The Week 12 waiver wire adds lightning round for 2025 fantasy football. Our free agent list includes Kenneth Gainwell, Sean Tucker, Michael Wilson, Emanuel Wilson, Christian Watson, Bryce Young, Shedeur Sanders, more.
The end of Week 11 means that we've taken another large step toward the fantasy football playoffs, so are you ready? Many of you may be reading this with strong records in hand, but you were hit hard by injuries or underperformance this weekend. Let's get to work with our fantasy football waiver wire pickups lightning round heading into Week 12 of the 2025 NFL season.
We supply you with this rapid reaction for fantasy-relevant players heading into Week 12 after navigating the highs, lows, and changes that washed over our squads. Key injuries to monitor are Josh Jacobs (knee), Drake London (knee), Jaylen Warren (ankle), Kimani Vidal (thigh), Emari Demercado (ankle), Aaron Rodgers (wrist), Michael Penix Jr. (knee), Dillon Gabriel (concussion), Bhayshul Tuten (ankle), a season-ending leg injury for Calvin Ridley, Sam LaPorta (back) hitting the IR, and more. Keep yourself one step ahead with our league-leading news feed bookmarked and set up for app alerts for the best and most accurate information out there!
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 70% of Yahoo! leagues, ranging from shallow standard options to deep PPR plays. Please note that Week 12 byes are hitting for the Broncos, Chargers, Commanders, and Dolphins.
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:- 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
Week 12 Running Backs To Add
Pickups are in priority order:
Kenneth Gainwell
Trey Benson
Kareem Hunt
Emanuel Wilson
Sean Tucker
Tyjae Spears
Tyler Allgeier
Bam Knight
Kyle Monangai
Bhayshul Tuten (monitor ankle injury)
Chris Rodriguez Jr.
Jaleel McLaughlin
Devin Singletary
Tank Bigsby
Brian Robinson Jr.
Blake Corum
Ollie Gordon II
Brashard Smith
Chris Brooks
Keaton Mitchell
Ty Johnson
Jaydon Blue
Michael Carter
Devin Neal
Week 12 Wide Receivers To Add
Pickups are in priority order:
Troy Franklin
Michael Wilson
Alec Pierce
Darnell Mooney
Tez Johnson
Tre Tucker
Parker Washington
Christian Watson
Elic Ayomanor
Mike Evans
Jayden Reed
Josh Downs
Luther Burden III
Xavier Legette (monitor possible hip injury)
Chris Godwin
Jayden Higgins
Roman Wilson
Sterling Shepard
Mack Hollins
Jalen Coker
Tyrell Shavers
Malik Washington
Tyler Lockett
Greg Dortch
Andrei Iosivas
Isaiah Hodgins
Van Jefferson
KhaDarel Hodge
John Metchie III
Adonai Mitchell
Brandon Aiyuk
Week 12 Tight Ends To Add
Pickups are in priority order:
Colston Loveland
Dalton Schultz
Juwan Johnson
Theo Johnson
Brenton Strange (possible return from IR looms)
Harold Fannin Jr.
Noah Fant
Dawson Knox
AJ Barner
Brock Wright
Darnell Washington
John FitzPatrick
Week 12 Quarterbacks To Add
Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 12:
Brock Purdy
Joe Flacco
Sam Darnold
Jacoby Brissett
J.J. McCarthy
Bryce Young
Trevor Lawrence
Justin Fields
Tua Tagovailoa
Jameis Winston
Tyler Shough
Kirk Cousins
Davis Mills
Mason Rudolph
Shedeur Sanders
Week 12 Defenses To Add
Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 12:
Atlanta Falcons D/ST
Cleveland Browns D/ST
Detroit Lions D/ST
San Francisco 49ers D/ST
Chicago Bears D/ST
Buffalo Bills D/ST
Who Should I Pickup Tool
Trying to decide who to pickup off the waiver wire? Check the Who Should I Pickup tool here:
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to pickup...
Who Should I Pickup? Some common 2025 fantasy football waiver wire decisions are regarding players like Kenneth Gainwell, Emanuel Wilson, Sean Tucker, Michael Wilson, Christian Watson, Bryce Young, and Shedeur Sanders. But not to worry, we are here to help make these waiver wire decisions and build winning teams in 2025. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups in 2025. Our free Who Should I Pickup? tool will help make your fantasy football waiver wire decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to pick up... all free! Make the right decisions.
2025 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Kenneth Gainwell, Emanuel Wilson, Sean Tucker, Michael Wilson, Christian Watson, Bryce Young, and Shedeur Sanders. These are some common searches for 2025 fantasy football waiver wire pickups.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Pickup? button to see who the recommended waiver wire pickups are based on fantasy football rankings, projections, and more.
Recent Improvements For Who Should I Pickup? You may have noticed, our Who Should I Pickup? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win on the waiver wire in 2025. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football waiver wire rankings and projections based on their research, and updates them constantly throughout the week. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked.
Popular Waiver Wire Searches. Curious to see some tough waiver wire decisions for 2025? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Pickup? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pickup
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for 2025 for Kenneth Gainwell, Emanuel Wilson, Sean Tucker, Michael Wilson, Christian Watson, Bryce Young, Shedeur Sanders:
More Waiver Wire Analysis
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