2026 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 1: MarShawn Lloyd, Ja'Kobi Lane Top Picks

Ladies and gentlemen, football is ALMOST here. Tomorrow we finally get the much-anticipated Super Bowl rematch between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots. Your drafts are likely in the books, but before we put the final touches on those lineups, there is still one last chance to make some waves. And that’s with the first 2026 fantasy football waiver wire run of Week 1, happening overnight across the world from Tuesday into Wednesday.

Veteran fantasy gamers know that we need to take advantage of every last edge at our disposal. We need every possible shot at upside and we need to use every last roster mechanism our format offers. Below you will find not only the best waiver picks from the 2026 Week 1 fantasy football waiver wire but also just a little bit of advice on how to maneuver things before waivers run to maximize your fantasy football roster space.

As a reminder, fantasy football, at it's core, is a weekly game. Bench stashes are fun but you'll want to differ to our Weekly Rankings if the players you are considering adding might be in a start/sit decision - especially when deciding who to drop. Even better, you can connect your league to our League Sync Tool which will connect YOUR league setting to our system to give customized add/drop advice!

2026 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 1 Top Targets And Strategy

You would be SHOCKED at how many people don’t take advantage of their league’s rules. And how many people don’t understand game theory. Here are three quick tips that go underutilized:

• IR Spots - Every year I am floored at how many people, even in sharp leagues, aren’t taking advantage of these. Guys like Alvin Kamara WILL be ruled out over the next few days. If your leauge allows players who are OUT to go into IR spots, be prepared to move them over and take one last stab at upside.
• Does Your Bench Lock? - Check this article to see if your settings match the ones detailed here. If they do, your benches don’t lock when games start. That means you can add someone like George Holani, watch him play tomorrow, then drop him for another upside play. Do that if your league is deep enough. Drop your kicker if you have to.
• Bench Composition - Make sure you have a balance of both usable players and upside plays. Don’t have a bench that is all boring replacement value plays. That is especially true with your last pick, as detailed in the Scratch Tickets vs. Lottery Tickets section of the article above. But you can’t have all upside plays either; you are going to need at least an extra startable WR or RB due to injuries and bye weeks. And they will come sooner than you think. Find a balance. 

One last thing I will mention is that this week is unique on the waiver wire because no football has been played yet. It's still all speculation. So, in MOST cases, you want to stick with what you drafted. At the very least, you don't want to spend a ton of FAAB making what could be a lateral move. The exception for me is if you drafted early and you waivers were locked until now - then you need to seriously consider dropping the bag on the top RB who also happens to be the cover photo. 

If you are a Fantasy Alarm Member, you also have access to our even DEEPER coverage for real sicko leagues with our Wavier Wire Streamers and Stashes article. So if you look at this list and it feels like every player is rostered, move along to that article!

NFL Week 1 Waiver Wire Quarterbacks

Malik Willis - Miami Dolphins, Yahoo: 41% | ESPN: 21% | Sleeper: 32% 

This is pretty simple - rushing is broken for QBs in most formats. For instance, every QB who has run five times a game and played at least 16 games has finished top 10 in fantasy football for a decade straight. The FLOOR is high, and the ceiling can be even higher. Malik Willis has always been willing to run, so we’ll throw him on the bench and see if he’s a cheat code for fantasy football. 

Where people get hung up is his team. The Dolphins don't necessarily need to be good for Willis to be good in fantasy. The Cardinals moved on from Kyler Murray because they weren't winning but he's still QB8 all time in fantasy points per came. If you run for 50 yards and throw for 100, you are already into double digit fantasy points in most formats.

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Daniel Jones - Indianapolis Colts, Yahoo: 25% | ESPN: 37% | Sleeper: 26% 

If he’s there, Baker Mayfield is a better version of this bet. He’s surprisingly only owned in 57% of leagues on Yahoo, but anything over 50% is still too high for this article. It’s easy for us to forget how strong both these guys started last year before both suffered injuries (a season-ending one for Jones). Baker was in the very early MVP discussions, and Daniel Jones was the QB7 in fantasy through 12 weeks before he got hurt. An Achilles is a tough injury to bounce back from, but there’s a chance both guys come back and play pretty well again. 

