Waiver Wire Express - Week 1 Including Quinshon Judkins, Chris Rodriguez Jr., Ollie Gordon II, Dont'e Thornton Jr., Jayden Higgins, more

September 6, 2025

The Week 1 waiver wire adds lightning round for 2025 fantasy football. Our free agent list includes Quinshon Judkins, Chris Rodriguez Jr., Ollie Gordon II, Dont'e Thornton Jr., Jayden Higgins, & more.

Welcome back to our first 2025 installment of the quick-hitting waiver piece that aims to put buzzy players on your radar! Soon enough, we'll be in the thick of the season, but most players have a blank canvas yet to be painted. Let's start the year on the right foot with our fantasy football waiver wire pickups lightning round heading into Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season.

This provides a quick reaction regarding fantasy-relevant players for Week 1 after the grind of training camp and the preseason. There will be a few names who have stood out in the early primetime games, though we recognize most of you will not have access to adding them until after the week has run. Utilize that watch list and set yourself up for success in the season to come!

Typically, this column will be published early in the week and will be updated daily as the site supplies in-depth waiver wire analysis for all positions. Waiver pickups are listed in priority order and broken down by position as we stick to those rostered in roughly less than 60% of Yahoo! leagues, ranging from shallow standard options to deep PPR plays. We will stay on top of the buzz and rumors as the action plays out, so you don't have to go searching through each team's box score and stat log.

Week 1 Running Backs To Add

Pickups are in priority order:

Quinshon Judkins
Chris Rodriguez Jr.
Bhayshul Tuten
Ollie Gordon II
Trey Benson
Jerome Ford
Tyler Allgeier
Dylan Sampson
Keaton Mitchell
Kyle Monangai
Woody Marks
Dameon Pierce
Najee Harris
Will Shipley
Rico Dowdle
Jaydon Blue
DJ Giddens
Jarquez Hunter
Brashard Smith
Isaac Guerendo
Miles Sanders
Trevor Etienne

Week 1 Wide Receivers To Add

Pickups are in priority order:

Darnell Mooney
Keenan Allen
Marquise Brown (Monitor Xavier Worthy injury updates)
Quentin Johnston
Dont'e Thornton Jr.
Marvin Mims Jr.
Cedric Tillman
Adam Thielen
Xavier Legette
Jayden Higgins
Rashod Bateman
Joshua Palmer
Elic Ayomanor
Luther Burden III
Christian Kirk (Out Week 1, but a premier stash)
Romeo Doubs
Wan'Dale Robinson
DeMario Douglas
Isaac TeSlaa
Jaylin Noel
Ray-Ray McCloud III
Dyami Brown
Pat Bryant
Tory Horton
Darius Slayton
Jalen Nailor
Malik Washington
Troy Franklin
Jordan Whittington
Tutu Atwell
Tyquan Thornton
Tre Tucker

Week 1 Tight Ends To Add

Pickups are in priority order:

Zach Ertz
Brenton Strange
Chig Okonkwo
Cade Otton
Jonnu Smith
Dalton Schultz
Mike Gesicki
Juwan Johnson
Mason Taylor
Theo Johnson
Harold Fannin Jr.
Elijah Arroyo
Isaiah Likely (Out for Week 1, but another strong IR-slot stash)
Darren Waller (Ditto)

Week 1 Quarterbacks To Add

Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 1:

Trevor Lawrence
Michael Penix Jr.
Tua Tagovailoa
Cameron Ward
Bryce Young
Matthew Stafford
Geno Smith
Sam Darnold
Daniel Jones
Joe Flacco
Aaron Rodgers
Jaxson Dart

Week 1 Defenses To Add

Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 1:

San Francisco 49ers D/ST
Arizona Cardinals D/ST
Washington Commanders D/ST
New England Patriots D/ST
Cincinnati Bengals D/ST
Miami Dolphins D/ST

More Waiver Wire Analysis