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So Week 13 has come and gone with no real major injuries causing any little owned player to leap out as the "must-add" as we head into the playoff season. Allen Hurns is slated to return next week so Rashad Greene isn't too interesting, and Dontrelle Inman had a very scary looking neck injury but he appears to be on track to play in Week 14 as well (so Javontee Herndon doesn't require a dollar).
It seems like points were flying pretty much everywhere for many players. The majority of leagues are now entering the first round of playoffs, but regardless of whether this is the last week of the regular season for you, or the first week of the playoffs, every game is must win right now. Or you're reading this in the driver's seat and have a bye are looking forward to the next couple of weeks. Don't you fret, most of these players are not simply Week 14 rentals, and should be able to help you out down the entire stretch. We'll look at each player's schedule and make sure to paint you a playoff picture.
Let’s look around the league at who is worth a bid going into Week 14. Each price recommendation will be based on a $100 FAAB budget. Be sure to also check out our weekly waiver wire analysis columns, with in-depth analysis for all Week 14 options.
FAAB Waiver Wire Bids - Quarterbacks
Tyrod Taylor (QB, BUF) – FAAB Bid: $3
41% owned in Fleaflicker
Tyrod Taylor came into Sunday after looking beaten up with an arm/shoulder injury in that brawl that was the Patriots/Bills game last Monday night, and he was also going on the road to face a Chiefs defense this week that had clearly gotten it together and had been playing lights out. Taylor responded by going to his best weapon, Sammy Watkins, early and often. TyGod finished the game with 21 completions on 38 attempts for 291 yards, three touchdowns, and zero turnovers. He also rushed for 46 yards on five attempts. In this week against the Texans, Tyrod only needed to complete 11 of 21 passes for 211 yards and three touchdowns, rushing for 28 yards and a touchdown on seven rushes. So combine that, in the past two weeks against two non-dumpster defenses Taylor has thrown for 502 yards and six touchdowns while rushing for 74 yards and a touchdown with zero turnovers! Okay then.
Buffalo now gets the Eagles, Redskins, Cowboys, and Jets to finish up 2015. A stretch against the NFC East right now could play very well, as we can all see that none of those teams have a winning record and while the Eagles just pulled it together against the Patriots somehow (aka three return touchdowns), they are still not a good overall team. With Karlos Williams injured, this also digs a bit into the effectiveness of the run game, meaning Tyrod might just have to step up a bit. He's showing good development through this year, and he can definitely be an asset to your team down the stretch.
Jameis Winston (QB, TB) - FAAB Bid: $2
48% owned in Fleaflicker
Jameis Winston continues to just be an absolute gamer and grind games out with effort. While his stats aren't going to approach that crazy five touchdown game usually, he is clearly growing week by week and finally has his full arsenal of weapons at his disposal now that Austin Seferian-Jenkins is back (though he was still limited and should see even more of the field next week). Speaking of next week, guess who the Buccaneers face? The Saints. The same Saints that we all love to target when we're looking for offensive players to deploy. This should be a divisional game that sees plenty of points flying around. The Buccaneers defense is improving, but they are still weak in the secondary and the Saints just gashed the Panthers defense. This could set up well for a shootout, though the game is in Tampa rather than in the dome in New Orleans.
After that game, Winston will travel to St. Louis, have a home game against the Bears, and then end the season with a game in Carolina (so hopefully you don't play into Week 17 with Jameis). The Rams are not the same scary defensive unit as they once were this year, and the Bears are actually not the joke that they were earlier in the year. Both are much more towards the middle, and while neither is a preferable opponent for the playoffs, if you need Jameis for a stretch run in a 2 QB league for those weeks that is more than fine. Next week though, he is a QB1 and you will definitely want to give him the nod if you don't have a top option.
Alex Smith (QB, KC) – FAAB Bid: $2
47% owned in Fleaflicker
Don't look now but boring ol' vanilla Alex Smith has put up 20+ points in seven of his 12 games this year, including four of his last five. He hasn't thrown a pick since Week 3 against the Packers. He is somehow bringing that game manager role to a new level. He only threw for 162 yards, but tacked on two touchdowns and has started showing off a deep ball on occasion (shocking). He also isn't afraid to call his own number, as this week he rushed for 23 yards and an easy scamper for a touchdown (in the four games before he hadn't rushed for less than 30 yards).
