5 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Stashes to Add Before They Break Out (Ep. 2188)
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
13 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Sep 12, 2026
Published
Sat, September 12, 2026
7
Player insights
7
Players mentioned
Topics
Caleb DouglasChris BellChris BrooksJalen McMillanMalachi FieldsMarShawn LloydTed Hurst
Player analysis
Player insights
Caleb Douglas
PositiveSleeper1:55
Caleb Douglas is a priority stash due to his physical profile (6'3.5", 4.39 speed, 79-inch wingspan) and potential for immediate and long-term relevance in the Dolphins' offense. Ryan Wormeli prefers him over Chris Bell, citing Bell's recovery from an ACL tear and missed training camp time. Douglas had a standout preseason and is expected to have a defined perimeter role.
Insight pageChris Bell
NegativeInjury3:27
Chris Bell is a viable stash, but Ryan Wormeli expresses caution regarding his production potential following an ACL tear in November. Missing a bulk of training camp as a rookie puts him at a disadvantage for acclimating to NFL game speed.
Insight pageChris Brooks
PositiveRole10:30
Chris Brooks is a valuable stash in deeper leagues, potentially seeing immediate field time due to his elite pass-blocking skills (PFF's 4th best in 2024) and reliability as a receiver (24 of 30 targets caught). Ryan Wormeli notes that with Josh Jacobs on the exempt list and Marshawn Lloyd's extensive injury history, Brooks could see more usage than expected in a committee backfield.
Insight pageJalen McMillan
NegativeInjury15:16
Jalen McMillan has been limited in practice leading up to Week 1 due to a knee injury sustained in early August, creating uncertainty regarding his availability and role.
Insight pageMalachi Fields
PositiveBreakout5:02
Malachi Fields is a strong breakout candidate for the Giants, with reports from Jordan Ronan suggesting he is the 'real wide receiver two' alongside Malik Nabers. His 6'4" frame and contested-catch ability make him a prime red-zone asset for Jackson Dart. The release of Darius Slayton further clears his path to opportunity.
Insight pageMarShawn Lloyd
NegativeInjury10:37
Marshawn Lloyd carries significant injury risk due to a recurring history of soft-tissue lower body injuries, including multiple hamstring pulls, an ankle sprain, and a groin injury spanning from 2024 through 2025.
Insight pageTed Hurst
PositiveValue13:56
Ted Hurst is an undervalued stash (7% rostered) with high upside as a 6'4" receiver who excels in space and the red zone. With Jalen McMillan dealing with a lingering knee injury, Hurst has a path to earning the X-receiver role in the Buccaneers' offense.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
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0:29You know we are back to help make you a smarter fantasy football manager.
0:33The manager that stays two to three moves ahead of their league mates.
0:37The manager that is stashing players off of their waiver wire before they break out so you have a jump on your league mates.
0:44I'm Ryan Wormeli here with Fantasy Pros bringing you my top five waiver wire stashes ahead of week one and next week's waiver run as well.
0:52Before we dive on into that list of players though, we've got a special offer going on for you all right now.
0:59Where you can get up to six months of Fantasy Pros Premium for free.
1:03Just head to fantasypros.com slash premium, click go premium for free, choose Polymarket or one of our partner sportsbooks, make a deposit and complete your first paid contest.
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1:15The first player on our list this week, this year is Miami Dolphins wide receiver Caleb Douglas, who is rostered in 22% of leagues.
1:22Yes, the Miami Dolphins are going to be largely unwatchable for the majority of their games this year, but their passing game
1:29has to exist in some capacity, even if their wide receiver room is starved for veterans.
1:34The 32nd elevator pitch on Caleb Douglas out of Texas Tech is this he's six foot three and a half with four
1:41three nine speed and a 79 inch wingspan. He uses every bit of that catch radius on high throws and plucks the
1:47ball from defenders and even against his own. He's got good spatial awareness and can find the soft spots in coverage.
1:54So in short, a guy with Douglas's combo of frame and speed should be a valuable asset for Malik Willis as he
2:01looks to get settled as the quarterback in whatever this Miami Dolphins offense is going to look like this year.
