We're only 16 days away from actual real NFL football. While a ton of fantasy football drafts will happen the next couple weeks, plenty have already taken place. The preseason waiver wire is both for those who have drafted and already need to pick up players and those who are looking for late-round fantasy sleepers for upcoming fantasy football drafts.
During the season, this waiver-wire column will address both shallow and deep leagues each week. The goal is to get you as prepared as possible to tackle the waiver wire each week, no matter the league format.
With every player writeup, we'll list a free agent acquisition budget (FAAB) suggestion. Rather than a specific dollar value, it will be a percentage of your FAAB budget to make it easily applicable to every league no matter if you use, for example, $100 or $1,000.
Got questions on players? Let me know in the comments.
QUARTERBACK
DEEP LEAGUES
Malik Willis, Dolphins - The quarterback market seems relatively defined, to the point where it would be surprising if a waiver-wire signal caller is needed at this point. But for two-QB leagues or deep leagues where QB depth matters, Willis fits the bill. Our consensus expert rankings do a great job highlighting the tremendous depth at the
We're only 16 days away from actual real NFL football. While a ton of fantasy football drafts will happen the next couple weeks, plenty have already taken place. The preseason waiver wire is both for those who have drafted and already need to pick up players and those who are looking for late-round fantasy sleepers for upcoming fantasy football drafts.
During the season, this waiver-wire column will address both shallow and deep leagues each week. The goal is to get you as prepared as possible to tackle the waiver wire each week, no matter the league format.
With every player writeup, we'll list a free agent acquisition budget (FAAB) suggestion. Rather than a specific dollar value, it will be a percentage of your FAAB budget to make it easily applicable to every league no matter if you use, for example, $100 or $1,000.
Got questions on players? Let me know in the comments.
QUARTERBACK
DEEP LEAGUES
Malik Willis, Dolphins - The quarterback market seems relatively defined, to the point where it would be surprising if a waiver-wire signal caller is needed at this point. But for two-QB leagues or deep leagues where QB depth matters, Willis fits the bill. Our consensus expert rankings do a great job highlighting the tremendous depth at the position, but Willis might be a bit underrated. And in case something happens to your starter between now and the start of the season, Willis will at least get you through Week 1. The Dolphins' season-opening opponent, the Raiders, figure to be one of the worst teams in the league in no small part because of their below-average defense. Willis has low-end weekly QB1 upside solely from his abilities as a scrambler, much less whatever he can compile dicing up a shaky Las Vegas secondary. FAAB: 0 percent of budget
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RUNNING BACK
ALL LEAGUES
Mike Washington, Raiders - The first major injury scare of the fantasy season occurred Sunday when Ashton Jeanty had to be helped off the field by trainers, unable to put pressure on his right leg. Jeanty, though, reportedly only suffered an ankle sprain and it is "not considered a long-term injury." That news will serve to rein in FAAB bids, which, for at least a few hours Sunday, looked headed for wallet-emptying levels. But even if Jeanty is out for an extended period, Las Vegas would almost certainly dip into the relatively expansive free-agent pool of running backs, including Raheem Mostert, Antonio Gibson, Kareem Hunt or possibly Joe Mixon. The Raiders likely would also aggressively try to acquire vets on bad teams like James Conner, Devin Singletary or even someone like Tony Pollard. The Vegas backfield was already questionably devoid of depth before this injury, and it seems foolish to roll with a mix of unproven guys like Dylan Laube and Roman Hemby behind Washington, who has questions in his own right.
