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John's must-add breakouts, fantasy football waiver wire stashes, and must-drops. Read why Chimere Dike and Darius Slayton are new WR1s, among Week 9's must-adds.
Grabbing the right guys off waivers or in free agency just before the slate of upcoming games starts is always a good idea. Sometimes, these last-second moves can help your team immensely.
There are also players that you should probably go ahead and cut bait with -- roster cloggers that prevent you from grabbing players with tangible upside.
We'll break down both types of players below and present cases for you to drop or add each one, and why doing so could be a good move for your fantasy teams. So let's dive in!
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 9 Fantasy Football Stashes
Stash: Darius Slayton, WR, New York Giants
Slayton might be the Giants' WR1 in the absence of Malik Nabers (knee), who's out for the season. In fact, he's already come close to having a few long touchdown catches with his new starting quarterback, rookie sensation Jaxson Dart. There have been some near misses.
In Week 9, the Giants will face the San Francisco 49ers, who have a defense absolutely decimated by injuries. They're missing their elite linebacker Fred Warner (ankle), their best pass-rusher Nick Bosa (knee), a great pass-rusher in Bryce Huff (hamstring), and more key players.
So much hand-fighting happening I don't know how you call this.
Horrific. pic.twitter.com/QPENStkX6t
— Alex Wilson (@AlexWilsonESM) October 26, 2025
Slayton would have had a long touchdown against the Los Angeles Chargers, but he was held on the play by a defensive back. He also would've had a long touchdown against the Philadelphia Eagles, but was the subject of a controversial offensive pass interference call.
The big games are coming, and the first one could be against a 49ers defense that even struggled to get pressure against the Houston Texans, who have one of the league's worst offensive lines. So Slayton is a great upside stash.
Stash: Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars
The most important stash you can make right now, in my opinion, is Tuten. Yes, RB Travis Etienne Jr. has been a solid fantasy asset this season. But there's a chance that he's just not as good as Tuten. By that I mean he's probably not.
Etienne has benefited from very good blocking and scheming so far. If Tuten had been handed the ball on a lot of those well-blocked runs, the results would have probably been similar, if not better, because Tuten has blazing speed and is very elusive.
Weeks 1-4:
+394 Yds (RB3/49)
+6.06 YPC (RB1)
+7.7% Explosive Rush Rate (RB6)
+0.17 MTF/Att (RB24)Weeks 5-7:
+3.75 YPC (RB31/41, min. 15 att)
+0 Missed Tackles Forced on 41 carries
+1.34 YACon/Att (RB38)Extremely inefficient vs any decent defense
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) October 20, 2025
Tuten really hasn't had much volume yet, but he struggled through a shoulder injury for four weeks, and that's likely the reason that he didn't get much work. I've written a mountain of literature about Tuten to this point. But in short -- he's extremely talented, extremely athletic, and in a great situation.
The Jaguars have been great at run-blocking this year, and Tuten could absolutely explode if he's given some of the looks that Etienne has gotten. It's just a matter of time before Coen calls some of these plays for Tuten. It could lead to a massive day of 20 or more PPR fantasy points, and then you'll have to burn a waiver claim or a lot of FAAB for him.
Get ahead of the game and pick him up now.
Stash: J.J. McCarthy, QB, Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings' offensive line has been dealing with injury issues, but it could potentially be healthier than they were earlier in the season. They've struggled to pass-protect to this point, but we could see them take a step forward, in which case McCarthy would benefit greatly.
He's had a rough start to his career, but Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell has a way of elevating talent at the position and producing fantasy QB1s, even with subpar talent. McCarthy has excellent rushing upside to add to this, and a great group of pass-catchers. If the OL can hold up, he could be a good fantasy asset.
THIS happened. Literally less than a month ago. But some of the fanbase is ready to call THIS a bust and move on.
Bet against JJ McCarthy. Go Ahead.
You will lose. pic.twitter.com/N8z0Aa8DSl
— Purple FTW! Podcast (@PurpleForTheWin) September 30, 2025
I'm not saying McCarthy WILL be good, but he's worth stashing if you don't have a solid backup quarterback, have the bench space, and want a QB with rushing upside on a good offense. Those are hard to find. If he underperforms, you can always drop him, of course.
Stash: Chimere Dike, WR, Tennessee Titans
It looks like Dike's flashy athleticism could help him make a strong case for his team's WR1 position. The Titans' offense has been highly ineffective all season, and they're looking for a player to give them a spark. It doesn't seem that fellow rookie wideout Elic Ayomanor has done so.
Unsurprisingly, as a result, we've seen Dike get far more opportunities in the past two weeks than he typically did. In those games, he's caught 11 of his 12 targets for 163 yards and a touchdown. He's an elite athlete, as he ran a 4.34-second 40-yard dash, and his athleticism is showing up on tape.
