2025 Waiver Wire for Week 4
Welcome to the Waiver Wire for Week 4!
Week Three of the 2025 NFL season is officially in the books, which means that it is time for WEEK FOUR WAIVERS!! In today’s discussion, we will be going over the most significant targets on the waiver wire currently for week 4 of the 2025 NFL season.
Carson Wentz (MIN)
- In week 3, Carson Wentz completed 70% of his passes for 173 yards and 2 TDs. He scored 15.3 fantasy points in week 3.
- Sleeper Rostership: 8%
- ESPN Rostership: 0.1%
- Yahoo Rostership: 5%
It sounds like J.J. McCarthy is going to miss the next few weeks for the Vikings with a high ankle sprain, so Carson Wentz will be the starter in Minnesota for the foreseeable future. Carson Wentz himself may be a below-average QB in the NFL, but for fantasy purposes, he is in a high-tempo offense surrounded by great weapons in Justin Jefferson, T.J. Hockenson, and Jordan Addison, coming off a suspension in week 4.
Due to Wentz’s shaky history as a starter in the NFL, the Vikings may want to pound the ball a ton with Jordan Mason and play defense until J.J. McCarthy comes back. Because of this potential approach, Wentz may not consistently have a high passing volume in this offense going forward.
- Next 3 opponents: vs. PIT, vs. CLE, BYE
Matthew Stafford (LAR)
- In week 3, Matthew Stafford completed 58% of his passes for 196 yards and 2 TDs, and also threw an INT as well, unfortunately. He scored 14.8 fantasy points in week 3.
- Sleeper Rostership: 30%
- ESPN Rostership: 33.3%
- Yahoo Rostership: 31%
Matthew Stafford is in a very pass-happy offense in LA, and he has two elite receivers to throw the ball to in Puka Nacua and Davante Adams.
The negative here with Stafford is that he doesn’t provide really any amount of rushing upside weekly. He provides a nice floor with his high-level passing ability, but his ceiling is obviously capped because of this.
- Next 3 opponents: vs. IND, vs. SF, @ BAL
Geno Smith (LV)
- In week 3, Geno Smith completed 66% of his passes for 289 yards and 3 TDs. He scored 26.1 fantasy points in week 3.
- Sleeper Rostership: 23%
- ESPN Rostership: 9.4%
- Yahoo Rostership: 28%
Throughout the entire offseason, everyone expected Chip Kelly and the Raiders offense to be extremely run-heavy with Ashton Jeanty this season. Through 3 games so far this season, though, this has not been the case at all. It has been quite the opposite, actually. If this high passing volume in Las Vegas keeps up, Geno Smith will be a very intriguing streaming option at the QB position weekly this year.
While the Raiders are a very high-volume passing team right now, that’s not going to keep up all season long, right? At some point, Chip Kelly will probably decide to start feeding his generational RB prospect in Ashton Jeanty, and Geno Smith’s weekly upside will take a significant hit because of it.
- Next 3 opponents: vs. CHI, @ IND, vs. TEN
Blake Corum (LAR)
- In week 3, Blake Corum ran for 53 yards on just eight carries. He scored 5.3 Half PPR fantasy points in week 3.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 3: 3.63 yards before contact/att (led team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 28%
- ESPN Rostership: 6.1%
- Yahoo Rostership: 17%
Sean McVay has historically been a 1 RB guy in the past. Once he finds his guy, he gives them a ton of work and doesn’t look back. So far this season, though, McVay is utilizing two RBs and changing his approach a bit, it seems. Plus, if anything were to ever happen to Kyren Williams, Blake Corum would be a true workhorse in this Rams offense each week.
The one potential downside here is that since the Rams are such a pass-happy team, does any RB outside of Kyren Williams actually matter at the end of the day? Corum is getting snaps this year, but does that continue going forward? Does Sean McVay actually plan on utilizing 2 RBs each week for the rest of the year?
- Next 3 opponents: vs. IND, vs. SF, @ BAL
Rico Dowdle (CAR)
- In week 3, Rico Dowdle ran for 30 yards and a TD on 10 carries, and also added eight receiving yards on one reception and one target as well. He scored 10.3 Half PPR fantasy points in week 3.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 3: 66.7% of Panthers inside the five carries (led team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 17%
- ESPN Rostership: 8.2%
- Yahoo Rostership: 13%
Chuba Hubbard was expected to be a workhorse for the Panthers once again this season, but based on week 3, Rico Dowdle is going to be a sizable part of this backfield in Carolina going forward. The Panthers have limited weapons in the passing game on offense, so if they decide to become a high-volume rushing team the rest of the season, Rico Dowdle could become a very valuable fantasy asset.
