Fantasy Football Today: Waiver Wire! Good RB Options, Tyler Shough, Brenton Strange, DSTs & More

Episode Date: December 23, 2025
Hosts: Adam Aizer, Dave Richard, Jamie Eisenberg

Episode Overview

This episode focuses on Week 17 waiver wire priorities and strategies to help fantasy football managers win their league championships. The FFT team—Adam, Dave, and Jamie—divides the discussion by position, offers advice for both shallow and deep leagues, and discusses emerging injury news and how it affects lineup choices. They break down which waiver wire players make the best additions at RB, QB, WR, TE, DST, and K for the upcoming week, and debate keep-away/defensive adds, late-season value, and who to trust in injury-ridden lineups.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Week 17 Waiver Wire Priorities (from 05:09 onward)

• Top Waiver Adds:
  • RB: Michael Carter ("best matchup for running backs," [07:44])
  • QB: Tyler Shough ("you can pivot to him… as a Jared Goff manager," Jamie, [05:18])
  • TE: Brenton Strange
  • WR: Parker Washington ("going to be one of the top waiver wire priorities at WR," Adam, [05:58])
• General Philosophy: Check for availability of higher-profile dropped players (e.g., Trevor Lawrence, Juwan Johnson, Dalton Schultz, Patriots DST) before defaulting to typical waiver adds.

“What do you need this week? What are the holes in your roster and who are you comfortable with off the waiver wire over a starter that's gotten you to this point in the season?” — Dave [07:55]

• Keep-Away Strategy: Adds can (and sometimes should) be made to block an opponent from a potential streamer, especially in championship week.

2. News & Injury Updates (from 16:07)

• Lamar Jackson (back), Josh Allen (foot) banged up, expected to play.
• Multiple skill players and QBs (Mariota, JJ McCarthy, others) questionable, affecting start/sit considerations.
• DK Metcalf suspended two games—opens opportunities for Seahawks WRs.
• Devin Neal, Kendre Miller, Alvin Kamara, and other important RB injuries.
• Significant O-line injuries for Giants, Eagles, Minnesota, Detroit, Chargers.

3. Positional Waiver Rankings

Quarterbacks (from 21:41)

• Tyler Shough (Tennessee matchup, ~20 points/game)
• Marcus Mariota (if healthy, Thursday vs. Dallas)
• Bryce Young (vs. injured Seattle secondary)
• Also consider: Jackson Dart, Jacoby Brissette (if dropped), Kirk Cousins in deeper leagues.

Running Backs (from 23:13)

• Michael Carter (facing Bengals, fantasy-friendly defense)
• Chris Rodriguez (Commanders RB role, risky if Brian Robinson returns)
• Raheem Sanders (Browns’ likely lead RB)
• Speculative Adds: Gewar Jordan (if Woody Marks sits), Dylan Sampson (if active).
• Check for: Rhamondre Stevenson, Blake Corum—if surprisingly on waivers, both rank ahead.

Wide Receivers (from 25:39)

• Parker Washington (10 targets, 145 yards, TD last week, facing Colts)
• Mac Hollins (opportunity with NE injuries: Booty/Douglas banged up)
• Luther Burden (if healthy, solid upside)
• Josh Downs (heavily targeted with Rivers at QB)

Tight Ends (from 27:04)

• Check for: Juwan Johnson, Dalton Schultz, Colston Loveland (all ~30% available)
• Brenton Strange (Jacksonville; 4 games with 6+ targets, high floor)
• Others: Theo Johnson, Mike Gesicki, Colby Parkinson (deep league dart throw)
• Taysom Hill ("That was the best running back for the Saints… If that's the case, Taysom Hill is a must start tight end" — Jamie, [29:13])

DSTs (from 32:27)

• Giants DST: "They can hopefully get after Dino Smith and cause some havoc there. So I like the Giants the best right now." — Jamie [33:16]
• Other options: Chargers DST, Patriots DST (if dropped), Steelers, Jaguars, maybe Rams or Browns depending on QB matchups.

Kickers (from 35:29)

• Top Streams: Eddie Pinero, Cairo Santos (face each other MON night), Evan McPherson.
• Weather consideration for Chase Borgales (Jets/Pats could be bad).
• Others: Harrison Mevis (indoors), Chris Boswell.

4. Deep & Shallow League Waiver Advice

Shallow Leagues (from 36:14)

• Trevor Lawrence: "He's probably gonna be start of the week as well." — Jamie [36:35]
• Jacoby Brissette: Viable with the right matchup.
• RB priority: Rhamondre Stevenson > Michael Carter > Blake Corum (unless situation changes).
• WR: Troy Franklin, Alec Pierce (deep bench stash); TE: Juwan Johnson, Dalton Schultz, Hunter Henry, Colston Loveland.

