Post-waiver wire fantasy football pickups for Week 8

Hill logged a full practice on Thursday, while fellow tight end Juwan Johnson remained limited with a shoulder injury. It may sound far-fetched, but given the circumstances, the Saints’ multi-purpose player could actually catch, throw and run for a touchdown in Week 8.

Hill is available in 71% of Yahoo leagues.

WR: Ricky Pearsall (San Francisco 49ers)

Here’s what we said about Pearsall following the 2024 NFL Draft:

“With talented pass-catchers like (Brandon) Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel and George Kittle on the roster, Pearsall could struggle to see snaps in the NFL’s fourth-ranked passing offense. Aiyuk and Samuel finished 14th and 15th in fantasy points last season while Kittle finished fifth among tight ends.”

Pearsall missed San Francisco’s first six games after being shot in the chest during an armed robbery attempt just prior to Labor Day. He returned to face the Chiefs last week, catching three of five targets for 21 yards while playing 76% of the team’s offensive plays.

So much for struggling to see snaps. To be fair, Deebo Samuel played four snaps before leaving the game with an illness, Brandon Aiyuk left the game after suffering a knee injury and leading receiver Jauan Jennings missed the game altogether with a hip injury.

Samuel had to be treated for pneumonia but was a limited participant in Thursday’s practice, while Jennings remained sidelined. Aiyuk’s injury ended his season. Rarely are first-round wide receivers available this late in the season, especially on high-scoring teams with holes to fill. Pick up Pearsall before somebody else does.

Pearsall is available in 69% of Yahoo leagues.

WR: Cedric Tillman (Cleveland Browns)

Now that wide receiver Amari Cooper is with the Bills, somebody has to pick up the slack for the Browns. Former Bronco Jerry Jeudy currently leads Cleveland with 266 yards, followed by tight end David Njoku, who has 165.

Modest numbers to be sure and nothing that would prevent a player like Tillman, the team’s third-round pick in last year’s draft, from seeing more targets. Tillman set career-marks against the Bengals with eight catches on 12 targets for 81 yards in Cooper’s absence last week and should be catching passes from Jameis Winston against the Ravens on Sunday.

With starting quarterback Deshaun Watson done for the year with a torn Achilles and backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson dealing with a finger injury, Winston has already been named the starter for this week’s game against the Ravens.

No team gains more yards (461.4) or points (31.1) per game than Baltimore, which could force Cleveland to throw the ball to keep up. That should mean plenty of targets for Tillman against a Ravens defense allowing 287.1 yards passing per game, the worst mark of any NFL team. 

Tillman is available in 88% of Yahoo! leagues.