Fantasy Football Waiver Wire, Explained
What the waiver wire is for
When a starter is hurt, on a bye, or a player's role suddenly grows, managers turn to the waiver wire to add someone. Each league has its own rules for who gets a player first, such as a waiver order or a bidding budget, so check yours.
A growing role, in numbers
A common sign that a player is becoming more useful is his share of snaps or targets rising. The fantasy helper marks a player as rising when his share over the last three games is at least five points above his season share.
- Season share of offensive snaps
- 55%
- Last three games
- 70%
- Change
- +15 points: a rising role
A bigger share usually means more chances, not a guarantee of a good week.
Questions and answers
- What is the waiver wire?
- The players nobody in your league has rostered. You can add them, usually in an order your league's rules set.
- How do I know a player is available?
- Your league's player list shows it. The fantasy helper can import a Sleeper league and then lists only players on no roster in it.
- Does a rising role mean a player will score more?
- No. It means he is getting a larger share of the team's snaps or targets. The books' number for the week is the better sign of what is expected.
Read next
- FLEX spotA FLEX spot is a starting spot in a fantasy football lineup that any running back, wide receiver or tight end can fill.
- Start/sit decisionA start/sit decision is the weekly choice of which of your fantasy football players go in your lineup and which stay on the bench.
- Bye weekA bye week is the one week of the NFL season in which a team does not play, so its players score no fantasy points that week.
- PPR scoringPPR scoring, short for points per reception, gives a fantasy football player one point for every catch on top of his yards and touchdowns.
Fantasy lineup helper and waiver wire →NFL players →All terms →
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