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Should I pickup Kareem Hunt or Brashard Smith as fantasy football waiver wire pickups for Week 9 of 2025? Read our fantasy football waiver wire outlooks.
Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco (knee) is currently dealing with an MCL sprain that he picked up late in his team's win in Week 8 against the Washington Commanders.
In his absence, fellow Chiefs RBs Kareem Hunt and Brashard Smith should have expanded roles... hypothetically. Hunt rushed nine times for 40 yards and a touchdown and caught one pass for two yards and another score on Monday, while Smith rushed three times for eight yards.
Smith also fumbled the ball, but it didn't result in a turnover. These two backs will be their team's top-2 options likely in Week 9 and possibly beyond, but should you pick them up in fantasy football leagues?
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:- 2025 fantasy football rankings
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Kareem Hunt Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Outlook
Hunt has already been serving as the team's primary goal-line back this year. With Pacheco's absence, he should maintain that role while likely grabbing quite a few more of Pacheco's rushes and passing-down work. Hunt has been pretty solid this year as a pass-protector.
He's not the best athlete, but his size and strength allow him to serve well as a plodder. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid has done a good job consistently scheming the offense to open up holes for Hunt to run through, resulting in him converting at a very high rate on third down.
SECOND TOUCHDOWN FOR KAREEM 😤 pic.twitter.com/BWuvSfRGWR
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) October 28, 2025
Hunt's consistent short-yardage role and usage at the goal line make him a valuable RB for fantasy football, even though he's not been used much as a pass-catcher. He's tied to a good offense that's been scoring a lot of touchdowns this season.
Brashard Smith Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Outlook
Smith isn't much of a "running back" in the traditional sense this season. He's only taken a handful of carries so far this season and has yet to make many splash plays. It's been on designed targets that he's done most of his damage in fantasy football in his rookie season.
The Chiefs tend to take things slow with their rookies, giving them ample time to work themselves into the offense and learn all the schemes. That's exactly what they've been doing with Smith. While he had four targets per game in Weeks 4-7, though, he wasn't targeted a single time in Week 8.
Andy pic.twitter.com/c05qElgutE
— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) August 23, 2025
We saw some pretty nice highlights in the preseason of the Chiefs trying to get Smith the ball downfield. That would have been fantastic for his fantasy value. But perhaps it was more emblematic of how they plan to use him in future seasons.
Should I Pickup Kareem Hunt or Brashard Smith For Fantasy Football?
For now, Hunt is the obvious pickup. He should have an immediate role, catch a few passes, get the goal-line work, and handle the majority of the touches in general. Smith is restricted to an auxiliary role for now, and we might not see him unleashed until next season. I say that as a huge proponent of Smith's talent.
It's always disappointing when the exciting rookie, who happens to be an electric athlete, has a boring first season in the league. But that happens to a lot of players. Before Pacheco's big season came a rookie year of mostly mediocrity.
Brashard Smith is the clearest dark horse fantasy steal based purely on PPR upside. He's so legitimate as a pass catcher. I can't believe he's still so underrated. Chiefs are the PERFECT landing spot for him. Screen/short pass heavy team. pic.twitter.com/8SWFWZ1G1p
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) August 24, 2025
Now is a perfect time to stash Smith in deep PPR leagues and trade for him in dynasty leagues. I believe he has a bright future, but it just might take some time to arrive as he learns the complex Chiefs offense and gets more accustomed to being a professional running back.
Who Should I Pickup Tool
Trying to decide who to pick up 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 Kareem Hunt and Brashard Smith. 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 - Kareem Hunt and Brashard Smith. 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's name. In the second box, search for the second player's 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.
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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 Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pickup
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for 2025 for Kareem Hunt, Brashard Smith, Bam Knight, Kyle Monangai, Tyler Allgeier:
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