The Cut List - Time to Let Go? Who to Drop for Fantasy Football Week 9

Rob's fantasy football players to drop when making waiver wire moves for Week 9 (2025). He helps fantasy football managers decide on who to cut from rosters.

Last week, I practiced patience with players who have been disappointing, but who are primary starters on good offenses. This week, we're changing our tune a little bit. There are three players listed in this week's edition who fit that very set of criteria.

I also talked about not cutting rookies drafted early in this year's NFL Draft, but there's one such player who is in this week's article, hanging onto a thread. I still believe those are good rules to abide by, but there are exceptions to every rule, and this week, we'll touch on some of those qualifying cases.

This article will identify players who can safely be cut in 12-team leagues. Be sure to also check out my waiver wire article for Week 9, because with almost every cut, there's a new addition we welcome to our team. If you sign up for one of our premium subscriptions, please use the promo code "BOOM" to receive a 10% discount.

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Running Backs to Consider Cutting

Isiah Pacheco, Kansas City Chiefs - 84.6% Rostered

Pacheco is basically a poor man's version of Kenneth Walker. What does that mean? He's a (far) less talented player who has no role near the end zone or in the passing game. Through eight weeks, Pacheco has one rushing touchdown. It came in Week 7 when Kareem Hunt was dealing with a knee injury. That was one of the two weeks where Pacheco scored more than 7.5 half-PPR points. That's right, Pacheco only has two games with more than 7.5 half-PPR points.

The other came in Week 4 when Pacheco happened to score a receiving touchdown. Through eight games, Pacheco has 11 receptions. He has 43 receiving yards on the season. He's averaging a little more than a catch per game and just about five yards. Given the very minimal utilization in the passing game, fantasy managers shouldn't be expecting too many receiving scores (or any more).

From Weeks 1-7, Pacheco has zero rush attempts inside the five-yard line. Even rookie Brashard Smith has one. Hunt has five. Pacheco only has three carries in the 10-yard line. Smith has four, and Hunt has seven. From Weeks 1-7, Pacheco has averaged just 5.0 half-PPR points when he doesn't score a touchdown. Unfortunately, he's only usable when he scores a touchdown, and his touchdown opportunities are few and far between.

Others to Consider Cutting:

• Kenneth Gainwell, Pittsburgh Steelers - 58.1% Rostered
• Michael Carter, Arizona Cardinals - 33.8% Rostered
• Jerome Ford, Cleveland Browns - 20.3% Rostered

Wide Receivers to Consider Cutting

Cooper Kupp, Seattle Seahawks - 70.5% Rostered

Seattle was on bye in Week 8. Through seven games, Kupp has finished with fewer than 5.0 half-PPR points in four of them. Over 50% of the games Kupp has played, he's failed to crack even 5.0 half-PPR points. That could be tolerable for a bench receiver, but there's no upside, and that's the real problem. Kupp has only two games this season in which he's scored double digits.

None of them has been more than 12.5 half-PPR points. He has just two games with more than five targets, so the volume isn't there either. This isn't a situation where we can say he's been unlucky, but the volume has been there. Kupp has four games with fewer than three receptions. Seattle simply isn't passing the ball enough, and when they do, it's a committee approach between Jaxon Smith-Njigba, assuming JSN shares at all.

Keon Coleman, Buffalo Bills - 67.8% Rostered

Like Kupp, Coleman has finished with fewer than 5.0 half-PPR points in four out of seven games this season. Unlike Kupp, however, Coleman has just one game with double-digits. That was all the way back in Week 1 against the dreadful Baltimore defense. Since Week 2, Coleman is averaging 4.9 half-PPR points.

Keon Coleman has seen press coverage at highest rate of Bills WRs, has struggled turning contested catches into targets at a high rate and more than anything (imo) could use more across the middle catch and run targets.

Here's his route tree from Week 8 - 2 of 3 catches were… https://t.co/SjX7ahWyI8 pic.twitter.com/loXxVOJwik

— Michael F. Florio (@MichaelFFlorio) October 27, 2025

Here are some players who are currently averaging more PPG than Coleman's PPG average since Week 2: DeAndre Hopkins, Curtis Samuel, Jalen Nailor, Dyami Brown, Luke McCaffrey, JuJu Smith-Schuster, KaVontae Turpin, and Xavier Legette. Coleman has five games with four or fewer targets. The volume isn't there. The production isn't there. I'm over him.

