Week one of the 2026 NFL season is done, and everyone you drafted is dead. AJ Brown? Dead! Ladd McConkey? Dead! Zay Flowers? Dead! Your fantasy team? That depends on you. Before you give up on your fantasy season, remember that the waiver wire exists to save you from the cruel and unforgiving fantasy football gods. I will provide you with the best options available. If I don’t mention someone whom you think I should be talking about, just know there are many reasons why I overlooked them. Maybe they are owned in most leagues. Maybe they are so bad I don’t even consider them. Or maybe it’s because your opinions cannot be trusted. After all, you are here. So let us examine our best week two waiver wire options for our championship run…
Week Two Waiver Wire Quarterbacks
Tyler Shough, New Orleans Saints (43% rostered)
Every year there is a quarterback who sits on the waiver wire for a month who finishes the season as a QB1. Of the guys available, Shough finished the week as the QB6 in the highest scoring week one in NFL history. Kellen Moore is a pretty good offensive mind with one of the highest play counts in football. If I were desperate for a quarterback after week one, this would be my guy. Not because I think Tyler Shough is good, but because he has a good offensive mind and plays in a bad division. Invoking the Blake Bortles rule with this one – just because you are bad at football doesn’t mean you can’t be good for fantasy football.
Week Two Waiver Wire Running Backs
Kaelon Black, San Francisco 49ers (21% rostered)
In week one, Kaelon Black had 15 touches for 70 all-purpose yards. The fact that he got this kind of usage in his first game is worth noting. Historically, Shanahan has run CMC into the ground, so this could be an outlier. On the other hand, if he continues to see a 43% snap share in a Kyle Shanahan offense, he could be a very strong addition to a roster. Truth be told, I don’t think there are any running backs available this week that are worth burning a waiver priority on, but I also understand that sometimes you need a running back now. If that is the case, Kaelon Black is probably your best option.
Week Two Waiver Wire Wide Receivers
Jalen Coker, Carolina Panthers (59% rostered)
Now I don’t normally go over the 50% threshold for waiver wire, but I do make exceptions for guys who finish as the WR1 overall in a given week when they are available in a fair amount of leagues. Am I concerned that he was in a walking boot and has an ankle injury? Sure. Is that going to stop me from trying to grab a guy who just signed a big contract, that I already think is very talented, and laid an absolute ass-whooping on an admittedly very bad Bears secondary? Absolutely not. These kinds of week one performances have to be acknowledged because while they are sometimes outlier performances, they are also sometimes league winners. Always take a shot on a league winner.
Devaughn Vele, New Orleans Saints (13% rostered)
If you are in need of immediate WR assistance, Devaughn Vele is an absolute must to add to your roster. (Assuming you can’t get Coker). Vele was WR12 this week with seven catches for 69 yards and a touchdown. Until Jordyn Tyson returns from IR, Vele is the clear WR2 on an offense that loves to throw the ball. The Saints are going to run more offensive snaps than any team in football if Kellen Moore has anything to say on it. That means Devaughn Vele is going to see a bunch of targets. As a man who has AJ Brown on a roster, this is going to be one of my main targets to tread water.
Caleb Douglas, Miami Dolphins (16% rostered)
Caleb Douglas is an interesting wide receiver prospect and a great potential long-term investment. Throughout training camp, all reports out of Miami were that he was the best receiver on the team. Douglas showed that in week one with five catches for 94 yards, a solid WR2 performance. The concern with Douglas is that Miami is expected to be a very bad football team. While that is almost assuredly true, that just means they are going to play from behind a lot, and garbage time still counts in fantasy. I’m a big fan of Douglas and think he has both short-term and long-term value. If you don’t need immediate help, I like Douglas over Vele.
Denzel Boston, Cleveland Browns (34% rostered)
This is both the riskiest and most exciting waiver wire receiver option of the bunch. The THfantaC crew absolutely loved Denzel Boston as a prospect. In week one, Boston had 2 catches for 59 yards and 1 touchdown. Boston also led the team in snap share and routes run. The good news? Denzel Boston appears to be the WR1 of the Cleveland Browns. The bad news? Denzel Boston plays on the Browns. It looks like he is going to get work, but his fantasy production is likely going to come from garbage time. But Boston is talented enough to be a valuable asset for a fantasy football team. I like him so much that he isn’t available on the waiver wire in any league I am in because if someone didn’t draft him, I did.
Rashod Bateman, Baltimore Ravens (6% rostered)
Rashod Bateman didn’t have a single catch in week one, so it might be surprising to find him on this list. When you consider that Ja’Kobi Lane broke his wrist and Zay Flowers missed the second half of week one with a hamstring injury, Rashod Bateman looks a lot more appealing. Someone has to catch the ball in Baltimore, and if Flowers misses week two, Bateman might have a big uptick in targets. The issue with him is that he is only worth a roster spot if Flowers misses time, which is not a guarantee, so he is my least favorite receiver on the wire. This is the guy I grab after waivers clear if Zay Flowers ends up inactive. This is also the guy I grab on waivers if my week two opponent has Flowers
Week Two Waiver Wire Tight Ends
TJ Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings (43% rostered)
The truth is, there is not a tight end worth grabbing on the waiver wire this week, but at least TJ Hockenson is playing a Bears secondary that might be the worst in football.
