Week 8 fantasy waiver wire targets: Top waiver wire pickups this week at every position

Coming out of Week 7, Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold is still available in more than 50 percent of leagues. We’ll chalk that up to the Week 6 bye, but that number has to go up. Darnold has four games with multiple touchdown passes this season and he’s thrown for 200-plus yards in four of six starts. Minnesota is also getting tight end T.J. Hockenson back. If that’s not enough to incentivize you, Darnold faces three of the worst defenses in football (Rams, Colts, Jaguars) in the next three weeks and we believe he can be a top-10 fantasy quarterback.

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Rostered in just a quarter of fantasy football leagues, it’s time to scoop up Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. The risk of another head injury, requiring a stint on IR, is always a possibility. With that said, let’s not forget the fantastic fantasy football stats he posts when healthy. From 2022-’23, Tagovailoa has averaged 272 passing yards per game with a 4.9 percent touchdown rate, he delivers. He’s one of our top fantasy waiver wire targets this week because he can consistently deliver top-10 production and the second-half of the Dolphins schedule is favorable.

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Before Devin Singletary’s return in Week 6, New York Giants reporter Jordan Raanan shared that Tyrone Tracy Jr. would become more involved in the offense moving forward. While the results this past Sunday weren’t pretty – 32 scrimmage yards on 9 touches – he did get more opportunities than Devin Singletary. Tracy Jr. isn’t anything more than a mid-tier FLEX option right now in PPR leagues, but there are some favorable games looming for him on the Giants schedule (Commanders, Panthers, Cowboys) in November.

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Once viewed as a potential fantasy football breakout star a few years ago, Alexander Mattison has proven to be nothing more than an adequate player. Fortunately for him, the bar is very low with this Las Vegas Raiders offense. Mattison is coming off a season-best performance (123 scrimmage yards on 26 touches), with Zamir White still being eased back from injury. We wouldn’t recommend Mattison as a Week 8 fantasy starter, considering how great the Kansas City Chiefs run defense is, but he could be a back-end FLEX option for a few weeks in November.

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All it takes is one opportunity to become a household name in the NFL. When James Cook sat out in Week 6, Ray Davis took over as the Buffalo Bills featured running back and turned 23 touches into 152 scrimmage yards. Cook returned this past Sunday and handled a majority of the workload, but Davis still turned his 6 touches into 47 scrimmage yards and a touchdown. Davis is a must-add at this point, especially with the Bills facing one of the NFL’s worst run defenses (Seattle Seahawks) in Week 8.

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Even with no teams on a bye in Week 8, we’re prioritizing the running back position with our fantasy waiver wire pickups. Following a multi-game absence, Jaylen Warren was eased back into action on Oct. 13 (9 touches) before reclaiming a larger workload in Sunday’s win over the New York Jets. Warren is on the backside of the Pittsburgh Steelers running back committee, but he can still give you double-digit touches per game. He’s plenty talented as well, so those 10-12 touches could turn into 50-plus scrimmage yards and that gives him FLEX appeal in PPR leagues.

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The Brandon Aiyuk injury is devastating for this San Francisco 49ers offense, but it does open the door for Jauan Jennings to become an impact player. In his first four games, with George Kittle and Deebo Samuel banged up, Jennings drew 6.8 targets per game, averaging 17.3 yards per catch with 3 touchdowns and 364 receiving yards (91 per game). He now becomes San Francisco’s No. 2 receiver and we view him as a solid FLEX starter in fantasy lineups moving forward with some WR2 upside.

Since returning from his one-game suspension, imposed by the Green Bay Packers, Romeo Doubs has scored two touchdowns with 142 receiving yards and 11 receptions on 14 targets in the last two weeks. Talent has never been the issue, he just wasn’t a focal point of this passing game. Jordan Love and Matt LaFleur are now getting Doubs more involved, pushing him into the FLEX category for fantasy starters in PPR scoring. Ideally, he should be a fantastic depth piece on the bench of fantasy managers who comes in when top receivers are on a bye and he’ll deliver stable production.

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Since Drake Maye became the New England Patriots’ starting quarterback, Hunter Henry has averaged 7 targets, 66.5 receiving yards and 12.1 yards per reception. The landscape at tight end in fantasy football isn’t pretty, but Henry’s role in this offense and the chemistry with Maye immediately make him a fantasy starter. If you’re hurting at tight end, Henry is the guy to add this week and he could be a top-10 tight end moving forward.

As always, we round out our fantasy waiver wire targets this week with a streaming defense to target. If for whatever reason the Chargers D/ST is still available, grab them ahead of the Week 8 matchup against the New Orleans Saints. If not, don’t sleep on the Miami Dolphins defense. Entering this week, Miami is allowing the fewest passing yards per game (154.5) with the fewest passing touchdowns allowed (5). The Arizona Cardinals offense has been wildly inconsistent this season and while the Dolphins D/ST likely won’t generate multiple takeaways, they’ll produce a productive line.

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