A fourth-round rookie, Washington draws attention for his combination of speed (4.33 40) and ideal size (6-foot-1, 223), but it took until his fifth year in college to break out, losing significant snaps to Ron Cook in Buffalo and Seth McGowan in New Mexico State in years past. If you're unaware of those players, that's precisely the point. Washington undoubtedly has looked impressive in preseason games, but if he was as gifted a runner as his boosters suggest, he probably would have been drafted before pick 122. Jeanty owners still might want to add Washington, just in case, but the rush to the waiver wire does not appear as necessary a day after the injury. FAAB: 5 percent of budget
Tyler Allgeier, Cardinals - Inexplicably, Allgeier is rostered in less than 20 percent of ESPN leagues. It's rare to get a team's projected Week 1 starting running back for free, but here we are. That prognosis is in large part due to the high-ankle sprain of the No. 3 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, Jeremiyah Love, an injury so severe that coach Mike LaFleur needed to assure everyone the prized rookie wouldn't need surgery. In addition to discounting the injury, the general public seems to be getting glossy eyed over Love's draft capital and presuming the rookie will be a bigger factor than he will be. Allgeier signed a two-year, $12 million deal in the early stages of free agency, certainly within the timeframe the Arizona brass would have been discussing drafting Love. The Cardinals clearly value the former Falcons bruiser in some capacity, and he obviously profiles at minimum as the team's preferred goal-line option. Arizona has the second-worst Super Bowl odds in the league, so perhaps it's fair to assume a red-zone back in this offense doesn't mean much, but Allgeier is simply going to see too much volume to be this far off the consensus' radar. FAAB: 4 percent of budget
DEEP LEAGUES
MarShawn Lloyd, Packers - I'm the definition of a cynical Packers fan, so please understand why this blurb is tainted with pessimism. Lloyd, a 2024 third-round pick, has played just one game the last two years thanks to a CVS-receipt level of lower-body injuries and a fluky case of appendicitis to boot. In theory, the blazing USC product would be a perfect complement to Josh Jacobs, who is a rugged runner by nature and is also tasked with absorbing almost all of the between-the-tackle carries in the Matt LaFleur offense. The Packers desperately need another body to take some work off Jacobs, especially after backup Emanuel Wilson left for Seattle this offseason and the organization certainly will be committed to pushing Lloyd in that regard. But a significant workload for the soon-to-be third-year back is no guarantee. It's an under-discussed facet across fantasy football, but pass-blocking reps absolutely do matter and Green Bay happens to have one of the better backs at that already on the roster in Chris Brooks. Lloyd should be considered a valuable handcuff to Jacobs, but don't expect a whole lot more out of him right out of the gate. FAAB: 1 percent of budget
Kaelon Black, 49ers - This recommendation is simply a safeguard in the event that Christian McCaffrey's "tightness" lingers longer than expected. Black was the "other" comically overdrafted 49er this offseason, according to experts (including me, whoops!), but he looked good in his preseason debut against the Chargers, tallying eight carries for 33 yards with the first-string offense. More important, presumptive backup Jordan James has practiced sparingly during training camp due to a fractured rib. The backup role is clearly still up in the air, but this is a situation every fantasy manager needs to follow until the regular-season opener. FAAB: 0 percent of budget
Demond Claiborne, Vikings - The sixth-round rookie makes the list by virtue of being associated with the least interesting stable mates (Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason) according to the ADP. Claiborne has had ample opportunity to showcase himself during preseason and has mustered 52 rushing yards on 20 carries through two exhibition games, but he has flashed his explosive capabilities in the return game (71 yards on three kick returns). Jones, entering his age-32 season, has stayed healthy just once in the last three seasons and was forced to restructure his contract to ensure a spot on the team this offseason, so Claiborne may need to just wait out an inevitable injury to the veteran to earn a platoon role with Mason. I'm not convinced he'll do a lot with a role like that, but the pickings are relatively slim if you're looking for a lotto ticket at RB. FAAB: 0 percent of budget
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WIDE RECEIVER
ALL LEAGUES
Dontayvion Wicks, Eagles - Both DeVonta Smith and Makai Lemon are practicing in limited fashion after missing the majority of training camp with dueling hamstring injuries, but the time off has allowed for Wicks to make quite an impression in Philadelphia's camp. With A.J. Brown now in New England, the former Packer has quickly stepped in to the starting spot opposite Smith, pushing aside other veterans competing for the job like Hollywood Brown and Elijah Moore. Darius Cooper, a second-year undrafted free agent from Tarleton State, has also drawn rave reviews at times and could end up being legitimate competition by the end of training camp, but the Eagles gave up fifth- and sixth-round picks to acquire Wicks, presumably giving him plenty of runway for the job. Philadelphia will undoubtedly be a run-first offense again in 2026, so there's an argument to be made that nobody outside Smith projects to be a significant fantasy asset, but it's still hard to dismiss quality pieces of an offense littered with Pro Bowl talent. FAAB: 2 percent of budget