The concern here is that due to the Panthers blowing out the Falcons for the entire game in week 3, this could’ve just been a one-week thing for Rico Dowdle. The fear is that in week 4, in more competitive games, Chuba Hubbard would go back to being a workhorse for this offense, and Dowdle would, unfortunately, be irrelevant once again.
- Next 3 opponents: @ NE, vs. MIA, vs. DAL
Woody Marks (HOU)
- In week 3, Woody Marks ran for 27 yards on just 6 carries, and also added in 9 receiving yards on 1 reception and 2 targets as well. He scored 4.1 Half PPR fantasy points in week 3.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 3: 2.67 yards before contact/att (led team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 19%
- ESPN Rostership: 13.6%
- Yahoo Rostership: 9%
Dameon Pierce was a healthy scratch for the Texans in week 3, meaning that Woody Marks is now the direct handcuff to Nick Chubb here in Houston. Nick Chubb has looked very underwhelming this season through 3 games so far, and Woody Marks provides an explosive element to this backfield, especially in the passing game, where Marks excels. Marks will continue to get more and more work every week if Chubb continues to struggle like he has been.
The downside here is that overall, this Texans offense has looked very average so far this season. This team has a very bad offensive line, so how much will the RBs actually matter at the end of the day?
- Next 3 opponents: vs. TEN, @ BAL, BYE
Sterling Shepard (TB)
- In week 3, Sterling Shepard hauled in 4 receptions for 80 yards on five targets. He scored 10.0 Half PPR fantasy points in week 3.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 3: 3.48 YPRR (2nd on team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 2%
- ESPN Rostership: 0.2%
- Yahoo Rostership: 0%
With Mike Evans likely missing a few weeks with a hamstring injury and Chris Godwin not quite ready to make his season debut yet, Sterling Shepard is about to become a massive part of this Tampa Bay offense. Emeka Egbuka is obviously off to a red-hot start as a rookie in the slot for the Buccaneers, but with Shepard likely lining up on the outside for this offense a lot of the time, that will provide him with a lot of one-on-one opportunities and a lot of endzone opportunities as well. Additionally, he and Baker Mayfield share a strong connection, dating back to their college days together at Oklahoma many years ago.
Even though it looks like Sterling Shepard will be a big part of this offense for the foreseeable future, it may only be for a short period of time, as Chris Godwin is likely going to be returning within the next couple of weeks, and the Buccaneers are going to want to ramp him up pretty quickly here.
- Next 3 opponents: vs. PHI, @ SEA, vs. SF
Tory Horton (SEA)
- In week 3, Troy Franklin hauled in 3 receptions for 32 yards and a TD on 4 targets. He scored 16.7 Half PPR fantasy points in week 3.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 3: 2.46 YPRR (5th on team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 8%
- ESPN Rostership: 1.5%
- Yahoo Rostership: 2%
Cooper Kupp has looked like a shell of himself out there on the field so far this season, which has provided a good amount of opportunity for rookie Tory Horton to pop in this offense. Based on week 3, it seems that Horton is starting to overtake Kupp as the #2 option in this Seattle passing game, and this is only the beginning.
Even though Tory Horton has seemingly leapfrogged Cooper Kupp in this offense, does anybody outside of Jaxon Smith-Njigba actually matter in the passing game? Plus, Sam Darnold is not a high-volume passing quarterback in Seattle, so how much opportunity will there be for Horton here consistently at the end of the day?
- Next 3 opponents: @ ARI, vs. TB, @ JAX
Elic Ayomanor (TEN)
- In week 3, Elic Ayomanor hauled in 4 receptions for 38 yards and a TD on 5 targets. He scored 11.8 Half PPR fantasy points in week 3.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 3: 2 endzone targets (led team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 50%
- ESPN Rostership: 4.4%
- Yahoo Rostership: 21%
Elic Ayomanor has seemingly cemented himself as the clear #2 WR for Cam Ward behind Calvin Ridley just 3 weeks into his rookie season, and he might even start to hop Ridley sooner rather than later here. Due to Tennessee’s subpar defense, the team will have to throw the ball frequently on offense, which will create numerous opportunities for Ayomanor.
