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RotoBallers, I salute those of you still here with me in the pursuit of a championship. Week 15 was a wretched battlefield and even those with byes were likely nicked by injuries or COVID-19 along the way. We are here to persevere and seek reinforcements! As always, joining our famous waiver wire pickups list, and our weekly waiver wire columns by position, this column focuses on suggested waiver wire bidding percentages for fantasy football owners in leagues using a Free Agent Acquisition Budget (FAAB).
As a caveat, these prices do not by any means indicate how much these free agent players will go for. Each league values players differently and will continue to do so. These values are here to provide a baseline or priority order to understand roughly how much you should be looking to spend on a particular player. Specific needs are always reasonable cause for a manual override.
It's difficult to toe the line between appropriate action and overreaction, but this late in the season, you can usually throw your entire bankroll or waiver priority at whatever your top need is. Whatever your wish list for Santa holds, here's my median FAAB bid ranges and adds going into Week 16.
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FAAB Waiver Wire Pickups - Quarterbacks
Justin Fields (QB, CHI) - FAAB Bid: 8-10%
26% rostered
Fields has been fighting uphill his entire NFL career, going up against poor preparation and scheming from Matt Nagy to a dwindled roster thanks to injuries and COVID-19. And while Monday night’s mess against Minnesota looked a fright, that scrappy game still yielded a top-12 QB finish on the week. The bar was lower than usual due to an overall dip in the league, but 35 rushing yards and 285 through the air still encourages me. Now if only Nagy would play to Fields' versatility.
Justin Fields has 15 QB designed runs this year. Trey Lance (1 start) has more.
— Hayden Winks (@HaydenWinks) December 21, 2021
Ben Roethlisberger (QB, PIT) - FAAB Bid: 3-4%
25% rostered
The Kansas City has played fantastic lately, and they’ll have the Arrowhead crowd behind them in this one, but Big Ben continues to scrap and has no run game to lean on. In fact, Roethlisberger called his own number on a sneak for his first TD since 2018 on Sunday while Najee Harris only got 18 yards on 12 carries. We can’t expect Roethlisberger to torch KC like Justin Herbert did, but the streaming options are limited.
If desperate, here are two options in the dollar bin:
Cam Newton (vs. TB) will look to keep the rushing floor going against the Bucs.
Davis Mills (vs. LAC) may get a watered-down Chargers D without Joey Bosa.
FAAB Waiver Wire Pickups - Running Backs
Ronald Jones II (RB, TB) - FAAB Bid: 100%
36% rostered
RoJo is the next man up for Tampa Bay’s backfield, as Leonard Fournette was placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury suffered on Sunday night. On a night where the Bucs couldn’t get anything going, Jones ran well with 71 total yards on 10 touches. This is why you start stashing backups more religiously as the season winds on. The Bucs are also down Chris Godwin and perhaps Mike Evans too, with more potential production available for RoJo and the backfield. Week 16 against Carolina isn’t a great matchup, but Week 17 versus NYJ could clinch a title or two.
Ronald Jones in 4 games Leonard Fournette missed last season:
26 touches, 128 yards
20 touches, 125 yards
25 touches, 121 yards, 2 TD
19 touches, 84 yards, 1 TDThat does not include his 198-yard game vs. CAR in Week 10 (Fournette played 29 snaps)
— Mike Clay (@MikeClayNFL) December 20, 2021
Duke Johnson (RB, MIA) - FAAB Bid: 30-50%
36% rostered
With Myles Gaskin having missed most of the week on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, Johnson was a bellcow for Miami against the Jets on Sunday. Johnson looked strong with 22 carries for 107 yards and two touchdowns, adding a 20-yard catch on top for fun. Gaskin would log 54 yards on 10 totes, but Johnson has done enough to open a competition for touches. Usually, this means nobody wins as they all cannibalize each other’s fantasy upside and a date with New Orleans’ strong front awaits. I’m bidding conservatively here, but one cannot ignore the incredible results from Duke being the primary RB.
Justin Jackson (RB, LAC) - FAAB Bid: 20-40%
6% rostered
Jackson recorded a season-high 14 touches last Thursday, notching an impressive 99 yards in the process as Austin Ekeler played at less than 100%. This is enough for a standalone, speculative add, but then Ekeler was reported to be placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. That move didn’t happen on Tuesday, but he wasn’t at practice either and then on Wednesday he was officially placed on the COVID-19 list. Jackson is a premier add for as long as Ekeler’s is out.
Ameer Abdullah (RB, CAR) - FAAB Bid: 8-12%
8% rostered
As we pointed out last week, Abdullah was the back to target in Carolina’s timeshare with upcoming matchups against strong Buffalo, Tampa Bay, and New Orleans defenses. The Panthers predictably fell into a hole against the Bills on Sunday and Abdullah wound up with 48 yards and a touchdown on four catches. I expect that gamescript to be duplicated in Weeks 16 and 17, leaving Abdullah as the preferred option in fantasy over Chuba Hubbard.
