Waiver Wire Targets: Week 16

The difference in your week one game may have been changed based on one injury or one player putting up a dud. In order to prevent that from happening next week and each week following, here are a couple guys at each position who are owned in 50% of leagues or less according to NFL.com:

Quarterback:

Josh Allen, Bills – Owned in 9.2% of leagues

Despite losing the team’s top four RBs to injuries, Josh Allen continued to run the offense with some efficiency and find success on the ground himself. He has proven throughout the year that he is one of the most dangerous running QBs in the NFL this season. While the Bills may not have much to play for during the rest of this season, having a young QB and young playmakers can still be motivation enough that they want to prove they can do better next season. Even if McCoy or Ivory are healthy by next week, expect the offense to continue to run through Allen.

Nick Foles, Eagles – Owned in 4.6% of leagues

Nick Foles is back for Eagles’ fans. After riding the bench for weeks behind Carson Wentz, is it time for Foles to come in and take over for the second year in a row. He did not have a great fantasy start last night against the Rams’ defense, but he did show plenty of potential. Given the desperation the Eagles are experiencing to keep their playoff hopes alive, this would be the time that they need Super Bowl Nick Foles more than ever. Expect Foles to step up big time these last couple weeks.

Baker Mayfield, Browns – Owned in 35.9% of leagues

Baker Mayfield has been debatably the best rookie QB this season ever since he took over for Tyrod Taylor in week 3. He has completely turned a defeated Browns team into a respectable opponent. As far as fantasy goes, he has not remained very consistent. He does still have tremendous upside given the playmakers that the Browns have around him.

Running Back:

Damien Williams, Chiefs – Owned in 43% of leagues

Damien Williams was the best RB the Chiefs had last week against the Chargers. In addition to being efficient with 4.9 YPC, he also was a great receiver out of the backfield. Even if Spencer Ware returns to the lineup next week, expect Williams to remain involved throughout the rest of the season. With the Chiefs’ offense still performing at an extremely high level, Williams will continue to have above average value.

Jamaal Williams, Packers – Owned in 33.5% of leagues

After reports today that Jones will miss the rest of the season, Williams will immediately take over the lead RB role. He will have no issues keeping that position for the rest of the year. Williams did well in his first start since the beginning of the season finishing with 97 total yards and a touchdown. He is a great pickup for anyone who is still making a push in the playoffs. Expect him to continue to put up RB2 numbers over the course of the rest of the year.

Kalen Ballage, Dolphins – Owned in 0.1% of leagues

With the injury to Frank Gore, Kalen Ballage is due to pick up a good amount of the slack. He showed his impressive burst on his 75 yard TD run last week against the Vikings. The Dolphins have clearly shown that they do not want to give Kenyan Drake a full workload and it would not be surprising if they give Ballage the rest of the season as the main runner to see what they have in him.

Elijah McGuire, Jets – Owned in 13.6% of leagues

McGuire produced well from a fantasy perspective after taking over the number one RB role last week. With a young QB in Sam Darnold, it should be expected that they will continue to count on the run to alleviate some of the pressure. After two weeks in a row of double digit fantasy performances, he has proven he can be a consistent role player for the Jets throughout the rest of the year.

Le’Veon Bell, Steelers – Owned in 35.2% of leagues

Unlike most of the other players on this list, Le’Veon will not be helping any teams this season. He is available in many leagues and his only value will come as a keeper. Bell will be a free agent after this season and his new situation may play a big role in where he ends up getting drafted. Regardless of where he ends up, Bell is still one of the elite RBs of the NFL and if you have an opportunity to pick him up and keep him, it is definitely worth it.

Wide Receiver:

Mike Williams, Chargers – Owned in 17.6% of leagues

Mike Williams was phenomenal last week for anyone who started him. He has remained somewhat inconsistent throughout the year, but his tremendous athleticism has begun to finally allow him to be an impactful player. If he can finally find some kind of consistency with his play, he will be a great option in one of the better offenses in the NFL.

Robby Anderson, Jets – Owned in 28.6% of leagues

Robby Anderson has performed well two weeks in a row. Especially since the return of QB Sam Darnold, Anderson has excelled. That trend should continue if Quincy Enunwa misses any more time during these last couple games. Due to his explosive playmaking abilities, Anderson should be picked up by anyone who may need a miracle this late in the fantasy season.

Curtis Samuel, Panthers – Owned in 16.8% of leagues

Curtis Samuel had a pretty rough week 15, but so did the rest of the Panthers’ offense. He is a great candidate to have a bounce back week going up against an Atlanta Falcons’ team that has not had any success stopping WRs this season. Samuel has come on later in the season and he should still be expected to hold the top receiver role with D.J. Moore.

Robert Foster, Bills – Owned in 1.7% of leagues

Robert Foster has really come alive in recent weeks taking over the top receiver role in Buffalo and getting over 90 yards receiving in four of the past five weeks. With a lot of uncertainty regarding the Bills’ RBs, Josh Allen and Robert Foster may need to continue to produce in order for this offense to have any success. Even though the Bills do not have much to play for at this point, they should get their young players as much reps and practice as they can these last few games.

Jordy Nelson, Raiders – Owned in 30.7% of leagues

Jordy Nelson has been somewhat of a disappointment since joining the Raiders in the offseason. Even after Amari Cooper was traded to Dallas, Nelson was never fully able to take control of the top WR role. Recently, Nelson has finally started to show some potential collecting 22 catches for 233 receiving yards in the past three weeks. If he can continue to find openings in the defense, he will have success since there aren’t too many receiving options in Oakland this season.

Tight End:

Gerald Everett, Rams – Owned in 4.9% of leagues

Gerald Everett has become significantly more involved in the Rams’ offense over the past two weeks getting seven targets in each of the past two weeks. While is value is still somewhat dependent on his ability to find the endzone, Everett seems to finally be getting into some kind of groove at just the right time.

Chris Herndon, Jets – Owned in 12.7% of leagues

Chris Herndon has shown flashes of significant potential throughout the season. Like Everett, he will also be limited in how good he can be based on whether or not he can get into the endzone. Herndon has proven throughout the season that he is reliable enough to be considered a starting TE in most leagues. He will get a favorable matchup this week against Green Bay who has not performed well this season.

C.J. Uzomah, Bengals – Owned in 6.5% of leagues

C.J. Uzomah has not put up great numbers this season, but he has still been getting targets each week in the Bengals’ offense. At this point, there is not much value to be added from starting him, but he is a reliable backup and he should be playing week 17 since the Bengals don’t have any other good options at TE.

Defenses:

This section of the article is based primarily on streaming defense options for each week. It will sight defenses that have good matchups and are owned in less than 20% of leagues according to NFL.com:

Indianapolis Colts – Owned in 19.5% of leagues

The Colts had one of their best performances of the season last week against the Cowboys. They got over 20 fantasy points and held a hot Dallas offense to zero points. With a matchup against the New York Giants coming up this week, this might be even more of an ugly game than last weeks’ game. Colts need to continue to win if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Miami Dolphins – Owned in 10.3% of leagues

The Miami Dolphins did return an interception for a TD last week, but there was not much else to be impressed with. With a matchup against the Jaguars this week, Miami should feel very comfortable and they will be a good play in fantasy. With them being owned in such few leagues, this is the time to pick them up if you are still in need of a defense.