Others to Consider Cutting:

• Jerry Jeudy, Cleveland Browns - 74.4% Rostered
• Xavier Legette, Carolina Panthers - 33.0% Rostered
• Marvin Mims Jr., Denver Broncos - 24.3% Rostered
• Christian Kirk, Houston Texans - 16.2% Rostered

Tight Ends to Consider Cutting

T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings = 86.5% Rostered

It's borderline unheard of for an offense to support three fantasy-relevant pass catchers. It's certainly not going to happen with an offense playing as poorly as Minnesota's. The same can be said about the Vikings' quarterback play. Unfortunately, for Hockenson, he's clearly the No. 3 target-earner on the team now.

Obviously, Justin Jefferson is the No. 1, but Jordan Addison is also (obviously the team's No. 2. There was some belief or possibility that Hockenson might be the No. 2 over Addison in the preseason, or maybe, at the very least, he'd be No. 2A or No. 2B and he'd still have his weeks where he'd pop.

That isn't the case, though. Addison has been upgraded to elite No. 2 receiver status, comparable to Tee Higgins, Jaylen Waddle, and DeVonta Smith. That puts Hockenson in a really tough spot, and it shows. Since Week 4, when Addison returned, Hockenson has been averaging just 5.9 half-PPR points.

On the Hot Seat

Matthew Golden, Green Bay Packers - 76.9% Rostered

I hate to give up a first-round rookie, but the curtains are beginning to close. Early in the year, it seemed as though he was cleared for takeoff. Jayden Reed got hurt and ended up on IR. Dontayvion Wicks has been banged up since the preseason and has been in and out of the lineup. Christian Watson was still on IR. Despite this, Golden only had one game with double-digits before this past weekend.

He's averaging just 5.8 half-PPR points. He's been held to fewer than 3.0 half-PPR points in three out of seven games. He has fewer than five targets in five games and three games with less than 20 yards. This is despite all the injuries at receiver for the Packers.

Watson returned this past weekend and finished with double-digit fantasy points in his first game back after tearing his ACL in January. Golden had just 1.9 half-PPR points. Now that Watson is healthy and Reed will eventually be back, it's virtually impossible to trust Golden.

With two minutes left in the Sunday Night game, Matthew Golden is third in routes run with a 1.3 aDOT on three targets. Christian Watson is right behind Golden in routes and made three big catches of 19, 33, and 28 yards. That's what we were hoping Golden could do, but Watson… pic.twitter.com/ke4FoBoHU9

— Corbin (@corbin_young21) October 27, 2025

We haven't even mentioned Tucker Kraft's ascension to superstardom. You can easily make the argument that Golden is now no better than fourth on the team's target hierarchy. He might be fifth behind Romeo Doubs, Josh Jacobs, Kraft, and Watson. The Packers have used a receiver-by-committee approach ever since trading Davante Adams. It seems highly unlikely they'll change that this year.

Hold

Jordan Mason, Minnesota Vikings - 86.8% Rostered

Week 8 was brutal. Given the injuries that Carson Wentz was playing with, it's reasonable to expect J.J. McCarthy to be better than Wentz was these past few weeks. Better quarterback play naturally means more scoring opportunities. Mason is the team's goal-line and short-yardage back.

From @NFLGameDay Kickoff: #Vikings QB Carson Wentz, who battled through a significant injury, is out for the season, while JJ McCarthy is set to start. pic.twitter.com/NLF2byWgm3

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 27, 2025

Hopefully, the offensive line gets healthier in the second half of the season. That'll help open up some running lanes for Mason. The Minnesota offensive line has been decimated by injuries this season, so while Mason has been disappointing, it hasn't all been his fault.

The biggest concern is that the schedule is about to get even more difficult, and Mason doesn't play much in passing situations. That means if the Vikings aren't playing with the lead, or at the very least, competitive games, Mason could end up taking a backseat to Aaron Jones Sr. For right now, I'd preach patience to see how McCarthy looks and see if this offensive line can get healthy.

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