If you are new to the game, you may be wondering: How do waivers work in fantasy football? As important as successfully navigating and selecting from custom fantasy football rankings during draft season, implementing a successful waiver wire strategy helps a fantasy team work its way through injuries and other roadblocks during a fantasy campaign.
There are many elements to understanding waivers, but the key is knowing that this is a system fantasy leagues use to determine how teams will claim players not currently on anyone's roster. This differs from fantasy football free agency in that it gives all teams a chance to claim a player, whereas free agency is a first-come, first-served approach.
Players are on waivers because they were never on a roster in the first place or because they were dropped from a fantasy team's roster. This may be in response to some recent fantasy football news such as injury or a change in usage, but once that player is released, he will then be subject to the league's waiver priority rules.
We'll cover the details of how all of this works in the sections below, including how you can use a subscription to RotoWire to gain a waiver-wire edge.
FAAB vs Waiver Priority: What's the Difference?
There are two main types of waiver systems: waiver priority and FAAB. Let's use this next section as a beginner fantasy football guide to explain the waiver priority system, then answer the question, "What is FAAB in fantasy football?"
A waiver priority system uses a rolling order. It may mean the team with the worst record gets the first claim on a player, or it could be prioritized initially by reverse draft order.
If the top priority team puts in a claim for that player on time, they will get the player. This rolling order system applies to all teams, so whichever team has the highest rolling order will win each bid. In most leagues, once a team wins a bid, their squad moves to the bottom of the waiver wire order. A good way to master this format is to think these moves through in the same way you would think about using a fantasy football cheat sheet during a snake draft.
Now let's see how the FAAB waiver fantasy football system works. FAAB stands for Free Agent Acquisition Budget. In this format, teams are given a virtual dollar amount (typically $100) that can be used to bid on waiver picks. It's important to use these virtual dollars wisely, because once they run out, a team can no longer win a waiver bid. This makes FAAB bidding strategies very important. In many ways, they are similar to the draft strategies used with auction values.
The main benefit of the waiver priority system is that it gives bad teams a fantasy roster management edge they can use to become more competitive. The downside is that it can leave well-managed teams short of quality replacement prospects. You can practice some mock drafts ahead of time.
The top reason fantasy managers like FAAB systems is that everyone gets a chance to bid on a player. The downside for FAAB is one overbid on a bad player can ruin a team's chance to rebuild, much like what can happen if you don't use the best draft assistant tool to prepare for your fantasy drafts.
Most platforms allow fantasy leagues to choose which type of waiver system is used. This can also be changed from year to year if desired.
When Do Waivers Run Each Week?
The first weekly waiver wire usually runs on Wednesday morning, although this timing can vary by platform. Some leagues allow custom settings such as daily waivers or continuous waivers throughout the week. Here is a quick list of some default waiver settings on some of the top fantasy football platforms. Remember you can get personalized fantasy advice for your leagues by adding them to the My Leagues page on RotoWire.
| ESPN | Wednesday at 3 a.m. ET |
| Yahoo | Wednesday at 3:58 a.m. ET |
| Sleeper | Wednesday between 3-5 a.m. ET |
Beginner Tips for Mastering the Waiver Wire
A good starting point for mastering the waiver wire is to watch injury reports and/or depth chart updates to see which players are gaining or losing value. Next is diving into fantasy football rankings for waivers that are available at RotoWire. These rankings will also help you determine which players are worth prioritizing in priority or FAAB leagues. Being selective early here can give you valuable late-season flexibility at the top of the waiver wire.
Final Thoughts on Waiver Strategy
One of the top tips you can benefit from in the waiver wire world is to get into the habit of looking at waivers on Tuesday. Once you do that and are familiar with your league's FAAB or priority waiver transactions, you will find that you can improve your team every week and thus increase your chances of winning more fantasy matchups.
The best way to get ahead in the waiver wire world is through the tools and advice provided by RotoWire. Not only does it prepare you before the season with the best draft kit, it will give you many pages that you will want to bookmark for weekly waiver information and rankings. It can be the difference between winning and losing a league, so be sure to start your RotoWire subscription today!
