Most fantasy football playoffs start this week. If you missed the playoffs this season and happen to be in a keeper or dynasty league, check out Ryan McDowell‘s dynasty content to help you build for 2019.
As for the rest of you battling for a league championship, this piece is for you. The time for hoarding potential is over. Now it’s all about winning. I highlight the best streaming options, handcuffs and upside plays at every position to help you take home your office’s plastic gold trophy.
I highlight players who are owned in fewer than 50% of ESPN fantasy leagues and recommend an auction price (in parentheses) for each player for leagues using a Free Agent Acquisition Budget system. All recommendations are made based on a $100 FAAB budget.
Top Streaming Quarterbacks
Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills ($5)
Five bucks for a quarterback? Are you crazy?
It’s the playoffs, people. If you’ve got substantial a FAAB budget remaining, spend it. There’s no advantage in hoarding it.
Over the past two weeks, Allen has averaged 117 rushing yards per game, which puts him in company with Lamar Jackson as the top quarterbacks with rushing upside. What differentiates Allen from Jackson, however, is his added passing acumen. Don’t get me wrong: Jackson is still a fantastic option during the fantasy playoffs. But Allen is on fire right now.
Since returning from injury in Week 12, he ranks as the No. 1 fantasy quarterback with 27.5 PPR points per game. He also ranks as the No. 2 overall player in fantasy, trailing only Christian McCaffrey’s 28.9 PPR points per game.
Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports. Pictured: Josh Allen
His Week 14 matchup against the Jets isn’t particularly inviting, but Allen remains a must-start fantasy quarterback until further notice.
Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns ($2)
After I praised Mayfield’s touchdown-to-interception ratio last week, he proceeded to throw three picks against the Texans, making me look like a total donkey. But he did redeem himself with a career-high 397 passing yards, and he draws an excellent matchup against the Panthers in Week 14.
Carolina ranks 26th in Football Outsiders’ defense DVOA and 27th in pass defense DVOA. The Panthers are also allowing the eighth-most fantasy points (23.17) to quarterbacks per game this season.
Running Back Handcuffs
At this point in the season, you’re unlikely to find starting running back talent on waivers. And if you’ve made your league’s playoffs, it’s unlikely you did so without strong running back play to begin with.
Instead, you should stock your bench with high-profile handcuffs who will help insulate you from injuries during the most important stretch of the fantasy season.
Jaylen Samuels, Pittsburgh Steelers ($10)
James Conner suffered a leg injury in the Steelers’ clash against the Chargers and remains questionable for Week 14. Samuels entered the game for the injured Conner and promptly scored a late-game receiving touchdown.
It remains to be seen how serious Conner’s leg injury is, but if he’s forced to miss time, Samuels would be the next man up in the Steelers’ backfield. At North Carolina State, Samuels was used as a hybrid H-back/tight end and was equally adept as a runner and as a receiver. If he earns starter snaps, he should be able to replicate Conner’s receiving statistics at minimum.
Monitor Conner’s status throughout the week using our NFL Injury Report, and consider Samuels a high-priority add if Conner’s outlook is poor.
Rex Burkhead, New England Patriots ($8)
Burkhead returned from Injured Reserve this past week, rushing seven times for 20 yards and catching two passes for 21 yards against the Vikings.
His statistical output was mediocre, but his potential remains enormous if Sony Michel or James White suffers an injury in the coming weeks. Burkhead has proven himself in recent seasons as an adept early-down and red-zone rusher while flashing skill as a receiver. He’s versatile enough to slot into the Patriots’ backfield if either starter goes down.
Burkhead is precisely the insurance policy you need to obtain off waivers this week if Michel or White are on your roster.
Justin Jackson, Los Angeles Chargers ($7)
Melvin Gordon (knee) remains questionable for the Chargers’ Week 14 bout against the Bengals. Los Angeles could choose to take its time easing Gordon back into the offense to ensure he’s 100% healthy for the playoffs. As a result, Austin Ekeler and Jackson should continue to see increased usage over the coming weeks.
Jackson rushed eight times for 63 yards and a touchdown against Pittsburgh, adding one reception for 19 yards. He’s a borderline flex option as long as Gordon remains out.
Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports. Pictured: LeGarrette Blount
LeGarrette Blount, Detroit Lions ($6)
Kerryon Johnson (knee) remains questionable for the Lions’ matchup at Arizona this week. So long as Johnson is out, Blount will remain their featured running back.
After a massive 19-88-2 rushing campaign against the Bears in Week 12, he followed up with a more pedestrian 16-61-0 rushing performance against the Rams. Blount has never been known as an efficient rusher, but he does have the endurance to handle a high-volume of carries and is always a threat to vulture a touchdown or two.
Chase Edmonds, Arizona Cardinals ($5)
Edmonds demonstrated why he’s a necessary handcuff for David Johnson, rushing five times for 53 yards while vulturing two red-zone rushing touchdowns against the Packers.
Edmonds does not receive enough usage in the Cardinals offense to justify starting him on his own merit. However, if Johnson suffers an injury — or even if the Arizona coaching staff decides to grant Johnson additional rest down the stretch — Edmonds is a guy you need to own.
Jeff Wilson Jr., San Francisco 49ers ($4)
Matt Breida (ankle) was clearly limited in at Seattle, rushing only five times for six yards. Instead, Wilson got much of the run in the 49ers’ backfield, rushing 15 times for 61 yards and snaring eight passes for 73 yards on nine targets.
Breida has nursed an ankle injury on-and-off for longer than a month now. The 49ers have little to play for now and could opt to give Breida added rest rather than threaten his health further. That would open the door for Wilson to see extended run over the next several weeks.
