Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings - Fantasy Football Pickups Include Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Michael Carter, Jawhar Jordan, Colby Parkinson, Jayden Reed, Blake Corum, Audric Estime, Malik Davis

December 16, 2025

Fantasy football waiver wire rankings for Week 16 of the 2025 NFL season. Top free agent options to add off waivers, and our rankings will help you prioritize.

Amazingly, Week 16 is here! It's the final four of the fantasy playoffs, and we are one game away from fantasy championship games. At RotoBaller HQ, we are already preparing for the final four and kickstart the week with our Week 16 fantasy football waiver wire rankings for Week 16 of the 2025 NFL season. Nick Mariano has ranked the top 85 free agent options to help you prioritize who to add off the waiver wire.

Several players still have low roster percentages and could have an immediate impact on fantasy teams in 2025. With Chris Rodriguez Jr. out with a groin injury, has Jacory Croskey-Merritt become Washington's lead back after rushing for 96 yards and a touchdown vs. the Giants on Sunday? Is Michael Carter a must-add after the Cardinals have now lost Bam Knight with an ankle injury? Has Troy Franklin emerged as Broncos quarterback Box Nix's secondary option behind Courtland Sutton after reeling in six catches for 85 yards and a score against the Packers on Sunday?

We have answers to these questions and will guide you with our top 85 fantasy football waiver wire pickups list for Week 16. Time to go make some moves, tweak your fantasy teams, and grab some waiver wire stashes to help you advance in the playoffs. Good luck, RotoBallers!

Who To Pickup for Fantasy Football Week 16?

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

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Outlooks

Some of the top names include Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Michael Carter, Troy Franklin, Blake Corum, Colby Parkinson, and more.  We recap why these players rostered under 55% in Yahoo! leagues should be on your waiver wire radar for Week 16.

Jacory Croskey-Merritt, RB, Washington Commanders
Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings: 1

Washington Commanders rookie running back out of Arizona, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, is officially back on the fantasy football radar as Chris Rodriguez Jr. (groin) was a game-time decision in Week 15 and was eventually ruled out shortly before the game, which led to Croskey-Merritt, aka Bill, to earn 18 carries which he turned that into 98 yards (5.33) and a touchdown in the Commanders' 29-21 win over the New York Giants in Week 15. JCM looked good running the football, and his score came from 16 yards out. All of a sudden, this Commanders backfield gets a bit shaky after it had finally cleared up for us the past few weeks, with Rodriguez being the only one worth rostering.

After JCM's performance in Week 15, it's possible the Commanders may want to give JCM some more run after an impressive performance, so if Rodriguez Jr., who had been playing well, returns in Week 16, all of a sudden, we are back to the three-running-back committee of Rodriguez, JCM, and Jeremy McNichols. All of which would become desperate plays in Week 16 of the fantasy football season. Regardless, JCM would be worth a waiver-wire pickup in case Rodriguez can't suit up in Week 16.

Michael Carter, RB, Arizona Cardinals
Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings: 4

The Arizona Cardinals' running back room got a little thinner after their Week 15 loss to the Houston Texans 40-20 on Sunday, as running back Bam Knight (ankle) was carted off the field in Sunday's contest and did not return. Michael Carter stepped up as the team's primary running back, and after Knight's departure, he had 78% of the backfield carry share, a 10% target share, and got the only carry inside the 10-yard line. He finished the contest with 14 carries for 56 yards (4.0 YPC) and hauled in all four of his targets for an additional 38 yards, and will have fantasy value moving forward, as he appears to be their No. 1 running back option if Knight misses any extra time and would become a must-add off the waiver wire.

The Cardinals take on the Atlanta Falcons in Week 16 and the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 17. It will be important to monitor Knight's status, as that will determine Carter's overall value moving forward. Still, Trey Benson (knee) was not activated from the IR on December 10, and because of that, his season is over, leaving Carter and Emari Demrcado as the only healthy options at this time.