2:07Now, you do have fellow rookie Chris Bell in the equation as well, who apparently isn't going to be on a pitch
2:13count in week one, even after tearing his ACL in November.
2:17I certainly think Chris Bell is a good stash as well, but even with modern medicine evolving, the production of these athletes
2:23is still impacted the following season after these major knee injuries.
2:27Plus, when you miss a bulk of training camp as a rookie, you're already playing from behind when you're trying to get acclimated to NFL game speed.
2:35So that's primarily why I am more interested in Caleb Douglas, because he gives you the potential of both immediate and long term relevance in fantasy leagues.
2:43Douglas put together a standout preseason. He should have a defined role in this offense on the perimeter and per Jeff Halfley quote, it's consistency over time.
2:52He Douglas made some flash plays and then he's made some plays where he needs to just catch the ball.
2:58He showed up every day. The second player on our list is another rookie and it's New York Giants wide receiver Malachi
3:04Fields, who is rostered in 21% of leagues. Hype has been trickling out of Giants camp for Malachi Fields throughout the preseason,
3:11and I think there are plenty of context clues that point to it being valid.
3:16It all started two to three weeks ago when Jordan Ronan, one of the most reputable Giants reporters, said that Malachi Fields
3:23is, quote, likely to start alongside Malik neighbors. And I understood the vision here for this, too.
3:28Fields is six foot four with a near 79 inch wingspan.
3:31The dude's built like a power forward and he uses that in contested catch scenarios.
3:36His body control is wildly good. He attacks the ball at its peak.
3:40He refuses to come down without it. Darnell Mooney isn't giving you that at five foot 11 and 177 pounds.
3:46Respect to Odell Beckham Jr., but same story, right?
3:49He can't offer you that at five foot 11 and 33 years old.
3:53Fields would be the perfect asset out on the perimeter and in the red zone for this New York Giants team led by Jackson Dart.
4:00But then the second shoe drops. The Giants cut Darius Slayton at the start of this week, eliminating another option to work
4:07ahead of Malachi Fields on the depth chart. So not only is the vision for the role there, but now the opportunity
4:14is starting to present itself as well. So even though Giants had Darnell Mooney listed as the wide receiver two on their
4:20unofficial depth chart earlier this week, Jordan Ronan once again doubled down on his belief that Malachi Fields is the, quote, real wide receiver two for the Giants.
4:29And I'm buying it. The size is appealing for Jackson Dart on the perimeter.
4:33He'll be an asset in the red area for high value fantasy points, and the viable options are starting to thin out around him.
4:41The third player on our list this week is New Orleans Saints wide receiver Devon Vele, who is also rostered in 21 percent of leagues.
4:48I want to start by reminding you that the New Orleans Saints traded a fourth round pick for Devon Vele in August of last season.
4:56It's not massive, right? But it is something now that the team is going to be without Jordan Tyson for what could
5:03be the first seven games of this season. With how Kellen Moore runs this offense, the Saints are designed to be a fantasy friendly group.
5:10Last season, they ran 2.2 plays per minute. That led the league.
5:14They only used 20 seconds of the play clock on average.
5:17That was the lowest in the league and even in neutral game settings.
5:21They were still the lowest at 29 seconds on average.
5:24The intent is for this offense to play fast, and that could definitely benefit Devon Vele, especially in PPR formats.
5:30After Rashid Shahid was traded last year, Vele's snaps shot up.
5:34The most he played was 51 percent through the first nine weeks, but then he logged 87, 89, 88 and 93 percent
5:41of snaps from week 10 on before suffering a season's ending shoulder injury in week 15.
5:45And those snaps did actually turn into opportunity. He caught 20 of 29 targets in that span.
5:51He turned in a top 10 finish, and he was well on his way before getting injured against the Panthers, catching five
5:57passes for 69 yards in week 15. It's not as simple as just saying, well, Devon Vele is going to be the
6:04de facto second option in this passing attack. When you also have Jawan Johnson in the mix, rookies Bryce Lance and Barry
6:11and Brown will seem to work in, too. But who's the guy they traded specifically for last offseason?
6:16Whose role did they increase after trading Rashid Shahid?
6:19It was Devon Vele. And again, in PPR leagues where there could be some sneaky flex value here.
