November 29, 2016

Tony Peters identifies deeper 2016 fantasy football PPR sleepers & Week 13 NFL waiver wire pickups. These PPR RBs, WRs & TEs should be added off the waiver wire as fantasy football sleepers.

Welcome, welcome, RotoBallers. Please join me for my deeper PPR league sleepers column for Week 13 of the NFL season.

In this weekly article, we are going to take a look at some deeper waiver wire options for PPR leagues and target players who could help out your team in the upcoming week.

The following waiver wire suggestions for Week 13 of the NFL season are all owned in 15% or less of Fleaflicker leagues.

Editor's Note: Once you're done here, be sure to read about even more Week 13 waiver wire recommendations, for all fantasy-relevant positions. Just click on any link: ALL - RB - WR - TE - QB - DEF - FAAB - CUTS

PPR Wide Receiver Waiver Wire Adds

Taylor Gabriel (WR, ATL) - 5% Owned

After wide receiver Taylor Gabriel scored two touchdowns Sunday against a Cardinals' defense that is no slouch against the pass, there's no denying that he has carved himself a place on this team going forward. Since scoring his first touchdown of the season Week 8 against the Packers, he's caught 13-of-18 targets for 271 yards and four touchdowns as well as rushing three times for 51 yards and a touchdown, putting him near the top of the list for most fantasy points scored among wide receivers over the past four weeks. The NFL's top-scoring team will welcome the Chiefs to Atlanta Week 13, a team that has allowed the third-most fantasy points to wide receivers this season thanks to being second in yards allowed with 2,221 and tied for sixth in touchdowns allowed with 14. He should be one of the top PPR waiver claims this week.

Marquess Wilson (WR, CHI) - 1% Owned

This season, being the top receiver on the Bears mean you are awesome for a couple weeks before everything crumbles away thanks to a revolving door of meh-to-bad options under center. Marquess Wilson is a new addition to this list as he was quarterback Matt Barkley's favorite target during Barkley's first start of the season Week 12, catching 8-of-11 targets for 125 yards and a touchdown in only his second game of the season. The fourth-year player lacks significant upside before even taken into consideration who's throwing to him, but it is hard to argue against results, especially with the Bears welcoming a 49ers' team to town Week 13 that's allowing the most fantasy points to wide receivers this season. Barkley has to throw to someone, and if the team is content to let him pick who those receivers are, Wilson could be a sneaky pickup for the next couple of weeks.

Dontrelle Inman (WR, SD) - 4% Owned

As an owner of wide receiver Travis Benjamin, to see his fellow Charger receiver Dontrelle Inman go off Week 12 was the nail in the coffin for me. I put in a waiver wire claim to swap Benjamin out for Inman that night. Since Benjamin's last 100-yard game back in Week 5, he's caught 12-of-22 targets for 128 yards and a touchdown compared to Inman's 25-of-38 targets for 359 yards and a touchdown. After a huge Week 12 performance that saw Inman catch all six of his targets for 111 yards and a touchdown while overshadowing Benjamin in every way, quarterback Philip Rivers heaped tons of praise on Inman's dependability, highlighting that his recent breakout isn't accidental. The Chargers host the Buccaneers Week 13, a team allowing the sixth-most fantasy points to wide receivers this season, giving Inman a solid chance of making it two fantastic fantasy performances in a row.

Chris Hogan (WR, NE) - 15% Owned and Malcolm Mitchell (WR, NE) - 3% Owned

With quarterback Tom Brady just as potent as he ever has been this season, the old rule "anyone he throws to is gold" continues to apply. This has led to increased fantasy exposure this year for wide receivers Chris Hogan and rookie Malcolm Mitchell as they have seen expanded roles this season. Hogan looked to be on the road to year-long fantasy value before injuries cut into his playing time. But he finally looked healthy Week 12, catching 4-of-5 targets for 70 yards. Hogan's missed time along with tight end Rob Gronkowski's injury issues have helped Mitchell gain a traction on targets the past two weeks, catching 9-of-12 targets for 140 yards and three touchdowns during that time. With Gronk dealing with both a perforated lung and a sore back, the 9-2 Patriots are likely to be very protective of him to ensure his participation in their playoff run, bumping up both Hogan and Mitchell's value going forward. The slight nod goes to Mitchell thanks to his healthy dose of touchdowns but both are solid PPR pickups.

Others: Kenny Stills (7% owned) was able to put up a decent fantasy day Week 12 against the porous 49ers' pass defense and looks poised to do the same Week 13 against another soft pass defense in the Ravens. They've allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to wide receivers this season. Cordarrelle Patterson (7% owned) continues to disappoint standard scoring players, but the PPR love train keeps on rolling. While it's hard to see him putting up huge numbers against the Cowboys this week, they have been slipping as of late, allowing the 10th-most fantasy points to wide receivers over the past four weeks.

PPR Running Back Waiver Wire Adds

Shaun Draughn (RB, SF) - 1% Owned & Kyle Juszczyk (RB, BAL) - 0% Owned

It's another week of slim pickings for PPR players in need of a dart throw running back for Week 13 as two familiar faces grace this column yet again. Shaun Draughn might not be rushing much anymore, but he caught all six of his targets Sunday for 49 yards. Since returning Week 11 from injury, he's caught all nine of his targets for 92 yards while rushing zero times. With quarterback Colin Kaepernick looking better each week, this small production window could stay open Week 13 against the Bears. Kyle Juszczyk took a break from catching passes for a few weeks, but he's caught 6-of-8 targets for 50 yards over the past two games. Granted, that's a handful of peanuts, even in PPR, but this isn't the deep PPR waiver wire column for nothing. He will face the Dolphins in Week 13, a team that gave up 11 receptions, 79 yards and a touchdown through the air to the 49ers' backs in Week 12.

PPR Tight End Waiver Wire Adds

Vernon Davis (TE, WAS) - 9% Owned

With tight end Jordan Reed suffering a shoulder injury in the team's Week 12 loss to the Cowboys that could keep him out of Sunday's game against the Cardinals, backup Vernon Davis just became that much more valuable. But to be 100% fair: Reed's injury is not why Davis made this week's list as he was making it regardless. The Redskins have experienced huge success running with two pass-catching tight ends this season. While Davis doesn't get many red zone looks when Reed is active, he was still gobbling up receptions and yards, catching 13-of-16 targets for 227 yards and a touchdown over the past four games, including a Week 11 where he failed to catch his only target. The Cardinals are the hardest team for tight ends to produce against, giving out the least fantasy points to the position this year, which makes this outing anything but a cakewalk. But considering the circumstances, Davis is still on the deep league radar.