If you have been saving all your FAAB or the top fantasy football waiver wire priority, well, this isn’t the week to use it. We’ve had a couple of big dog options on the wire so far, no doubt about it. But the 2025 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 8 doesn’t have the big splash. That doesn’t mean there aren’t some decent “housekeeping” moves to make with our best waiver wire picks. And we’ll once again hit on all the deeper players in our premium Streamers and Stashes article for Fantasy Alarm members. You might need them with six teams on bye in Week 8.
Don’t miss out—Go All-Pro today and head over to Fantasy Alarm’s League Sync Waiver Wire Tool to uncover the top 2025 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 8 pickups tailored specifically to your leagues. Additionally, if you’re an All-Pro subscriber, unlock the exclusive Streamers & Stashes article for even deeper insights on hidden gems ready to stash for the long haul.
2025 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 8 Top Targets
As always, our 2025 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 8 discussion will be split into two articles. This is the main article, which covers the best waiver wire picks and top players to add at each position, as well as an update to our Yin & Yang Tight End strategy. The second article, found here, is our Streamers and Stashes article that covers the deeper, more nuanced plays for Fantasy Alarm Members!
NFL Week 8 Waiver Wire Quarterbacks
Jaxson Dart, New York Giants
Yahoo: 42% | ESPN: 43% | Sleeper: 54%
I don’t know how Jaxson Dart isn’t stashed on benches in every league by now – we’ve been calling for it each week. All you need to do to have a nice floor and solid upside in fantasy football as a QB is run five times each game – that’s it. And Dart has not only done that in every game, but he’s averaging 8.75 carries a game and has a rushing TD in three of his last four. If he can put together a solid game against arguably the league’s best defense in the Denver Broncos, he can do it in any given week. Our stance has not changed.
- Waiver Priority: Medium Priority
- FAAB: 15-25% (more if he starts for you right away)
Joe Flacco, Cincinnati Bengals
Yahoo: 12% | ESPN: 5% | Sleeper: 5%
There’s really no substitute for talent in the NFL. And Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins have plenty of that. Joe Flacco obviously realized that this week when he targeted Ja’Mar Chase 23 times. In doing so, Flacco went out and threw for 342 yards and three touchdowns.
The Bengals’ defense isn’t getting better any time soon. Their run blocking isn’t getting better any time soon. And neither is their schedule. They face teams like PIT again, New England, the Ravens, the Bills, and the Ravens again (as well as a soft playoff matchup vs Miami). There’s a chance that Joe Flacco is a viable starting option for as long as Joe Burrow is out. He was an honorable mention for us last week, but this week we are adding if we need him for bye weeks.
- Waiver Priority: Low or Free Add
- FAAB: 0% (more if he starts for you right away)
Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Michael Penix, J.J. McCarthy
NFL Week 8 Waiver Wire Running Backs
Kyle Monangai, Chicago Bears
Yahoo: 7% | ESPN: 4% | Sleeper: 11%
D’Andre Swift has been dealing with a lingering groin issue. And Kyle Monangai has seen his snap share grow in each of the two games since the bye week. Is that because of the groin issue for Swift? Or is that by design as part of a bigger plan?
It’s hard to say for sure. But we do know that Ben Johnson used a two-back system with the Detroit Lions, which obviously had pretty good success. So maybe he does want this to be more of a split down the stretch than a one-horse show. They did make heavy investments in the offensive line that have been paying dividends so far. When you combine the groin issue with the chance that this could be trending towards a split, stashing the rookie RB in deep leagues makes some sense.
- Waiver Priority: Low Priority
- FAAB: 0-5%
Zonovan “Bam” Knight, Arizona Cardinals
Yahoo: 22% | ESPN: 24% | Sleeper: 35%
Our top add from last week, Kimani Vidal, was added in 43% of Yahoo leagues, bringing his total ownership up to 73%. Our second add, Bam Knight, is still sitting at 22%. Which makes sense given that we expect Omarion Hampton to be out longer than Trey Benson. Plus, the Cardinals have their bye in Week 8, which could mean Hampton is activated for Week 9.
But, until that becomes official, Bam Knight is the clear starter for the Cardinals. And he got more touches this week than Kimani Vidal and outperformed him. So let’s keep an eye on the Benson news here, as Knight could be a streaming option in Week 9.
