Fantasy Football Week 4 Waiver Wire: Deeper League Pickups (QB, RB, WR, TE)

Dan's top fantasy football Week 4 waiver wire pickups, sleepers, stashes for deeper leagues for 2025. His waiver targets include Geno Smith, Blake Corum, Tyquan Thornton, and others.

The best time to pivot in fantasy leagues is early in the season. Identifying players who are receiving larger or smaller workloads than expected and making adjustments to the roster is a quick way to unlock your team’s long-term upside.

That is especially true in leagues that have deep benches. Being proactive on the waiver wire is crucial for surviving the season and building a team with the depth to compete for a fantasy championship.

This article will focus on fantasy football players who are at or below a 40% roster rate on Yahoo! -- and can be considered deeper league waiver wire options. We'll cover a few players from QB, RB, WR, and TE. Let's get to it!

• 2025 fantasy football rankings
• Running back (RB) fantasy football rankings
• Wide receiver (WR) fantasy football rankings
• Tight end (TE) fantasy football rankings
• Quarterback (QB) fantasy football rankings
• FLEX fantasy football rankings
• Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
• Kicker (K) fantasy football rankings
• Dynasty fantasy football rankings

Quarterback Fantasy Football Waiver Wire

All QBs are rostered in 40% of leagues or less.

Geno Smith, Las Vegas Raiders – 28% rostered

Geno Smith is doing exactly what we expected coming into the season. Smith ranks fourth among quarterbacks in 20+ yard pass attempts (11), fifth in air yards (642), eighth in yards per attempt (7.8), and 11th in air yards per attempt (8.3).

The veteran quarterback is currently the QB15 in fantasy points per game (16.9) with two games of at least 18 fantasy points. The Raiders face off against Chicago’s beat-up secondary in Week 4 before having games against the Colts, Titans, and Chiefs before their Week 8 bye.

There will certainly be games where Smith is reckless with the ball (like his three-interception performance in Week 2), but the Raiders aren’t afraid to air it out with Smith under center. There will be big fantasy weeks as long as he’s healthy.

Jaxson Dart, New York Giants – 5% rostered

For the second time in three weeks, the New York Giants head coach did not immediately endorse Russell Wilson as the starting quarterback after a poor game. The Giants' coaching staff needs to win (or show growth) to save their jobs, which means Wilson does not have much room to be inconsistent in 2025. Dart was officially named the starter ahead of Week 4, ending the speculation of when the team would turn to him under center.

The rookie impressed during the preseason, completing 68.1% of his passing attempts for 372 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions. However, it is crucial to temper expectations out of the gate with matchups against the Chargers, Saints, Eagles (twice), and Broncos over the next five weeks.

New York has several weapons in the passing attack that can help the rookie have solid fantasy performances. With bye weeks on the horizon, the rookie is worth grabbing in case he happens to be the real deal.

Running Back Fantasy Football Waiver Wire

All RBs are rostered in 40% of leagues or less.

Blake Corum, Los Angeles Rams – 17% rostered

Blake Corum’s role in Los Angeles isn’t going away. Corum handled eight carries for 53 yards in the Rams’ close loss to the Eagles in Week 3. The second-year running back had his second straight game with an increased workload for the Rams, signaling that a split backfield may be here to stay in Los Angeles. He has had a snap share of at least 24% in each of the Rams’ last two games.

Rams RB Blake Corum needs more touches. Had 5 in this game, but 4 of them didn't come until later in the game.

Can immediately feel the change in speed/burst. Runs through the defender and falls forward, picking up an extra 8 yards.

Also...peep Tutu Atwell throwing blocks. pic.twitter.com/EIKJdIVvFD

— Blaine Grisak 💭 (@bgrisakTST) September 16, 2025

Corum has been efficient with his opportunities to start the 2025 season, averaging 7.07 yards per carry through three games. That number likely isn’t sustainable, but it is enough to keep him consistently in the Rams’ backfield as a breather back with upside.

If Kyren Williams gets injured, Corum would instantly become a fantasy-relevant running back. He should be rostered in all leagues and formats.

Woody Marks, Houston Texans – 9% rostered

Rookie running back Woody Marks has seen his role increase each week in Houston to start his career. In Week 1, Marks was on the field for just 11% of the team’s snaps, logging three carries for three yards. In Week 2, Marks jumped to a 26% snap share with three carries for 14 yards and one reception for 37 yards.

In Week 3, the rookie had a 47.6% snap share, handling six carries for 27 yards and catching one of two targets for nine yards. Marks still had fewer opportunities than veteran Nick Chubb (nine carries for 38 yards and three receptions for two yards), but he significantly closed the gap.