What does this mean moving forward? Well Kansas City will face San Diego's barren squad at home next week, and then travel to Baltimore, play Cleveland at home, and then a rematch against Oakland at home to wrap up the 2015 regular season. Please point to any of those teams and tell me who I should be afraid of if I'm considering Alex Smith? That's right. He continues to fly under the radar because of his reputation that is pretty darn deserved. His floor is still terrifying low, but the bell curve of his potential outcomes seems to really be bunching up around that 20-24 point mark right now as opposed to being more like 12-16 points.
Kirk Cousins (QB, WAS) – FAAB Bid: $2
35% owned in Fleaflicker
He and the whole Washington team are about as inconsistent as they come, but he took advantage of a beaten up Giants' defense by completing 20 of 29 passes for 301 yards and a long touchdown to DeSean Jackson (certified Giants killer), and he also tacked on a little quarterback sneak for a touchdown as well. Cousins is clearly enjoying having a healthy DeSean Jackson around, and if Jackson and Jordan Reed can stay healthy down the stretch along with Pierre Garcon and Jamison Crowder contributing, Cousins has some great weapons around him.
Couple this with the fact that the Redskins can't seem to figure out how to run the ball and a questionable defense, and you've got a good recipe for Cousins to have opportunities to put up numbers for you. He gets Dallas on Monday night next, then the Bears, Bills, Eagles, and Cowboys again. Nothing horribly frightening there.
Ryan Fitzpatrick (QB, NYJ) - FAAB Bid: $1
39% owned in Fleaflicker
Fitzpatrick is on fire since he trimmed the beard, maybe I should give it a shot. In Week 12 he rocked the Dolphins for 277 yards, four touchdowns, and zero turnovers, and against the Giants' terrible secondary he passed for 390 yards and two touchdowns. He has one of the best pairs of wide receivers in Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker at his disposal, and against the Giants gameflow demanded for a heavy helping of Bilal Powell operating out of the backfield.
Fitzpatrick was more than happy to dump off to Powell as the Giants broke upfield with their patented Spagnuolo blitzes, and Powell delivered in the open field. Fitzpatrick and the Jets now face the Titans (who just gave up the world to Allen Robinson and Blake Bortles), Cowboys, Patriots, and Bills to end the regular season. Fitzy may not be the best or most consistent quarterback out there, but he is a much better fantasy quarterback than real life quarterback and that is what we care about. Scoop him if he's sitting there.
FAAB Waiver Wire Bids - Running Backs
Shaun Draughn (SF, RB) - FAAB Bid: $5
27% owned in Fleaflicker
Carlos Hyde continues to sit and Shaun Draughn continues to be useful. Let's look at how he's performed in the past three weeks now. In Week 11 against Seattle he only rushed for 37 yards on 12 carries, but got eight catches for 40 yards on 11 targets. Facing the Cardinals in Week 12, he rushed for 51 yards on 15 carries and caught all five targets for 35 yards. This past weekend against the Bears he rushed for 36 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries and caught five of six targets for 50 yards. Blaine Gabbert loves him some check down routes. So does Matt Schaub. There's probably a trend here.
Keep an eye on Carlos Hyde's injury reports, but for now Draughn is proving to be flex worthy in standard leagues and a RB2 type in PPR leagues. The 49ers face the lowly Browns next, who tend to be very generous to opposing offenses, particular the running game. Draughn is a good standard option and great PPR option against them if Hyde can't go (proceed as if he won't). After the Browns, the 49ers face the Bengals (yeesh), Lions (meh), and Rams (meh). I don't particularly want to play Draughn in any of those matchups in standard, but in PPR leagues he seems to have a safe floor so long as he's the only real running back for San Francisco.
Spencer Ware (KC, RB) – FAAB Bid: $5
47% owned in Fleaflicker
There were many question marks regarding what Spencer Ware's role would look like with Charcandrick West back and healthy. Ware finished his first game against the Chargers with 96 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries and the next week Ware showed that he wasn't simply good because he got to pick on the Chargers. He went up against a good Buffalo front and put up 114 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. West then came back for this Week 13 tilt against the Raiders, and while West out-touched Ware, it was Spencer Ware who got much more looks into the red zone (including punching one of them in).