- Waiver Priority: Low Priority
- FAAB: 0-5%
Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Isaiah Davis, Tyler Allgeier, Tyjae Spears, Devin Neal
NFL Week 8 Waiver Wire Wide Receivers
Darnell Mooney, Atlanta Falcons
Yahoo: 24% | ESPN: 42% | Sleeper: 37%
The Moon Boy was dropped in a lot of leagues as he’s been out since Week 4. But he managed to get healthy just in time to get back out there for this week against the 49ers. And he got four targets this week, which gives him 4, 5, and 11 targets in his three healthy starts this year.
The key for Darnell Mooney is the consolidation of this offense. Because they like using blocking tight end Charlie Woerner, it limits them to a lot of two-tight end sets. That sees both Drake London and Darnell Mooney playing a lot of snaps – in his three healthy games, Mooney has played 38%, 86%, and 89% of the snaps. And because Woerner doesn’t catch a lot of passes, that consolidates them among London, Pitts, Mooney, and Bijan. He can be a little boom/bust at times in his role, but when he does hit, he can hit big.
- Waiver Priority: Low Priority or Free Add
- FAAB: 0-5%
Elic Ayomanor, Tennessee Titans
Yahoo: 28% | ESPN: 26% | Sleeper: 54%
Elic Ayomanor still represents the best combination of floor and upside for us from the waiver wire receivers. He’s playing a big snap share so far. And he gets consistent targets. The problem? Those targets have generally been pretty poor coming from Cam Ward, so he’s been unable to convert on them.
This week, Calvin Ridley was out, which typically would have been a good thing for him. But that actually set Ayomanor up with a matchup with Christian Gonzalez, where it’s been tough to get things going. Ridley continues to battle injury, and the Titans actually just released Tyler Lockett, so I don’t see why the usage for Ayomanor would change. The hope here is that Ayomanor continues to see 5-6 targets a game, but Cam Ward continues to develop so Ayomanor can start to convert a bit here. As we mentioned, there’s really no one who is a must-add on the wire this week.
- Waiver Priority: Low Priority or Free Add
- FAAB: 0-5%
Xavier Legette, Carolina Panthers
Yahoo: 7% | ESPN: 24% | Sleeper: 13%
For the first six weeks of the season, Xavier Legette has been either hurt or terrible – or some combination of the two. Over the first two games, he got 15 targets and a carry and turned that into 8 yards. That’s absolutely brutal.
This week, however, Legette actually put together a fantastic game, catching 9 of 11 targets for 92 yards and a touchdown. We thought Jalen Coker could be the WR2 right away, but in his first game, he was just a part-time slot guy. It’s also worth noting that Bryce Young left the game with an ankle injury this week, which saw Andy Dalton enter the contest. And here is how the targets were distributed for Dalton once he took over, per Pro Football Reference. It’s pretty clear who is favorite target was in the pass game. Tetairoa McMillan won’t face Sauce Gardner every week, but maybe Legette could be worth some spot starts.
- Waiver Priority: Low Priority or Free Add
- FAAB: 0-5%
Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Tez Johnson, Josh Downs (if dropped while out), Kayshon Boutte, Isaiah Bond, Troy Franklin, Alec Pierce
NFL Week 8 Waiver Wire Tight Ends
Oronde Gadsden, Los Angeles Chargers
Yahoo: 5% | ESPN: 2% | Sleeper: 12%
This is a player we wrote about in the Fantasy Alarm Draft Guide back in July. We mentioned that Greg Roman has orchestrated some great “big slot” tight end seasons with Mark Andrews. We mentioned tight end coach Andy Bischoff being the guy to convert Darren Waller from a wide receiver to a tight end – and how he mentioned that Gadsden reminded him of Waller. All great things for Gadsden.
We also obviously mentioned the target competition that the Chargers have for Gadsden. And that hasn’t changed either. Yes, Gadsden had a big game on 9 targets, but Keenan Allen and Ladd McConkey got 13-14 targets. Gadsden’s role has grown to the point where he’s running just as many routes as the WRs (and more than Keenan Allen in back-to-back games), so he needs to be rostered. And, based on how this team is operating so far in terms of pass volume, even one injury to Allen or McConkey would mean that it’s wheels up for Gadsden in the slot. Even then, he could be worth a spot start with his usage.
