Fantasy Football Week 14 Waiver Wire Pickups
Is your fantasy team in need of new blood? Each week I’ll bring to you the best pickups to make ahead of the waiver deadline. All the players I list will be owned in fewer than 50 percent of leagues, with the ownership percentage coming from Yahoo.com.
Quarterbacks
Josh McCown, Jets (42% Owned): We’re here once again, and I’m bringing to your attention another capable week from Josh McCown. He only threw one touchdown in Week 13, but he piled up another 331 air yards, and continue to look like a fantasy starter. It feels icky, but he’s outdoing guys like Drew Brees, Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger with regularity lately. We’re approaching – or have reached – the playoffs in most leagues, so it’s time to forget the “name value” and go with who is racking up points. A lot of teams need to review their QB situation and give McCown a hard look.
Eli Manning, Giants (34% Owned): Well, the Giants fired their coach and GM and admitted it was a huge mistake to bench one of the most beloved players in franchise history. Manning’s been trash – statistically -- this year, but I don’t mind his cake matchup vs. Dallas. Starting Eli isn’t ideal, but if you have a funky QB situation, or you’re a Matthew Stafford owner worried about his hand injury, Manning is a decent stopgap for this week.
Running Backs
Mike Davis, Seahawks (9% Owned): Davis is the most obvious add of the week. Anyone who watched him run wild over the Eagles last night had flashbacks to Thomas Rawls when he first burst onto the scene and raged for more than five yards per carry. Davis, a San Francisco washout, is a surprising back to be relevant this late in the season but his receiving chops are what’s intriguing. Seattle still relies a lot on Russell Wilson’s improvisation, and that will lead to opportunities for their backs to catch passes. His six-catch, 78-yard showing gives me faith that he will be a definite RB2 through the fantasy playoffs.
Aaron Jones, Packers (35% Owned): Jones only had one carry in his return to action, taking his lone handoff 20 yards to the house in overtime. Jamaal Williams has been solid, but Jones looks like a more explosive player. He may not resume a full workload, but he will certainly eat into Williams’ carries, and likely command the better half of a timeshare. That’s how it should be when you average 5.5 yards per carry.
Austin Ekeler, Chargers (37% Owned): This is my weekly reminder to Melvin Gordon owners to go pick up Ekeler. This guy can play, and if Gordon goes down he has the goods to be an every-down back. Even with Gordon healthy, Ekeler has a change-of-pace role and he receives fairly consistent work. He’s around 40-70 all-purpose yards per game, which is good enough to start in a pinch in deep leagues. It doesn’t make sense that he isn’t a universally owned handcuff.
Peyton Barber, Buccaneers (6% Owned): Barber is a must-own if Doug Martin continues to be sidelined. Last week he received just about all of the work in Martin’s absence, racking up 102 yards on 23 attempts, as well as 41 receiving yards on four catches. Detroit and Atlanta are on deck for the Bucs, so as long as Martin is out, Barber is an excellent volume play.
Kerwynn Williams, Cardinals (3% Owned): Williams is a solid play if Adrian Peterson misses time again. Keep an eye on AP’s status, because if he’s active Williams will have close to zero value. His upcoming matchups vs. the Redskins and Titans are favorable.
Wide Receivers
Marquise Goodwin, 49ers (31% Owned): Goodwin is a No. 1 receiver, and he now has a QB (Jimmy Garoppolo) who has a whiff of competence. In their first game together Goodwin caught eight passes for 99 yards, and this week he gets a J.J. Watt-less Texans defense which has struggled vs. the pass all year. Goodwin’s track star speed grants him major blowup potential, but his increased role has established a high floor. He’s in WR2 territory easily.
Josh Doctson, Redskins (47% Owned): Doctson hasn’t blown up like I expected, but he’s managed to become a frequent red zone target, salvaging back-to-back underwhelming real life efforts. I’m going to stop billing Doctson as a star waiting to explode; for the rest of the year I’m treating him as a weekly TD threat, albeit with bad fantasy postseason matchups (Chargers, Cardinals, Broncos). I’d probably avoid starting him if possible, but if you do need to use him, he should still do alright.
Tight Ends
O.J. Howard, Buccaneers (24% Owned): Targets are a persistent, infuriating problem for Howard, who is talented enough to be one of the top fantasy tight ends. I can’t say I strongly recommend using Howard this week, but I must note that the Lions are dreadful against tight ends this year. Of course, that could mean that Cameron Brate feasts instead of Howard, but if you’re in desperate search of a high-ceiling option Howard fits the bill.
Jesse James, Steelers (12% Owned): If matchups are your game, James could work. He’s no stud, but he sees semi-regular targets from Big Ben Roethlisberger, and the Ravens are a bottom-four defense against tight ends.