Weekend Waiver Wire Rankings for Week 1 (2026): Fantasy Football Pickups for Ryan Flournoy, Tre Tucker, Braelon Allen, Dylan Sampson, Rashod Bateman, Malachi Fields, Emari Demercado

September 13, 2026

Updated weekend fantasy football waiver wire rankings for Week 1 of the 2026 NFL season. Top fantasy football free agents and streamers to add off waivers including Ryan Flournoy, Braelon Allen, Dylan Sampson, Malachi Fields, Emari Demercado, more.

Welcome RotoBallers! The first main slate of the 2026 NFL season will kick off in a few hours! While most are setting their lineups, it is crucial to always scan the waiver wire for potential league winners. It is easy to do so with our updated weekend fantasy football waiver wire rankings before Week 1 of the 2026 season. The updated waiver wire rankings are to help fantasy managers navigate through injuries, bye weeks, or if you are looking for a high-upside stash. 

Even though most teams have yet to step on the field, the injury bug is already spreading around the NFL as Giants star WR Malik Nabers is listed as questionable for Sunday night's game, leaving some managers without a high-upside option in their lineups.

These weekend fantasy football waiver wire rankings before Week 1 are updated for the weekend by Nick Mariano, RotoBaller's lead fantasy football analyst and forecaster. For those who are not familiar, he brings you his weekly waiver wire rankings and priority adds for the top 85 options to consider across various positions and league sizes. Good luck in Week 1 on the waiver wire and in your matchups!

Who To Pick Up for Fantasy Football Week 1?

Quarterbacks (QB) and Defenses (D/ST) are grouped together at the bottom of the list:

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Outlooks

Jacob Saylors, RB, Detroit Lions

Fourth-year running back out of East Tennessee State, Jacob Saylors, is in line to potentially back up one of the best running backs in the game and the consensus No. 1 fantasy running back, Jahmyr Gibbs.

Important to note that head coach Dan Campbell did come out Monday and said that the team's RB2 role behind starter Gibbs will be by committee, according to Brad Galli; however, Saylors is listed as the team's RB2 on the depth chart, and with how potent this Lions offense is, that makes him a valuable bench option on the off chance Gibbs goes down with an injury.

Saylors went undrafted in 2023 and has two career rushing attempts in the NFL, so he is truly a handcuff option for the Lions, with no standalone value to start the season. The Lions' former RB2, David Montgomery, was picked up by the Houston Texans during the offseason, opening the door for the 25-year-old. Fantasy managers looking to stash a handcuff should be looking in Saylor's direction.

Daniel Jones, QB, Indianapolis Colts

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones has been going undrafted in many leagues with 12 or fewer teams, leaving him on the waiver wire in many formats. It's a bit surprising to see Jones remain available after fantasy drafts wrap up. Although he is coming off an Achilles injury, he was phenomenal through the first stretch of the 2025 season.

In fact, he ranked as the QB7 in total fantasy points through 12 games before getting injured last year. Jones no longer has Michael Pittman Jr. at his disposal, but he still gets to throw the ball to a very talented group of players, including Alec Pierce, Josh Downs, Tyler Warren, and Jonathan Taylor. Indianapolis also signed veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen to bolster its receiver room this offseason.

With numerous weapons at his disposal and plenty of rushing upside, Jones should be viewed as a fringe top-15 fantasy quarterback with top-10 upside this year. As a result, he's an appealing waiver wire option, especially since he opens the season against the Baltimore Ravens, who allowed the 10th-most fantasy points to quarterbacks last year.

Michael Mayer, TE, Las Vegas Raiders

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Michael Mayer's pass-catching production has been limited over the past two seasons thanks to the presence of superstar Raiders tight end Brock Bowers (knee). However, the Raiders announced on Wednesday that Bowers recently had a meniscus trim and is now expected to miss the first one or two games of 2026.

As a result, Mayer should operate as the Raiders' TE1 to begin the year. Across the four games he played in 2025 when Bowers was sidelined by injury, Mayer recorded 18 catches for 196 yards and a touchdown on 24 targets. The Raiders should have a more stable offensive environment in 2026 with Kirk Cousins at quarterback and Klint Kubiak calling plays.