Troy Franklin, WR, Denver Broncos
Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings: 5

Denver Broncos wide receiver Troy Franklin provided an efficient day in Sunday's 34-26 win over the Green Bay Packers. With Broncos wide receiver Pat Bryant (hamstring) out this week, Franklin was able to reestablish himself as a force in the offense with six catches on six targets for 85 yards and a touchdown. The catches and yardage were second best on the team, trailing only Courtland Sutton. After seeing a dip in production and all-around involvement since the Broncos' bye week, this could be the game he needed to pry his way back onto the field. Keep an eye on Bryant's availability for Week 16, but Franklin could be a WR2 again against the Jacksonville Jaguars after this efficient performance.

Blake Corum, RB, Los Angeles Rams
Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings: 3

Los Angeles Rams second-year back out of Michigan, Blake Corum, continues to impress in Week 15, as he scored for a third straight week, and had 11 carries for 71 yards (6.45 YPC) and one touchdown. Corum has now rushed for a ridiculous 280 yards and four touchdowns over the past three weeks. More impressively, he has done it on 30 carries, which is suitable for a 9.33 YPC. Corum is still the clear backup to Kyren Williams, who had 15 carries for 78 yards and two touchdowns in Week 15.

Still, the Rams offense, led by MVP candidate Matthew Stafford, is potent enough to score so much that both running backs have fantasy value as we move into the final weeks of the season. At this point, Corum is the top handcuff option in fantasy football and has standalone RB3/flex value even with Williams taking a majority of the carries. The Rams will face stiff competition in Week 16 on Thursday Night Football against the Seattle Seahawks.

Colby Parkinson, TE, Los Angeles Rams
Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings: 14

Los Angeles Rams tight end Colby Parkinson caught five of seven targets for 75 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's 41-34 win over the Detroit Lions. The 26-year-old had a season-high 75 receiving yards on Sunday and has now found the end zone in five of the last six games. Overall, Parkinson has caught 31 passes for 298 yards and six touchdowns over 11 games in 2025.

Parkinson continues to be a preferred red zone target of quarterback Matthew Stafford, evidenced by hauling in six touchdowns over the previous six weeks. He will line up to play his former team, the Seattle Seahawks, in Week 16 on Thursday Night Football. The former Seahawk is the third-ranked tight end on our waiver wire list and is rostered in only 4% of Yahoo Fantasy leagues. Parkinson continues to find the end zone and can be used as a streamer for the final four of the fantasy playoffs for managers searching for a TE streamer.

Running Backs - Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Wide Receiver - Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Tight Ends - Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Quarterbacks - Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 16:

Defenses (D/ST) - Week 16 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 16:

More Waiver Wire Articles

After diving into the Week 16 rankings, read about some other free waiver wire resources available at RotoBaller:

• Week 16 waiver wire pickups (all positions)
• Week 16 running back waiver wire pickups
• Week 16 wide receiver waiver wire pickups
• Week 16 tight end waiver wire pickups
• Week 16 quarterback waiver wire pickups
• Week 16 FAAB waiver wire bids
• Week 16 defense (D/ST) streamers and pickups
• Week 16 kicker streamers and pickups

Each week, our NFL team puts out a complete array of fantasy football waiver wire articles to compliment 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 throughout the week.

Who Should I Pickup Tool

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

Who Should I Pickup for Week 16?

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2025 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players: Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Blake Corum, Michael Carter, Troy Franklin, Jayden Reed, Jawhar Jordan, Malik Davis, Colby Parkinson, Jalen Coker, Audric Estime, Colston Loveland, and Emanuel Wilson. 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.

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 Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pickup

Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for 2025 for Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Blake Corum, Michael Carter, Troy Franklin, Jayden Reed, Jawhar Jordan, Malik Davis, Colby Parkinson, Jalen Coker, Audric Estime, Colston Loveland, and Emanuel Wilson:

More Waiver Wire Analysis