Welcome to the fantasy football Week 13 waiver wire pickups where we give you the players to start right away, stash at the end of your bench, or stream for a week or two.
Let’s look back at Week 12 and dissect the future prospects for a pretty disgusting fantasy football Week 13 waiver wire.
Week 13 Bye Weeks: Cardinals, Panthers
Note: Roster % based on Yahoo leagues and should hover around 50% or less
WEEK 13 WAIVER WIRE PICKUPS
First Check: RB JK Dobbins (58%), RB Gus Edwards (56%), WR Darius Slayton (55%), WR Parris Campbell (54%)
START
- Treylon Burks, WR Tennessee Titans (51% rostered)
- Donovan Peoples-Jones, WR Cleveland Browns (50%)
- Zay Jones, WR Jacksonville Jaguars (25%)
Treylon Burks got up above a 60% snap share this week and once again scored in double-digits. He had four catches for 70 yards and then recovered a Derrick Henry fumble in the end zone for a touchdown. Unconventional, but the rookie wideout is continuing to make plays for an offense that’s struggling to find much outside of its running back. He’s coming on strong to end the season.
Donovan Peoples-Jones was on a hot streak, putting up double-digit half-PPR points in five of his last seven games before putting up a three-point dud in Week 12. Luckily, Deshaun Watson returns and he has a cake schedule on the horizon, with Houston, Cincinnati, Baltimore, New Orleans, and Washington. DPJ’s deep speed plus Watson’s elite deep ball should create magic down the stretch.
The Jaguars’ WR2 is up to 24 targets over his last two games and he’s benefiting very nicely from Trevor Lawrence’s surge in confidence. Zay Jones finished with 11 catches and 145 yards, which led the team in both categories. Jones has played over 90% of snaps in five straight games, as he’s a mainstay on the field moving forward.
STASH
- JaMycal Hasty, RB Jacksonville Jaguars (3% rostered)
- Zonovan Knight, RB New York Jets (0%)
- Nico Collins, WR Houston Texans (24%)
- Isaiah McKenzie, WR Buffalo Bills (33%)
- Elijah Moore, WR New York Jets (26%)
- Michael Gallup, WR Dallas Cowboys (48%)
- Kyren Williams, RB Los Angeles Rams (37%)
- Van Jefferson, WR Los Angeles Rams (23%)
- Skyy Moore, WR Kansas City Chiefs (10%)
- Richie James, WR New York Giants (1%)
Travis Etienne left the game early with a foot injury and did not return, so JaMycal Hasty entered his role and churned out an RB1 performance with 12 carries for 28 yards and five receptions for 67 yards and a score. The team claims Etienne was medically cleared to return, but how much can you really trust any team when it comes to injuries? Etienne’s rookie season ended due to a foot injury and Hasty could be the Jaguars’ RB1 moving forward. Either way, he’s a top wait-and-see with high pass-catching upside.
Surely nobody had heard of this individual prior to Sunday’s game, and if you say you did then you’re a bold-faced liar. Zonovan “Don’t call me Donovan” Knight came in for an injured Michael Carter and ran the ball 14 times for 69 yards while adding 3 catches for 34 yards. Carter’s injury (low ankle sprain) is still being determined for its severity but the clearer picture is that James Robinson is basically irrelevant to this offense. If J’Rob plays a certain amount of snaps, the Jets have to send a sixth-rounder to the Jaguars, so why not just play this dude in his place?
Darius Slayton fell just short of double-digit points this week as the Giants’ passing game was gobbled up in Dallas. With only three catches for 63 yards, it was rather uneventful for the Giants’ defacto WR1. Slayton is a high-floor, low-ceiling player so he’s a great option for those very thin at the receiver position.
Nico Collins had another high-target game, finishing with 6-44 on nine targets. The Texans’ offense is really struggling to say the least, and they’ve been stuck in catchup mode more often than not. Collins has actually been a top receiving threat for Houston, as he’s out-targeted Brandin Cooks 26 to 18 over the last three games.
