Waiver Wire Pickups: Week 14 (Fantasy Football)

Last week was brutal for fantasy football with underperforming players and injuries to some big names. On top of that, the Saints, Falcons, Bears, Packers, Colts, and Commanders are on a bye. If you managed to survive, here are some options you may need to pick up to plug some holes in your lineups. Fair warning: these options aren’t great. Good luck.

• Check out the Waiver Wire Rankings page with individual ranks and FAAB amounts
• Get a full breakdown from The Fantasy Footballers on today’s episode

Wide Receivers

The Fantasy Footballers’ number one ranked wide receiver is the Cowboys’ Michael Gallup. He has finally started to come into his own this year and had a season-high eight targets against the Giants in Week 12. Gallup had not scored a touchdown since Week 4 but found the end zone twice last week against the Colts. The upside is that he has two weeks of good matchups against the Texans and the Jaguars until facing their division rivals, the Eagles, in Week 16. He is rostered in 67% of sleeper leagues, but if he’s available, he has the best opportunity out of the list.

Corey Davis and Darius Slayton are also a couple of options if you need a warm body at wide receiver. The Jets face the Bills this week, so Davis’ upside is not only capped because of QB play and too many mouths to feed but also because of the matchup. Their schedule lightens up significantly in Weeks 15 and 16 where they play the Lions and the Jaguars. He is 19% rostered and likely available on your waiver wire.

Slayton is one of those serviceable receivers who can see the volume if Daniel Jones is playing well but has a limited ceiling. He is targeted out of necessity with Sterling Shepard done for the season and a lack of any other options aside from Saquon Barkley. The Giants have a tough game at home against the Eagles, but their schedule lightens up by facing the Commanders and then the Minnesota Vikings.

• Check out the Waiver Wire Rankings page with individual ranks and FAAB amounts
• Get a full breakdown from The Fantasy Footballers on today’s episode

Running Backs

We do the work. You dominate your draft.

Get the 2023 UDK

Team	Player	Roster %	Matchups
BUF	James Cook	31%	NYJ / MIA / @CHI
NYJ	Zonovan Knight	54%	@BUF / DET / JAX
LAR	Cam Akers	55%	LV / @GB / DEN
KC	Jerick McKinnon	51%	@DEN / @HOU / SEA
MIN	Alexander Mattison	42%	@DET / IND / NYG
SF	Jordan Mason	14%	TB / @SEA / WAS
NYJ	Ty Johnson	14%	@BUF / DET / JAX
LAR	Kyren Williams	56%	LV / @GB / DEN
SEA	DeeJay Dallas	3%	CAR / SF / @KC
LAC	Joshua Kelley	5%	MIA / TEN / @IND
ATL	Tyler Allgeier	50%	BYE / @NO / @BAL
SEA	Tony Jones Jr.	0%	CAR / SF / @KC
PHI	Kenneth Gainwell	21%	@NYG / @CHI / @DAL
BAL	Kenyan Drake	48%	@PIT / @CLE / ATL
NYG	Matt Breida	6%	PHI / @WAS / @MIN

It is bleak on the waiver wire for running backs. While many of these names don’t stand out as reliable options, there are a few backs who could see the opportunity if luck is on your side.

Both Devin Singletary and James Cook had their opportunity against the Patriots on Thursday night with Josh Allen rushing eight times as well. Cook is a high-end insurance policy with rare, stand-alone value. He is somehow available in nearly 70% of sleeper leagues and will be the volume king if anything happens to Singletary.

Zonovan “Bam” Knight racked up 20 touches on 15 carries and five receptions for a total of 118 yards in his second game. Filling in for the injured Michael Carter, Knight led a committee backfield but managed 11.8 in half-PPR scoring. If Carter misses more time, Knight should continue to get work, but he may fade into the background once again if Carter returns. The matchup this week against the Bills has potential. Buffalo has been terrible against the run over the last four weeks, but his upside is limited, even on a good day with that many backs on the field.

Jerick McKinnon is annoyingly involved in the Chiefs’ offense and yet usually has hardly anything to show for it. Although he did not log a single run in Week 12, he had eight attempts for 51 yards and two receptions for nine yards and a touchdown in the Chiefs’ loss to the Bengals. He is either not-so-bad or a bust, but it’s that time of year when you may need to roll the dice. The matchups are gross until Week 16 when the Chiefs will take on Seattle.

• Check out the Waiver Wire Rankings page with individual ranks and FAAB amounts
• Get a full breakdown from The Fantasy Footballers on today’s episode

Tight Ends

If you need a tight end… I am sorry. Per usual, the outlook at the position is not great. If you want to play the waiver wire game at the position, you can try Evan Engram this week against the Titans and either stash him or wait and pick up Greg Dulcich against the Cardinals in Week 15.

The Titans have allowed the sixth-most receptions to tight ends this season and the third-most over the last four weeks. That includes allowing the fourth-most yards during that time. Engram is boom or bust but has proven he can get the job done in favorable matchups.

For Week 15, Dulcich should be the way to go. The Cardinals are dead last in the league against tight ends and should always be picked on when looking to stream tight ends. His ceiling isn’t great, but Russell Wilson looked his way eight times last week. As long as the offense continues to struggle, Dulcich isn’t a high-upside option, but he should have a relatively safe floor against the worst team vs. TE in the NFL.

We do the work. You dominate your draft.

Get the 2023 UDK

• Check out the Waiver Wire Rankings page with individual ranks and FAAB amounts
• Get a full breakdown from The Fantasy Footballers on today’s episode

Team DEF/ST

• Check out the Waiver Wire Rankings page with individual ranks and FAAB amounts
• Catch today’s episode of The Fantasy Footballers Podcast for a full discussion of the top waiver adds

Quarterbacks

• Check out the Waiver Wire Rankings page with individual ranks and FAAB amounts
• Catch today’s episode of The Fantasy Footballers Podcast for a full discussion of the top waiver adds

Good luck with your waiver claims!