Whether or not Breida is on your roster, Wilson could be worth a speculative add this week.
Wide Receivers with Upside
Adam Humphries, Tampa Bay Buccaneers ($15)
I featured Humphries in my Week 13 NFL Funnel Defense Ratings and Start or Sit articles, and he came through for me against the Panthers. He caught seven passes for 61 yards and a touchdown on nine targets.
Since Week 6, he ranks 11th among wide receivers with 15.2 PPR fantasy points. And since Week 9, he ranks ninth among wide receivers with 17.5 PPR fantasy points. He’s also finished among the top 24 fantasy wide receivers in five of the past six weeks.
He’s rolling right now and is an ideal flex target, combining a high-target volume floor with ample touchdown upside.
Curtis Samuel, Carolina Panthers ($12)
Last week, I discussed Samuel’s big play ability, noting that Samuel had scored five touchdowns in his previous six games. While he didn’t find the end zone against Tampa Bay, he did put up another excellent fantasy performance. Importantly, for the first time this season, he proved that he can be a high-volume target in the Panthers offense.
He caught six passes for 88 yards on a season-high 11 targets against the Bucs. He also rushed once for eight yards. He faces a difficult matchup against the Browns this week but finishes the season with games against the Saints and Falcons. Both of his final matchups project favorably, making him an excellent buy-and-hold candidate.
Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers ($10)
Godwin took full advantage of DeSean Jackson’s (thumb) absence this past week, catching five passes for 101 yards and a touchdown on six targets. Godwin has been an inconsistent fantasy producer this season but could offer increased stability if Jackson remains out.
Moreover, with O.J. Howard out for the season, Godwin remains one of the Buccaneers’ best red-zone targets. All five of his receiving touchdowns — including his score from Week 13 — have come in the red zone.
Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports. Pictured: Chris Godwin
This week, he draws a matchup against a Saints defense that concedes on average the most fantasy points per game (30.17) to wide receivers.
Dante Pettis, San Francisco 49ers ($9)
The upstart rookie has caught fire in his past two games. Since Week 12, he’s averaged 4.5 receptions for 103 receiving yards and 1.5 touchdowns per contest. He’s also earned a starting role in each of his past three games, filling in for Pierre Garcon (knee) and Marquise Goodwin (personal), both of whom are questionable for Week 14.
If Garcon or Goodwin miss another week of action, Pettis should continue to dominate target share among a depleted corps of 49ers wide receivers.
However, be aware that his three remaining games all feature matchups against elite pass defenses in the Broncos, Seahawks and Bears. Still, his breakout 5-129-2 performance came against Seattle, which should assuage some matchup-based anxiety if you choose to start him over the coming weeks.
Top Streaming Tight Ends
I’ll be straight with you: The tight end position is incredibly thin on waivers. Most of the available players have either extremely inconsistent usage or horrible matchups — or both.
Here are my top recommendations among that thin player pool.
C.J. Uzomah, Cincinnati Bengals ($2)
Uzomah has now averaged 10 targets per game with Jeff Driskel as the Bengals starting quarterback. Unfortunately, Uzomah is also averaging only 5.5 receptions for 36 yards over that span.
One would hope he would eventually start converting that high target volume into higher yardage, but he’s been inefficient like this all season. Nonetheless, few tight ends boast his target share, which should remain stable with A.J. Green out for the season.
David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports. Pictured: C.J. Uzomah
Without many legitimate downfield threats remaining in the Cincinnati offense, Driskel will likely continue to look to Uzomah and his running backs as part of a conservative passing attack.
Chris Herndon, New York Jets ($1)
Herndon had one of his lower yardage outputs of the season in Week 13, catching two passes for 31 yards. Despite his low statistical output, he still earned six passing targets, which bodes well for future production. He’s averaged 5.5 targets per game in his past four contests.
He does not offer immense upside, but he does have one of the better week-to-week floors among tight ends readily available on waivers.
Herndon must weather a date against the Bills this week before his dream matchup against the Texans in Week 15, who have been notorious for allowing big days to tight ends this season.
The Watch List
The following players could be worthy of consideration in deeper leagues. Many of these players have inconsistent usage but boast above-average rest-of-season matchups.
Current ESPN ownership percentage for each player is in parentheses:
- Alfred Blue, RB, Houston Texans (4.9%)
- Anthony Miller, WR, Chicago Bears (41.4%)
- Antonio Callaway, WR, Cleveland Browns (9.4%)
- Bruce Ellington, WR, Detroit Lions (8.8%)
- Christian Kirk, WR, Arizona Cardinals (32.7%)
- Dede Westbrook, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars (30.0%)
- Giovani Bernard, RB, Cincinnati Bengals (25.8%)
- Jalen Richard, RB, Oakland Raiders (48.8%)
- John Kelly, RB, Los Angeles Rams (0.0%)
- Jordy Nelson, WR, Oakland Raiders (32.7%)
- Josh Reynolds, WR, Los Angeles Rams (45.3%)
- Kenneth Dixon, RB, Baltimore Ravens (3.3%)
- Nyheim Hines, RB, Indianapolis Colts (30.3%)
- Rashaad Penny, RB, Seattle Seahawks (21.5%)
- Rhett Ellison, TE, New York Giants (8.2%)
- Taywan Taylor, WR, Tennessee Titans (1.2%)
- Taylor Gabriel, WR, Chicago Bears (46.5%)
- Theo Riddick, RB, Detroit Lions (39.9%)
- Ty Montgomery, RB, Baltimore Ravens (13.1%)
- Zay Jones, WR, Buffalo Bills (1.7%)
Pictured above: Chargers RB Justin Jackson
Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