Ware only had seven carries, but got 26 yards and the touchdown. This is pretty much how the backfield was projected to be with both of them active. Ware is the bigger guy who can punch in the ball on the goal line, whereas West is the smaller and shiftier type who is more suited for the "between the 20s" work. As we mentioned in the Alex Smith blurb, the Chiefs get to pick on the Chargers, Ravens, Browns, and Raiders again to finish 2015. The Ravens are pretty good against the run, but the Chiefs are very committed to utilizing their running backs and those other matchups certainly make Ware and West both viable candidates for starting during the playoffs.
James White (NE, RB) – FAAB Bid: $5
36% owned in Fleaflicker
The "who does Tom Brady trust" game is one that gives and takes away. For instance, Brandon LaFell cannot be winning that game (four catches on nine targets). James White appears to be winning that game. With the big guns of New England less than 100% or just out entirely, coupled with the fact that the Patriots fell behind in the third quarter thanks to a torrid streak of Eagles' returns for touchdowns meant that James White was heavily involved as Brady's hot read as the Patriots needed to move the ball quickly. White only rushed for four yards on two carries, but caught 10 of 13 targets for 115 yards and a touchdown. He looked really good out there for New England and it was clear that Brady was trying to find him coming out of the backfield rather than try his luck with LaFell or Keshawn Martin (three catches on eight targets).
Juwan Thompson (DEN, RB) - FAAB Bid: $2
2% owned in Fleaflicker
Well, C.J. Anderson went down on Sunday with an ankle injury and did not return to action for the Broncos, so in stepped Juwan Thompson to split rushing duties with Ronnie Hillman. While the rushing attack in general was underwhelming in a game where myself and many others figured the Chargers defense would just be broken, it's still noteworthy that Anderson is dealing with an injury and Thompson now has a role in an offense that loves to run the ball and has a strong defense to correlate with it. Anderson says it's nothing serious, but we all know how reputable a player's own report on their respective injury is. Thompson is worth a scoop this late in the game. Denver plays the Raiders, Steelers, Bengals, and Chargers again in their regular season home stretch for what it's worth, though none of those matchups scream "play me" for a B side of a running committee. Those of you in deeper leagues shouldn't ignore Thompson though.
Jay Ajayi (MIA, RB) – FAAB Bid: $2
32% owned in Fleaflicker
The Dolphins still did not look good against the Ravens, doing what they had to in order to win and that's about it. With their old offensive coordinator Bill Lazor undoubtedly watching from home, former QB coach Zac Taylor took over and said he was committed to running the ball. Unfortunately for Ajayi, most of this went through Lamar Miller who finished with 113 yards, while Ajayi only had four carries for 12 yards and zero targets in the passing game. It's difficult to project this offense moving forward since the sample size under Taylor's play calling is so small, but we have a job to do here. It seems as though Taylor wants to limit how much Ryan Tannehill really has to do and will lean on the running game with Miller as a 1A and Ajayi a 1B.
Perhaps it was more that he felt that Miller profiled as a better runner in order to beat the Ravens' personnel, but all the same this is not encouraging for those who were hoping for Ajayi's usage to continue trending upwards. The majority of Ajayi's value is his being a handcuff. If he were to get the lion's share of snaps in the backfield he would have great value, but for now he is a low-end to mediocre option with great upside if Miller goes down. For what it's worth, Miami faces the Giants, Chargers, Colts, and Patriots to end the year. Those first three defenses are really performing poorly as of late, so you can throw Ajayi in there as a hail mary play if you'd like. This is not recommended though.
Theo Riddick (DET, RB) - FAAB Bid in PPR Leagues: $2
33% owned in Fleaflicker
Why not follow that up with mention of Detroit's pass catching back. As the Lions offense has started to really click, this means that its overall production has gone up, with more opportunities for their respective weapons to rack up points for you. The Lions are moving the ball through the air a lot more effectively than the ground still. In Week 12 Riddick caught all five of his targets for 62 yards and a touchdown. In Week 13 against the Packers he caught five of six targets for 27 yards. Ameer Abdullah does seem to be taking back the majority of snaps at running back, and Joique Bell will mix in as well, but Abdullah still wasn't getting the passing down work and it seems to be strictly Riddick's territory. They know what they've got in Theo. Available in two thirds of leagues, Riddick shouldn't be forgotten in PPR leagues.. Don't forget about him as Detroit starts to really figure things out.
