Welcome to the Week 8 waiver wire watch! Consider making a waiver claim in your fantasy football leagues for the following players (available in at least 50% of ESPN leagues).
Sam Darnold, QB, Minnesota Vikings
The journeyman quarterback has cooled off after a blazing start to his seventh NFL season, yet Darnold returns to fantasy relevancy with matchups against the Rams, Colts and Jaguars on deck. Those teams all rank bottom-8 in yards per attempt and passing touchdowns allowed. Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and Aaron Jones are all healthy, and T.J. Hockenson could return as soon as this week for Thursday Night Football.
Bo Nix gets an honorable mention considering his rushing value (136 yards in his past two games) and Week 8 matchup against the woeful Panthers.
Tyrone Tracy, RB, New York Giants
New York surely planned on Devin Singletary being its 2024 starter when he signed a three-year deal in free agency. However, injury has opened the door for fifth-round rookie Tyrone Tracy to cruise to 141 yards from scrimmage (on the vast majority of offensive snaps) in the past two weeks, including when Singletary played on Sunday. Brian Daboll said before the game, “He’s done a good job, he’s earned it, so he’ll get plenty of playing time. Motor [Singletary], we’ll see how the game’s going and how it transpires.” Singletary may not have played much because he was returning from injury and the Giants were down two scores by halftime. That said, it’s worth adding Tracy in case he keeps the backfield lead.
Alexander Mattison, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
Speaking of backfield leads… Mattison has officially taken the starting job from Zamir White in Las Vegas. It’s not earth-shattering news considering the Raiders fielded a bottom-5 offense before trading away Davante Adams. Still, Mattison can be a valuable plug-and-play in the next few weeks as fantasy managers deal with byes and injuries. Gardner Minshew returning as the starting quarterback helps too, as he’s been quick to check down his whole career.
Jaylen Warren, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers
Don’t ask me to explain it, but Pittsburgh’s offense got a major boost by inserting Russell Wilson into the starting lineup on Sunday. Their 37 points against the Jets on Sunday Night Football was the most they’d scored since Ben Roethlisberger was playing. The rejuvenated unit saw George Pickens and Najee Harris combine for 213 yards and 2 scores, but the underlying storyline was Warren looking spry with 59 yards of his own. Though the lightning to Harris’ thunder has battled a knee injury this season, Warren could be a viable fantasy option if the Steelers have truly found something with Wilson as the signal caller.
Romeo Doubs, WR, Green Bay Packers
Doubs’ rock-steady role in the Packers’ offense has borne fruit. After scoring twice last week, he set season-highs in targets (10), catches (8) and yards (94) on Sunday. While natural regression would suggest Doubs will come back to earth, he has juicy upcoming matchups against the Jaguars and Lions coming up.
Jalen McMillan, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
A sweet Monday Night Football doubleheader was sourly ended when Chris Godwin was carted off with a leg injury. It’s terrible news for the Bucs, but the silver lining is increased opportunities for McMillan. The third-round rookie caught his first career touchdown in Week 7, and he was playing about 80% of offensive snaps in Weeks 1-3 before sustaining a hamstring injury. Now that Godwin is hurt and McMillan is healthy, it’s wheels up for the latter in Tampa Bay’s explosive offense.
Jauan Jennings, WR, San Francisco 49ers
Ricky Pearsall, WR, San Francisco 49ers
A similarly sad situation arose in San Francisco on Sunday when Brandon Aiyuk tore his ACL and MCL; Jennings and Pearsall will step in for the All-Pro wideout. Jennings missed Week 7 with a hip injury but he’s expected to return as the no. 2 receiver behind Deebo Samuel. Meanwhile, Pearsall played in his first NFL game after surviving a gunshot wound in the offseason, and he had a decent debut with 3 catches for 21 yards. The 31st overall pick is worth adding as a low-floor, high-ceiling asset.
Hunter Henry, TE, New England Patriots
Henry posted 3-plus catches for 40-plus yards in each of the past two weeks after doing so once in the first month of the season. He’s been the top target for rookie quarterback Drake Maye, and so long as the Patriots continue playing from behind, Henry can continue offering solid fantasy production.
