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Week 9 Waiver Wire - Wide Receivers (WR) & Defenses (DEF)

Each week of the NFL season I will take a look at how to improve your fantasy football teams.  Below I highlight wide receivers (WRs) and defenses (DEF) that need to be considered on the Week 9 waiver wire for your fantasy football teams.  Some may have a good matchup for Week 9, or have been putting up relevant points and should be rostered.

As the season continues I'm sure many of you reading this article have had your fair share of disappointments in fantasy football.  Whether it's a bad trade, bad draft choice or injury, it all adds to the ongoing complexity of keeping your team competitive, and as Charlie Sheen stated best, "WINNING."  This week, there was a major offensive outburst by one of my recommended players (hint: he's on the Bengals), and the rest of my suggestions are nice PPR choices.  And as always, I will be recommending defenses for Week 9 that are nice streamer choices based off the matchup.

 

With that said, lets get to it.  Here are the waiver recommendations for Week 9 by priority order:

 

Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:

Week 9 Waiver Wire Pickups - Wide Receivers (WR)

 

Marvin JonesMarvin Jones, WR, CIN - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add Immediately (10+ teams Standard, PPR)
ANALYSIS:  Outside of AJ Green, Cincinnati has been looking for the past couple of years for a solid #2 receiving option.  It looks like they may have found that in Marvin Jones.  For the past three weeks, he's had at least one TD with six TDs total, 250 yards, and 15 catches on 19 targets.  My concern with this recommendation is that prior to the past three weeks, he had been a marginal bench fantasy WR option at best (35 yards/game).  However, as the top cornerbacks continue to focus on AJ Green, someone else will get targets, and it looks like that will be Jones. If you are in a league with a WR bench spot Marvin Jones might be a nice option for you to consider.

 

Tim Wright, WR/TE, TB - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add Immediately (12+ teams Standard, PPR)
ANALYSIS:  Since the Josh Freeman era has passed in Tampa Bay, Wright has found a new friend in QB Mike Glennon.  Outside of last week's dud (two catches for 15 yards), he's had at least 9 fantasy points.  If you are in a Yahoo! league, Tim Wright is a player that can play both TE or WR; ESPN owners should disregard Wright as a WR option as he is eligible only at TE.  Obviously Wright has chemistry with Glennon over Freeman, so I would expect positive results going forward, assuming Glennon keeps the starting QB job.

 

Dexter McCluster, WR, MIA - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues (12+ teams PPR)
ANALYSIS:  For those of you who are in PPR leagues, Dexter McCluster is a player for you consider.  For the past two weeks, he's had 137 yards on 11 catches with 15 targets (73% catch rate).  Coming into the season, I anticipated that Andy Reid would find a way to get the ball into McCluster's hands, and I believe it's finally happening.  It seems as though Alex Smith will continue to look to him (second-straight week as the Chiefs' leading receiver) for short underneath routes, which is a great opportunity for PPR league players to consider McCluster as a WR option.  For the past two weeks I'd call him a Julian Edelman Lite for 2013.  If he continues at this pace, I anticipate that his value will increase substantially in the upcoming weeks.

 

Honorable mentions: David Nelson, WR, NYJ; Myles White, WR, GB; Drew Davis, WR, ATL

 

Week 9 Waiver Wire Pickups - Defenses (DEF)

 

Defense no-brainer starts Cincinnati (vs Miami), Kansas City (vs Buffalo), Seattle (vs Tampa Bay)

 

INDIANAPOLIS (IND), DEF - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Standard Leagues (12+ teams)
ANALYSIS: In Week 7, the Indianapolis defense did a decent job of containing the No. 1 offense (Denver Broncos) with four sacks, a safety, an interception, and two fumble recoveries.  For Week 9, they will be facing the Houston Texans, who have had issues with the QB position all season.  As of this writing, I do not know who the starting QB will be in Houston, but I anticipate that no matter which guy they run out there, Indianapolis will have a much easier task. If you are seeking a defense as a bye-week replacement or streaming option, Indianapolis would be a nice choice.

 

TENNESSEE (TEN), DEF - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Standard Leagues (10+ teams)
ANALYSIS: The Titans will be facing a Rams team that will be starting backup QB Kellen Clemens, who has a 51.8% completion rate with seven TDs and 13 interceptions for his career.  To give you a sense of how bad he could be, rumors have it that the Rams have reached out to Brett Favre to consider un-retiring.  Favre hasn't played in the NFL since 2010, and he's 44 years old.  If true, this smacks of desperation in St. Louis, and it also smells like Clemons is not that great of a player.    To make matters worse for Clemons, he'll be facing the #12 ranked defense in Tennessee, who have generated 11 fumbles and recovered seven of those.  I have a hunch a fumble will happen in this game as well.  Stream away with this defense if they are available in your league.

 

T.J. Ward, IDP - S, CLE - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Standard Leagues (12+ teams IDP Leagues)
ANALYSIS: Over the last three weeks, TJ Ward has been a beast with 27 tackles, a sack and five assists.  If you are looking for a safety, Ward would be a nice option for you to consider.  If he continues to play at this level, there aren't very many safeties that can contribute at this level that are available on the waiver wire.

 

Players I recommend beyond my waiver wire rules (above 25% ownership, or if I previously recommended).  Add these wide receivers immediately if they are still available in your leagues (in priority order):

Josh Gordon, WR, CLE - Another solid week with a different QB, he's definitely #1 WR option in Cleveland.
Percy Harvin, WR, SEA - Should be back next week, if he's available pick him up!
Keenan Allen, WR, SD - bye week
Harry Douglas, WR, ATL - Another solid week for Douglas; who needs Julio Jones?  Just kidding.
Terrance Williams, WR, DAL - Another week, another TD for Williams.
Justin Blackmon, WR, JAC - dropped a would be td pass, he has the talent and potential
Jarrett Boykin, WR, GB - Another solid week and he's filling in nicely for Cobb.  James Jones should be back next week.
Vincent Brown, WR, SD - bye week
Emmanuel Sanders, WR, PIT - Had a breakout week after last weeks bust.
DeAndre Hopkins, WR, HOU - bye week
Michael Crabtree, WR, SF - Won't be back until late to mid Nov.
Kenny Stills, WR, NO - Previously mentioned (see Week 2 waiver article - yes I can see that far into the future. 🙂 ), had a nice week but only 3 catches.
Golden Tate, WR, SEA - No updates as of this writing

 

My guidelines:

1. I will not repeat waiver selections.  All mentioned players prior to week 4 will apply to the current waiver options and going forward.
2. I will only recommend players that are lower than 25% ownership in Yahoo! or ESPN leagues.

 

=============

As always, you can find all of our weekly waiver wire recommendations on our famous waiver wire pickups list. And if you haven't joined the best and largest fantasy football chat room community on the web, check out the RotoBaller.com Fantasy Football chat room for live fantasy advice, sit/start questions, and more.

 




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