Others To Note:
Bilal Powell (NYJ, RB) - FAAB Bid in PPR Leagues: $1
22% owned in Fleaflicker
I feel the need to include him as plenty will probably see the stat line and be wondering about him. This was much more gameflow dependent rather than Powell truly sticking it Chris Ivory's playing time. The Jets were behind 20-10 and the Giants get their tails whooped by the passing game. Powell creeping out of the backfield was just a great way to play against the Giants and their coverage (as well as their terrible linebackers who can't cover). Powell ended up with 13 targets, catching eight of them for 91 yards and a touchdown. The Jets will face the Titans, Cowboys, Patriots, and Bills from here on out. This will have been Powell's best game out of that bunch, but in PPR leagues he's definitely worth a buck if you're in deeper leagues.
Robert Turbin (DAL, RB) - FAAB Bid: $1
21% owned in Fleaflicker
Turbin is the handcuff to own in Dallas. We all know that McFadden has his injury history, let alone the fact that so many running backs have gone down already, we all know it could be anyone's week to get hurt any given Sunday. Turbin behind that offensive line is certainly worth speculating on, though Tony Romo going down really hurts the potency of the Dallas offense. Dallas also faces Washington, Green Bay, the Jets, Buffalo, and then Washington again. The Jets and the Bills aren't the greatest matchups for those critical 15th and 16th weeks of the season, but if you can stash a running back then Turbin shouldn't be at the end of the list.
Dan Herron (IND, RB) – FAAB Bid: $1
19% owned in Fleaflicker
Ahmad Bradshaw is now on the Injured Reserve and we may very well have seen the last of Bradshaw in the NFL, sadly enough. Herron shouldn't see much work with standalone value moving forward even though he is taking over Bradshaw's role. As we saw with Bradshaw though, that really doesn't mean much. Herron caught all three targets against Pittsburgh for 16 yards, also rushing twice for eight yards. Herron is just a handcuff here, and I suppose a flex play in the deepest of PPR leagues.
FAAB Waiver Wire Bids - Wide Receivers
DeVante Parker (MIA, WR) - FAAB Bid: $8
22% owned in Fleaflicker
I don't think anyone would have projected a game that looked the same as Week 12's against the Jets where Ryan Tannehill threw the ball 58 times. Then again, this was pretty much the polar opposite with him only throwing for 86 yards and completing nine passes. Guess what though? Parker still made value and had a tremendous catch where he showed off his high pointing skills for a touchdown on a lofted ball. With Rishard Matthews out with a rib injury, the door is open for DeVante Parker to finally see the field in earnest and show Miami why they drafted him. Parker has stepped up for them in the past two games, catching a touchdown in both, and should continue to do so. He needs to be owned in all leagues, despite the apparent scaling down of the passing game out for Miami under new offensive coordinator Zac Taylor.
Dorial Green-Beckham (TEN, WR) - FAAB Bid: $4
35% owned in Fleaflicker
It's a little troublesome to recommend and chase players after they are involved in absolute shootouts that aren't going to be repeated with any consistency. The Titans put up 42 points to stave off the Jaguars' own 39 point effort against them, with DGB catching five of his six targets for 119 yards and a touchdown. His last three weeks have seen him get target totals of six, five, and six, so at least some consistency is coming forth with his involvement. You know the deal by now with DGB, he's a huge guy with plenty of potential that needs to be brought out and refined. He'll get to test his mettle against the Jets, Patriots, Texans, and Colts in the waning weeks of the 2015 regular season. His size makes him somewhat matchup proof, but obviously if he goes against Darrelle Revis, Malcolm Butler, and Vontae Davis that isn't good. Perhaps Kendall Wright will draw them more, but with how much he moves around and operates out of the slot it's hard to count on that. All the same, if you can't snag DeVante Parker this week, DGB is probably your second look.
Kamar Aiken (BAL, WR) – FAAB Bid: $3
43% owned in Fleaflicker
Looks like we might just be talking about this until the end of the year. He is the #1 receiver for the Ravens, and all #1 receivers should be rostered. Available in many leagues, you're going to want to find a spot for him if you need some help at wide out. He did well against a strong Rams' secondary, posting five catches for 50 yards and a touchdown on eight targets, posted six catches for 80 yards and a touchdown against the soft Browns' defense, and although he only caught six balls for 48 yards this Sunday against the Dolphins, he still had 11 targets. It won't be pretty but the guy is drowning in targets lately. Since the Ravens came out of their bye in Week 9 he has posted target totals of 14, 8, 10, and now 11. You like that. Do note that Chris Givens is only owned in 5% of Fleaflicker leagues and is a good deep league option himself.