Cyrus Allen, Chiefs - The 2026 fifth-round pick is rostered in fewer than 20 percent of ESPN leagues, but he'll graduate off this list by the end of training camp. For those who drafted before training camp started, this needs to be the first name you search. Allen has unquestionably been the biggest winner of training camp and has elicited enormous amounts of hype to the point it seems like a formality the Cincinnati product will be a part of the team's pass-catching rotation, though it's up to interpretation as to how much he'll be featured. Allen's loudest supporters point to Stefon Diggs, a similarly built fifth-round pick who immediately broke onto the scene in Minnesota as a savvy slot target, as the blueprint of what's to come in Kansas City. Detractors will mention that Allen has yet to play in a live game with Patrick Mahomes (torn ACL rehab throughout preseason) and has compiled just five receptions for 27 yards with subpar preseason quarterback play. This same article last year is littered with a who's who of training camp darling wide receivers who did nothing when it mattered for fantasy, and that's admittedly factoring into my judgement somewhat. Perhaps more crucially, I'm not convinced an Eric Bieniemy offense in the year 2026 will actually be fruitful, especially if you assume Mahomes will be limited as a runner. FAAB: 18 percent of budget
DEEP LEAGUES
Caleb Douglas, Dolphins - I'm growing increasingly more interested in Douglas, one of two third-round rookie receivers selected by this new Miami regime in April. While I'm of the belief that Chris Bell (knee) could immediately jump onto the scene as the team's top target, the Louisville product isn't completely cleared from the torn ACL he suffered in December, thus opening the door for Douglas. It's worth noting that Douglas was a bit of a surprise selection as an early third-round pick given he never tallied more than 900 yards in a single collegiate season, but at 6-4, 205, he feels eerily similar to someone like Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who new Dolphins general manager John-Eric Sullivan helped select with the Packers in 2018. There are legitimate reasons to be skeptical about a Miami passing attack that is a weird mashup between veteran cast offs (Jalen Tolbert, Jalen Reagor, Tutu Atwell) and unproven youngsters, but getting consistent playing time is one of the only measurables to note in these types of situations. The realistic answer is that no WR in Miami is useful this year, but in deep formats I don't mind rolling the dice on a toolsy pass catcher like Douglas. FAAB: 0 percent of budget
Jaylin Noel, Texans - The season-ending injury to Jayden Higgins (torn ACL) opens the door for another pass catcher in Houston. Xavier Hutchinson likely will absorb a pointless amount of useless boundary reps in his absence, but I do think Noel would be theoretically the other Texans' wide receiver who could be a fantasy factor if he's healthy. The "other" Iowa State receiver has missed time in training camp due to a hamstring injury, but so too has his competition, Tank Dell, who is still trying to gain clearance after the gruesome knee injury toward the end of the 2024 season. Noel is unquestionably the team's best slot target with Christian Kirk now in San Francisco, and he's a dart I don't mind throwing in leagues with deep benches. FAAB: 0 percent of budget
Check out our Fantasy Football ADP Report for a comprehensive tool with live-updated ADP data for multiple league formats and sites.
TIGHT END
Chig Okonkwo, Commanders - The late training-camp signing of Stefon Diggs stymied the hype somewhat, but Okonkwo has seemingly built quite a rapport with quarterback Jayden Daniels in training camp. To put things into perspective, 34-year-old Zach Ertz finished as a TE1 in six games with the Commanders last year despite missing the aforementioned star quarterback much of the season. And outside of Diggs and Terry McLaurin, Washington doesn't have a pass catcher on its roster that has had more than 31 receptions in a season outside of 2021 Van Jefferson. It's borderline disrespectful to assume Okonkwo, who ran a 4.52 40 in 2022, can't be featured in a similar fashion even in a new scheme under offensive coordinator David Blough. I'm convinced the fourth-year tight end, who has three seasons of 50-plus receptions, could be a true sleeper from a fantasy perspective and I'd outright roster him over tight ends drafted earlier like Oronde Gadsden, Dallas Goedert and Jake Ferguson. FAAB: 3 percent of budget
Greg Dulcich, Dolphins - Are you sensing a theme in this article? Similar to Malik Willis and Caleb Douglas, the overall fantasy market is rightly low on the Dolphins. Someone stands to benefit, though, and I'm of the belief Dulcich will be the winner even if the "prize" is sparse weeks of low-end TE1 production. The sixth-year tight end was the focal point of Willis during the early portion of training camp and seems to be a natural option in the middle of the field, an area where the new starting QB was successful targeting in his time with Green Bay. There was a point in time where Dulcich was the trendy TE sleeper with the Broncos due to his athleticism and few other options capable of emerging in a ho-hum pass-catching unit five years ago. Maybe the second time is the charm entering his age-26 season. FAAB: 0 percent of budget