Even though Ayomanor has a clear role in this offense now, Cam Ward has struggled quite a bit so far this season. Due to Tennessee’s lack of weapons and rhythm on offense, they might just become a run-heavy team with Tony Pollard going forward.
- Next 3 opponents: @ HOU, @ ARI, @ LV
Chig Okonkwo (TEN)
- In week 3, Chig Okonkwo hauled in 5 receptions for 66 yards on six targets. He scored 9.1 Half PPR fantasy points in week 3.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 3: 2.64 YPRR (led team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 30%
- ESPN Rostership: 11.4%
- Yahoo Rostership: 31%
Rookie QBs love their tight ends because they are a nice, reliable safety blanket for them as they adjust to the NFL. Chig Okonkwo gets a lot of those dumpoffs from Cam Ward at or near the line of scrimmage (7.3 aDOT in week 3), so he provides a nice level of receptions upside weekly. Plus, with Calvin Ridley being a massive disappointment so far this year, Ward’s going to have to rely on Okonkwo a ton this year.
The downside here with Okonkwo is that the TD opportunities for the Titans might be capped a bit going forward this year, and the team might decide to lean into their bellcow back in Tony Pollard every single week this year.
- Next 3 opponents: @ HOU, @ ARI, @ LV
Hunter Henry (NE)
- In week 3, Hunter Henry hauled in 8 receptions for 90 yards and 2 TDs on 11 targets. He scored 25.0 Half PPR fantasy points in week 3.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 3: 27% target share (led team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 41%
- ESPN Rostership: 44.3%
- Yahoo Rostership: 60%
It seems that Drake Maye and Hunter Henry have formed a strong connection so far this year, and even going back to last year, as well. Stefon Diggs, who was expected to be the Patriots’ WR1 this year, has disappointed so far this season, so that Maye will need Henry in the middle of the field a lot this year.
The only fear here is that any one weapon could go off for the Patriots on any given week this year. One week it could be Henry, one week it could be DeMario Douglas, one week it could be Kayshon Boutte, and one week it could be Stefon Diggs if he ever bounces back and gets up to speed in this offense. You never know.
- Next 3 opponents: vs. CAR, @ BUF, @ NO
Brenton Strange (JAX)
- In week 3, Brenton Strange hauled in 6 receptions for 61 yards on 7 targets. He scored 9.1 Half PPR fantasy points in week 3.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 3: 2.18 YPRR (led team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 30%
- ESPN Rostership: 20.3%
- Yahoo Rostership: 25%
For whatever reason, the chemistry between Trevor Lawrence and Brian Thomas Jr. seems to be off so far this year. The deep ball isn’t there for Lawrence yet this season. Therefore, he is utilizing Brenton Strange over the middle of the field for easy completions to advance the ball down the field.
Brenton Strange’s target ceiling weekly may be a bit inconsistent, however, because you’d think at some point Brian Thomas Jr. would get going, and Travis Hunter’s offensive snap share every week could be up and down throughout the year.
- Next 3 opponents: @ SF, vs. KC, vs. SEA
Detroit Lions
- Week 4 opponent: Cleveland Browns
- Week 3 Half PPR scoring: N/A at time of writing
- Sleeper Rostership: 47%
- ESPN Rostership: 57.1%
- Yahoo Rostership: 55%
Even though the Browns beat the Packers in week 3, they only scored 13 points to do it, and are still one of the worst offenses in the NFL. This is a dream matchup for the Detroit Lions’ defense in week 4.
Los Angeles Chargers
- Week 4 opponent: New York Giants
- Week 3 Half PPR scoring: 3.0 points
- Sleeper Rostership: 9%
- ESPN Rostership: 55.5%
- Yahoo Rostership: 49%
If you’ve watched the New York Giants for literally any amount of time this season, you know that Russell Wilson is a very flawed quarterback at this point in his career. Even if somehow the Giants do decide to go to Jaxson Dart in week 4, Jim Harbaugh’s defense will still confuse the heck out of the rookie in his first career start.
Houston Texans
- Week 4 opponent: Tennessee Titans
- Week 3 Half PPR scoring: 5.0 points
- Sleeper Rostership: 56%
- ESPN Rostership: 56.3%
- Yahoo Rostership: 61%
Cam Ward has struggled quite a bit as a rookie in the NFL so far, so picking on the Titans seems to be the name of the game right now. The Texans have one of the very best defenses in the NFL, and facing a helpless Titans offense is just the cherry on top.