Aiken is simply going to get plenty of opportunities to put up numbers despite the bounty of fleas that surround him. His ownership is hovering around the 40% mark, despite a string of nice games. Yes he didn't score this week, so people probably won't be flocking to him in any way. You can get him for cheap if he's still available I wager. I said last week how this situation sounds like someone built a decently functioning robot out of scrap parts at a junkyard, but again, it's something. Now here's the scary part (as if all of that wasn't scary enough), Baltimore finishes their season against the Seahawks, Chiefs, Steelers, and Bengals. Aiken might get 10 targets a week out of those and fall into a touchdown or two thanks to nothing but opportunity and volume, but it's not the best setup. PPR owners will want to pay more attention, but standard leaguers, well I couldn't blame you for wanting to just stay away.
Devin Funchess (CAR, WR) – FAAB Bid: $2
25% owned in Fleaflicker
First of all Ted Ginn is only owned in 32% of Fleaflicker leagues and he's who I'd want more compared to Funchess. Okay back to Devin.
In Week 12's game against Washington Funchess saw eight targets from Cam Newton in the rout, catching four of them for 64 yards and a touchdown. Unfortunately the next week he only caught two balls on four targets for 19 yards as Carolina just steamrolled the Cowboys. This week against the Saints (where the chances of the passing game popping off are at its peak) Funchess managed to haul in a 13 yard touchdown. It was his only catch on three targets. Corey Brown came back into the fold this week and started opposite Ted Ginn, and he actually paced the team in snaps with 61. Funchess only played 26 snaps. That isn't good. Yes he managed to not murder those who played him by salvaging the day with the touchdown, but the snap count and targets are not encouraging one bit. It looks as though Ron Rivera is sticking with his veteran rotation for now (Jerricho Cotchery played 27 snaps too) and doesn't see Funchess as a weapon that is forcing his hand into playing him more frequently.
Carolina gets the Falcons, Giants, Falcons, and Buccaneers now. The Giants and Buccaneers are two defenses that we target for their susceptibility in the secondary, and the Falcons are trending downwards quickly. You can still invest in Funchess for the rest of the year in deeper leagues if you want, but it doesn't appear that he is at the top of Rivera' list. Perhaps if you see those games as being routs though, Funchess could get some more work later. These ifs rack up mighty quickly though, and I don't enjoy trusting them.
Brian Hartline (CLE, WR) - FAAB Bid: $2
8% owned in Fleaflicker
Mr. Hartline Bling has become Cleveland's possession receiver the past several weeks. Here are his target totals in the Browns last four games: 10, 9, 12, and 11. Well okay then, we touched on this with Kamar Aiken but when target numbers are consistently touching the double digits you're going to want to take notice. Travis Benjamin also hurt his shoulder after going up for a ball and falling awkwardly and did not return to Sunday's game. This only means Hartline has to do more. Gary Barnidge, Duke Johnson, and Brian Hartline are pretty much the Browns passing offense right now. Hartline has gotten over 70 yards in his past three games, and scored two touchdowns in the game prior to that (don't count on him for touchdowns though). He's a PPR dream right now that is available in over 90% of leagues.
Johnny Manziel is going to finish out the season as the Browns' quarterback which is certainly good news for Browns' receivers (no offense Austin Davis...get it, no offense). The Browns face the 49ers next week, but then face the Seahawks, Chiefs, and Steelers in Weeks 15-17. Proceed with caution (as if you weren't already, it's Brian Hartline on the Browns) but those of you in desperate spots, especially given this week's matchup with San Francisco, could do a lot worse than tapping Hartline for at least this week. Those of you in PPR leagues will probably find him useful all year long.