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Tyler Shough, Jacoby Brissett, Fernando Mendoza, Taylen Green

NFL Week 1 Waiver Wire Running Backs

MarShawn Lloyd, Green Bay Packers, Yahoo: 41% | ESPN: 30% | Sleeper: 59%

If your waivers have been locked since your draft or you live under a rock, this is the only play we are willing to spend meaningful FAAB on prior to Week One. Josh Jacobs is on the commissioner-exempt list and, though his court date got moved up, there is no guarantee when he will be back - if at all. Most handcuff backs never get a chance to play at all, so we’ll grab Lloyd while he does. 

In fact, Lloyd was kind of an intriguing mystery box even before the legal issues, as we’ve never really seen him. After drafting him, the Packers believed he could be their pass-down compliment to the early down Jacobs. Towards the end of the summer he became a high risk, high reward pick somewhere in rounds 6-10 so dropping the bag on him here might be worth it. If Jacobs were done for the season we'd be willing to drop nearly 100% but we don't know for sure if he is. 

• Waiver Priority: High Priority
• FAAB: 25-50%

Tyler Allgeier, Arizona Cardinals, Yahoo: 41% | ESPN: 30% | Sleeper: 59%

This one is cutting it close ownership wise, especially on Sleeper where he’s more heavily owned. But we want him mentioned here as he’s probably your best bet as an actual Week One streamer if you need it - especially if you have Jeremiyah Love or someone else who is in danger of missing this week. Whether Love is ruled out or not, he’s probably not going to get the full workload right away. And, with James Conner on IR and Trey Benson being released, the Cardinals will likely have to lean on Allgeier. 

We really don’t love this as a long-term play. So I’d only add him if you actually need to start him. The Cardinals have an over/under win total of 3.5 with Vegas, so they’re expected to be one of the worst teams in the league. And it will devolve into a split as Love and Conner get healthy. If you do need to start him, you may need to up the FAAB. 

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Jonah Coleman, Denver Broncos Yahoo: 34% | ESPN: 28% | Sleeper: 47%

If Allgeier is the top stream, Coleman is at least one of the top stashes (will cover more in our deeper Streamers and Stashes article). The ideal waiver add gives us both a combination of short- and long-term upside. And Coleman provides both of those. 

The rookie has gotten a lot of praise from Sean Payton this offseason, so maybe he can carve out a role right away. He’s also a long-term stash to see if his role grows, as is often the case with rookies. JK Dobbins has gotten hurt every year of his career and was also nicked up already this offseason, which offers another path to upside. RJ Harvey would split that work, which is why Coleman is likely on waivers in a lot of leagues, but this is a good offense with one of the best lines in the league, so it’s still an intriguing play. 

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

George Holani, Seattle Seahawks, Yahoo: 3% | ESPN: 9% | Sleeper: 10%

As mentioned in the intro, we already wrote a full article on a very specific strategy for the Wednesday and Thursday games. The short and sweet is that there is a setting on Yahoo and Sleeper that allows you to potentially drop guys from your bench for new adds AFTER they play. You can even drop your kicker or defense to get a “free look” then just add them back later. And we are doing that Wednesday with George Holani.

I mean, there is a chance that this guy splits the backfield on the team that just won the Super Bowl. And he’s available in 97% of leagues? Holani beat out Emmanuel Wilson for the role. We don’t know what rookie Jadarian Price will look like. We don’t know what Zach Charbonnet will look like coming off an injury. Holani occupies the last bench spot on my team in a LOT of leagues. Sometimes a guy just needs a chance and they can run with it. EVERYONE will be watching the very first game of the season, so if Holani pops, he’s going to be a priority add everywhere. I’m using my last bench spot in a lot of leagues to beat the rush. 

