Welcome to Week 14, the final week of the fantasy football regular season. If you’re checking out this waiver wire column, then you’re still in the fight. You may be preparing for a playoff run, looking to clinch one of the final playoff spots, or staying competitive to spoil someone else’s hopes and dreams. Whatever the reason, there are a handful of players worth considering on the Week 14 waiver wire.
Each player’s value is different. Some are one week plug-and-play guys for Week 14 while others are pieces to add in preparation for the playoffs. Below, we’ll look at players at each position, who are on 50% or less of most fantasy football rosters, that could be considered on the Week 14 waiver wire. I’m happy to discuss players further, especially as it applies to your league’s specifics, on Twitter @Colin_McT! Your decisions on the Week 14 waiver wire could make or break your chances at a title.
Week 14 Waiver Wire By Position
Running Back
Zonovan Knight, New York Jets
BAM! After losing Breece Hall in Week 7 to a torn ACL, and Michael Carter to a sprained ankle in Week 12, Zonovan Knight is seemingly the new lead back for the Jets. He’s averaging 15.05 points over the last two weeks without even scoring a touchdown. In both games, Knight has eclipsed the 100 all-purpose yard mark and he’s led the backfield in carries in each game.
Above all else, Knight’s 15 carries, with an inactive Carter in Week 13, account for 75% of the Jets’ running back carries. Factoring in his receptions, too, his 20 total touches account for 64.5% of their running backs’ touches. Knight is going to remain heavily in the mix. He is my top add at all positions on the Week 14 waiver wire. Knight gets home matchups against the Lions, Jaguars, then travels to play the Seahawks for the fantasy football playoffs. It is the best complete schedule for a running back. He’s a potential league winner.
James Cook, Buffalo Bills
James Cook’s Week 14 breakout lands him on the Week 14 waiver wire report as a strong consideration to add to your fantasy roster. His 16.5 PPR points are a season-high. What’s exciting about Cook’s point total is that it’s all a result of a healthy dose of volume rather than a few touches and a score. There’s plenty of meat left on the bone as Cook trends in the right direction.
Cook’s six receptions on six targets for 41 yards is something many would expect from him out of the backfield. His 14 rushing attempts, though, led the team. It’s going to be hard to trust Cook with the frequency at which Josh Allen carries the ball. Devin Singletary is also still in the mix logging 13 carries of his own, one of which landed him in the end zone. If not to start on your own team, stashing Cook to prevent your opponents from grabbing him is something I’m looking to do at the very least. It’s never a bad thing to have a piece of the Bills’ offense.
Cam Akers, Los Angeles Rams
With 19.0 fantasy points on Sunday, Cam Akers scored 35% of his fantasy points this season in Week 13. His 17 carries were a season-high and his two touchdowns bring his season total to just three. Though many fantasy managers are wishing this sort of performance was a season-long effort, it’s better late than never, right?
Akers gets a good chance to stay hot, too. In three of his next four games, Akers and the Rams will face three teams in the top seven of fantasy points allowed to running backs. The Chargers, in Week 17, the fantasy finals, allow the second-most points to the position. It’s worth noting that the Rams’ Week 14 opponent, the Raiders, are allowing the most receiving yards to running backs this season. Akers is hardly involved in the Los Angeles passing game. That could mean more of Kyren Williams in Week 14. I’m still adding Akers on the waiver wire, especially if I have earned a playoff spot already.
Other Running Backs to Consider:
Jordan Mason looks to officially be Christian McCaffrey’s backup in San Francisco. His eight carries trailed McCaffrey’s 17, but Mason managed an impressive 6.4 yards per carry. With Elijah Mitchell spending the rest of the fantasy football season (at least) on the Injured Reserve, Mason is that much more important in adding on the Week 14 waiver wire, especially if you have McCaffrey on your roster. If anything were to happen to McCaffrey, Mason would be a locked-in RB2 with upside.
Deejay Dallas is a riskier add on the Week 14 waiver wire, but worth considering as the potential lead back in Seattle. Kenneth Walker is dealing with a foot injury that could keep him off of the field. Dallas did come in, but hurt his ankle, as well. Travis Homer’s absence was due to an illness, but Pete Carroll is adamant that Homer has a knee issue that could hold him back further. If Dallas is able to play in Week 14, he is worth considering as a flex play. However, if Homer is cleared to play, he is the Seattle running back I want.