Others To Note:
Tyler Lockett (SEA, WR) - FAAB Bid: $1
20% owned in Fleaflicker
The Seahawks are starting to figure it out on offense. They are missing Marshawn Lynch no doubt, but they're putting their faith on Russell Wilson's arm and he is rewarding them. The past three weeks have seen the Seahawks put up 106 points and Wilson has been balling. Most of this has gone through Doug Baldwin, but two weeks ago Lockett scored two touchdowns and this past weekend he caught all seven of his targets for 90 yards. In their past four games Lockett has 16 targets and 15 receptions. When the ball goes his way he comes down with it. Coaches and quarterbacks notice this. The Seahawks get to pick on the Ravens, Browns, Rams, and Cardinals to close the year. The hardest matchup comes in Week 17 when many of your fantasy football seasons will be over. Bonus points (and he's probably already owned) for leagues where return yards matter, but the fact that he can chip in a return touchdown any given week on top of his receiving stats only sweetens the pot a bit.
Cecil Shorts (HOU, WR) – FAAB Bid: $1
18% owned in Fleaflicker
Cecil Shorts saw 10 targets for the first time since Week 4, turning in six catches for 91 yards against the Bills. He's put up eight points or more three weeks in a row, and will now join his Texan comrades in battle against the Patriots, Colts, Titans, and Jaguars the rest of the way out. The Patriots should call for the Texans to need to be throwing early and often, the Colts just got eviscerated by the Steelers, and the Titans and Jags just gave each other's defense the business all day long on Sunday. Cecil Shorts and the Texans passing crew should have a solid chance at some healthy numbers in those matchups.
Seth Roberts (OAK, WR) – FAAB Bid: $1
1% owned in Fleaflicker
The inconsistent slot receiver for the Raiders struck in a big way on Sunday, catching six balls for 113 yards and two touchdowns in a game where Derek Carr and the Raiders took full advantage of a McCourty-less Titans secondary. The Raiders seem very committed to moving the ball through the air more than just about any other team, and the tale continued on Sunday. Roberts will be behind Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree in the pecking order always. He had seven targets on Sunday, but had been averaging between two and three targets in the seven previous games for Oakland. Keep that in mind before you overreact to the box score.
Markus Wheaton (PIT, WR) - FAAB Bid: $1
41% owned in Fleaflicker
Well it looks like the Steelers are in the business of scoring points relentlessly again. Markus Wheaton's involvement is certainly surprising, but we can't really just ignore it thanks to his poor reputation. Wheaton had 13 targets last Sunday, whereas he had seen 12 targets in the past four games. In this weekend's game against the Colts he had six targets, of which he caught three for 50 yards and a touchdown. Notable was that Wheaton and Martavis Bryant had an equal amount of snaps in Sunday's game with 41 (Antonio Brown had 73 for reference). The Steelers get the Bengals and Broncos in their next two games, which really doesn't line up too well, but then again Wheaton's best game came against Seattle so maybe it can benefit him to face some good defenses who can bottle up Antonio Brown and Martavis Bryant a bit. After those two games the Steelers get to tee off against the Ravens and Browns' secondaries, so, have fun with that Baltimore and Cleveland. Ben Roethlisberger and company should have their way with those defenses.
Brandon Coleman (NO, WR) – FAAB Bid: $1
8% owned in Fleaflicker
Willie Snead did not play after being listed as doubtful this week with a calf injury. Brandon Coleman was the beneficiary here, seeing his snaps jump from six last week to 45 this week. He ended up with seven targets, catching four of them for 73 yards and a touchdown in the shootout loss to the Carolina Panthers. Coleman started the year in the rotation for New Orleans, but quickly fell out of favor once Willie Snead played his way over him. Keep an eye on Snead's health as Coleman's usefulness is probably tied directly to that. The Saints face the Buccaneers and that subpar passing defense next, so if Snead sits again Coleman could be a good play again.
FAAB Waiver Wire Bids - Tight Ends
Austin Seferian-Jenkins (TB, TE) - FAAB Bid: $1
47% owned in Fleaflicker
Austin Seferian-Jenkins only played on 21 of 71 offensive snaps for the Buccaneers in his first week back to action. He still managed to see six targets, catching three of them for 31 yards. He should only get more and more involved from here on out, and next week the Buccaneers play the Saints. This means you're going to want to fire up all of the offensive weapons that Jameis Winston has, including ASJ. Even if he is only in on 50-60% of snaps, he could see get double digit targets out of that and put up a great line for you at a position where you really want to get a good shot at a touchdown (or three). After the matchup with the Saints this weekend, the Buccaneers will face the Rams, Bears, and Panthers. The Saints game is a great "tune up" game for ASJ before he hopefully can play most snaps in those other games down the stretch, providing value for owners in games where Jameis will need his big target down the middle.
