The Pigskin Papers Waiver Wire - Week 14

It Ain’t Always Pretty, but Points are Points

(Posted December 6, 2021, updated December 7, 2021)

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SEE OUR WEEK 13 FANTASY RECAP: https://www.thepigskinpapers.com/posts-1/pigskin-papers-postscript-week-13

     Welcome to Week 14 - the final week of the regular season for conventional, boring fantasy leagues (not mine - we play all 18 weeks, then do our playoffs alongside the NFL playoffs!*). So for all of you basics out there, it’s now or never. Unfortunately, while last week offered one of the richest free agent pools of the year due to a spate of RB injuries, the pool this week is very shallow. Like, it’s ankle-deep water. But with 4 teams on bye again this week, and lots of players still dealing with injuries, the waiver wire is still essential and can still help you. So let’s dive right into that shallow water.

[*If you want to learn more, see: https://www.thepigskinpapers.com/posts-1/three-of-the-dumbest-things-about-fantasy-football-and-how-to-fix-them-part-iii-1]

WEEK 14 BYES (mercifully, this is the last BYE week): Colts, Dolphins, Patriots, Eagles.

   Before we go position by position, here are some players that we’ve mentioned in recent weeks (several of them, multiple times) who most likely aren’t still available for you to pick up. But if any of them are, they’d be at or near the top of the list for this week: QB Taysom Hill; RBs D’Onta Foreman, Dalton Hilliard, Devonta Freeman, Jamaal Williams, Sony Michel, Tevin Coleman, Rex Burkhead, Matt Breida, and Boston Scott, and WRs Josh Reynolds and DeVante Parker.

QB: There aren’t a lot of good streaming options this week, outside of Taysom Hill at the Jets (assuming he can play through his finger issues). The next best choices, if you’re stuck: Teddy Bridgewater at home vs. the Lions, Ryan Tannehill at home vs. the Jaguars (yes, he’s available in some leagues), Cam Newton at home vs. the Falcons (ditto - but recall that in his last game, he completed just 5 passes and was benched), and Taylor Heinicke at home vs. the Cowboys. Heinicke has been a solid if unspectacular streaming option for the last month.

Ante up for Penny

RB: The main names you want to grab, if they’re available, are all listed above. Beyond those, the Seahawks are using up to as many as 4 RBs these days so it’s hard to trust any of them, but their offense looked much better on Sunday and they have a good matchup this week (at Houston). Rashaad Penny led them in carries and ran well on Sunday, and Adrian Peterson got the goal line TD. Both are possibilities if you’re desperate. Another team that’s deploying multiple RBs from week to week is the Eagles, who are on bye this week. Kenneth Gainwell flashed this week after Miles Sanders got hurt again, and is worth a stash for bench depth in the playoffs. As we mentioned last week, Ameer Abdullah is the less obvious add in Carolina with CMC done for the year, but he could get a decent share of the work. 

*ADDENDUM, 12/7: The 49ers backfield is a big question mark this week, and not for the first time this year. Starter Elijah Mitchell went into the concussion protocol on Monday, primary backup Jeff Wilson’s injured (and repaired) knee is acting up, and Trey Sermon is on IR. That could leave Ja’Mychal Hasty, Kyle Juszczyk and Trent Cannon as the only healthy bodies this Sunday at Cincinnati (not a great matchup, they’ve allowed the fewest rushing yards over the last 3 weeks’ nd 4th fewest on the season). And I’d pick them up in that order.

WR: This is where we’ve got some OK value this week, assuming all the RBs named above aren’t on your waiver wire. In addition to Reynolds and Parker, who are both available in some leagues, here are some WRs to consider if you’re in need:

Parker is a Nice Grab

• K.J. Osborn. Adam Thielen’s high ankle sprain creates a real opportunity for him to see a meaningful number of targets, on a team that gets into a lot of shootouts. He stepped in nicely this past week, catching 4-47 on 7 targets, and scoring. And the schedule for the next two weeks (PIT on Thursday night, then Chicago next week) is pretty good.

• Russell Gage. At this point, I think we should all stop waiting for Calvin Ridley to come back. Maybe he will and maybe he won’t, but the weeks are slipping by. Gage has slowly assumed the role of the #1 WR, culminating in a huge stat line this week. He won’t always deliver like that, but the Falcons trail a lot and throw a lot, and Gage should be in line for plenty of targets down the stretch.

• Amon-Ra St. Brown. He’s hard to trust, and is more of a boom or bust player, but the rookie’s stat line this week (10-86-1, with 12 targets) is hard to ignore. With the Lions usually playing from behind, he’s got some appeal, and especially for however long they’re without D’Andre Swift, who commands a large target share.

• Nick Westbrook-Ihine. We’ve mentioned him before, and with the Titans coming off of a bye, A.J. Brown on IR, and the health of Julio Jones never certain, he’s worth consideration. 

• And let’s finish the WRs with a few names that are a bit more speculative: Jamison Crowder (decent floor, low ceiling), Laquon Treadwell, and if you need to swing for the fences, Deonte Harris, who is dangerous with the ball in his hands (he’s got 4 catches of 45 yards or more on the season, but just 31 receptions).  

TE: 

• Foster Moreau was a whiff this week, and it’s unclear when Darren Waller will be back, but he still offers some upside at a weak position.

• Evan Engram is worth a look. The Giants’ offense has been a dumpster fire all year, and now Mike Glennon is dealing with a concussion on top of Daniel Jones’s neck ailment. So why am I even mentioning any Giants? Because Engram is healthy for once, is talented, and this week they play the Chargers who are a great matchup for TEs. Engram is risky, always, but I’m talking about TEs on the waiver wire. Anyone with position eligibility and a pulse could appear in this section of the column.

• Gerald Everett had one of the worst games you’re ever going to see from a position player - he basically committed 3 turnovers while only gaining 7 yards. But he did have 4 catches, and over the last 4 weeks he’s caught 20 balls and has a TD. Like I said, I’m talking about waiver wire TEs here, not the first or even 11th rounds of fantasy drafts. 

Good luck with your waiver claims, and your fight for the playoffs. Be sure to check out our Week 13 Fantasy recap, posting tomorrow, and our week 13 fantasy preview, with our weekly Rides, Fades and Sleepers, posting Thursday.

DH

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