Fantasy Football Week 13: Waiver wire pickups

All 32 teams are back in the pool in Week 13, so lineup-setting shouldn’t be too painful in the days ahead. Still, we can’t afford to take a break from the waiver wire. Each week around here, we highlight the top potential waiver pickups who remain available in at least 50% of Yahoo fantasy football leagues. Add as needed. It’s winning time, people.

Quarterbacks

Russell Wilson, Pittsburgh Steelers (37% rostered)

Wilson passed for 270 yards and one score in a losing effort in that delightful snow globe game on Thursday night. Ideally, we wouldn’t be seeing quite so many snaps and carries for Justin Fields, but it’s obviously a smart and proper use of a talented player. Fields’ usage is hardly a deal-breaker for Russ.

On Sunday, Wilson gets a date with a Bengals defense that allows the fourth-most fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks. Cincinnati has given up 19 passing touchdowns and 225.6 passing yards per game. If you’re simply looking for a streaming option with a reasonably high floor, Wilson is your guy.

Recommended FAB offer (assuming $100 budget): $7

Additional QB options:

• Cooper Rush was cooking on Sunday, in his way. He tossed a pair of TD passes against Washington in an all-time weird win, finishing with 247 yards on his 32 attempts. Rush has now thrown for 601 yards over the past two weeks and he has a series of friendly matchups ahead: NYG, CIN, at CAR, TB.

• Drake Maye certainly didn’t play his cleanest game in Sunday’s loss (22-for-37, 4 sacks, INT); his team didn’t get on the scoreboard against Miami until the fourth quarter, trailing by 31. However, Maye’s dual-threat ability is well-established, and he’s been a steady-if-unspectacular fantasy contributor. He’s headed into a matchup with Indy, a defense allowing the eighth-most fantasy points to QBs.

• Derek Carr had produced consecutive games with 200-plus passing yards and multiple touchdowns ahead of his byeS, and his team’s schedule d01013own the stretch is full of opportunities (LAR, at NYG, WA). If you’re just looking for a tolerable floor and not a season-saver, he can help.

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Running backs

Tank Bigsby, Jacksonville Jaguars (39%)

If circumstances forced you to drop Bigsby at some point over the past two weeks, no judgment. We get it. His team is coming off a bye and he was sidelined by an ankle issue in Week 11. This time of year, availability is a pretty big deal.

Let’s just please recall what it looked like earlier this season when Bigsby was fully operational:

Bigsby is averaging 5.5 YPC on the season and an outrageous 4.33 yards after contact per attempt, the best rate in the league. He’s forced 27 missed tackles on just 95 rush attempts per PFF. Basically, he’s been one of the league’s most dangerous and explosive runners this season, and it’s perfectly reasonable to expect a return to fantasy relevance after two weeks of rest. He looked healthy enough this weekend, at least to those of us with no medical training.

Travis Etienne Jr. has been far less efficient than Bigsby this season, undeserving of featured status. The primary concern with Tank has been his minimal receiving role. When the Jaguars fall behind by multiple scores (as occasionally happens), Bigsby is returned to storage. But this team will close its season with a string of matchups in which the run should generally remain in play: HOU, at TEN, NYJ, at LV, TEN, at IND. On talent and ceiling, Bigsby deserves a roster spot in all formats.

FAB: $26

Jeremy McNichols, Washington Commanders (1%)

McNichols has made four house calls this season, so he should be well known to fantasy managers at this stage, though mostly as a nuisance to Brian Robinson Jr. managers. He finished with a modest 22 yards on three carries on Sunday, but he could be headed for a significant uptick in workload in the upcoming matchup with Tennessee. The Commanders just lost both Robinson (ankle) and Austin Ekeler (concussion) to injuries, which could force McNichols into a beefier role in Week 13.

It’s hardly a friendly spot — the Titans have only allowed one back to rush for 70 yards this year — so let’s not get too reckless with your remaining FAB unless the situation is dire.

FAB: $8

Jordan Mason, Tyler Allgeier and Ray Davis (43%, 31% and 16%)

We’re grouping these three together because the argument for each of them is essentially the same. It’s a trio of premium backups, all of them proven commodities. Any or all of these three could emerge as decisive players in fantasy if an injury created a path to significant touches. Mason was an unstoppable force over the first seven weeks of the season, Allgeier has a 1,000-yard campaign on the resume already, and Davis had that one magical week against the Jets (along with various other highlights).

As we approach the money weeks in fantasy, we want our benches to be loaded with high-upside lottery tickets. All three of these backs certainly qualify.

FAB: Let’s say $6 apiece

Ameer Abdullah, Las Vegas Raiders (24%)

Yup, he’s still in the league — he’s 31 years old, in his 10th NFL season and surprisingly relevant. Abdullah was the next-man-up for Vegas on Sunday with both Alexander Mattison (ankle) and Zamir White (quad) sidelined by injury, and he was plenty effective against an excellent Denver defense. He finished with 65 total yards on 13 touches with five receptions and an early highlight TD:

Abdullah’s fantasy appeal is of course tied to the availability of other backs, but Sunday’s performance offered confirmation that he can help us when reasonable volume flows his way. The matchup ahead is somewhat problematic (at KC), but it’s not as if the Broncos defense was a layup, either.

