Fantasy Football Week 9 Waiver Wire Targets

This is one of the most exciting weeks for football...today is the NFL trade deadline and there is a ton of buzz around Colts star running back Jonathan Taylor. There are also some other big names like Brian Thomas Jr driving some interest. I've also heard rumors about the Vikings potentially seeking a trade partner to solve their quarterback crisis. Realistically, it's very likely the trade deadline will come and go today and there won't be any fantasy football-relevant moves made.

Now on the injury front, we have a lot to catch up on. Here are a a few of the most notable injuries in Week 9 which will shake up the fantasy football landscape:

Puka Nacua - Suffered a MCL and PCL sprain in his right leg and turf toe and is likely to be placed on IR. Rams are exploring 'all avenues' at receiver; Davante Adams is still on IR after his hamstring surgery, so who will step up in this offense with Nacua and Adams out? It's anyone's guess. I don't think there will be one alpha receiver who stands out, but Mumpfield and Atwell are two names to watch.

Josh Jacobs - Fractured his ring finger on right hand, needs surgery and may be placed on IR. He couldn't go back in the game on Sunday because he had no grip strength. Expect another committee between Kaleb Johnson and Pierre Strong Jr if MarShawn Lloyd is out again. Otherwise, it will be a three-way split and I'm not particularly excited about any of them.

Michael Wilson - Suffered a neck injury and will miss the rest of the season. I don't think there are any other pass catchers I want in this offense now except for Trey McBride.

Rhamondre Stevenson - Suffered a knee tendon issue which will likely sideline him for multiple weeks (I personally think IR may be an option although reports haven't confirmed that). TreVeyon Henderson is also dealing with some illness which will sideline him indefinitely, so I would expect Corey Kiner to be the next man up...unless the Pats go out and make a splash on the trade market.

Gardner Minshew - Suffered a torn UCL and will miss rest of the season. Not a player that is widely rostered, but this will have implications to Arizona's skill position players. Rookie Carson Beck will become the starter who had a great preseason. We'll see how this affects the Arizona offense but I would expect McBride to still eat.

Audric Estime - RB, Saints

One of my favorite waiver targets this week. Estime was claimed by the Saints off waivers after he was waived by the Browns...and in doing so, the Saints cut Kendre Miller. Estime put up a pretty decent revenge game against them on Sunday when he took 15 carries for 72 yards and a touchdown. He placed nearly a 50/50 snap share split with Kamara, but he received most of the early-down carries while Kamara did most of his damage on passing downs.

You might be thinking - "Etienne will be back soon, I'm going to pass on Estime." Well as of last Wednesday, Etienne still wasn't practicing yet due to his hamstring injury, so he looks like he is in danger of missing at least one week which is where Estime would be a great plug-and-play.

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Corey Kiner - RB, Patriots

Stevenson will miss multiple weeks with his knee tendon injury and from the sound of it, it doesn't seem like they'll be getting Henderson back just yet due to the illness he is battling. Kiner is a great pickup especially because he has been very efficient with his carries this season and he would step into the starter role without either Henderson or Stevenson.

Kiner is currently tied for 8th in yards per carry at 4.9...tied with Josh Allen and Bucky Irving. That's good company to keep.

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Seth McGowan - RB, Colts

McGowan actually had a great day even with Taylor taking most of the carries. He took 6 carries for 45 yards and a touchdown. If JT were to be traded, then McGowan would leap into RB3 / Flex territory.

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Kaelon Black - RB, 49ers

Black was on my waiver wire list last week after CMC suffered a mild hamstring strain during Week 7. McCaffrey didn't have an injury designation this week and played quite a bit; however, Black did get 25% of the snaps and ran 11 times for 70 yards. If you have the space, he's one of the most valuable handcuffs.

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Kaleb Johnson - RB, Packers

With the potential for Josh Jacobs to miss some time, it's worth a dart throw to pick up Johnson to see how he does. He had 14 carries for 68 yards this week, which was likely the most efficient run game of any Packers player this season.

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Emmett Johnson - RB, Chiefs

Another one of my absolute favorite running back handcuffs - if anything were to happen to Walker, Johnson would vault into mid-to-high-end RB2 status.

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Tank Dell - WR, Texans

The guy with one of the coolest names in the NFL ended up tying for the team-lead in targets (9). He went 4 for 9 targets and 105 yards and a touchdown. The Texans were slinging it against the Chargers - Boutte caught two touchdowns, Dell one, Collins one, and Hutchinson the other. He has the pedigree to be highly productive as WR2 in this offense.

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Konata Mumpfield - WR, Rams

Puka Nacua will likely be placed on IR due to a sprained PCL and MCL and turf toe. Adams won't be back until Week 12 at the earliest. Who will step up in this offense? I'd put my money on Mumpfield out of anybody, but I'm not feeling particularly excited about any of these receivers.

Caleb Douglas - WR, Dolphins

This week was Douglas's third double-digit point total this season. Over the last two games, he has averaged 7 targets per game.

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