Week 14 Waiver Wire Pickups
With bye weeks done, the waiver wire will be a little less important as we enter into the fantasy football playoffs. While the number of worthwhile pickups may shrink, there will be some league-winners to be had in this final stretch. As any experienced fantasy footballer will attest, the playoffs aren’t always about how talented your team is. Playing the right match-ups and taking risks will be what gets you that championship trophy at the end of the month.
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Quarterbacks
Sam Darnold
New York Jets | Rostered in 1.6% of ESPN leagues
Darnold showed signs of life this week, nearly leading the Jets to an upset victory over the Raiders. In what could only be interpreted as a “screw Trevor Lawrence, I’m the franchise quarterback” performance, Darnold played the best he has all season long despite losing Frank Gore early on in the game. Though he was once again sloppy with the turnovers, Darnold scored a trio of touchdowns, two of which he delivered to slot superstar Jamison Crowder. With Seattle’s historically bad passing defense up next on the schedule, Darnold is an interesting streaming option for anyone looking to venture outside of the box.
Running Backs
Ty Johnson
New York Jets | Rostered in 0.3% of ESPN leagues
With Frank Gore having been knocked out of Sunday’s game due to a concussion, Johnson stepped up as the de facto lead back for the Jets, rushing for 104 yards and a touchdown on 22 attempts. For a guy who couldn’t stick on the Lions roster just a few months ago, the Maryland product looked pretty good. Yes, his performance cam against a so-so Raiders defense. But with Seattle up next and Gore likely to be out due to his concussion, Johnson could be a fun flex option, particularly in deeper lineup leagues.
Cam Akers
Los Angeles Rams | Rostered in 35.8% of ESPN leagues
Partially due to a tweaked knee suffered by lead back Darrell Henderson, Akers saw the lion’s share of action out of the Rams’ backfield this week. Accounting for 72 rushing yards and a touchdown on 21 carries, the former FSU star looked like a true three-down back in this expanded role, with his performance serving as a stern reminder of his talent. Though Henderson would go on to score a 38-yard rushing touchdown later on in the game, it was a groundbreaking performance for Akers, who has been parked firmly behind Henderson and Malcolm Brown for most of this season. We can only hope that his uptick in usage this week continues throughout the remainder of the season, as a 50/50 platoon with Henderson could allow both backs to be fantasy relevant.
Wide Receivers
Marquez Valdes-Scantling
Green Bay Packers | Rostered in 11.5% of ESPN leagues
Coming off of back-to-back goose egg performances, MVS is my contrarian pickup of the week. With only two targets in his last two games, the volume is a major concern for Valdes-Scantling, who’s been known to run red hot or ice cold depending on when you catch him. A boom or bust option due to his usage as a deep target — Valdes-Scantling leads the lead with an average target distance of 17.5 yards — I’m going to bet on his upside against the Lions this week. Checking in 17th in the league with 89.3 air yards-per-game and averaging 35.7 yards-per-catch, MVS could be in line for a long touchdown against a Detroit secondary that got killed by deep threat Will Fuller on Thanksgiving.
Keke Coutee
Houston Texans | Rostered in 12.4% of ESPN leagues
What a sequence of events it’s been for Coutee. First Randall Cobb landed on IR. Then Kenny Stills was released. After a monstrous Thanksgiving performance, Will Fuller got suspended for the rest of the season. Then Brandin Cooks suffered an injury this week. In the blink of an eye, the former Texas Tech slot specialist has ascended from WR5 in Houston to WR1. Coming off a huge day that saw him snag 8 passes for 141 yards, Coutee is a must-start in all PPR leagues.
Denzel Mims
New York Jets | Rostered in 10.1% of ESPN leagues
While we’ve yet to see the Denzel Mims breakout game, the ingredients have been marinating for the last month. Mims saw 428 air yards in the games leading up to this week’s tilt with the Raiders, where saw only three targets, hauling in two of them for 40 yards. Facing a suspect Seahawks secondary this week, I’m firing up Mims as a flex in more than one of my leagues. I’m predicting that he catches his first career touchdown this week. Please come harass me on Twitter if I’m wrong. My handle is 3COAK_FF. I’ll be waiting.
Donovan Peoples-Jones
Cleveland Browns | Rostered in 0.3% of ESPN leagues
Peoples-Jones’ only had one great play on Sunday, but it was incredibly impactful. The rookie out of Michigan caught a 75-yard bomb from Baker Mayfield which helped Cleveland pull away from the Titans. A former blue-chip recruit, DPJ has all the elements to become a great NFL receiver. Let’s hope his performance this week sparked some confidence in him, as the Browns have desperately needed a big play threat since Odell Beckham’s season was ended by a torn ACL.
Tight Ends
Cole Kmet
Chicago Bears | Rostered in 0.5% of ESPN leagues
Kmet has begun to out snap Jimmy Graham in the last two games, resulting in a breakthrough performance this week against the Lions. The rookie out of Notre Dame caught five passes for 37 yards and a touchdown, looking very in-sync with Mitch Trubisky. As the Bears watch their playoff hopes dwindle away, expect to see much more Kmet. With few promising young players outside of him and fellow rookie Darnell Mooney, this last month of the season will allow Chicago to evaluate them much more clearly.
Anthony Firkser
Tennessee Titans | Rostered in 5.4% of ESPN leagues
Firkser filled in admirably for Jonnu Smith this week, reeling in five passes for 51 yards. With a hog rate of 19.3 this season, the Titans haven’t been afraid to lean on Firkser this season when he’s on the field. If Smith is absent once again this week, Firkser could be a borderline top-five play against Jaguars. Scoop him preemptively if you need a desperation tight end start this week.