The Bills’ third receiver had been quiet for the majority of the season, but he flourished on Thanksgiving, going for 6-96-1 on 10 targets. Isaiah McKenzie stepped up big time for the Bills in their win over the Lions and we all know the value of Bills’ pass-catchers. Diggs has been lights out, but Gabe Davis has yet to be a reliable target in his first year as a full-time starter. Maybe McKenzie will grab this WR2 job by the horns.
Even though he only played 35% of snaps, it was great to see the Return of the King — Elijah Moore. The stat line wasn’t jaw-dropping, finishing with two grabs for 64 yards and a score, but the elite skill set jumped off the screen with his first catch going for nearly 40 yards. Maybe he and Mike White have something and the quarterback finally unlocked his talented receiver room. I have rest of season faith in Moore.
Michael Gallup finally woke up! Gallup only put up nine fantasy points, but Dak Prescott targeted him eight times and Gallup hauled in five of those for 63 yards. Odell Beckham Jr. had a moment on a plane over the weekend and might not be ready to play until mid-December, making his potential signing with the Cowboys basically fantasy-irrelevant. If Gallup can continue to shake off the rust, he could be a consistent WR3 or flex in the future.
Kyren Williams was one of our favorite stashes a few weeks ago, but with the offense falling into irrelevancy, it’s tough to get excited about anyone in Sean McVay’s broken squad. Williams had three more carries than Cam Akers and ran 16 more routes than Akers. The season is over for the Rams, so they might as well see what the young guns can do.
With both Cooper Kupp and Allen Robinson seemingly shut down for the remainder of the season, Van Jefferson becomes the default WR1. The Rams’ offense has really struggled, but Jefferson should see a big jump in production due to the other injuries. He finished with 3-29-1 on seven targets from Bryce Perkins and would see even better numbers if Matthew Stafford returns.
If Kadarius Toney can’t handle staying on the field, then there’s a chance Skyy Moore can make a fantasy impact down the stretch run. Moore has secured 10 of 12 targets over the past two weeks and has the attributes to make some noise. Once Andy Reid opens up the whole playbook for the rookie, the skyy is the limit.
After a strong start to the year, Richie James came back to play a big role for the Giants receiving core in wake of all the injuries they’ve suffered. James finished with 5-41-1 on 6 targets while playing 70% of offensive snaps. Looks like he’ll be out there frequently across from Slayton moving forward.
STREAM
- Mike White, QB New York Jets (4% rostered)
- Seattle Seahawks D/ST (18%)
- Washington Commanders D/ST (52%)
- Foster Moreau, TE Las Vegas Raiders (39%)
- New Orleans Saints D/ST (35%)
Wow, talk about an intro to your 2022 season. Mike White came in for Zach Wilson and snatched the job right out of his hands. White threw for 315 yards with three scores, seemingly unlocking the Jets’ talented weaponry. All of the sudden, the Jets’ offense could move the ball. There’s no reason to go back to Wilson now and the Jets have a great schedule ahead of them with the Vikings, Bills, Lions, Jaguars, Seahawks, and Dolphins on deck.
The Seahawks D/ST will take on the Rams this week, featuring either Bryce Perkins or an injured Matthew Stafford with a horrendous offensive line and a beat-up receiving core. That whole offense is a mess and they should be streamed against when given the chance.
The Commanders D/ST has been on fire the past few weeks, notching double-digits in five of its last seven games — highlighted by 15 and 24-point efforts in Weeks 10 and 11. Chase Young should return this week and they get the Giants in Week 13. Pencil in a few sacks and turnovers for DC.
Foster Moreau is on the every-other-game plan and although we are coming off a good game in a perfect tight end matchup against the Seahawks, he was second on the team in targets behind Davante Adams and is the TE1 on an improving offense. Moreau gets the Chargers next week in another favorable matchup.
The Saints D/ST notoriously owns Tom Brady and they travel to Tampa to face off with the Bucs again. The Saints DST has scored over nine fantasy points in three straight and four of its last five games. New Orleans held Brady to 14 points, caused a sack, and forced a turnover in Week 2 against the Bucs.