Cam Ward 🎯 Chimere Dike
This throw had an air distance of 50.0 yards, per @NextGenStats 😳
Watch live local games on #NFLPlus
Blackout restrictions may applypic.twitter.com/jhYfXY1XYN— NFL+ (@NFLPlus) October 19, 2025
WR Calvin Ridley (hamstring) is set to miss yet another contest. We could see another nice game from Dike, since Ridley is technically the team's WR1. He could continue to make a case for the WR2 job as a rookie, and given Ridley's poor play this season, he could even challenge for the WR1 job.
This early in a player's career, a lot can change based on how they perform.
Week 9 Fantasy Football Drops
Cooper Kupp, WR, Seattle Seahawks
Kupp (hamstring, heel) is dealing with hamstring and heel injuries and is not expected to play in Week 9. It might be time to let him go. Not only has he had three games in which he's scored under seven points, but he's also a 32-year-old WR with a long injury history that's now only getting longer.
Kupp doesn't seem to be able to make it through a season without missing time. It's a sad reality for someone who was once regarded as the best wideout in the NFL. Age and injuries have taken their toll. He's never been the same since his astounding triple-crown season in 2021.
Tory Horton’s 1st career catch is a touchdown!
SEAvsPIT on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/rCS74Ca0gA
— NFL (@NFL) September 14, 2025
I know I didn't mention him in the stashes section, but you really should draft WR Tory Horton. Rookies tend to have post-bye production bumps, and he's in line for a solid game against a struggling Commanders pass defense. He should get more playing time in Kupp's absence.
Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins are once again having a terrible season. Without WR Tyreek Hill (knee) on the field, Tagovailoa's upside simply isn't what it should be, too, and Hill is out for the season. Even with WR Jaylen Waddle and RB De'Von Achane, two excellent pass-catchers, Tagovailoa has been miserable for fantasy this year.
When you ask Tua to be like other QBs this is what you end up with. Interception! pic.twitter.com/hc4W4TrB4t
— El Capitan (Chris) The Fins Tail Gate (@thefinstailgate) October 31, 2025
Aside from one strange blowout game against the Atlanta Falcons, Tagovailoa hasn't been great. He has four games in which he's only scored single-digit points, and that's just unacceptable for a quarterback in fantasy football. The Dolphins aren't likely to get much better on offense. Better to let go of their QB now.
Joe Mixon, RB, Houston Texans
Mixon (foot, ankle) is still dealing with a foot and ankle injury that he suffered in the offseason. Granted that the team has mentioned virtually nothing about it, we can assume that he picked up the injury doing something not football-related, especially since he was originally placed on the Non-Football Injury list.
He hasn't played for eight straight weeks, and there is still no timetable for his return or comment from the coaching staff about his recovery. If you have an extra injured reserve spot to place him in, things should be fine, but if you don't, you might be well-served to simply let him go.
While Mixon was a productive back last year, he'll likely be quite rusty when he returns, and he'll have to compete with running backs Nick Chubb and Woody Marks for a role on a bad offense. Marks has taken more pass-catching work in recent weeks, and Mixon would be unlikely to snag that role back from him.
Woody Marks takes the pass 50 yards!
SFvsHOU on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/fgVqUTFCj9
— NFL (@NFL) October 26, 2025
We might end up seeing a hideous three-way committee between all three of Houston's running backs, which would be a nightmare for fantasy football. Without pass-catching upside to pad his stats in PPR leagues, Mixon could hardly be worth starting when he returns.
Jerome Ford, RB, Cleveland Browns
Since the Browns drafted both RBs Quinshon Judkins (shoulder) and Dylan Sampson in the second and fourth rounds of the 2025 NFL Draft, Ford's role in his team's offense has been minimal. He's been a non-factor in fantasy football, and there's little reason to hang on to him.
Judkins is dealing with a shoulder injury and might not be able to play in Week 10, but that seems less likely than him recovering over the team's Week 9 bye and returning healthy. Even if he did miss time, RB Dylan Sampson would likely take the majority of the backfield workload, leaving few touches left for Ford.
If you really want a Browns running back, you can pick up Sampson off waivers, but he might not have a ton of upside in an awful Browns offense. You'd probably be relying on PPR-scam points if you grabbed him and felt obligated to start him.
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 Darius Slayton, Chimere Dike, Bhayshul Tuten, Cooper Kupp, Jerome Ford, Dylan Sampson. 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.
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Popular Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pickup
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for 2025 for Darius Slayton, Chimere Dike, Bhayshul Tuten, Cooper Kupp, Jerome Ford, Dylan Sampson:
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