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Tank Bigsby, Malik Davis, Demond Claiborne, Dylan Sampson, Kaleb Johnson

NFL Week 1 Waiver Wire Wide Receivers

Ja'Kobi Lane - Baltimore Ravens, Yahoo: 19% | ESPN: 18% | Sleeper: 52%

This is my very favorite type of WR bench stash. He meets all of the typical conditions with a little bonus too. The conditions are that he’s gotten hype, he actually has a path to playing time, and he’s doing it playing in a good offense. Zay Flowers is the clear WR1, but the WR2 chair for new OC Declan Doyle is up for grabs here, and that could be a prolific spot for fantasy if things break right. Look at guys like Rome Odunze and Jameson Williams operating on the outside in other iterations of this scheme.

The bonus is that both of the other candidates for the job, Rashod Bateman (3%) and Elijah Sarratt (0%), are rostered in even FEWER leagues. So we can watch what happens Week One and, if one of the other guys gets a more meaningful role and flashes, it’s an easy pivot to them next waiver run. As far as Week One bench stashes go, this one is a real gem. Folks on Sleeper seem to know the deal but not on Yahoo or ESPN.

•  Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Tre Tucker - Las Vegas Raiders, Yahoo 16% | ESPN: 29% | Sleeper: 37%

Tre Tucker is interesting because of the scheme. Under Klint Kubiak, it should be a lot of heavy TE usage along with a fullback. That is going to consolidate the snaps and targets to only a handful of guys. Who really was the WR2 even for the Seahawks last year? This scheme really only uses one or two WRs on most plays. 

The Seahawks used a lot of pre-snap motion to move Jaxon Smith-Njigba all over, and he actually led the league in 20+ yard plays. Tre Tucker is not JSN by any stretch of the imagination, but he’s probably the closest thing they have to that type of deep chunk play role. Tucker has not had a QB who could get the ball out to him despite being top 10 in routes run, so let’s see if maybe Kirk Cousins and/or Fernando Mendoza can get the ball out there. 

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Jerry Jeudy - Cleveland Browns, Yahoo 11% | ESPN: 28% | Sleeper: 23%

If you need someone to actually start in your lineup this week for whatever reason, Jerry Jeudy might be the best bet. We get very excited about rookies and the hype that comes with guys like KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston, but there is a very real chance Jeudy simply leads this WR group in work, especially early on. Right after the draft, Browns GM Andrew Berry said Jeudy is still their bell cow. We talk about this guy like he’s 32 years old when he’s a 27 year old WR smack in the age apex for the position only one year removed from a top 12 season. He could be more fantasy relevant than folks want him to be. 

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Malik Washington - Miami Dolphins Yahoo 11% | ESPN: 8% | Sleeper: 36%

This is virtually the same game plan for us as with Ja’Kobi Lane, except the veteran seems to have the clearest shot at leading this unit. If you want to skip right to the unkown upside plays with the rookies you can go for Caleb Douglas or Chris Bell, just know that Chris Bell missed a massive chunk of the offseason coming off a torn ACL so there’s really no reason to rush him out to a massive snap share. The beat reporters have said Malik Washington and the first tight end below had the best report with Malik Willis this summer.

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Honorable Mention or Deep League Options:  Denzel Boston, Adonai Mitchell, Kayshon Boutte, Keenan Allen, Cyrus Allen, Caleb Douglas, Omar Cooper Jr, Jaylen Noel, Rashod Bateman

NFL Week 1 Waiver and Yin & Yang Tight End

Greg Dulcich - Miami Dolphins Yahoo: 11% | ESPN: 3% | Sleeper: 9%

This is our favorite kind of guy to use the last bench spot on if you waited on tight end. What do you have to lose? If Dulcich is a top two target on this team, he could have meaningful upside for fantasy. It really is as simple as that. Given their lack of pass-catchers, he could actually LEAD the team in targets.

Sure, he might not be good. Malik Willis might not be either. But OPPORTUNITY is so hard to come by, even for talented players. The scheme Bobby Slowik runs uses a fullback and blocking tight end which consolidates snaps and targets. And both Darren Waller and Jonnu Smith ran 70% of their routes from a WR spot over the last two years in this scheme. If Dulcich does nothing, who cares - you drop him for the next hot tight end pickup. But it's at least worth a look. We will be tracking it all year with our Yin & Yang Tight End chart at the bottom of the article. 

