Why these fantasy football sleepers are poised to step up amid mounting injuries

Fantasy football championships aren’t won on draft day. They are won in-season and in the trenches.

Savvy waiver wire work, staying on top of the latest NFL news and studying the daily practice reports are paramount to your success.

If you aren’t, you could be missing out on vital information such as the newly emerging wide receiver values that just popped up for Week 9.

When word broke that the Jaguars were placing wide receiver Travis Hunter on injured reserve, your first move should have been a visit to your waiver wire to add Parker Washington.

Depending on your roster construction, who’s on your bench and how deep of a league you play in, he should return strong value, especially this week facing the Las Vegas Raiders.

Washington has routinely been involved in the Jaguars offensive scheme, but as we’ve seen head coach Liam Coen do in the past, his focus is on funneling targets to two primary receivers.

Sure, they run three-receiver sets — look at how he handled Mike Evans and Chris Godwin in Tampa Bay and what we’ve seen in Jacksonville.

For the next few weeks, Washington should slide right into that Godwin-like role Hunter had before the injury.

He should see an 85 percent snap share with plenty of outside work, but once they move into three-receiver sets, he should move into the slot, where he’s already seen 26.5 percent of his snaps.

The Raiders rank 17th in DVOA (defensive value over average) against the pass and 18th against the opposing No. 2 receiver, allowing an average of 60 yards per game.

Parker Washington of the Jacksonville Jaguars returns a punt for a touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers during the third quarter at Levi’s Stadium on September 28, 2025 in Santa Clara, California. Getty Images

With an uptick in snaps and targets, Washington can provide you sound depth at the WR3 and flex positions.

Another story that seemingly flew under the radar was that Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp was downgraded to limited after Thursday’s practice.

He was already dealing with a heel injury, but now the team is listing a hamstring injury as well. Say hello to your newest fantasy friend, Tory Horton.

Already playing a 45 percent snap share to spell the aging Kupp, Horton has shown an explosiveness offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak craves.

He has the speed to stretch the field vertically as well as the skills to work out of the slot and add yards after the catch on slants and crossing routes.

Now he gets the Washington secondary, which ranks 20th in DVOA against the pass and 17th against the opposing No. 2 wideout, also allowing an average of 60 receiving yards per game.

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Rostered in fewer than 5 percent of leagues across Yahoo and ESPN, he should be an immediate add.

Even if you opt not to start either wide receiver this week, they should be added in your leagues as they certainly hold future value.

Washington will be a focal point for at least the next four weeks in Jacksonville and Horton could actually supplant a declining Kupp in Seattle on a more long-term basis.

Both players were barely an afterthought in most seasonal drafts and now each of them can help win a championship.