Who Should I Start? Christian Kirk or Jaylen Waddle

Friday, January 16, 3:12 PM

Houston Texans wide receiver Christian Kirk posted an underwhelming regular season in his first year with the team, recording 28 receptions for 239 yards and a touchdown on 52 targets across 13 games played. However, the 29-year-old broke out with a dominant performance in Houston's Wild Card Weekend win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, hauling in eight catches for 144 yards and a touchdown on nine targets. With star Texans wideout Nico Collins (concussion) exiting the game in the second half after suffering a concussion, Kirk stepped into a more prominent role in his team's offense. Collins has not practiced this week and is reportedly trending towards missing Houston's Divisional Round matchup against the New England Patriots. As a result, Kirk could see another week as the primary target-earner from Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud. If Collins is ruled out, fantasy managers should view Kirk as the top wide receiver option in Houston for the Divisional Round.

Wednesday, January 28, 1:45 PM

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle bounced back from the worst season of his career in 2024 by catching 64 of his 100 targets for 910 receiving yards and six touchdowns in 16 starts in his fifth year in the NFL in 2025. Waddle also had 28 rushing yards. It was good enough to put him as the WR22 in half-PPR scoring. It was nice to see the 27-year-old pass-catcher bounce back from a disastrous 2024 campaign, but it might have still been somewhat of a disappointment for him, considering Tyreek Hill (knee) missed most of the year with a season-ending injury. Waddle thankfully had a larger target share, but the Dolphins' offense just was unable to find its explosiveness for a second straight season, and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was benched late in the year. Waddle still has the talent to provide plenty of value in PPR fantasy leagues, but his value is in major flux heading into 2026 under a completely new coaching staff. Hill's return (whenever that may be) will also be a negative for Waddle's ceiling.