Week 4 is nearly in the books with a Monday night double-header left to go. I will update this article on Tuesday once those games are complete. For now, here is every player you need to be monitoring on the waiver wire ahead of Week 5.
Quarterback
Jaxson Dart, Giants
Dart came away from his first start with an ugly and costly win over the Chargers. It was equally hard to watch for fantasy managers as he threw for just 111 yards and one touchdown. Dart also lost Malik Nabers to a torn ACL for the year. Much like in real life, it was still a win for fantasy purposes because he ran 10 times for 54 yards and a score. No quarterback ran the ball more than Dart in Week 4. The rushing output will give him a QB2 floor going forward. He will need to open things up as a passer to find any semblance of a ceiling.
Matthew Stafford, Rams
With no one in striking distance of Stafford playing on Monday Night Football, Stafford is going to make it through the first quarter of the season as a QB1. He is the QB12 exactly after throwing for 375 yards and three scores versus the Colts. Stafford is currently the 14th-best quarterback by EPA per play. He also ranks top-15 in CPOE. The lack of rushing production hurts his floor, but Stafford is playing well and the Rams are leaning into their potent passing game. They get a tough matchup with the 49ers this week. Then two of their next three games—at Baltimore and versus New Orleans—are against top-six teams in fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks.
Cooper Rush, Ravens
Lamar Jackson left Week 4 with a hamstring injury and did not return. In Superflex leagues, Rush is the next man up if you have missed out on the recent run of backup quarterbacks becoming starters. Rush made eight starts for the Cowboys last year and was fairly successful. He averaged 210 yards and 1.4 touchdowns, good for just over 16 fantasy points per week. Unfortunately for Rush, Baltimore faces two defenses that rank top-five in EPA per dropback allowed over the next two weeks in the Rams and Texans. I wouldn’t spend big on Rush, but he will still project for more points in your Superflex spot than almost any WR/RB/TE you aren’t already starting.
Bryce Young, Panthers
Young dropped another stinker in Week 4 with 150 yards and a lone touchdown in a blowout loss to the Patriots. The good news is that he gets a run of matchups that will juice his fantasy numbers over the next three weeks.
| Fantasy Points Against |
Those are the three worst defenses against the pass (pending MNF) and three of the best fantasy matchups for opposing quarterbacks. With bye weeks and injuries piling up, Young is at least worth considering based on his cakewalk schedule.
Running Back
Woody Marks, Texans
Marks began the backfield takeover in Week 3 and continued to annex Nick Chubb’s territory on Sunday. He out-carried Chubb 17-13 and out-caught him 4-2. Marks rushed for 69 yards and a score while adding 40 yards plus another touchdown through the air. The rookie is averaging 2.8 yards after contact and .13 missed tackles forced per attempt this year. Neither mark is what you might call “good.” And yet, he is besting Chubb in both categories. He should continue to put distance between himself and Chubb over the next few weeks.
Kendre Miller, Saints
The Saints appear to be throwing in the towel on the idea of Alvin Kamara as an every-down back. Kamara saw 15 carries in Week 4. Kendre Miller got 11 totes. He ran for 65 yards and a touchdown. Miller is averaging 3.7 yards after contact compared to 2.7 for Kamara. They both have 12 missed tackles forced. Kamara has nearly 40 more carries than Miller. The Saints get home games versus the Giants and Patriots over the next two weeks, which could allow them to get somewhat of a ground game going. Miller now has some standalone value with elite contingent upside.
Zavier Scott, Vikings
The Vikings used Scott, their current backup running back, in a hybrid role on Sunday morning in Dublin. He ran 43 percent of the routes and was targeted on 30 percent of his routes, resulting in a 6/46/1 line through the air with just two carries for one yard on the ground. Scott ran 25 routes in total:
- Backfield – 11 routes, three catches, 15 yards
- Slot receiver – eight routes, two catches, 25 yards, one touchdown
- Wide receiver – six routes, one catch, three yards
I’m not sure if this role will hold into Week 5 or if will continue to be as fruitful, but Scott is worth a roster spot for a week in deeper formats.
Kenneth Gainwell, Steelers
Gainwell got the start for Pittsburgh with Jaylen Warren being a surprise inactive in Dublin. He turned 19 carries into 99 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Gainwell also led the Steelers with six receptions, which he turned into 35 yards. Gainwell would be one of the best adds of the week if this role were expected to hold. The Steelers get their bye in Week 5 and Warren should be able to return in Week 6. Gainwell might hold some standalone value even once Warren is healthy, but he is mostly a deep-league stash.
Justice Hill, Ravens
Week 4’s RB4 got there on just eight touches. He ran for 76 yards and one score on three carries while adding 41 yards and a second touchdown on five receptions.
