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Week 12 Waiver Wire – Wide Receivers (WR) & Defenses (DEF)

RotoBaller Matt Hartman breaks down Week 12 waiver wire pickups for wide receivers (WRs) & defenses (DEF) and your fantasy football teams. Let's win some leagues!

Each week of the NFL season I will take a look at how to improve your fantasy football teams. Below I highlight wide receivers (WRs) and defenses (DEF) that need to be considered on the Week 12 waiver wire for your fantasy football teams. Some may have a good matchup for Week 12, or have been putting up relevant points and should be rostered.

What's up ballers?  Hopefully some of you have clinched a playoff spot or about to following the advice found at Rotoballer.com.  For this week I'll be recommending two younger WR's and a tried true name everyone has heard of.  This week I will break my rules and recommend Santonio Holmes again.  I will be the first to state that I'm not a member of the Holmes fan club.  However, his matchups and big play ability make him a nice option (if he stays healthy).  I will continue to be recommending defenses that are nice streamer choices based off the matchup.

With that said, lets get to it. Here are the waiver recommendations this week by priority order:

Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:

 

Week 12 Waiver Wire Pickups – Wide Receivers (WR)

 

Ace Sanders, WR, JAX - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues only (12+ teams PPR)
ANALYSIS:  Guess who had the most catches in the Jacksonville vs. Arizona game?  Bet you wouldn't have guessed Ace Sanders.  For the game, Sanders had eight catches on 10 targets for 61 yards.  This again is a young player (rookie) that posted his career-best stat line.  With the injuries and depletion of WR options in Jacksonville, Sanders has been given the opportunity to shine.  While I don't expect him to get 10 targets every week, I do believe he has a chance to be a solid PPR option given the 'garbage' time the Jaguars are always in.  If you are in a PPR league, Sanders may well be worth a flier.

 

Santonio Holmes 2011Santonio Holmes, WR, NYJ  - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues only (12+ teams Standard, PPR)
ANALYSIS:  Guess who I'm recommending again?  Santonio Holmes... yes, I guess I'm setting myself up once again.  However, I cannot deny that the Jets were looking his way in his first game back from injury (eight targets).  While his stats didn't show up in the scoreboard (two catches for 71 yards),  I like Holmes's big-play ability and potential with some favorable matchups coming up.  If you are looking for WR depth, Holmes could be an option for you to consider.

 

Marquise Goodwin, WR, BUF  - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues only (12+ teams Standard, PPR)
ANALYSIS:  Marquise Goodwin is coming off a strong week vs NYJ with 81 yards and a touchdown on six catches and nine targets.  All of those numbers were season-highs.  With EJ Manual back at the QB position and Robert Woods nursing an injury, itis hard for me to see why the Bills don't dial Goodwin up again next week.  The catch with this recommendation is that this is his outburst game so he has not shown any consistency yet-- he could well be a dud next week.  If you are in a deep league, Goodwin might be worth a flier given his speed and big-play ability.

 

Previously Mentioned Players: Jericho Cotchery, WR, PIT, Dexter McCluster, WR, KC

Honorable mention: Rod Streater, WR, OAK; Richard Matthews, WR, MIA; Markus Wheaton, WR, PIT

Players I recommend beyond rules (above 25% ownership or previously recommended).  Add these WR players immediately if they are available in your leagues (in priority order):

  • Josh Gordon, WR, CLE - continues to play well regardless of who is at QB.
  • Percy Harvin, WR, SEA - first game of the season was on a limited snap count...expect value to rise in upcoming weeks
  • Jarrett Boykin, WR, GB - Another solid game for Boykin 6 catches, 91 yrds.  Beware owners...Cobb will be back around week 14 so the value of him may dip soon...depending on injuries
  • Harry Douglas, WR, ATL - Solid week with 134yrds and a 1td.  Value may take a dip with Roddy White back but still will get opportunities
  • T.Y. Hilton, WR, IND - had a modest game vs a solid Tennessee defense
  • Keenan Allen, WR, SD -  Hyperextended his knee...watch injury report
  • Terrance Williams, WR, DAL - bye week
  • Golden Tate, WR, SEA - bad game with only one catch this week
  • Doug Baldwin, WR, SEA - another week another td...only had two catches
  • Emmanuel Sanders, WR, PIT - exited last week due to a foot injury...monitor this situation as Markus Wheaton could get his place
  • DeAndre Hopkins, WR, HOU - was benched last week for 'mental errors'...watch this situation closely
  • Michael Crabtree, WR, SF - Won't be back until late to mid Nov.

 

Week 12 Waiver Wire Pickups – Defenses (DEF)

Defense no-brainer starts:  BAL (vs NYJ), HOU (vs JAX)

Cleveland, DEF - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Standard Leagues (12+ teams)
ANALYSIS: As much as this may come as a surprise to some of you, the Browns defense is underrated. This week, the Browns will be playing the Steelers who have given up the sixth-most fantasy points to opposing defenses.  The Browns defense (currently ranked fifth-best overall) will be facing a Steelers offense ranked in the middle of the pack (15) who have a -8 turnover ratio.  If you are looking for a nice streamer option, Cleveland is a solid choice.

 

Dallas, DEF - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Standard Leagues (12+ teams)
ANALYSIS:  This week, the Cowboys will be playing a Giants team that has given the most points to opposing defenses.  To add to this recommendation, the turnover ratio of the Giants team this season is -11. In Week 1 of this season the Giants offense allowed three  sacks, three interceptions, three fumbles and two TDs vs. the Cowboys.  While I don't think Dallas will be able to repeat that defensive performance, I expect them to have a solid game.

 

Paul Worrilow, IDP - LB, ATL  - Waiver Wire Pickup

BALLER MOVE: Add in Standard Leagues (12+ teams IDP Leagues)
ANALYSIS: The last 3 weeks Worrilow has been a beast!  Worrilow has tallied 32 solo tackles and 22 assists.  That averages out to ~11 solo and 7 assists per game.  If you are looking for a LB option Worrilow could be an excellent choice.  Prior to the past 3 weeks his best game was 6 tackles so proceed with caution.  I don't expect him to continue his unbelievable past 3 weeks.

 

My Guidelines

1. I will not repeat waiver selections. All mentioned players prior to week 4 will apply to the current waiver options and going forward.

2. I will only recommend players that are lower than 25% ownership in Yahoo! or ESPN leagues.

=============

As always, you can find all of our weekly waiver wire recommendations on our famous waiver wire pickups list. And if you haven’t joined the best and largest fantasy football chat room community on the web, check out the RotoBaller.com Fantasy Football chat room for live fantasy advice, sit/start questions, and more.




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