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The waiver wire is as thin as ever and there are just two teams on a bye in Week 13, but with the fantasy football playoffs set to begin in just a few weeks, it's time to shape those fantasy rosters for real upside. These fantasy football waiver wire pickup suggestions are for fantasy managers in deep leagues of 14-teams or more or a higher number of bench spots than traditional fantasy leagues. That said, chalky waiver pickups like Zay Jones, Treylon Burks, and Latavius Murray won't be featured.
At this point in the season, it's time to trim down on wide receivers who haven't cracked your starting lineup and replace them with high-upside RB handcuffs like Alexander Mattison and Dontrell Hilliard. As always, these players are usually cheap to obtain and can be dropped if it's clear they won't have value after a few weeks. With 12 weeks of data to examine, advanced stats and fantasy statistics carry more weight for the rest of the season.
Without further ado, here are the top deeper league waiver wire targets for Week 13, including Zonovan Knight, Alexander Mattison, Jameson Williams, Richie James, and Mack Hollins.
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Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Targets for Week 13
Jameis Winston could be the starter in New Orleans any time soon, as Andy Dalton and the Saints are coming off a game where they scored zero points against the San Francisco 49ers. He has real upside as a risk-taking gunslinger.
Kyren Williams logged 14 touches for 60 yards against the Kansas City Chiefs, and although this Rams offense is going nowhere fast, any running back with a decent workload is worth a roster spot in deep leagues.
DeeJay Dallas nor Travis Homer logged a touch in the loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but they're both top contenders for plenty of volume in a top offense if something were to happen to Kenneth Walker down the stretch.
JaMycal Hasty and Darrell Henderson are solid roster stashes as they're the top two back behind Travis Etienne in the Jaguars offense. Etienne left his Week 12 game early with a foot injury. Although the injury is not expected to be serious, things can change in a hurry. It's unclear whether Hasty or Henderson is the guy to own since Henderson was a healthy scratch in Week 12, so flip a coin and take your chances on one of them.
Tyrion Davis-Price was given the nod over Jordan Mason in the backfield in the past, so he'll likely be the backup to Christian McCaffrey after Elijah Mitchell suffered another knee injury.
Dontrell Hilliard's workload varies week-to-week so he can't be trusted in fantasy lineups, but Derrick Henry is 28 years old and looks to be slowing down a bit, so there's a chance Hillard could get more involved. If not, he's at least a top handcuff in a premier rushing offense.
Boston Scott and Kenneth Gainwell should remain on the fantasy radar as handcuffs to Miles Sanders in one of the best offensive attacks in football.
Alexander Mattison has as much upside as any handcuff running back, so he's a must-roster in all deep leagues as the fantasy football playoff approach. He's more worth rostering than a WR2 or WR3 on a low-volume passing offense, so it's time to make that switch.
Zonovan Knight handled 17 touches for 103 yards in the Jets' big win over the Chicago Bears. Michael Carter suffered an ankle sprain, while James Robinson was a healthy inactive. Even before Carter went down, Knight was earning touches, so perhaps the rookie running back from NC State will be featured down the stretch in the new-look Jets offense. Ty Johnson could also be worth picking up if Carter has to miss time.
Isaiah Spiller and Joshua Kelley are the top two running backs behind Austin Ekeler, and although neither is worth starting while Ekeler is healthy, both could have top-10 upside at running back if Ekeler has to miss any games.
Chuba Hubbard looks to be relegated to the RB2 role in Carolina, but he did get 17 carries in the win over the Denver Broncos. If nothing else, he's at least the handcuff to D'Onta Foreman, and you'd think Carolina will want to see what they have in their second-year back.
DeAndre Carter and Joshua Palmer are worth rostering, as both have provided explosive weeks when veteran wideouts Mike Williams and Keenan Allen have missed time.
Richie James caught five of his six targets for 41 yards and a touchdown on Thanksgiving against the Dallas Cowboys. James is the primary slot receiver since Wan'Dale Robinson tore his ACL, so he's worth taking a look at after a few solid fantasy performances this season.
Devin Duvernay, DeSean Jackson, and Demarcus Robinson have low floors in a low-volume passing offense, but with Rashod Bateman (foot) out for the season, both have the opportunity to be fantasy football factors.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling is far from a safe fantasy option in a crowded skill group for Kansas City, but he has the boom-or-bust upside that can win weeks, and he's a top "handcuff" wideout in an elite offense.
Julio Jones has seen 18 targets in his last four games, and although the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offense looked dead in the water once again in Week 12, it's always difficult to write Tom Brady off.
Mack Hollins has caught 12 of his 20 targets over his last three games for over 100 yards and a touchdown. He hasn't produced league-shattering numbers, but he's been a steady flex option in PPR leagues. He continues to fly under the radar because he's not a big name, but he deserves a roster spot in 14-man leagues.
Jameson Williams (knee) started practicing ahead of Week 12, so there's a real chance he makes his season debut in Week 13. Williams has elite speed, so hopefully, he can deliver boom weeks that win matchups for fantasy managers in a strong offense.
Skyy Moore has caught 10 of his 12 targets for 99 yards over the last two weeks, and looks to be benefiting from the absence of Mecole Hardman (abdomen) and Kadarius Toney (hamstring). If those guys come back soon, he could be droppable, but he's worth rostering after two stellar performances.
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