That level of efficiency is obviously unsustainable, but Hill’s role as the team’s top back on passing downs will persist. He has at least three catches in three of four games this year and the Ravens might find themselves playing from behind more often than usual over the next few weeks because of Jackson’s injury. Hill is a low-ceiling bet who needs game script to break in his favor, but you could do worse off the wire this week if you need a running back add.
Breshard Smith, Chiefs
Things are percolating in the Kansas City backfield. Smith is coming off season-highs in carries (four), targets (four), and snap share (26 percent). Both Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco are averaging negative rush yards over expected. Patrick Mahomes leads the team in rushing. The Chiefs will either make a change in their backfield or have the league’s worst rushing attack. Smith is only a long-term stash, but his growing role and the lack of talent ahead of him on the depth chart make him an exciting bet.
Blake Corum, Rams
Corum has fully forced a committee with Kyren Williams. He is coming off career-highs in carries (nine) and targets (four). Williams only saw 13 carries and matched Corum in targets versus the Colts. Corum currently ranks fifth in rush yards over expected per carry (1.46) and sixth in success rate (50 percent). He has earned a change-of-pace role going forward and will be on the FLEX radar as bye weeks begin in Week 5.
Wide Receiver
Adonai Mitchell, Colts
What could have been. Mitchell had the chance to curry favor with the coaches and potentially push Alec Pierce for snaps down the road in Week 4. He blew it on multiple occasions.
Mitchell later wiped out a 58-yard touchdown run by Jonathan Taylor with a holding penalty. Mitchell will still play an air-yards churning role in Week 5 if Pierce doesn’t clear the concussion protocol, but his odds of seeing more work beyond that are slim.
Jalen Tolbert, Cowboys
Tolbert is back in the role he played last year, operating as the Cowboys’ clear No. 2 receiver. He was, once again, underwhelming as an every-down player. Tolbert saw 16 percent of Dak Prescott’s targets with a solid 35 percent air yards share. He caught four passes for 61 scoreless yards. Every Cowboys game looks like a shootout, even a Week 5 date with the Jets, putting an ancillary piece like Tolbert on the fantasy periphery. Tolbert will be a boom/bust WR5 assuming CeeDee Lamb remains sidelined next week.
Elic Ayomanor, Titans
The Titans might be calling it quits on Calvin Ridley.
Tennessee Titans receiver route rates in Week 4:
93% – Tyler Lockett
90% – Elic Ayomanor
45% – Van Jefferson
41% – Calvin Ridley
28% – Chimere Dike— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) September 28, 2025
That, in turn, means more looks for Ayomanor. The rookie earned a 30 percent target share and saw 52 percent of the team’s air yards in Week 4. He caught just two passes for 44 yards. Ayomanor is a rookie who has already entrenched himself as his team’s top dog. With Cam Ward struggling out of the gates, it’s going to be frustrating to roster him in fantasy leagues, but his profile shouldn’t be available on over half of all waiver wires.
Romeo Doubs, Packers
It’s a quiet week at wide receiver, and that’s compounded by the fact that Doubs, the WR3 before MFN’s double-header, is on bye in week 5. Doubs leads the Packers wideouts with 19 targets and 271 air yards. He leads the team in red zone targets (six) and end zone targets (five). His three-touchdown performance from Week 4 won’t be repeated anytime soon, but Doubs remains the receiver Jordan Love trusts the most, especially in scoring position.
Tight End
Tommy Tremble, Panthers
Ja’Tavion Sanders suffered a high-ankle sprain in Week 4 and is expected to miss multiple weeks. Tremble tied Tetairoa McMillan with a team-high eight targets, good for a 25 percent target share. He also saw both of Bryce Young’s end zone targets and his only throw in the red zone. Tremble caught five passes for 42 yards and a score. Tremble is purely a dart-throw TE2, but that’s all you can ask for on waivers this week.
Jake Tonges, 49ers
Tonges is hovering around two-thirds of the routes with George Kittle out. His 11 percent target share is nothing to write home about, but it puts him in play for the occasional touchdown, especially when the 49ers receivers refuse to stay healthy. He made good on the limited role with his second score of the season in Week 4. Tonges will get at least one more week as the starter while Kittle is on IR, keeping him at the back of the TE2 ranks for Week 5.
Harold Fannin, Browns
The Browns are slowly coming to the realization that Fannin is their best tight end, and likely their best pass-catcher at any position. His 71 percent route rate on Sunday was a season-high. He matched David Njoku in routes for the first time this year. Njoku, in turn, set a new low in route rate. Fannin earned a 19 percent target share at a season-high aDOT of 11.8. Fannin will always have a bedrock of underneath looks to fall back on. An increase in traditional tight end usage could get him back into the TE1 ranks.