Marks is the more dynamic weapon in the backfield, but Chubb will continue to earn touches, especially in positive game scripts. Of course, the Texans are now 0-3, so who knows how often that will happen.

The Houston backfield will continue to be split in 2025, but Marks has a chance to expand his role into the lead back, especially if he can continue to be efficient in his opportunities. He’s worth rostering as a complementary piece of the backfield with handcuff upside given Chubb’s injury history.

Wide Receiver Fantasy Football Waiver Wire

All WRs are rostered in 40% of leagues or less.

Tyquan Thornton, Kansas City Chiefs – 3% rostered

It is time to start taking Tyquan Thornton seriously with the Kansas City Chiefs. Thornton, a former second-round pick of the New England Patriots, has looked excellent during three games in the Chiefs' offense. He has just a 50% catch rate (nine of 18 targets) but has converted them into 171 yards and two touchdowns.

Tyquan Thornton has resurrected his career in KC. One acrobatic catch at a time.
pic.twitter.com/hIWt4sUKyH

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 22, 2025

Thornton is fourth among all receivers in yards per reception (19.0) and ranks top three among all receivers in air yards (284), average depth of target (31.6), and deep targets (7).

There will always be a boom-or-bust component to Thornton’s game as the field stretcher in the Chiefs’ offense, but right now, he is making the most of his opportunities. He is currently the WR28 in PPR fantasy points per game (12.7) with back-to-back weeks of 13.9 and 18.1 fantasy points.

The Chiefs are still multiple weeks away from Rashee Rice returning from his suspension, and are hoping that Xavier Worthy can successfully play through a significant shoulder injury. Thornton’s role as the deep threat in this offense should be safe, even once key pieces start to return.

Luther Burden III, Chicago Bears – 11% rostered

The Bears’ offense was under fire after underwhelming performances to start the year. In Week 3, they brought out all of the stops, putting up a season-high 31 points (24 in the first half) against the Dallas Cowboys. A big reason was because of 2025 second-round pick Luther Burden III.

Burden had three receptions for 103 yards and a touchdown, mostly thanks to being on the receiving end of Chicago’s flea-flicker attempt. He also added one carry for seven yards.

Caleb Williams' 65-yard touchdown pass to rookie Luther Burden III traveled 62.1 yards in the air, the longest completion in the NFL this season, and Caleb's longest completion of his career.#DALvsCHI | #DaBearspic.twitter.com/D5GQjABob3

— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 21, 2025

Chicago has been slowly bringing along their rookie class, but performances like this one give the Bears reasons to dial up more plays for the dynamic pass catcher. Grabbing Burden is far from a slam dunk, considering his season-high snap share (in Week 3) is just 28.8%. But we know that rookies see their roles increase throughout the season, and Burden is a player who can carve out a role in an exciting Chicago passing attack.

Adding the rookie on waivers now and waiting for more consistency could prove to be a league-winning move by the end of the season.

Tight End Fantasy Football Waiver Wire

All TEs are rostered in 40% of leagues or less.

Chig Okonkwo, Tennessee Titans – 31% rostered

The Titans' passing attack has gotten off to a slow start with rookie Cam Ward. Tennessee’s first overall pick is completing just 54.5% of his passes for 506 yards and two touchdowns with one interception in three games.

So far, Ward has struggled to establish a connection with Calvin Ridley (eight receptions on 21 targets), which has helped other pieces provide fantasy value. One player who has done well to start the season is tight end Chig Okonkwo.

Okonkwo has caught 12 of 16 targets for 120 yards to start the 2025 season, establishing himself as a reliable security blanket for the rookie quarterback early in his career. The veteran tight end has at least four targets in every game, including back-to-back contests with six. Okonkwo is earning a 17.8% target share on a 73.6% route participation rate.

Brenton Strange, Jacksonville Jaguars- 25% rostered

Brenton Strange is the most consistent piece of Jacksonville’s passing attack in 2025. The third-year tight end is tied for second on the team in targets (16) and leads in receptions (13) and receiving yards (137) through three weeks.

Among tight ends, Strange ranks as the TE6 in yards per target (8.6) and expected points added (5.3). He’s doing that despite being the TE21 in both route participation (73.0%) and target share (14.8%).

Right now, the Jaguars’ passing attack is looking for answers. One of the most consistent pieces they have comes in the form of their veteran tight end. Strange is worth rostering in fantasy, especially if this passing attack can find its footing and get into the end zone more frequently.

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