Any and All Handcuffs are going to be important to roster during the back half of the fantasy football season. Injuries to lead running backs can strike at any time. Make sure you’re cuffing your own starters, but don’t be afraid to add others on the Week 14 waiver wire.
Wide Receiver
Darius Slayton, New York Giants
If I’m already positioned to compete in my league’s fantasy football playoffs, then I’m adding Darius Slayton where he’s available. Yes, he has a tough matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 14, but they are known to give up a chunk play or two from time to time. With no other reliable options in the New York Giants passing game, Slayton and his rapport with Daniel Jones shows week-in and week-out.
Since Week 5 Slayton has just two games where he didn’t score double-digit fantasy points. It’s worth noting his 9.3 points from Week 12 could have been if he didn’t get tackled at the one-yard line on a 44-yard deep pass. Anyway, as the Giants’ top option in the passing game, it’s hard to believe Slayton is still available on the Week 14 waiver wire. This should be the last time anyone has the opportunity to pick him up.
Nico Collins, Houston Texans
In the last four weeks, Collins’ 25% target share leads the team by far. For the second time in those four games, Collins logged exactly 10 targets, notably in the absence of Brandin Cooks. Unfortunately, for fantasy managers, Collins looked like a major Week 13 bust until he scored a six-yard touchdown with just under two minutes left in the game. It was just his third catch with the two prior yielding 29 total yards.
It’s conceivable Cooks is going to sit out for the remainder of the season, regardless of how serious his calf injury is. The Texans are biding their time until they officially earn the first pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. Collins should continue to operate as the top receiver until the end of the season. Especially, in games like their Week 14 bout with the Dallas Cowboys, in which Dallas is favored by 17 points, Collins will have every opportunity to rack up fantasy points if he can haul in a majority of his targets. Every opponent of his in the fantasy football playoffs ranks in the top seven of points allowed to wide receivers this season. He could go on a league-winning tear if the quarterback play is good enough.
Other Wide Receivers to Consider:
Isaiah McKenzie, Buffalo Bills
Only Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis have more targets than McKenzie this season. With 15 targets in his last two games, McKenzie is seemingly edging Dawson Knox out of the Bills’ offense. He is averaging just under six receptions per game for 70 yards and has found the end zone once, in his last two. Like James Cook (above), adding a piece of the Buffalo Bills offense is never a bad thing.
Corey Davis saw 10 targets in Week 13 for the first time since Week 1. Garrett Wilson is very much the alpha receiver on the New York Jets offense, but with Mike White back under center, Davis could bounce back for the remainder of this season. It’s a bit of a dice roll considering Davis saw just three targets in Mike White’s first start this season.
Trent Sherfield, of the Miami Dolphins, is an interesting wide receiver handcuff option off of the Week 14 waiver wire. The volume isn’t trustworthy enough to plug him into starting lineups, but he is averaging 12.03 PPR points per game in his last three. That includes two receiving touchdowns on 13 total targets. The key here is Jaylen Waddle’s health. While he claims he will be available for Week 14, having Sherfield on your roster just in case is a savvy move.
Jameson Williams is worth adding just in case he quickly develops into a major deep-threat option for Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions. Goff is already on record stating how fast Williams is. With just eight snaps in his debut on Sunday, Williams drew just one target. It’s going to be extremely difficult plugging him into fantasy starting lineups until we see legitimate production first.
Tight End
Greg Dulcich, Denver Broncos
It’s not every year that a rookie tight end is worth starting in fantasy football. After a career-high 14.5 fantasy points on Sunday, Dulcich is a rare exception. While 14.5 points isn’t an eye-popping total, it’s the second-highest score (0.3 less than first) from a tight end from Week 13. More importantly, Dulcich’s eight targets led all Broncos and was his second-highest total in a game this season. His schedule is what makes Dulcich an enticing add from the Week 14 waiver wire. He gets two matchups with the Kansas City Chiefs in what figures to be two games worth of negative game scripts. In the first round of the fantasy playoffs, in Week 15, Dulcich and the Broncos host the Arizona Cardinals who allow the most points to tight ends this season.
