The fantasy football season is finally about to begin again. Heading into Week 1, it’s hard to imagine anyone is making significant moves, as we will mostly stick with the players we drafted. Because of this, consider this first waiver wire column of the season more of a preview of the guys who might emerge as top pickups after the first week of the season.
As always, all players are rostered in less than 50% of Yahoo leagues.
I eliminated FAAB recommendations last year, as there are too many variables to account for. Instead, I replaced them with my opinion on how aggressive fantasy managers should be in pursuing the player on a scale of 1 to 10.
**For Week 1 only, there will be no aggressiveness rating.
Bryce Young, QB, Carolina Panthers
Rostered: 27%
Bryce Young steps into Week 1 with a revamped offense, headlined by first-round WR Tetairoa McMillan. After a rookie season lost to offensive dysfunction, Young improved considerably as a sophomore. He could be poised for a third-year leap.
Zero doubt about his job security and a supporting cast finally suited to maximizing his strengths, Young will be asked to throw more, run more, and take advantage of soft defenses much like the one he faces in Week 1.
It’s very easy to see Young throw for 200-plus yards and two touchdowns against the Jacksonville Jaguars. If he picks up where he left off last season and displays QB1 upside, fantasy managers could be very excited to grab him.
Michael Penix Jr., QB, Atlanta Falcons
Rostered: 32%
Michael Penix Jr. is now fully in control of an Atlanta Falcons offense loaded with talent. He has a huge arm and is the unquestioned starter, unlike how he entered his rookie season.
Thinking about Michael Penix pic.twitter.com/bE3q5IaTzn
— Brady Penn (@bradypenn21) August 20, 2025
Penix’s deep ball connection with Drake London turned heads in camp, and once he returns, WR Darnell Mooney’s speed gives Penix multiple ways to beat bad secondaries — the QB projects for high passing volume in a shootout against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
As a reminder, Kirk Cousins posted 35.4 and 28.6 fantasy points in his two starts against the Bucs last season.
I am skeptical Penix will be a weekly fantasy starter, but it’s not difficult to see fantasy managers reacting strongly to a stellar Week 1 performance from a sophomore quarterback.
Dylan Sampson, RB, Cleveland Browns
Rostered: 40%
With Quinshon Judkins, who is yet to sign his rookie deal, likely not playing this season, the Cleveland Browns head into Week 1 with rookie Dylan Sampson and veteran Jerome Ford atop the depth chart. If preseason usage is any indication, they will form a near-even timeshare.
Sampson already looks like the better back, and he’s the one the team drafted after Ford only returned to the team after agreeing to take a pay cut.
Split carries are likely early, but Sampson’s pop and power stand out behind Cleveland’s strong offensive line. He’s already carving out high-value red zone work, and an early touchdown would make him a candidate to be next week’s top pickup.
Ollie Gordon II, RB, Miami Dolphins
Rostered: 40%
Jaylen Wright was set to enter the season as the RB2 behind De’Von Achane. Unfortunately, he’s currently sidelined with an injury. That opened the door for rookie Ollie Gordon II to earn a heavy workload in the Miami Dolphins’ final preseason game. He carried the ball eight times for 54 yards.
no RB forced me to adjust my priors more this preseason than Ollie Gordon II
(probably his own team, too) pic.twitter.com/53T9HeReJG
— Josh Norris (@JoshNorris) August 25, 2025
Achane is set to play in Week 1, but has been nursing a calf strain. If he suffers a setback or aggravates the injury, we can be reasonably confident Gordon will be the main back. Even if Achane remains healthy, Week 1 will likely establish that Gordon is the handcuff to grab in your leagues. He needs to be more heavily rostered.
Rico Dowdle, RB, Carolina Panthers
Rostered: 21%
Last season, it was hard to fathom that the Dallas Cowboys would commit to Rico Dowdle as a key backfield member. By the second half of the season, he was on the field for roughly 70% of the snaps.
Using preseason playing time as a definitive indicator of what might happen in the regular season is risky. With that said, we consistently saw Dowdle enter the game for Chuba Hubbard on third down.
Hubbard was incredibly inefficient as a pass catcher last season. Meanwhile, Dowdle averaged 1.59 yards per route run, 18th in the league. That seems to be the role the Panthers envision for their new RB2.
Dowdle appears firmly ahead of Trevor Etienne on the depth chart. He could have some standalone RB4 value, but the real upside stems from him being the Hubbard handcuff. If this ends up being more of a timeshare than we think, Dowdle will be a very popular waiver wire add in Week 2.
Darnell Mooney, WR, Atlanta Falcons
Rostered: 46%
Darnell Mooney has been out for several weeks with a shoulder sprain. Although we were never given a concrete timetable, he is already back at practice. Nothing about the injury suggests it should be a long-term absence. He might even play in Week 1.
Simply put, Mooney is a weekly Flex option in fantasy leagues. He should be universally rostered, and the only reason he isn’t is the injury.