Ahead of a relatively favorable matchup against the Miami Dolphins in Week 1, Mayer could be a worthy tight end streamer for fantasy managers to target on the waiver wire.

Emari Demercado, RB, Arizona Cardinals

Dallas Cowboys running back Emari Demercado is basically unrostered on Yahoo, but that could change after Malik Davis was injured during Friday's practice. Davis had clearly won the No. 2 job behind Javonte Williams, with Demercado sitting directly behind him after Dallas claimed the veteran off waivers at the end of August. If Davis is forced to miss time, Demercado suddenly has a much cleaner path to backup work.

He has been efficient when called on, averaging 6.5 yards per carry on 126 career attempts. Last season with Arizona, Demercado ran 44 times for 312 yards and caught 13 passes for 101 yards and a touchdown. None of that makes him a Week 1 starter against the Giants. Williams is still the lead back here. But with Demercado at 0% rostered on Yahoo, deeper-league managers now have a reason to take a shot before there is more clarity on Davis.

If Davis misses time, Demercado's handcuff value rises quickly.

Cyrus Allen, WR, Kansas City Chiefs

Kansas City Chiefs fifth-round rookie wide receiver out of Cincinnati, Cyrus Allen, burst onto the scene throughout training camp and generated a lot of positive buzz and praise from Chiefs players and the coaching staff. However, he had a bit of a quiet preseason, catching six of his 12 targets for only 39 yards.

Additionally, Allen was labeled as a reserve on the depth chart on Tuesday behind Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy, and Tyquan Thornton. While it may take an injury for Allen to immediately provide WR3 or flex appeal, the positivity he gained throughout training camp garners a bench spot for fantasy managers taking a late-round flier or looking to fill a bench spot off the waiver wire.

Allen has a more diverse route tree than Thornton, who is known as a deep-ball specialist. Allen remains a top waiver-wire stash heading into Week 1 based on his training camp buzz and the potential to be getting passes from Patrick Mahomes. RotoBaller ranks Allen as the WR82 off the board and the 213th player overall.

Running Backs - Week 1 Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Wide Receivers - Week 1 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Tight Ends - Week 1 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Quarterbacks - Week 1 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 1:

Defenses (D/ST) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 1:

Week 1 Waiver Wire Articles

In addition to the Week 1 waiver wire rankings, here's a look at some other free waiver wire resources available at RotoBaller. Each week, our NFL team puts out a complete array of fantasy football waiver wire articles to compliment our slick new Who Should I Pickup? Waiver wire player comparison tool - bookmark that! Here are more detailed Week 1 waiver wire articles:

• Week 1 waiver wire pickups (all positions)
• Week 1 defense (D/ST) streamers and pickups
• Week 1 kicker streamers and pickups
• Must-add waiver wire pickups before Week 1
• High-upside waiver wire bench stashes
• Waiver wire watch list - breakout candidates
• Sneaky pivot plays, streamers and starts
• D/ST Streamers for Weeks 1, 2, 3

For anyone unfamiliar, we release all sorts of fantasy football waiver wire articles every week. As part of that, Nick Mariano releases our waiver wire rankings list on Mondays to help you prioritize which players to target as free-agent adds off waivers.

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 1?

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Who Should I Pickup? Some common 2026 fantasy football waiver wire decisions are regarding players like Ryan Flournoy, Tre Tucker, Braelon Allen, Dylan Sampson, Rashod Bateman, Malachi Fields, Emari Demercado. 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: Kyle Monangai, Chris Rodriguez Jr., Luther Burden III, Devin Neal, Bam Knight, Adonai Mitchell, Darren Waller, Samaje Perine, Jayden Reed, Devaughn Vele, and Brenton Strange. 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'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.

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 Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pickup

Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for players like Ryan Flournoy, Tre Tucker, Braelon Allen, Dylan Sampson, Rashod Bateman, Malachi Fields, Emari Demercado:

More Waiver Wire Analysis