Deep Leagues (from 39:54)

• At QB: Tyler Shough, Marcus Mariota, Bryce Young, Cam Ward, maybe Josh Johnson (if starts).
• At RB: Raheem Sanders, Dylan Sampson (if starts), Jawar Jordan, Audric Estime.
• WR: Deep names like Chimere Dike, Jalen Coker, Mac Hollins, Adam Thielen (Steelers), Trey Tucker, Konata Mumfield.
• TE: Taysom Hill (if continues RB usage), Mike Gesicki.

5. Memorable Moments & Quotes

• On Keep-Away Waiver Wire Use:
  "Remember, you've got to keep these players and then if you're a good faith fantasy manager, you're going to hold onto them all the way through the week… But playing keep away is a strategy and this is the time of year to deploy that strategy." — Dave [08:24]

• Adam’s Weather Warning:
  "If you have Drake May, it looks like there could be some bad weather in the northeast this weekend… maybe plan for it." — Adam [09:39]

• On Unlucky Fantasy Losses:
  "Fire Kyle Shanahan. All right, that's a bad one." — Adam, reading a listener email about losing on a kneel-down [13:50]

• Tiebreaker Woes:
  "There's a tie in my wife's fantasy league. And it's bench points. It's bench points as the tiebreakers like, oh, can't. That's such a bad tiebreaker." — Adam [15:23]

6. Start/Sit Debates & Player Comparisons

• Jared Goff vs. Justin Herbert this week:
  "I'd rather start Goff, but I'm trying to sit both." — Jamie [19:33]

  "Goff is ahead of Herbert for me. As of now, they're both in my top 12, but barely." — Dave [19:36]

• Jacoby Brissette or Tyler Shough:
  "Brissette." — Dave, Jamie in unison [49:26]

• Waiver RBs vs. Jonathan Taylor:
  "No, I would still go with Taylor over Michael Carter, Browns RBs, Chris Rodriguez, all those guys…" — Dave [47:18]

• Trevor Lawrence or Jalen Hurts:
  "Lawrence over Hurts… Lawrence is going to be top five for me. I'm done fooling around with this." — Dave [51:02]

7. Notable Advice for Week 17

• Keep Monitoring Injuries/Depth Charts:
  Depth charts for Arizona, Houston, Green Bay, and Cleveland will likely not be settled until late in the week; wait to prioritize Jawar Jordan, Emmanuel Wilson, Dylan Sampson when situation becomes clear.
• Trust the Floor with Michael Carter:
  "You know what kind of role he's going to have… Carter's a little bit safer because you know what kind of role he's going to have." — Jamie [37:45]
• Don’t Overthink a Down Week for Key Veterans:
  "Brissette… I don't want to be phased by what happened last week. I know it stunk, and I got burned by it too. But…" — Dave [49:28]
• Ethics in Waivers:
  "Don't be a jerk, just be ethical about it." — Dave [08:24]

8. Fun, Festive Moment

"One more player that you might want to pick up that we haven't mentioned yet… not a player to start… And this year's good luck player is a cancer survivor, a guy who we all root for… James Connor. He is the Good Luck Player of Week 17… Bring a little good karma to your fantasy team in the fantasy championship." — Dave [71:20]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Waiver Priorities/Position-by-Position rundown: 05:09–29:44
• Weekly News and Injuries: 16:07–21:41
• Detailed DST/Kicker Streamers: 32:27–36:14
• Shallow vs Deep League Strategy: 36:14–42:41
• Start/Sit Debates & Brissette vs Shough: 49:15–51:10
• Listener Stories & Bad Beats: 12:32–16:07
• RB Depth Chart Uncertainties: 57:53–62:14

Final Advice

• Check your wire for dropped stars first (Lawrence, Stevenson, Schultz, Patriots DST, etc.)
• RBs: Prioritize Michael Carter, watch injury reports for big upside pivots (Wilson, Sampson, Jordan).
• QBs: Tyler Shough is top if you need a fill-in; Mariota if healthy; always check for Brissette/Lawrence.
• TEs: Target Juwan Johnson, Dalton Schultz, Brenton Strange; Taysom Hill if "RB" usage continues.
• DST: Giants & Chargers offer the streamability; always start by checking for dropped Patriots DST.
• Ethical keep-away can change championships.
• Don’t tilt from a bad beat—there’s always another week!

Good luck in your championships, and may your Week 17 waiver picks push you over the top!