Week 15 Waiver Wire Pickups
Welcome to Week 15 of the NFL season. You have either advanced in your league’s playoffs, or you are addicted to fantasy football and still feel the need to read about the coming week’s best waiver wire adds, even though they can’t help you now. Either way, I commend you for your efforts. Just because it’s playoff season doesn’t mean that injuries or poor performances cease, so we turn to the waiver wire yet again to see if we can muster some reinforcements for next week’s game. Keep in mind every week is a zero-sum game. Even if you don’t need any to pick up any of the players below, make sure you take a look at your opponent’s roster to determine if any of the below players would help them, and pick them up if you can safely do so without hurting your roster.
QB Waiver Wire Pickups
Ben Roethlisberger
Pittsburgh Steelers (26% Sleeper Rostership / 18.4% ESPN Rostership)
If you’re an underdog, decidedly so, you can also turn to Tyler Huntley, who may end up starting in place of Lamar Jackson who sprained his ankle on Sunday. Huntley has played the majority of two games this year and has rushed for over 40 yards in both contests. The additional fantasy points provided from a rushing quarterback are something you want when you need upside to compete.
RB Waiver Wire Pickups
Rashaad Penny
Seattle Seahawks (25% Sleeper Rostership / 5.7% ESPN Rostership)
This is a dangerous waiver wire pickup suggestion because it’s one that requires an NFL coach to use logic when determining the workshare for his backfield. Chris Carson is finished for the year, Adrian Peterson missed Sunday’s game with a bad back, and looked terrible the week prior (and during his time in Tennessee as well), and Alex Collins has been aggressively average all year. Into this void steps Rashaad Penny. Penny out-touched Collins this week 17 to 8, and outgained him 138 yards to 17 yards. Penny also ripped off two long touchdown runs including this 32-yarder where he stiff-armed the Texans DB into next week.
Rashaad Penny broke off for a 32-yard touchdown. pic.twitter.com/YQMWHAqDnt
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) December 12, 2021
Penny looked better on Sunday than any Seahawk back has looked at any point this season and has earned himself another start against the Rams next week, and he should be in your starting lineup as well.
Royce Freeman
Houston Texans (0% Sleeper Rostership / 0.5 ESPN Rostership)
When it comes to the running back position opportunity is king. Royce Freeman might have some opportunity next week. With David Johnson added to the COVID reserve list on Saturday, the Texans were left with just Rex Burkhead and Freeman in the backfield Sunday. As has often been the case during Burkhead’s career he ended up injured, this time a groin, and missed most of the second half. Though Freeman was inefficient as a runner Sunday, 15 rushing yards on 11 attempts, he did see eight targets and caught six of those for 51 yards. It’s likely that Burkhead is going to miss some time, leaving Freeman and Johnson as the two-man committee for the foreseeable future. There’s also no guarantee that Johnson can return next week, we’ve seen COVID knock players out for multiple games. Even if Johnson is able to make it back next week I would still prefer starting Freeman over him, if absolutely forced to choose one.
Craig Reynolds
Detroit Lions (0% Sleeper Rostership / 0% ESPN Rostership)
Fantasy football is a crazy game. Two weeks ago I couldn’t tell you who Craig Reynolds was, now I’m suggesting you pick him up. The Detroit Lions have lost D’Andre Swift to a shoulder injury that may end his season, and then Jamaal Williams was added to the COVID reserve list on Saturday. This left the Lions with Godwin Igwebuike and practice-squad call-up, Reynolds, on Sunday. All Reynolds did was put up 99 total yards on 13 touches in his first NFL action. Reynolds ran for 83 yards on just 11 attempts and was the only Lions back to see a target on Sunday, hauling in both of his targets for an additional 16 yards. Even if Williams is able to get on the field next week the Lions apparently want to get a good look at Reynolds, with Adam Schefter reporting prior to Sunday’s game that Reynolds would be a “factor” the rest of the season. If you are in desperate need of a running back Reynolds could be your man.
WR Waiver Wire Pickups
Rashod Bateman
Baltimore Ravens (52% Sleeper Rostership / 24.9% ESPN Rostership)
Finally, after weeks of waiting, we finally got the Rashod Bateman breakout game we were all waiting on! Okay, maybe it was just me, but regardless, Bateman did breakout on Sunday. Bateman produced his first career 100-yard receiving day with 103 receiving yards on eight targets. He’s seen at least six targets in six of eight games this year, including three games with eight targets. Bateman had a few truly impressive catches including this one that showed his ability to adjust on a badly thrown pass from Tyler Huntley.
Rashod Bateman with a candidate for catch of the week.
Sets up TD plunge
Great adjustment on iffy placement #RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/wKDzAmbz3c
— Matt Waldman (@MattWaldman) December 12, 2021
It’s nice to see that Bateman was able to establish an immediate rapport with Huntley on Sunday since it’s likely that’s who he’ll be catching passes from next week against Green Bay after Lamar Jackson injured his ankle in the first quarter this week. After two quiet weeks, this breakout could be just the push the Ravens staff needed to ensure they get the ball in Bateman’s hands for the rest of the season.
Amon-Ra St. Brown
Detroit Lions (32% Sleeper Rostership / 10.5% ESPN Rostership)
Amon-Ra St. Brown has quietly had a very nice rookie season, but for our purposes what we truly care about is that he’s been on fire over the past two weeks. Sunday marked the second week in a row with at least 11 targets. He hauled in eight of those targets turning them into 73 yards, good enough for 15.3 fantasy points on the day. Over the past two weeks, he’s been targeted 23 times, with 18 receptions and 159 receiving yards. The ceiling may be low for St. Brown, but his volume has been elite, securing a 29.7% target share over the last three Lions games. The target tree for the Lions is limited with D’Andre Swift looking like he’s going to be placed on the I.R. ending his season, and T.J. Hockenson very questionable to play next week, after not practicing at all this week and missing Sunday’s loss against the Broncos, giving St. Brown another week of expected high volume.
Gabriel Davis
Buffalo Bills (10% Sleeper Rostership / 2.5% ESPN Rostership)
It’s been a frustrating sophomore season for Gabriel Davis who has only totaled 385 receiving yards compared to the 599 he gained in his rookie year. The addition of Emmanuel Sanders has caused Davis’s snap share to plummet from 71% in his rookie year to 41.2% this year. But, Sanders injured his ankle on Sunday and is likely going to miss next week’s game against the Panthers, which led to Davis seeing his highest snap share (83%) of the season. Davis was also set season highs in targets (8) and receptions (5) Sunday, and also scored a touchdown for the second week in a row. The Bills aren’t especially fond of running the ball, and they average the sixth-most pass attempts per game with 38.6 (per Teamrankings.com), and will be down Sanders this week. Expect Davis to fill in and provide WR3 upside this week.
TE Waiver Wire Pickups
Austin Hooper
Cleveland Browns (41% Sleeper Rostership / 34.1% ESPN Rostership)
After being targeted seven times Sunday, Austin Hooper has now been targeted at least five times in three of his past four games, including two weeks with seven targets. Over the past three games, he’s secured a healthy 15.6% target share, good enough for third-highest on the Browns. He’s also scored double-digit fantasy points in three of his last four games. Volume leads to scoring at the tight end position and Hooper is getting the volume lately. Hooper also has a prime matchup this coming week, facing a Raiders team that is giving up the second-most points per game to the tight end position. Largely a disappointment during his time in Cleveland Hooper has started to turn things around over the past month and is a viable TE1 option next week.
