Week 8 Waiver Wire Rankings - Fantasy Football Pickups Include Bam Knight, Jonah Coleman, Caleb Douglas, Antonio Williams, Omar Cooper Jr., Michael Mayer, more

October 26, 2026

Fantasy football waiver wire rankings for Week 8 of the 2026 NFL season. Top free agent options to add off waivers, and our rankings will help you prioritize.

The fantasy football season keeps flying by; Week 8 is already here! Bye weeks continue, with the Texans, Saints, Giants, and 49ers off this week. At RotoBaller HQ, we get a jump start on the waiver wire with our Week 8 fantasy football waiver wire rankings. Whether you are looking for a bye-week replacement, a high-upside bench stash, or simply want to improve your roster, our waiver wire rankings below help you prioritize who to pick up.

Several players still have low ownership percentages but could make an impact or take on a bigger role now because of injuries. Is Antonio Williams the Commanders WR2 alongside Stefon Diggs with Terry McLaurin out for the season? Is Caleb Douglas a must-add after racking up 70 receiving yards and two scores in Sunday's win over the Jets? With the Colts rumored to trade star running back Jonathan Taylor, would Seth McGowan become the Colts' primary back if Taylor is moved by the deadline?

Our Week 8 fantasy football waiver wire rankings will help answer these questions and many more—they've been a staple on RotoBaller for years, bringing readers a quick-hit list of the top 85 fantasy football player names to consider as free agent pickups. If you're new to this series, RotoBaller's lead NFL analyst, Nick Mariano, brings you these waiver wire rankings in priority order. Good luck on waivers!

Who To Pick Up Before Fantasy Football Week 8?

Waiver wire pickup options, including how to prioritize them for your league based on league size. Quarterbacks and Defenses (D/ST) are grouped at the bottom of the list:

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Outlooks

Top names include Bam Knight, Jonah Coleman, Omar Cooper Jr., Antonio Williams, and others. We recap why these players rostered under 55% in Yahoo! leagues should be on your waiver wire radar before Week 8:

Antonio Williams, WR, Commanders

Week 8 Waiver Wire Ranking: 8

Washington Commanders rookie wide receiver Antonio Williams will have an elevated role in his team's passing attack for the rest of the 2026 season, with fellow wideout Terry McLaurin (knee) expected to miss the rest of the year after he injured his knee in Monday night's loss to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 6. The 22-year-old 71st overall pick in the third round from Clemson has caught 18 of his 26 targets for 205 yards and one touchdown in his first six NFL games with the Commanders.

The demand for Williams remains low with the Commanders on their bye, but starting in Week 8 against the division-rival Philadelphia Eagles, the young pass-catcher will be much more intriguing as a waiver-wire pickup for WR depth, as he will have a chance to become Washington's WR2 behind veteran Stefon Diggs. Most of Williams' competition for targets will come from former first-rounder Treylon Burks. In Monday's loss to the 49ers, Williams caught three passes for the third straight game for 50 yards, which was his second-highest receiving total through six contests. He has been a steady contributor early on, but his fantasy ceiling will be raised for the rest of the season with McLaurin out.

Omar Cooper Jr., WR, Jets

Week 8 Waiver Wire Ranking: 5

New York Jets rookie wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. had a big game in his team's loss to the Miami Dolphins, recording five catches for 115 yards and a touchdown on five targets. The first-year wideout suffered an ankle injury in Week 1 that landed him on Injured Reserve. However, Cooper Jr. has been tremendous upon his return, recording back-to-back games with at least five catches, 100 receiving yards, and a touchdown.

While the Jets have other capable pass-catching weapons, Cooper Jr. appears to be emerging as a legitimate big-play weapon for New York quarterback Geno Smith. Heading into Week 8, Cooper Jr. profiles as a waiver wire priority in any fantasy league where he's not already rostered.