Craig Reynolds (RB, DET) - FAAB Bid: 6-10%
13% rostered
One week after Reynolds racked up 99 total yards on 13 touches, Reynolds remained the workhorse in a shocking upset of Arizona. He would rack up 26 carries for 112 yards with a five-yard catch sprinkled in while Jermar Jefferson and Godwin Igwebuike combined for just nine touches. Reynolds’ ceiling will take a hit when Jamaal Williams returns, but he remains viable in deep formats, though that would go away should D’Andre Swift return. Reynolds and company will face a soft Atlanta front in Week 16, so don’t turn your nose up at Detroit!
FAAB Waiver Wire Pickups - Wide Receivers
Gabriel Davis (WR, BUF) - FAAB Bid: 25-30%
3% rostered
Davis was a shimmering piece of my tournament-winning lineup on Sunday, logging 85 yards and two scores on five catches as a bona-fide starter on Buffalo’s offense. His stepping up for the injured Emmanuel Sanders had seen him put up a 5-43-1 line against Tampa the week before, with his bigger frame proving reliable by the red zone. Even if Sanders can return, now Cole Beasley has been placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. If both Sanders and Beasley are out for Week 16 then deep-leaguers can give Isaiah McKenzie a glance as well.
Gabriel Davis leads wide receivers with 50+ targets with 12.0 TDs and 9.9 expected TDs (OTDs) per 100 targets since he entered the league in 2020
— Scott Spratt (@Scott_Spratt) December 21, 2021
Amon-Ra St. Brown (WR, DET) - FAAB Bid: 15-20%
30% rostered
Where else can you find someone available in 70% of leagues who has at least 11 targets in each of his last three games? Detroit’s upstart slot man has seen tremendous volume lately, catching at least eight of those looks with over 70 yards in all three of his December games thus far. As of now, his outlook is tied to whether Jared Goff can come off of the Reserve/COVID-19 list in time for Sunday’s game against Atlanta, as trusting David Blough in the playoffs is tricky at best.
Byron Pringle (WR, KC) - FAAB Bid: 2-4%
1% rostered
With news that both Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce are on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, Pringle takes a massive leap into the spotlight. New protocols may mean both superstars are back in the fold for KC come December 26’s game against Pittsburgh, but if even one misses, then Pringle is a man to watch. He ran 36 routes with four targets last Thursday, but if Josh Gordon returns then he could be another add of interest, replacing Demarcus Robinson in three-wide formations. Monitor this situation closely!
FAAB Waiver Wire Pickups - Tight Ends
Cole Kmet (TE, CLE) - FAAB Bid: 6-8%
25% rostered
Kmet led the Bears in targets (9), catches (6), and receiving yards (71) on Monday night, offering the beleaguered Justin Fields a steady midfield option. Now averaging eight targets per game in his last four contests, Kmet is seeing enough volume to produce a range of outcomes worth deploying in 12-team formats. He’s yet to score a touchdown in 2021, but we don’t chase or run from variance like that. Kmet will get a chance to gash the Seahawks in Week 16 after the likes of Zach Ertz and George Kittle have smashed them for two-score games.
Cole Kmet is on the verge of a breakout. 30 targets (and counting) over the last four games. Still no TDs, but he leads the Bears in red zone targets, so those will come soon enough.
— Andrew Seifter (@andrew_seifter) December 21, 2021
Foster Moreau (TE, LV) - FAAB Bid: 4-6%
13% rostered
Moreau brushed off a combined 50 yards in his last three games to give us a season-high 65 yards on seven catches against Cleveland. We’ve been waiting for a strong game out of him since Darren Waller got injured and one game doesn’t erase the past, but it’s a nice reminder that he can be a top-10 TE play. A gritty divisional matchup against Denver looms, which leaves Moreau in the high-end TE2 conversation should Waller’s knee remain an issue.
Adam Trautman (TE, NO) - FAAB Bid: 1-2%
5% rostered
Trautman’s first game back from injury saw him tie Nick Vannett with 35 snaps and the slight edge in routes run (12 to 11) and targets (2 to 1). That messy 9-0 victory over the Bucs didn’t leave us with much to analyze, but it’s encouraging usage ahead of their game versus Miami. The Dolphins just let Ryan Griffin and Tyler Kroft combine for 74 yards against them, and the Saints also placed Juwan Johnson on the Reserve/COVID-19 list on Tuesday. Some of us can’t afford to be picky at such a thin position!
FAAB Waiver Wire Pickups - Defense/Special Teams
Seattle Seahawks Defense (vs. CHI) - FAAB Bid: 8-10%
35% rostered
I like Justin Fields and what he’s capable of, but he still has ball security issues and the Bears turn impotent inside the red zone. Seattle has a nice home matchup here with the 12th man in their sails. After that, they get the Lions at home as well. This is the top add available for defense down the stretch here.
Detroit Lions Defense (at ATL) - FAAB Bid: 2-4%
1% rostered
Detroit is riding high off their upset of Arizona and now travel to Atlanta with an opportunity to pick apart a vulnerable Matt Ryan. Don’t forget, the Lions defense has held opponents to 16 or fewer points in four of their last six games now. The Falcons are a mistake factory that surrendered five sacks to Tampa Bay and three more to San Francisco of late. Atlanta hasn’t scored more than 23 points on offense in any of their last six games, averaging a cool 12 points per game in that window. If you are truly desperate, ride with the fightin’ Scrappy Doo Lions.
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