Darnell Mooney appreciation post
🌕 64 catches, 992 yards, 5 TDs
He missed a game so he didn’t get the 1k PR but he balled out pic.twitter.com/yVSUytEWbr
— Not Bijan (@InBijanWeTrust) May 6, 2025
This is one you should get out in front of now. Mooney averaged 12.1 fantasy points per game last season, finishing as the overall WR34. Add Mooney, and if he doesn’t play in Week 1, you can put him on IR and then pick up someone else.
Christian Kirk, WR, Houston Texans
Rostered: 39%
Why isn’t Christian Kirk on more rosters? Because he’s boring. Through seven seasons, Kirk has finished higher than WR30 just once. Now, he’s on his third NFL team and is coming off, by far, the worst season of his career, averaging 8.9 PPG.
All of that is true, but Kirk finds himself in a very favorable spot to open the season. He’s still just 28 years old. The Houston Texans do not have a clear WR2 behind Nico Collins. Eventually, it will likely be Jayden Higgins or Jaylin Noel. For now, it is going to be the veteran.
Kirk profiles as the primary slot receiver in an offense with one of the worst offensive lines in the league and one of the weakest running back rooms following Joe Mixon’s offseason foot injury. C.J. Stroud will be throwing a lot this season.
We saw a declining Stefon Diggs put up 15.2 PPG in eight games before he tore his ACL. Kirk is obviously not doing that, but if he can merely get to roughly 12 PPG, he will be a weekly fantasy starter. That guy needs to be on more rosters.
Joshua Palmer, WR, Buffalo Bills
Rostered: 22%
Since veteran WR Stefon Diggs left, Josh Allen has been searching for a new go-to target. Now two years removed from having Diggs on the roster, he still doesn’t have an answer. That leaves the spot to be filled by multiple guys.
RELATED: Is Khalil Shakir Playing Week 1? Latest Injury Update for the Buffalo Bills WR
Here’s the breakdown. Khalil Shakir is a slot receiver. Keon Coleman isn’t particularly talented, managing just 29 receptions for 556 yards as a rookie. His 1.81 yards per route run was not terrible, but it still ranked just 50th in the league. Curtis Samuel is a gadget player. Elijah Moore is roster depth.
The Buffalo Bills went out and signed Joshua Palmer to be their primary X receiver. He’s proven to be better than he gets credit for in the past, averaging 10.6 and 10.7 PPG in each of his first two seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers. It would not be surprising if we came out of Week 1 viewing Palmer as the Bills’ clear WR1. That player will be worth picking up.
Jalen Coker, WR, Carolina Panthers
Rostered: 2%
Cokeheads rise up! The stage is set for Jalen Coker to continue his unexpected path to NFL relevance. A 2024 UDFA out of Holy Cross, guys like this almost never amount to anything, even useful at an NFL level, let alone in fantasy. Yet, Coker posted four games of double-digit fantasy points, including 17.8, 21.0, and 14.0 weeks. He did this in just 11 games.
Coker decisively outplayed fellow rookie Xavier Legette, who is already trending toward being a bust. With veteran Adam Thielen back in Minnesota, the path is clear for Coker to be the guy who lines up opposite Tetairoa McMillan in this very young receiving corps.
Barely rostered, Coker is more for deep leaguers. But even in standard-sized leagues, it is possible he ends up being someone worth rostering not too far into the season.
Brenton Strange, TE, Jacksonville Jaguars
Rostered: 21%
Brenton Strange walks into the starter’s gig with former TE1 Evan Engram now in Denver, and he’s shown after-the-catch juice in preseason. Last season, Strange averaged a respectable 8.5 PPG without Engram active.
This Jacksonville Jaguars offense should improve with new head coach Liam Coen’s aggressive, forward-thinking approach. There should be a consolidated target share between Brian Thomas Jr., Travis Hunter, and Strange.
Expect QB Trevor Lawrence to look his tight end’s way on third downs and inside the 10. Strange already worked in red zone and third-down personnel, and Jacksonville’s pass volume gives him upside.
Brenton Strange https://t.co/qYlW8JXJmx pic.twitter.com/1aUq3gC22u
— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) August 10, 2025
Fantasy managers always need viable starting tight ends, with the position being so flat beyond the elite guys. Strange is largely an afterthought in fantasy drafts, but he could be at the forefront of managers’ minds after a game against a Panthers defense that allowed the most fantasy points to tight ends last season.
Mason Taylor, TE, New York Jets
Rostered: 11%
Fantasy managers should not expect any sort of offensive explosion in a game between the New York Jets and the Pittsburgh Steelers. What we’re looking for is usage. This one is more speculative, but if we see Mason Taylor operate as the Jets’ primary tight end, that will be very promising for what he can do going forward against lesser opponents.
The Jets have no clear second option in the passing game behind WR Garrett Wilson. It’s one of the worst wide receiver rooms in the NFL. Taylor has as much upside, if not more, than any non-Wilson player on this roster.