Bam Knight, RB, Cardinals

Week 8 Waiver Wire Ranking: 14

Arizona Cardinals running back Bam Knight led his team in rushing in its loss to the Denver Broncos, with seven carries for 48 yards. Knight also caught three passes for 15 yards on five targets. The 25-year-old played a minimal role in the Cardinals' offense to open 2026, recording just three carries through the first five weeks of the season. However, with Arizona back Jeremiyah Love (ankle) sidelined for the team's last two games by an ankle injury, Knight has logged 161 yards from scrimmage on 27 touches.

While Knight has split touches with fellow Cardinals back Tyler Allgeier, he's clearly been the more productive of the two since Love went down. If Love remains sidelined in Week 8, Knight could be a potential running back option for fantasy managers in a favorable matchup against the Dallas Cowboys.

Jonah Coleman, RB, Broncos

Week 8 Waiver Wire Ranking: 7

Denver Broncos rookie running back Jonah Coleman made his return to the field during Sunday's matchup against the Arizona Cardinals. He missed the previous four games while on Injured Reserve due to a sprained ankle that he suffered in the Week 2 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Coleman was finally back on the field for the first time since suffering a sprained ankle ahead of Week 3.

The rookie back carried the ball nine times for 54 yards, while hauling in two receptions for 15 additional yards in the win. After the game, head coach Sean Payton said that the team will need to get Coleman more touches going forward. It sounds like the Broncos were easing him back in, but will now look to give Coleman an expanded role going forward. This is great news for Coleman's fantasy value, but it also means that J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey will likely see reduced roles now.

Running Backs - Week 8 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Wide Receivers - Week 8 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Tight Ends - Week 8 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Quarterbacks - Week 8 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 8:

Defenses (D/ST) - Week 8 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 8:

Week 8 Waiver Wire Articles

After diving into the Week 8 waiver wire rankings, read about some other free waiver wire resources available at RotoBaller:

• Week 8 waiver wire pickups (all positions)
• Week 8 FAAB waiver wire bids
• Week 8 running back waiver wire pickups
• Week 8 wide receiver waiver wire pickups
• Week 8 tight end waiver wire pickups
• Week 8 quarterback waiver wire pickups
• Week 8 defense (D/ST) streamers and pickups
• Week 8 kicker streamers and pickups

Each week, our NFL team puts out a complete array of fantasy football waiver wire articles to complement our slick Who Should I Pickup? Waiver wire player comparison tool. Bookmark it!

In addition, be on the lookout for our other waiver wire articles all season long. We will be releasing weekly waiver wire articles for each position, FAAB bidding recommendations, streamers, and more. Stay tuned!

Who Should I Pickup Tool

Trying to decide who to pick up off the waiver wire? Check the Who Should I Pickup tool here:

Who Should I Pickup for Week 8?

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Who Should I Pickup? Some common 2026 fantasy football waiver wire decisions are regarding players like Antonio Williams, Jakobi Meyers, Khalil Shakir, Ja'Kobi Lane, Bam Knight, Jonah Coleman, Samaje Perine, Emmett Johnson, Caleb Douglas, Seth McGown, Darius Cooper, Makai Lemon, Dylan Sampson, Travis Hunter, Mason Taylor, Michael Mayer, Colby Parkinson, Tyler Higbee, Jacoby Brissett, Bo Nix, Aaron Rodgers, Sam Darnold, and J.J. McCarthy. But not to worry, we are here to help make these waiver wire decisions and build winning teams in 2026. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups in 2026. 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.

2026 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players: Ollie Gordon II, Kenyon Sadiq, Adonai Mitchell, Emanuel Wilson, and Roman Wilson. These are some common searches for 2026 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 2026. 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 results and recommendations.

Popular Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pickup

Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for 2026 for Antonio Williams, Jakobi Meyers, Khalil Shakir, Ja'Kobi Lane, Bam Knight, Jonah Coleman, Samaje Perine, Emmett Johnson, Caleb Douglas, Seth McGown, Darius Cooper, Makai Lemon, Dylan Sampson, Travis Hunter, Mason Taylor, Michael Mayer, Colby Parkinson, Tyler Higbee, Jacoby Brissett, Bo Nix, Aaron Rodgers, Sam Darnold, and J.J. McCarthy:

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