6:25If this Saints offense does improve, I do like him as a stash right away this season.
6:30The fourth player on this list is Green Bay Packers running back Chris Brooks, who is rostered in seven percent of leagues.
6:37Marshawn Lloyd is the Packers running back that everybody wants to talk about and not without reason.
6:42But I also don't want us to lose sight of context here either.
6:46The amount of soft tissue lower body injuries that Lloyd has sustained at the start of his NFL career has piled up very, very quickly.
6:53Here's the list. In preseason of 2024, he had a hamstring pull.
6:57In week two then of 2024, sprained his ankle, went on IR and missed six games.
7:02Training camp of 2025, he had a non-contact groin injury.
7:05Then you get into the preseason of 2025, another hamstring pull that landed him on IR.
7:10And then in December of 2025, yet another hamstring pull with a calf strain.
7:14He returned to IR and he missed the rest of the season.
7:18This is by no means a prediction that Marshawn Lloyd is going to get injured this year because that's just bogus.
7:24And it's also not disregarding the effort that he has put into trying to prevent these soft tissue lower body injuries from occurring throughout his NFL career.
7:33But as context, we just simply can't ignore when looking at Chris Brooks, because who's next?
7:37If something does happen to Marshawn Lloyd while Josh Jacobs is still on the commissioner's exempt list.
7:43And I actually don't think this is only a handcuff stash either.
7:46I wouldn't be surprised if we get Chris Brooks out on the field more than we expect in week one.
7:52Last season, PFF graded Chris Brooks as the fourth best running back in pass protection.
7:57And in week one against the Minnesota Vikings, what does Brian Flores love to do on defense?
8:02He loves to blitz. He wants to bring pressure.
8:05And Chris Brooks is a reliable wide receiver, too.
8:08He caught 24 of 30 targets with the Green Bay Packers in his two-year stint here.
8:13So I do think we're going to see a decent amount of Chris Brooks on the field.
8:18And offensive coordinator Adam Stenevich has already made the statement that, quote, it's going to be a running back by committee for
8:25a bit to see where everyone is at. So I'm not promising you the world here with Chris Brooks.
8:30But for those of you in deeper leagues, Chris Brooks should certainly be rostered in more than 7% of leagues.
8:36And to wrap out our list this week is Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Ted Hurst, who is rostered in 7% of leagues.
8:43Ted Hurst was one of my favorite wide receiver prospects in the NFL draft this year.
8:48Another six foot four wide out with a 79 inch wingspan.
8:52But Hurst is a trifecta in terms of how offenses can utilize him.
8:56He's a long strider who gets off the line fast with with great deep ball tracking.
9:01He's fantastic in space. He's lethal after the catch and he's a beast in the red zone scoring 15 touchdowns in 24 collegiate games.
9:08The Bucs should have so much fun how they can fit Ted Hurst into their offense.
9:13And that opportunity might actually come knocking sooner rather than later.
9:16As of this recording, Jalen McMillan has been limited at practice leading up to week one with a knee injury that he
9:23sustained over a month ago at the start of August.
9:26Now, it seemed like McMillan looked like his usual self, but restrictions were still reported on.
9:31So things may change by the time this video is posted.
9:34But both make Baker Mayfield and Todd Bowles have made remarks of how reliable Hurst was in his standout preseason, right?
9:41When a Bucca and McMillan were both out, Hurst was the receiver that shined.
9:45He didn't shy away. So even if McMillan does suit up for week one, I'm willing to play the long game here
9:52with Ted Hurst and bet on the possibility that he actually beats out Jalen McMillan for the X role in this offense.
9:58Come even midseason, especially in deeper leagues, 7% rostered is just simply way too low for a player of Ted Hurst talent
10:05and potential upside in this Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense.
10:08And there you all have it. My top five waiver wire stashes ahead of week one.
10:13All these players are rostered in less than 30% of leagues.
10:16So go sprint to your waiver wire like right now.
10:19Make sure nobody has claimed them so you can claim them for yourself.
10:23Before we sign off here, though, remember, we do have a special deal going on for you all where you can get
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10:33Just head to fantasypros.com slash premium. Click no premium for free.
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