FAB: $4

Various other RB adds:

• Devin Singletary has clearly been leapfrogged by Tyrone Tracy Jr. in the backfield hierarchy for the Giants, but we should note that the rookie lost another fumble in a key situation on Sunday. Tracy wasn’t shelved after the ball security gaffe against the Bucs, but he did sit for a series, allowing Singletary to reach the end-zone. If Tracy remains fumbly, Brian Daboll may feel compelled to do the usual coach-thing and dial back his touches.

• Roschon Johnson only handled three touches for the Bears in the overtime loss to Minnesota, but he continues to serve as a preferred option in goal-to-go situations. Sunday’s touchdown was his sixth of the year.

• Tyjae Spears (concussion) was unable to go in Week 12, but we should note that he’s played 35-45% of the offensive snaps when healthy this season. His team’s schedule in the closing weeks is awfully inviting: at WAS, JAC, CIN, at IND.

• Trey Benson, Blake Corum, Jaylen Wright and Braelon Allen are all highly stashable rookie understudy backs who would step into substantial workloads if the vets ahead of them were to miss time. All four deserve roster spots as what-if fliers in leagues with 12 or more teams.

Wide receivers and tight ends

Keon Coleman, Buffalo Bills (43%)

Here’s another case in which fantasy managers understandably mass-dropped a player due to the fact that A) he was dinged and B) the six-team mega-bye hit. Coleman is nearing a return from his wrist injury, however, which means he is very much back on the fantasy radar.

Coleman actually delivered the two best performances of his rookie season after Amari Cooper joined the team via trade, so let’s not fret too much about competition for targets. He’s been effective in contested situations and his passer-rating when targeted is a healthy 117.5. It’s no great surprise that he’s entered Josh Allen’s circle of trust.

Buffalo has a series of potential shootouts ahead against the Niners, Rams and Lions, so we should be aggressive in finding ways to invest in this team’s offense. The Bills are averaging 29.1 points per week, the league’s third-highest total. We haven’t seen the last big game from Coleman, assuming good health.

FAB: $8

Zach Ertz, Washington Commanders (48%)

Ertz ran the most routes among all Commanders pass-catchers on Sunday and saw the second-most targets (8), so we certainly aren’t worried about his role. The vet has also reached the end-zone in back-to-back weeks. He’s been the most reliable secondary option for the Commanders this season behind Terry McLaurin, averaging nearly six targets per week. If you’ve been wandering the tight end wilderness, he’s a viable option with a bankable weekly role.

FAB: $6

Additional WRs and TEs to consider:

• DeMario Douglas produced his usual 5-for-62 line in Sunday’s loss, which was never considered a notable fantasy performance until modern science developed PPR scoring. Today, we’re enlightened enough to appreciate it. Douglas gets the Colts in the week ahead, so yet another 4-6 grabs are incoming.

• Marquez Valdes-Scantling has touched the ball five times in the last two games for the Saints, converting those opportunities into 196 yards and three scores. You should not need to be told that a zero-point week is definitely within the range of outcomes for MVS, but the man still clearly has big-play potential.

• Devaughn Vele is a gigantic slot receiver (6-foot-5, 210) who’s emerged as a reliable secondary option for Bo Nix and the Broncos. He’s coming off single-game highs in targets (9) and receiving yards (80). Denver has a home date with Cleveland ahead of their Week 14 bye.

• Adam Thielen passed the eye test in his return from injury on Sunday, catching three balls for 57 yards, drawing a key flag and generally looking like a useful weapon. Carolina is fielding a functional offense these days, so we no longer need to back away from this team in fantasy.

• Nick Westbrook-Ikhine has somehow managed to overcome his team’s regrettable quarterback situation, reaching the end-zone six times over his last seven games. It’s one of the wildest achievements by any receiver this season, considering the fact that he’s only caught 17 passes on the year. We keep warning you that his scoring streak is unsustainable, yet it simply refuses to obey the normal rules.

• The Colts don’t have a perfect one-for-one replacement for Josh Downs on the roster, but we can expect both Alec Pierce and Adonai Mitchell to see additional opportunities while the team’s receptions leader is sidelined by injury. Pierce has been a downfield favorite for Anthony Richardson this season, averaging a league-high 23.3 yards per catch.

• Noah Gray has scored four touchdowns while catching eight passes over his last two games, which might be enough to make him a top-10 tight end on the season. (I’m afraid to look it up, because I don’t want to see where he ranks relative to Sam LaPorta.) Gray has actually run the fourth-most routes on the team this year, and it’s not like KC’s receiving room is overloaded with playmakers. We likely haven’t seen his last house call. There’s nothing Andy Reid loves half as much as drawing up opportunities for his weirdest players near the end-zone.

• Hunter Henry has drawn 17 targets over the past two weeks, catching 11 for 107 yards. He’s not a scoring machine like Gray, but c’mon, that’s an impossible standard to meet.

Defense

Dallas Cowboys (28%)

No, this is not a great defense in the traditional sense, but the Cowboys delivered a huge point total against the Commanders on Sunday, in one of the more insane/intoxicated games in recent memory. Micah Parsons is back to being a game-wrecker and KaVontae Turpin is the most dangerous return specialist in the league. Dallas will host the spiraling, dysfunctional Giants on Thursday, so this D likely has another productive week ahead.

FAB: $1