The Los Angeles Chargers were blown out by the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 15, but Chargers wideout Joshua Palmer still managed to turn in his best fantasy football performance of the season.
After a big outing (21.3 PPR points) from the third-year veteran in Week 15, should fantasy managers look to add Palmer to their roster for their respective playoff runs?
Should Joshua Palmer Be a Fantasy Waiver Wire Add in Week 16?
Coming off a six-game absence due to a knee sprain, Palmer showed no signs of rust this past Thursday against the Raiders. The third-year wideout finished with four catches for 113 yards, highlighted by a 79-yard touchdown reception. His 21.3 PPR points were the 12th-most of any wide receiver in Week 15 entering Monday night.
we scored. pic.twitter.com/tUlolwTTWX
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) December 15, 2023
Palmer was able to put up a big performance in Week 15 for a variety of reasons. For starters, the Chargers were surprisingly without their top receiver, Keenan Allen (heel), who entered the week as the WR3 overall in fantasy.
Allen has averaged 11.5 targets per game, so there was a big void in the Chargers’ offense that Palmer was able to fill — to some extent. Additionally, the Chargers fell behind early in the game, so Los Angeles was forced to run an almost exclusively pass-heavy attack for the majority of the contest.
Even after Palmer’s strong performance, he remains a somewhat risky fantasy football start moving forward. With Chargers star quarterback Justin Herbert out for the remainder of the season, Easton Stick figures to be under center for the final three weeks.
Counting on production from Palmer with Stick at the helm is extremely risky, especially during the fantasy football playoffs. If Allen returns to the lineup this week, Palmer’s ceiling will dip as well.
Additionally, the Chargers have a difficult matchup in Week 16 against a Bills defense that is playing its best football of the season right now. In Week 15, Buffalo limited Cowboys star receiver CeeDee Lamb to finish with just 53 receiving yards; Brandin Cooks finished with just two catches for 10 yards.
MORE: PFN’s FREE NFL Playoff Predictor
Saturday night’s game could get ugly fast for Los Angeles, but the game script should play in Palmer’s favor fantasy-wise.
Despite all these factors working against him, fantasy managers should still look to add Palmer on the waiver wire if he’s available; the third-year pass catcher began the week rostered in just 19.7% of ESPN leagues.
With the status unclear for several top wideouts — Allen, Tyreek Hill, Ja’Marr Chase, Michael Pittman, and Chris Olave are all dealing with injuries right now — Palmer could be needed to fill in.
Entering Week 16, Palmer is easily the best option on waivers right now for any position. It’s also worth noting he was rostered in the majority of leagues before suffering his knee injury midseason. Palmer’s production against Las Vegas didn’t come out of nowhere, either, as this past week was his fifth game with double-digit fantasy points this season.
For those managers still in the fantasy playoffs, it’s worth adding Palmer to your roster this week. Putting the Chargers wideout in your starting lineup, however, is a much more difficult call.
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