Richard Rodgers (GB, TE) – FAAB Bid: $2
47% owned in Fleaflicker
I've been writing week in and week out about Richard Rodgers and his reliance on the touchdown in order to make value. So naturally this week it sort of blew up in my face. In Weeks 10 and 11 Rodgers only got five targets in each game (after nine in Week 9), but saw that number rise to seven in Week 12, and it rose again to eight in Week 13. That eighth target turned out to be a huge one, if you can call it a target (I'm sure Aaron Rodgers was like oh yeah I see Richard down there, let me just give it the old heave ho to him), with the crazy 61 yard Hail Mary touchdown connecting. Richard Rodgers ended the game catching all eight of his targets for 146 yards. If this were out of nowhere I'd say don't chase the career highs here, but right now Richard Rodgers appears like week in week out he has a solid chance at five catches for 40 yards and a touchdown. It should also be noted that they get the Raiders in Week 15 for those who love beating up on them for the tight end matchup.
Charles Clay (BUF, TE) – FAAB Bid: $2
49% owned in Fleaflicker
Clay hadn't scored double digit points since Week 4. I'm sure most Clay owners are acutely aware of this and that's why his ownership level is just low enough to be included in this article. There's some hope, as he has seen six or more targets in three of his past four games, but Buffalo really just leans on Sammy Watkins and LeSean McCoy with little else to go around to the rest of the team. The Bills face the Eagles, Redskins, Cowboys, and Jets next. I would much rather go after Rodgers and Seferian-Jenkins, but Clay can certainly get you 10-15 points more readily than most other waiver wire tight ends if you're pressed.
Scott Chandler (NE, TE) - FAAB Bid: $1
45% owned in Fleaflicker
Rob Gronkowski missed this week at least, and it meant that Scott Chandler was the starting tight end for Tom Brady and the Patriots. Chandler ended up getting seven targets, catching four of them for 61 yards and a touchdown. If Rob Gronkowski misses more time (and Adam Schefter tweeted out today that Gronk is unlikely to play in Week 14) then Scott Chandler continue to be useful as the starting tight end for one of the best quarterbacks and offenses in the game. Brady isn't afraid to loft the ball high and give his big guy a chance to go up and get it. While Chandler doesn't have the best hands, he still has now seen 18 targets in the past two weeks, catching a touchdown in both games. Keep an eye on the injury reports, and even if Gronkowski does come back the Patriots still seem to be running plenty of two tight end sets. That said, it wouldn't be all that advisable to keep him rostered in most leagues once Gronk does return to action.
Crockett Gillmore (BAL, TE) - FAAB Bid: $1
33% owned in Fleaflicker
He turned in four receptions for 42 yards and a touchdown in the Ravens' loss against the Jaguars in Week 10, and followed that up with five catches for 101 yards on eight targets in Week 11 against the Rams. While Gillmore is going to need to score to be valuable most of the time, it was nice to see him break the 100 yard barrier with this one. Unfortunately it came with the loss of Joe Flacco and Justin Forsett. Heap this on top of the loss of Steve Smith, and you've got a pretty stripped down team as far as talent goes. Gillmore is the biggest receiving option out there right now for the Ravens, but now it is Matt Schaub throwing him the ball and the running game probably won't be effective enough to make for light opposition in the secondary. Still, Gillmore is showing that he is capable of putting up some nice numbers. Now it's just up to you to decide if you trust Matt Schaub to get him the ball. See how he performs on Monday night and how the Ravens offense looks in general, but he's a decent flier that is available in four out of five leagues right now.
Luke Willson (SEA, TE) - FAAB Bid: $0
2% owned in Fleaflicker
He is the starting tight end in a Seattle offense that is leaning on Russell Wilson's arm a lot more lately. While Willson probably won't command that much of a market share of the targets from Russell Wilson, there's no doubting that a starting tight end has some decent value to him in deeper leagues and should be on radars moving forward. He caught two of three targets on Sunday for 36 yards. He's an athletic guy, but he's just not that high in the pecking order for Seattle and Wilson looks at others first it seems, including his own legs.
