Week 15 Waiver Wire (Fantasy Football)

Week 15 Waivers are here! Below is a list of the players to target if you need a Week 15 pickup. Listen or watch today’s Week 15 Waivers episode of The Fantasy Footballers podcast for a full breakdown of these waiver adds, plus players to consider dropping!

Wide Receivers

When a team is coming off a bye, there could be an “out of sight, out of mind” situation that somehow left DeVante Parker on the waiver wire. He is a dynamic, veteran receiver that has the ability to get it done, no matter who is in at quarterback. With QB Tua Tagovailoa playing well, there is opportunity for Parker to excel. Defenses have to scheme around Jaylen Waddle and nearly all of their running backs are on the COVID-19 reserve list. They will face the beleaguered New York Jets, New Orleans Saints, and then Tennessee Titans who all have allowed fantasy points to wide receivers.

K.J. Osborn had an immediate uptick in volume as soon as Adam Thielen went down in Week 13 with an ankle injury. He gave fantasy managers a scare last week until he hauled in a long touchdown pass from Kirk Cousins. Despite that, he did see nine targets, even though he was only able to pull in three of them. Regardless, as long as Thielen is out or even limited, the Osborn should continue to see looks down the stretch. The Vikings desperately need to win and they seem allergic to keeping a lead throughout all four quarters.

If you are in deeper leagues, or if your league is keyed into scouring the waiver wire, there are two names that may be available but carry risk. First, let’s look at the Detroit Lions and Amon-Ra St. Brown. Even though he didn’t score, he saw 12 targets from Jared Goff for eight receptions and 73 yards. That’s two consecutive weeks with 12 targets. We like volume in fantasy, but it’s difficult to get excited about Detroit wide receivers. There is potential for St. Brown to continue to be productive as the Lions will face the Cardinals, Falcons, and Seahawks.

Finally, Laquon Treadwell has earned the right be considered a starter. There is so much drama in the Jaguars locker room right now, but both Urban Meyer and Trevor Lawrence seemed intent on making Treadwell a big part of the offense. He has seen eight, five, and six targets respectively over the last three weeks and has his best fantasy day in Week 14. Since the Jaguars will continue to play in a negative game-script, Lawrence should continue to target Treadwell to help move the chains.

Listen or watch today’s Week 15 Waivers episode to hear how The Fantasy Footballers are prioritizing these wideouts and who you can drop to pick them up!

Running Backs

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Team	Player	Roster %	Upcoming
SEA	Rashaad Penny	24%	@ LAR vs CHI vs DET
NYJ	Michael Carter	74%	@ MIA vs JAX vs TB
WAS	J.D. McKissic	56%	@ PHI @ DAL vs PHI
LAC	Justin Jackson	4%	vs KC @ HOU vs DEN
LAC	Larry Rountree	4%	vs KC @ HOU vs DEN
LAC	Joshua Kelley	3%	vs KC @ HOU vs DEN
MIA	Malcolm Brown	6%	vs NYJ @ NO @ TEN
MIA	Duke Johnson	0%	vs NYJ @ NO @ TEN
DET	Craig Reynolds	2%	vs ARI @ ATL @ SEA
ATL	Mike Davis	57%	@ SF vs DET @ BUF
CLE	D’Ernest Johnson	17%	vs LV @ GB @ PIT
PHI	Boston Scott	26%	vs WAS vs NYG @ WAS
PHI	Jordan Howard	11%	vs WAS vs NYG @ WAS
HOU	Rex Burkhead	19%	@ JAX vs LAC @ SF
HOU	David Johnson	52%	@ JAX vs LAC @ SF
MIN	Kene Nwangwu	3%	@ CHI vs LAR @ GB
MIN	Wayne Gallman	5%	@ CHI vs LAR @ GB
DAL	Corey Clement	2%	@ NYG vs WAS vs ARI

Well, well, well… if it isn’t Rashaad Penny. I feel like an upset mother who has been waiting up late for my child to come home past curfew. In all seriousness, Penny had an explosive game for the Seahawks with 16 carries for 137 yards and two touchdowns. It’s nearly impossible to find a gem like this on the waiver wire at this point in the season. Adrian Peterson is dealing with a back issue, Chris Carson is out for the year, and Alex Collins is… well… he’s not as good as Penny. Let’s just leave it at that. The matchup is tough in Week 15 as they take on the Rams, but they face the Bears in Week 16, and then Detroit in the championship game.

Austin Ekeler reaggravated his ankle injury in Week 14. Head coach, Brandon Staley, stated that Ekeler will be “fine”, but I am not that convinced. To make matters worse, the Chargers face the Chiefs on Thursday night. A short week is never good when it comes to injury concerns. Adding either Joshua Kelley or Justin Jackson is a good idea, but figuring out which one will get more points is a matter of luck. They almost had the same amount of carries for nearly the same yards after Ekeler went down. I may lean Jackson simply because he’s been with the team longer, but either option could work. They will take on Houston and then Denver, which are tough matchups for the rest of the playoffs.

Craig Reynolds came off his couch watching Netflix to rushing 11 times for 83 yards for the Detroit Lions in Week 14. D’Andre Swift is still dealing with his shoulder injury and Jamaal Williams was placed on the COVID-19 reserve list prior to the game. That opened the way for Reynolds to lead all of Detroit’s running backs. There are conflicting reports on Swift’s status moving forward. On one hand, the Lions are hopeful for his return and on the other, they are rumors of putting him on IR since their season is over. Either way, the Lions should be getting Williams back, but Reynolds earned the right to cement his spot in the offense if Swift remains sidelined. Their schedule for the playoffs is juicy against Arizona, Atlanta, and then Seattle.

Kareem Hunt suffered an ankle injury against the Ravens and adding D’Ernest Johnson might be a good idea. This will still be Nick Chubb’s backfield, but Johnson has proven that he can be productive when he gets the opportunity. Hunt is doubtful (if he hasn’t been ruled out already by the time you read this article) for Week 15.

Get the full breakdown of these RBs on today’s Week 15 Waivers episode.

Tight Ends

The tight end waiver wire landscape continues to be ugly. Austin Hooper is intriguing after he hauled in five receptions on seven targets for 30 yards and touchdown. The score definitely helped his overall stat line but so did the absence of Harrison Bryant (ankle) and David Njoku (COVID-19). If either of these TEs return for Week 15, we could be looking at low end TE2 or TE3 territory for Hooper in a run-first offense.

My personal favorite option on the wire is Washington’s Ricky Seals-Jones. It’s risky because of the emergence of John Bates, but Seals-Jones has had good games in this offense in the past. I could make the argument that Washington was being careful with him coming off of injury. Either way, the playoff schedule is incredibly favorable. They will face the Eagles, Cowboys, and then the Eagles again down the stretch.

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If you’re doing the TE dumpster dive this week, listen/watch The Fantasy Footballers discuss these options on today’s Week 15 Waivers show.

Team DEF/ST

QB Streamers

Get the reasoning behind the QB Streamer picks from The Fantasy Footballers on the Week 15 Waivers episode! Good luck on your waiver claims!