Hunter Henry, New England Patriots
Speaking of the Arizona Cardinals allowing the most fantasy points to tight ends this season, guess who plays them in Week 14? Hunter Henry and the Patriots. If you need a tight end for Week 14 to get into the playoffs, Henry is one of my top considerations. Arizona is allowing the most receptions and yards to the position. They’ve also allowed nine touchdowns to tight ends through 12 games, the most of any team. After an extended break, following a Thursday night loss last week, Henry is in a prime position to put up points in Week 14. He has five targets exactly in each of the Patriots’ last two games.
Other Tight Ends to Consider
Evan Engram‘s 21% target share in Week 13 puts him, yet again, in discussion for this week’s waiver wire. His seven targets against the Detroit Lions are equal to the number of total targets from his previous three games. The risk of starting Engram is real. He is more often than not the third receiving option in the Jags’ offense this season behind Christian Kirk and Zay Jones. Engram has five games with double-digit fantasy points but also has five games with less than five points. Tread lightly.
Cade Otton is one of just two tight ends that can say they’ve scored a touchdown against the New Orleans Saints this season. Like most tight ends this season, Otton is a matchup-based streaming option. Since Week 5, he has five or more targets in five of eight games. Otton’s value is also based on whether or not Cameron Brate plays. In Week 13, without Brate, Otton logged a career-high 10 targets and, again, found the end zone. He is worth keeping an eye on, if you make it to the fantasy semi-finals, as he’s set to take on the fantasy-friendly Arizona Cardinals defense.
Chigoziem Okonkwo is a deeper league consideration at tight end on the waiver wire. His four receptions and 68 yards on Sunday are both career highs. Furthermore, 41 of his 68 receiving yards came on a big catch and run. That’s what you’re hoping for with Okonkwo. There’s not enough meat on the bone in the Titans’ passing game to feel good about rolling him out there. This offense will continue to run through Derrick Henry, especially with a softer schedule against some of the most porous run defenses.
Quarterback
Jared Goff, Detroit Lions
Most waiver wire articles are going to focus on Tyler Huntler and Brock Purdy as pickups given the injuries to Lamar Jackson and Jimmy Garropolo. Don’t let that distract you from Jared Goff’s third-best fantasy performance of the season and his highest since Week 4. The Detroit Lions just dropped 40 points on the Jacksonville Jaguars. They’re the sixth-highest scoring team in the NFL this season.
Additionally, the Lions are the second-highest scoring team in the last two weeks. Goff is surrounded by plenty of weapons to continue to rack up fantasy points, as well. He will have great opportunities to do so against the Vikings, Jets, Panthers, and Bears to round out the fantasy football season. He is quite easily my top quarterback add on the Week 14 waiver wire.
Mike White, New York Jets
I would like to think you have better options than White in 10 or 12-team 1QB leagues. If not, though, White is in the waiver wire discussion after averaging 22.13 points in his last two starts. Though a road matchup with the Buffalo Bills in Week 14 could be difficult, he will at least be busy in that one. Then he gets back-to-back home matchups against the Lions and Jaguars to start the fantasy playoffs off with a bang. White is averaging 342 passing yards in his last two games. The team is so clearly bought in to him under center. If not for anything else, he is unleashing rookie wide receiver, Garrett Wilson, just in time for the final few games.
Other Quarterbacks to Consider
Tyler Huntley is going to start in Week 14 for the Baltimore Ravens. Lamar Jackson is reportedly week-to-week with a knee injury. Huntley is in his third year with the Ravens and started four games last season in place of Jackson, too. In Jackson’s place, Huntley averaged just under 200 passing yards per start, but nearly 60 yards rushing. Huntley is a must-add on the waiver wire for 2QB and Superflex teams but is best left there in 1QB redraft leagues.
Brock Purdy is also a 2QB and Superflex add on the waiver wire, but difficult to trust in 1QB leagues. The 262nd pick in this year’s draft, also known as Mr. Irrelevant, does have an incredible complement of weapons. Even in a strong win over the Miami Dolphins, Purdy’s 15.30 points are about what I would have expected from Jimmy Garropolo. Neither quarterback adds enough rushing upside to get excited about for fantasy football. Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, and others do all of the groundwork in San Francisco.