Week 9 Waiver Wire: Breakout Fantasy Football Pickups from Sunday's Box Scores
The Cleveland Browns have suddenly turned into a team you can trust for fantasy football purposes.
Jameis Winston led the Browns to an upset win over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 8 in which they posted 401 total yards.
Cleveland's new-look offense should intrigue fantasy football players as bye weeks start back up in Week 9.
The list of top waiver-wire pickups may be headlined by Browns players, but there are plenty of other intriguing choices to pick up before next Sunday.
Keon Coleman performed well over the last two weeks to be a trusted member of the Buffalo Bills passing game and Mike Gesicki carries some decent value as a dark-horse pickup at tight end.
Jameis Winston
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Jameis Winston will be one of the most coveted waiver-wire pickups of the season ahead of Week 9.
The new Browns starting quarterback produced 334 passing yards and three touchdowns in Sunday's upset over the Ravens.
How well Winston would perform in Week 8 was a bit of a mystery to some fantasy football players because of how brutal the Browns looked with Deshaun Watson under center.
Winston should now be the top overall and quarterback target on the waiver wire because he likely will not be available in most leagues soon.
Winston does have a tough matchup at home against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 9 and a Week 10 bye, but you likely can't wait until Week 11 to pick him up. The time to do it is now
Elijah Moore and Cedric Tillman
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Elijah Moore and Cedric Tillman saw their fantasy football values skyrocket in Week 8 with Winston in charge of the Browns offense.
Tillman followed up his 81-yard showing in Week 8 by scoring twice against the Ravens.
Tillman hauled in seven of his nine targets for 99 yards. He was second to Moore in targets and receptions on Sunday.
Moore brought in eight passes for 85 yards in one of his best performances in years. He hasn't been reliable enough in the past to be a waiver-wire pickup, but he appears to have a defined role inside the Browns offense.
Both Tillman and Moore outperformed Jerry Jeudy, and even though David Njoku scored and had 61 yards on five catches, the pair of wide outs were Winston's primary targets.
Keon Coleman
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Keon Coleman has officially arrived inside the Buffalo Bills offense.
Coleman proved that his 125-yard game in Week 7 was not a fluke, as he had five catches for 70 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's win over the Seattle Seahawks.
Coleman earned 14 targets from Josh Allen over the last two weeks. He had 20 targets in the first six weeks of his rookie campaign.
The rookie out of Florida State had five more targets and four more receptions than the recently-acquired Amari Cooper.
Cooper may need another week or two to completely adjust to the Bills offense, but even if that is the case, Coleman will be used as a third option to Cooper and Khalil Shakir inside a Buffalo passing game that accounted for 283 passing yards in Week 8.
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Mike Gesicki
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Mike Gesicki took full advantage of Tee Higgins' absence inside the Cincinnati Bengals offense on Sunday. T
The veteran tight end recorded 73 yards on seven catches. He only failed to catch one of his eight targets against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Gesicki has not been used that much in the Bengals offense all season because of Higgins and Ja'Marr Chase, and there's a good chance he does not have this type of production again in 2024.
However, Gesicki is worth picking up ahead of Week 9 because the Bengals face the Las Vegas Raiders' weak defense.
He may also carry fantasy value in Week 10 against the Baltimore Ravens, who are one of the worst teams in the NFL defending against tight ends.
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