- Waiver Priority: Medium to Low Priority
- FAAB: 5-10%
Mason Taylor, New York Jets
Yahoo: 39% | ESPN: 28% | Sleeper: 44%
It wasn’t the game that folks wanted from Mason Taylor. Hopes were obviously high with Garrett Wilson out and a soft matchup against the Carolina Panthers. But, if you look at the game with less biased lenses, it wasn’t so bad in terms of predicting the future. Taylor had a 93.4% snap share and an 84.8% route participation. And he did get 5 targets, which is decent work for a tight end. With a matchup vs. CIN this week, he’ll be on our spot start radar again before his bye in Week 9. If he hasn’t been added yet in your league, especially given the circumstances this past week, you shouldn’t have to spend up on him.
- Waiver Priority: Medium to Low Priority
- FAAB: 0-5%
Colston Loveland, Chicago Bears
Yahoo: 22% | ESPN: 26% | Sleeper: 23%
Historically, tight ends take some time to develop. However, that trend has been flipped on its head in recent years, and a lot more has been expected of rookies. And that’s especially true for guys who were drafted as the first tight end off the board in the first round, like Colston Loveland. He’s started slow, but coming out of the Week 5 bye, he’s starting to show more signs of life with 3 and 4 targets.
More importantly, Cole Kmet left the game with a back injury, and we’ve yet to hear the extent of that. If it’s serious, then we’re likely to see a lot more Colston Loveland out there. They still have Rome Odunze and DJ Moore with Luther Burden waiting in the wings, so it doesn’t make Loveland an obvious top two target right away. But it does elevate the role for a player we believe is talented and has a big case for upside.
- Waiver Priority: Medium Priority
- FAAB: 0-5%
**Check the bottom of the article for free rest of season half PPR tight end rankings with our Yin & Yang tight end chart!**
NFL Week 8 Waiver D/ST
Indianapolis Colts D/ST
Yahoo: 50% | ESPN: 67% | Sleeper: 42%
They are definitely rostered in a lot of leagues. But it has to be mentioned in case they are out there on these platforms where they are 50% rostered or less. Starting defenses against the Tennessee Titans has been one of the safest bets in all of fantasy football. And the Colts are one of the hottest teams in football.
Baltimore Ravens D/ST
Yahoo: 31% | ESPN: 32% | Sleeper: 28%
The Ravens have not been a good defense thus far. But they have also had a ridiculously difficult schedule to kick things off with the Bills, Lions, and Chiefs in their first four games. And, after those first four games, they lost Roquan Smith, who is the leader of that defense in more ways than just being a tackle machine. When you lose the player who wears that green dot, it’s the equivalent of losing your quarterback on offense. The matchup with the Bears this week isn’t bad, and the matchup with the Dolphins next week is even better. So the Ravens are on the table if you need them.
Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Atlanta DST vs. MIA, Jets DST vs. CIN, CIN DST vs. NYJ
NFL Week 8 Waiver Wire Kickers
Tyler Loop, Baltimore Ravens
Yahoo: 12% | ESPN: 27% | Sleeper: 20%
The thought process here is extremely simple. If Lamar Jackson is back, the Ravens offense should be good again. Good offenses put themselves in a position to score points. We have the combo of that and a lot of folks dropping Loop while the Ravens were on bye, which makes him widely available.
Andy Borregales, New England Patriots
Yahoo: 2% | ESPN:8% | Sleeper: 2%
Evan McPherson might be the play if he’s out there, but he’s rostered in close to 50% of leagues. This guy is super available. They only have one marquee victory against the Buffalo Bills, but the Patriots’ schedule is pretty easy, so they might not really need to have a lot of tough victories. They are putting points on the board
NFL Yin & Yang Tight End Rankings
As promised, here are our Yin & Yang tight end rankings. This has been our bread and butter the last few years, and how we find breakout tight ends. Here is how the chart works.
If you have someone in the “standalone” section, then great – you don’t need to roster another tight end outside of injury and bye week. Outside of that, we are rostering two. We are looking for someone “safe” to start while stashing the highest risk, high-reward option, trying to find a breakout.
The tight ends in red are injured and at risk of missing time. If you can put them in an IR spot, great. If not, you may have to prioritize either a Yin or a Yang tight end ranked above them to start for you.
Source link
