Pigskin Papers: 2023 Waiver Wire Week 13
Pat Freiermuth Breaks Out in Week 12
(Published November 27, 2023)
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Welcome to the Waiver Wire, Week 13. I wish I could say that I’m excited about the free agent pool this week, but that’s just not not the case, for 2 main reasons. First, the NFL has once again constructed its schedule with complete disregard for the fantasy community. How can they be this insensitive to us? SIX teams are on Bye this week, with the fantasy playoffs right around the corner! What the…And at the same time, it’s a weak free agent pool this week. The Week 13 Waiver Wire mostly consists of the same depth and stash-type players that we’ve been talking about all season. There are also a couple of bigger-name players who’ve been mostly disappointing or injured for much of the season, and are now waking up. Better late than never, right? If they got dropped, they’re very worthwhile adds. But for many of you, players like Jordan Love, Christian Watson and Pat Freiermuth are already rostered, and not available to you. More on them below.
With so many teams and top-flight fantasy assets on Bye, I’ll try to identify some streamers for you and especially at the “onesie” positions (QB, TE, PK, D/ST). OK, let’s get to it.
WEEK 13 BYES—UGH! BAL, BUF, CHI, LV, MIN, NYG
The Process: Each week, I try to identify the top Waiver Wire targets and evaluate the short and long term prospects of those players. I also do my best to reveal which players who are coming off a big week are fool’s gold. Finally, I endeavor to find streamers who might help you in a pinch. Note that this advice is primarily intended for Season-Long leagues, and NOT Dynasty leagues.
Some of the players I’ll talk about won’t be available in your league. As a general rule, I list players who are available in more than 50% of leagues. But what does that even mean? A 10 team league with 6 bench spots will have a much larger free agent pool than a 14 team league with 8 bench spots. Most leagues fall somewhere in between. This isn’t “one size fits all.”
Week 13 Waiver Wire:
Stafford and the Rams Come to Life
QB:
Jordan Love. He was hot early in the season, then cooled off big-time, and is back to putting up good fantasy points. His 3 TD effort at the Lions on Thanksgiving Day helped to put him over 18 points for the third straight week. He’s got a nice group of talented, young WRs, and you have to like the playoff schedule in Weeks 15-17: TAM, @CAR, @MIN.
Matthew Stafford. He finally had a blow-up game this week, with 4 TDs. The whole offense is healthy again, and the Rams are still in the playoff hunt. They won’t play the Cardinals every week, and the next 2 games could be bumpy rides (CLE, @BAL). Still, if Stafford is on your wire, he’s a nice add and especially if you can play him as your QB2 in a Superflex. His playoff schedule is pretty good: (WAS, NO, @NYG).
Same-old, same-old. If you need help at the position, and especially in a Superflex, Baker Mayfield, Gardner Minshew, and Derek Carr continue to be very serviceable QB2s, with upside for better weeks. Of these 3 I like Carr the least (by a decent margin), given how they use Taysom Hill, how much he checks it down, and recent injuries to their WRs.
If you need a streamer for Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen this week, Kenny Pickett isn’t out of the question. I know, I’ve been down on him all year, and with good reason. It’s been ugly. But the offense looked decidedly better in the first week post-Matt Canada, and they host the Cardinals this week, who just got torched by Stafford.
RB: There isn’t a whole lot here. If any of the big RB pickups from recent weeks (Zach Charbonnet, Keaton Mitchell, and Ty Chandler) are still available in your league, they’re definitely worth picking up. Beyond that, and the usual stash names (see the last entry of this section), there isn’t much to recommend.
Chuba Hubbard just had his first game with double digit fantasy points in more than a month, and with the coaching change in Carolina, who knows? He’s worth a roster spot.
Jeff Wilson looked good in his return to action last week. With Salvon Ahmed on IR and Devon Achane’s return date (and ability to stay on the field) uncertain, Wilson has good value as the backup in an offense that’s been fantastic for RB production.
Justice Hill is worth rostering, even though 3 Ravens’ RBs are now getting reps and he doesn’t currently have a clear path to meaningful touches. An injury to either of the other 2 would open the door for Hill to get significant work in a high-scoring offense. He’s mostly looked good in limited opportunities this season, and is a decent pass catcher.
Beyond these names, it’s mostly just a repeat of the backup RB stash plays that have been mentioned over and over: R. Dowdle, L. Murray, E. Elliott, T. Spears, J. McKinnon, E. Mitchell, and R. Johnson. Oh, and ahead of all of these backups, Z. Moss if he’s available [*****COLUMN UPDATE: Jonathan Taylor has a thumb injury that is being evaluated. If he is going to again miss games, Moss immediately becomes a must-start RB, as we saw early in the season. Grab him, and pay up for him, if he’s on your wire].
Reed and Watson Roasted the Lions’ Turkey on Thanksgiving
WR:
Christian Watson. He probably isn’t available in your league, even though the first 3 months of his season were just about as disappointing as it gets. He hadn’t topped 9 fantasy points in a game before a moderate blow up on Thanksgiving Day. Watson has scored in 2 straight, and is finally showing signs of life.
Jayden Reed. Let’s stay in Green Bay for a second. I‘ve touted Reed for weeks now, and I’m certainly not alone, but he’s still rostered at less than 50% on some of the major platforms. There are several mouths to feed in Green Bay, but Reed seems to have carved out a nice role that gives him a decent floor, week-to-week.
Brandin Cooks. The Cowboys will eventually play tougher teams that pose more of a challenge to their passing game, but he’s rolling, with a TD in 4 of the last 6 games. Cooks has been a beneficiary of the Dak renaissance, and I think decent production will continue.
Here are 4 more WRs that I like a lot as pickups this week, and not just for depth as each one has the potential as a decent plug-in down the stretch: C. Samuel, G. Dortch (17 targets the last 2 weeks and double digit points in both games), JSN, and J. Hyatt (coming off a 100 yard game).
TE: If Isaiah Likely snuck through waivers in your league last week, he’s definitely worth an add. Others:
Pat Freiermuth. He’s going to be a very popular pickup this week, after a huge performance that seemingly came out of nowhere. ‘Muth came into Week 12 with 9 receptions on the season (in 6 games played), and equalled that total in just one game. Will this continue? Who knows. He’s been a productive player before.
Gerald Everett. Everett has battled multiple injuries in recent weeks, but unlike a number of other pass catchers on the Chargers, he’s healthy now. He caught 4 balls and found the end zone in Week 12 and with the shorthanded Chargers often getting involved in shootouts, he’s an intriguing add down the stretch.
Tyler Higbee. He was rediscovered last week, and scored 2 TDs. A word of caution—Those were Higbee’s first 2 scores of the year, and he has yet to have more than 5 catches or 64 yards in a game. I don’t trust this one. Still, if you’re in need, he’s worth a shot. As is Juwan Johnson, who might finally be carving out a meaningful role as more Saints’ receivers keep getting hurt.
PK Streamers, Week 13: C. McLoughlin (vs. TB), C. Dicker (@NE), and C. Boswell (vs. ARI).
D/ST Streamers, Week 13: It’s a great week to pick on some terrible offenses and very inexperienced QBs: ATL (@NYJ), IND (@TEN), TB (vs. CAR), LAR (vs. CLE), and JAC (vs. CIN).
Good luck with your Week 13 Waiver Wire claims!
DH
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