Fantasy Football Waiver Wire and Rest of Season Rankings- Week 9, 2026
Your fantasy football season is in make or break territory. The waiver offerings have been hit and miss so far this season, but it is getting close to the time when we need something to give us a spark. If you have gaps in your line-up or going to get hit hard by the bye week, don't be afraid to overpay for a 1 or 2 week fill-in.
It's sad to say, but injuries do make the waiver wire more interesting. We are not injury vultures, we wish those that are injured the best of luck, we are just playing a game and are looking to optimize our chances of winning.
Waiver advice for those who play in more typical home redraft leagues will be published each week. We will look at players owned less than 60% in the most popular formats and rank out in order our favorite waiver pickups broken down by position. Most weeks will also feature our Rest of Season rankings which are THE MOST ACCURATE over the past 5 years.
The Rest-of-Season Rankings are really far more important than the waiver wire rankings. There may be players available in your league that aren't available in most leagues and you can't tell that they are higher ranked unless you check the Rest-of-Season rankings by scrolling down.
News
Head coach Mike LaFleur said that Carson Beck will serve as the Cardinals' No. 2 quarterback behind starter Gardner Minshew in Sunday's game against the Seahawks, Darren Urban of the team's official site reports. Beck had been a healthy inactive through each of the Cardinals' first eight games of the season as the emergency No. 3 quarterback, but he'll get the chance to dress for the first time in Week 9 after Arizona removed the struggling Jacoby Brissett from the starting role and dropped him down two spots on the depth chart.
Head coach Shane Steichen said that Daniel Jones will remain the Colts' starting quarterback heading into Sunday's game against the Colts, Mike Chappell of Fox 59 News Indianapolis reports. After a 42-7 loss to the Jaguars on Sunday during which Jones was benched in favor of Anthony Richardson in the fourth quarter, Steichen suggested that he would evaluate every position, including quarterback.
Head coach Matt LaFleur said Monday that the Packers are aware of the prior physical abuse allegations involving Josh Jacobs that recently surfaced and "anticipate him being a member" of the team moving forward, Ryan Wood of USA Today reports. Before making his season debut Week 7, Jacobs missed the Packers' first six games after he was placed on the commissioner's exempt list after he was officially charged Aug. 27 with two misdemeanors stemming from his May arrest for a domestic incident. The legal process related to that incident has since played out, but Jacobs' status with the team had been called into question after the NFL announced Saturday that it was reviewing additional allegations of physical and verbal abuse from three different women in incidents dating back to April 2021 that were released following a public records request. Unless the NFL elects to place him back on the exempt list while it reviews the incidents in question, Jacobs looks like he'll be available for Green Bay's next game Sunday at New England. Despite the missed time to begin the season, Jacobs has immediately settled back into a lead role in the backfield and has scored three touchdowns in two games, but he's mustered just 75 yards on 32 carries (2.3 average) to go with 11 receptions for 68 yards on 13 targets.
Panthers head coach Dave Canales said Monday that Jonathon Brooks (abdomen) will "potentially" be designated for return from injured reserve this week, Joe Person of The Athletic reports. Canales noted that Brooks still has some checkpoints he needs to hit in his recovery process before getting the green light to practice, but the running back looks to have at least made progress on some level since landing on IR.
Brandon Aiyuk is close to hiring new representation and is expected to file for reinstatement to the NFL in the near future, according to NFL reporter Jordan Schultz.
Aiyuk, 28, made his last NFL appearance Oct. 20, 2024, when he sustained multiple ligament tears in his right knee and required season-ending surgery. Though Aiyuk has likely been fully healthy for several months, his future in football has been murky due in part to his acrimonious relationship with the 49ers, who still hold his rights after placing him on the reserve/left squad list last December.
Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Adds
Players We Can Drop
When we make waiver claims most of the time we can easily determine who to add, but we struggle with which players to drop. It is very difficult to give-up on a player we thought was worth drafting in the first place. If you are struggling, you should be dropping your questions or concerns in our Discord channel. Don't be afraid of it, I'm over 50 and navigate it fairly well.
Injuries
Matthew Stafford left the locker room after Sunday's 24-9 win over the Charger with a bag of ice wrapped to his right arm, and Rams coach Sean McVay acknowledged Monday that the quarterback has been dealing with some arm soreness, Adam Grosbard of The Orange County Register reports.
Kyler Murray (hamstring), who is dealing with a sore hamstring, is undergoing a full evaluation to determine the extent of the issue, Alec Lewis of The Athletic reports.
When asked whether or not Murray's hamstring soreness would affect his availability for next Monday night's game against the Bills, coach Kevin O'Connell said "I don't think we're there yet." Added context regarding the QB's Week 9 availability is in line to arrive no later than Thursday's practice report, but if Murray is unable suit up versus Buffalo, Carson Wentz would be next in line for Minnesota's signal-caller reps.
Head coach Kellen Moore said that Travis Etienne (hamstring) will be evaluated Monday before the Saints make a determination whether he practices this week, Ross Jackson of WWL Louisiana reports. Sidelined since he sustained a left hamstring strain in a Sept. 27 loss to the Raiders, Etienne will be eligible to play coming out of the Saints' Week 8 bye now that he's missed the required four games while on injured reserve.
Giants head coach John Harbaugh said that Cam Skattebo (hamstring) is day-to-day and could end up being a game-time decision for Sunday's tilt with the Eagles, Jordan Raanan reports. After tweaking his hamstring late in the Giants' Week 7 overtime win over Houston, Skattebo was seen working off to the side Monday during an unofficial practice coming out of a bye week.
Packers passing game coordinator Jason Vrable said Monday that Christian Watson (ribs) is sore but "doing great" Matt Schneidman of The Athletic reports.
Watson suffered a broken rib during this past Thursday win over the Panthers, and while Vrable notes with regard to Watson's status for this Sunday's game against the Patriots, "we'll see as the week goes," he added that the wideout will do everything possible to get his body ready in advance of Week 9 action.
Kendrick Bourne suffered a fractured right tibia during Sunday's overtime win at Dallas that won't require surgery but will sideline him for three months, ending his 2026 season, Adam Schefter reports. What was initially believed to be a right high-ankle sprain for Bourne has since been revealed to be much more serious after additional testing. He thus will finish with 26 catches (on 38 targets) for 263 yards and no touchdowns in eight regular-season appearances.
Coach Sean McVay said Monday that it is "looking more likely than not" Terrance Ferguson (ankle) will practice this week, Sarah Barshop reports. Ferguson has been on injured reserve since Oct. 2, but he appears to be inching closer to returning to the Rams' tight end mix.
Rest of Season Rankings
There aren't many places we can get full rankings that have the rest of the season in mind, let alone rankings as accurate as ours. These Rest of Season Fantasy Football rankings have been THE #1 most accurate over the past five seasons.
