Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Rankings & Pickups (Week 1)

Our analysts combine to provide rankings for weekly fantasy football waiver wire targets. We’ll help you prioritize your bids for the week ahead. Check out our full expert consensus fantasy football waiver wire rankings and all of our fantasy football waiver wire advice for the week.

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Rankings

Note: Players chosen based upon having early-week consensus roster percent below 50%.

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups to Target

Ollie Gordon (RB – MIA): 33% rostered

If you blinked, you probably missed Gordon climbing Miami’s depth chart and becoming the top backup to the banged-up De’Von Achane. After being selected in the sixth round of this year’s draft, Gordon was firmly behind Achane, Jaylen Wright, and Alexander Mattison going into training camp. But Mattison is out for the season with a neck injury, and Wright had a procedure to fix a lower-leg injury. Since Achane is not a power runner, Gordon will likely be the short-yardage back in addition to being Achane’s direct backup to start the season. Although Wright is expected back sometime in September, Gordon was outproducing him in the preseason and may take the role completely if he starts hot. With Achane dealing with a calf injury, Gordon is on the cusp of being a fantasy starter early on.

Keenan Allen (WR – LAC): 48% rostered

After remaining unsigned for most of the offseason, Allen agreed to a one-year deal with the Chargers in early August. Allen is very familiar with Chargers QB Justin Herbert. When they last played together in 2023, Allen had a career-high 108 catches in only 13 games. He averaged 11.5 targets a game that season. Allen continued to draw targets at a high rate last season with the Bears, commanding a hefty 27.6% target share in the 15 games he played. Ladd McConkey might be the Chargers’ No. 1 receiver now, but Allen isn’t just window dressing. He’s going to be involved. Let your competitors tell themselves that the 33-year-old Allen is washed up while you scoop him off waivers.

Bryce Young (QB – CAR): 26% rostered

Young ended the 2024 season on fire. Over his final three games, he passed for seven touchdowns, rushed for three TDs, and finished as a top-two QB twice. That’s a great way to end a roller coaster of a season. It seems odd to say this about an NFL player, but Young clearly needed to develop the confidence to play in the league. After being benched in Week 3 last season, he took his second chance at starting by the horns and was a different player from Week 8 on. It’s uncertain whether Young can carry that momentum into the 2025 season, which is partly why he is widely available in fantasy leagues. The Panthers open their season against the revamped Liam Coen-led Jaguars. If Coen has the Jags’ offense clicking, they could easily feast on a shaky Carolina defense. If that’s the case, Young will be put in a position to sling the rock and potentially put up good numbers.

Brenton Strange (TE – JAC): 21% rostered

With Evan Engram leaving Jacksonville for Denver via free agency, former second-round draft pick Brenton Strange becomes the Jaguars’ starting tight end. Strange had 40 catches for 411 yards and two touchdowns last season. Over the eight games Engram missed, Strange averaged 3.6 receptions and 34.4 receiving yards. In Week 1, Strange gets a matchup against the Panthers, who gave up a league-high 11 TD catches to tight ends last year. In Week 2, Strange faces the Bengals, who gave up 1,114 receiving yards and a league-high 111 receptions to TEs in 2024.

Click here to read article