We are now in the home stretch of the fantasy football season, which means we know which of our teams look like contenders and which ones are fighting for a playoff spot. We need to cater our pickups toward our team situations. It’s now time to improve our rosters.
Let’s take a look at the top Week 12 waiver wire targets and pickups that fantasy managers should consider adding to their rosters.
As always, all players are rostered in less than 50% of Yahoo leagues.
I have done away with FAAB recommendations this year, as there are too many variables to account for. Instead, I replaced it with my opinion on how aggressive fantasy managers should be in pursuing the player on a scale of 1-10.
Anthony Richardson, QB | IND
Rostered: 47%
By no means should you throw Anthony Richardson back into lineups after one good game, especially not against the Detroit Lions, but this was a guy ranked inside the top-five fantasy quarterbacks entering the season. He threw for 272 yards and a touchdown without an interception, while running for 32 yards and two more scores. He scored 28 fantasy points.
The Indianapolis Colts’ remaining schedule is not overly friendly. Even so, Richardson’s upside remains where it was when the season started. That’s worth stashing to see if the young quarterback has turned a corner.
Aggressiveness Rating: 4.5
Matthew Stafford, QB | LAR
Rostered: 57%
A bit heavily rostered, Matthew Stafford has displayed a high enough ceiling to be worth discussing. The ridiculous run of Kyren Williams scoring all of the Los Angeles Rams’ touchdowns has come to a screeching halt. Unsurprisingly, it’s coincided with the healthy returns of Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp.
Stafford has now thrown multiple touchdowns in three of his last four games. Against the New England Patriots, he threw for 295 yards and four touchdowns.
The remaining schedule is very difficult. So, Stafford is not the most appealing option. However, this offense is good enough, and Stafford is savvy enough to overcome it. You can do worse if you need a QB.
Aggressiveness Rating: 4.0
Drake Maye, QB | NE
Rostered: 14%
This is more for deeper leagues or those really struggling at QB. Drake Maye hasn’t really displayed a super high ceiling during his brief tenure as the Patriots starting QB. He opened up hot, with two straight 20-point games but hasn’t hit that threshold since.
Maye does come with a decently high floor, given his rushing prowess, averaging 41.3 rushing yards per game. Next week is a tough spot against the Miami Dolphins, but he is very streamable in two weeks against the Colts.
Aggressiveness Rating: 1.0
Bo Nix, QB | DEN
Rostered: 48%
It’s time to buy into Bo Nix. The Denver Broncos’ rookie QB has really turned a corner. Sure, the Atlanta Falcons don’t have the best pass defense, but there’s nothing flukey about 307 yards and four touchdowns.
Pat Surtain II said Bo Nix is playing like the MVP of the NFL, not just the Rookie of the Year.
“He’s him” pic.twitter.com/gC8acy6vZl
— Zac Stevens (@ZacStevensDNVR) November 18, 2024
Nix is averaging 20.5 fantasy points per game since Week 5. While the Broncos do still have their bye in front of them, their remaining schedule is pretty favorable, facing three bottom-10 pass defenses.
You can trust Nix as your weekly QB1. All you have to do is Bo-lieve.
Aggressiveness Rating: 7.0
Cam Akers, RB | MIN
Rostered: 17%
It’s very clear that Cam Akers has completely taken over the RB2 role in Minnesota. While he certainly can’t be expected to score every week, it’s quite encouraging to see him even get a goal-line look.
Akers handled 10 carries and saw two targets against the Tennessee Titans, but his main value is contingent upon an Aaron Jones injury. That, alone makes him worth stashing as the fantasy playoffs near.
Aggressiveness Rating: 2.0
Ameer Abdullah, RB | LV
Rostered: 0%
The last thing I ever expected was to be talking about Ameer Abdullah in the year 2024. Yet, here we are.
The Las Vegas Raiders lost both Alexander Mattison and Zamir White to injuries on Sunday. That left them with just Abdullah.
If Mattison and White can’t go next week, Abdullah would be the presumptive lead running back. How effective he would be remains to be seen (likely not very), but every starting running back in the NFL is worth being on a fantasy roster.
Monitor what the updates are on Mattison and White’s statuses between now and Tuesday night. If we don’t hear anything, or what we hear is not positive, Abdullah is worth a claim.
Aggressiveness Rating: 2.0
Blake Corum, RB | LAR
Rostered: 15%
There is no scenario where Blake Corum will be startable as long as Williams is healthy. However, he’s the clear RB2, and I am supremely confident he would be just as good if not better than Williams should something happen to the starter.
We have just three weeks left in the fantasy regular season. You need to curate your rosters for the postseason. Stashing a guy like Corum, who could be a league winner if things break right, is a move some of you have the flexibility to make.
Aggressiveness Rating: 3.0
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, WR | TEN
Rostered: 4%
If you look purely at Nick Westbrook-Ikhine’s fantasy points, you’d be encouraged. I like 19.7 fantasy points too. However, he caught a 98-yard touchdown pass. That is never going to happen again. Do not add him.