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Terrance Ferguson - Los Angeles Rams, Yahoo: 24% | ESPN: 2.2% | Sleeper: 17%

This stash falls under the same category as George Holani in terms of our strategy for the Wednesday and Thursday games. Though with Ferguson, he’s probably more of an appealing long-term stash. We talked about this in the Fantasy Alarm Draft Guide, but Ferguson has a unique profile that skews more towards a big wide receiver than it does your prototypical inline tight end. He could have some standalone value as the third target on the team but, if something happens to Puka Nacua or Davante Adams, that’s when he could have HUGE upside. 

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Chig Okonkwo - Washington Commanders, Yahoo: 38% | ESPN: 9% | Sleeper: 30%

We were really excited about Chig Okonkwo - until they signed Stefon Diggs. That has poured some cold water on the situation for sure. But Diggs was a part-time player in New England last year, and perhaps that continues in 2026. Plus, Terry McLaurin is more of a 110-125 target guy than some of these 150+ target guys out there. Chig quietly has 95th-percentile speed, and he has contingent upside if either WR gets hurt, much like Terrance Ferguson. 

• Waiver Priority: Low Priority
• FAAB: 0-5%

Kenyon Sadiq - New York Jets, Yahoo: 15% | ESPN: 41% | Sleeper: 38%

This one doesn’t need to be a long write-up. An absolutely freakish athlete gets drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft to a team that isn’t loaded at WR after Garrett Wilson. This might be more of a stash-and-hold because he missed a lot of camp, but Colston Loveland took a bit to come on last year as well. 

Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Elijah Arroyo (free look Wednesday with correct bench settings), Dalton Schultz, Brenton Strange, David Njoku, Darren Waller

NFL Week 1 Waiver DST

Tennessee Titans DST  Yahoo: 14% | ESPN: 6% | Sleeper: 7%

The first 10 defenses in our Week One rankings are all rostered in most leagues - that’s usually how that works in Week One. But the Tennessee Titans are your best bet for a spot start here. And you are basically just betting against the Jets more than you are betting on the Titans. 

Dallas Cowboys DST Yahoo: 29% | ESPN: 12% | Sleeper: 21%

The Cowboys have back-to-back matchups here against mobile QBs, which can often translate to a bump in sacks. The Giants are trying out a whole new scheme and might have a limited Malik Nabers, while the Commanders have some offensive line issues. 

Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Las Vegas Raiders vs. MIA, Miami vs. LV, New York Jets vs. TEN, Green Bay Packers vs. MIN

NFL Week 1 Waiver K

Harrison Butker - Kansas City Chiefs. Yahoo: 25% | ESPN: 82% | Sleeper: 53%

One of the few edges left in fantasy is stigma. People don’t want to roster guys they don’t like; they don’t want to roster guys from teams they don’t like. We don’t care. The kicker from the Chiefs going against the Colts is a fine play. Folks playing on ESPN don’t seem to care, but on Yahoo he’s available everywhere. 

Tyler Bass - Buffalo Bills, Yahoo: 31% | ESPN: 13% | Sleeper: 15%

Tyler Bass missed all of last season with a sports hernia, but now he is back to be the kicker for the Buffalo Bills. The Houston Texans defense is not going to lie down and let Josh Allen and company just brute force everything into the end zone, so I could see them settling for three often here. And Bass should be a decent start against the Lions in a potential shootout too.

Yin & Yang Tight End Chart

As always, here are the Yin & Yang tight end rankings for the rest of the season. If you have someone from the standalone section, you only need to roster one player. Beyond that, we are likely rostering two - someone to start and someone to stash. 

• Standalone - Guys we currently trust that also have big upside.
• Yin - A “safe” player that we can start while trying to hit on a breakout with a bench spot.
• Yang - A higher-risk, higher-reward option ideally stashed on your bench for upside. 
• Handcuff - Guys with minimal usage now who could have upside if the starting TE gets hurt.