, unlike the tight end you drafted.

FAAB: 6%. Redraft: Add as a top streaming option and a possible rest-of-season starter. Dynasty: Add in tight-end-premium leagues; otherwise treat him as veteran depth.

8. Caleb Douglas, WR, Miami Dolphins

Douglas played 87% of Miami’s snaps, ran a route on 84% of dropbacks, and earned a 20% target share. He’s rostered in 29% of ESPN leagues and faces Detroit.

Detroit also gives this game scoring potential, which raises the value of an every-down role even if the target order remains unsettled.

FAAB: 7%. Redraft: Add as a bench receiver with flex upside this week. Dynasty: Add and hold while the every-down role develops.

9. Chig Okonkwo, TE, Washington Commanders

Okonkwo’s box score didn’t throw a party, but he played 75% of the snaps, ran routes on 79% of dropbacks, and received a 15% target share. McLaurin’s absence leaves Washington with work to redistribute, even if Antonio Williams appears to have grabbed the larger plate.

This is a participation bet at a position where participation is often the best luxury available. Thrilling? No. Neither is flossing, and apparently we still have to do that.

FAAB: 4%. Redraft: Add as a streamer or backup for managers stuck in tight-end purgatory. Dynasty: Hold or add in tight-end-premium formats, but don’t pay for a breakout that hasn’t happened.

10. Malik Willis, QB, Miami Dolphins

Willis is the best one-week quarterback stream and remains available in 89% of ESPN leagues. He played every offensive snap in Week 8 and has scored at least 15 fantasy points in three straight games.

Detroit has allowed the most quarterback fantasy points per game. Willis has also generated at least nine rushing fantasy points in two of his past three, according to PFF’s Week 9 waiver analysis. That rushing work can rescue a mediocre passing day before it ruins your Sunday.

FAAB: 5% in one-QB, 15% in superflex. Redraft: Stream him against Detroit. Dynasty: Add in superflex, but don’t value a useful run as proof of a permanent starting job.

Shit Sandwich of the Week: Tyler Allgeier

Allgeier gets Seattle, his workload depends on an Arizona injury report that hasn’t finished cooking, and he may cost close to one-fifth of your budget. Delicious.

Roster him anyway.

Sixteen touches and every second-half snap are too much opportunity to leave sitting on waivers. You may not enjoy the matchup, the uncertainty, or the Wednesday practice-refresh ritual. Eat the sandwich because running back volume disappears faster than dignity in the league group chat.

Suggested drops

In a one-QB league with no IR and a short bench, dropping him for an active starter is reasonable. Superflex managers should hold unless the roster rules make that impossible.

Your second kicker can go. Your second defense can go too, unless you’re deliberately holding next week’s matchup. A bench receiver running behind three teammates with no target spike shouldn’t survive at the expense of Antonio Williams or Mitchell.

During roughly Weeks 1 through 5, I won’t recommend dropping a top-six-round pick. Draft cost still deserves time that early. Week 9 is different. A famous name can’t keep renting half your bench because you once clicked on him in August.

Two popular names miss this article’s eligibility line: Jonah Coleman is 52% rostered, and Brenton Strange is exactly 50%. Mathematics remains undefeated.

Week 9 D/ST and kicker streams

Houston Texans D/ST at the Chargers: Houston was around 64% rostered before its bye, so check before assuming it’s gone. The Chargers average 14.1 points, commit 2.4 giveaways per game, and rank 30th in pass-block win rate. Justin Herbert has thrown ten interceptions and taken fifteen sacks over his past four games. FAAB: 2%.

New Orleans Saints D/ST vs. Cleveland: This is the widely available play. Cleveland allows 4.1 sacks per game, averages 17.4 points, and has committed multiple turnovers in four of its past five. The Saints’ defense isn’t carrying this recommendation. Cleveland is. FAAB: 1%.

Detroit Lions D/ST at Miami: Detroit averages 3.4 sacks, while Miami allows 3.0 per game and ranks 31st in scoring. FAAB: 1%.

Cairo Santos, K, Chicago Bears: Tampa Bay allowed sixteen field goals on seventeen attempts through seven games. Santos averages 2.1 attempts and 9.0 fantasy points, with Chicago carrying a 26.25-point implied total. FAAB: 1%. Redraft: Stream and consider holding if the opportunities continue. Dynasty: No special priority outside formats that require kickers.

Drew Stevens, K, Washington Commanders: The Rams allow 3.0 field-goal attempts per game, the highest figure among the Week 9 opponents on the cited board. Stevens averages 2.4 attempts and has made seven kicks from at least forty yards. FAAB: 1%. Redraft: Use as the deeper alternative to Santos. Dynasty: No priority beyond ordinary kicker depth.

ZeroChalk is not affiliated with the NFL, NFL teams, or the NFLPA. Injury and role calls are best-guess reads from public practice and camp reporting, not inside information.