Aggressiveness Rating: 0.0
Christian Watson, WR | GB
Rostered: 44%
Every time a Green Bay Packers WR pops off, fantasy managers rush to pick him up off the waiver wire. One week, it might be Dontayvion Wicks. The next, it’s Christian Watson with four receptions for 150 yards.
It’s great that Watson had such a big game. It’s great that he caught all four of his targets. But he only saw four targets. He’s hit double-digit fantasy points a mere three times this season.
Watson will have other useful games, you just won’t know when they are. He is not a priority pickup.
Aggressiveness Rating: 1.0
Kendrick Bourne, WR | NE
Rostered: 1%
With five catches for 70 yards and a touchdown, fantasy managers definitely noticed Kendrick Bourne’s performance against the Rams. I wouldn’t read too much into it, though. It was the first useable game by Bourne all season, but he only ran a route on half of Maye’s dropbacks.
Between DeMario Douglas, Kayshon Boutte, and Bourne, someone will have a useful game each week. Who will it be? Your guess is as good as mine. I would not add Bourne.
Aggressiveness Rating: 0.0
DeMario Douglas, WR | NE
Rostered: 28%
Another Patriots receiver finds his way onto the list of potential waiver wire pickups. Douglas has been the presumptive WR1 for the Patriots all season. Since their offense has mostly struggled, his production has been limited.
Douglas caught five passes for 59 yards. He’s now hit double-digit fantasy points in four of his last seven. However, he barely gets there every time. Week 6 was the last time he did anything notable, scoring 21.2 fantasy points.
You can add Douglas if you need a warm body at WR, but there’s not much here.
Aggressiveness Rating: 1.0
Marquez Valdes-Scantling, WR | NO
Rostered: 25%
A fair amount of you clearly added Marquez Valdes-Scantling after his Week 10 debut saw him grab three passes for 109 yards and two touchdowns. Well, he did it again in Week 11, catching two passes for 87 yards and a touchdown.
MVS is who he is. He’s going to see 2-4 targets a game, usually downfield. Maybe he catches one for a long touchdown. If he does, great. If not, you’re getting about two fantasy points.
If you have a complete void in your lineup, swinging at Valdes-Scantling’s upside is better than nothing, but you will never feel comfortable starting him.
Aggressiveness Rating: 1.0
Curtis Samuel, WR | BUF
Rostered: 9%
Amari Cooper returned this week. Yet, Curtis Samuel remained heavily involved on offense, catching five passes for 58 yards and a touchdown. He now has 14 targets over his last two games.
With that said, Keon Coleman could be back after the bye. Dalton Kincaid almost certainly will be. Adding Samuel now to hold him for two weeks hoping he can maybe be startable does not seem like a worthy use of a roster spot.
Aggressiveness Rating: 0.0
Taysom Hill, TE | NO
Rostered: 53%
Although Taysom Hill is slightly over the rostership threshold, I can’t not talk about him. Hill had what will undoubtedly be the best game from a TE-eligible player all year. It was one of the best performances in the history of fantasy football.
206 all-purpose yards. 3 TDs.
The Taysom Hill Experience ¯_(ツ)_/¯ pic.twitter.com/39482UD0PW
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) November 17, 2024
The gadget man had seven rushes for 138 yards and three touchdowns while adding three receptions for 50 yards. Obviously, he will never do this again, but Hill’s usage certainly warrants a much higher roster rate.
Aggressiveness Rating: 6.0
Jonnu Smith, TE | MIA
Rostered: 53%
Much like Taysom Hill, Jonnu Smith is rostered on slightly too many teams. Much like Hill, he has to be mentioned.
It’s abundantly clear something has changed in the Dolphins’ offensive plans. Jaylen Waddle is not part of the offense (and can be universally dropped). The third guy behind Tyreek Hill and De’Von Achane is Smith.
The veteran TE caught six of eight targets for 101 yards and two touchdowns. It was the second game of 22+ points in his last five, which is good enough. That sort of upside is worth chasing.
Aggressiveness Rating: 5.0
Zach Ertz, TE | WAS
Rostered: 33%
Garbage time salvaged Zach Ertz’s day on Thursday, but he’s still been a key part of the Washington Commanders’ offense all season. He’s now hit double-digit fantasy points in four of his last six games, and in one of the games he didn’t, he still managed a passable 7.1 fantasy points.
Ertz has had a decent floor all season. As Jayden Daniels gets further away from his rib injury, he should start to play better. You can do worse than Ertz.
Aggressiveness Rating: 2.0
Will Dissly, TE | LAC
Rostered: 23%
This is being written before Sunday Night Football. It’s entirely possible that Will Dissly flops and looks far less appealing. Right now, though, Dissly projects to be a quality addition at tight end.
Dissly has been the Chargers’ primary TE for a month now. He’s seen 6+ targets in three of his last four games and has consistently been targeted on Justin Herbert’s first read.
Hopefully, Dissly was able to thrive against the Cincinnati Bengals’ bottom-five defense versus TEs. The schedule doesn’t get much more difficult after that. The Chargers’ next five opponents all range from average to terrible at defending the tight end. Dissly is at least a viable Week 12 streamer, if not a rest-of-season TE1.
Aggressiveness Rating: 4.0