Should I Pickup Craig Reynolds or Sione Vaki? Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 16

Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery (knee) unfortunately suffered an MCL injury in his team's Week 15 loss to the Buffalo Bills. His season is now over. It will likely not be possible to completely replace the value of such a productive back, but many fantasy managers are looking to the waiver wire for other options.

Of course, the Lions have run a committee backfield heavily for the past few years, so it's possible they could do the same even in the absence of one of their stars. Fellow Detroit RBs Craig Reynolds and Sione Vaki are two players who could step up and try to fill in the shoes of the injured Monty moving forward.

So, should you pick up Reynolds or Vaki on the waiver wire? Let's dive in below and assess your options!

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Craig Reynolds Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Outlook

We're not sure if Reynolds has a ton of upside. The problem is that RB Jahmyr Gibbs is so much more talented that it's hard to see the other backs getting much volume. In games that Montgomery has missed, the team has preferred to give Gibbs the lion's share (literally) of the backfield work.

Jahmyr Gibbs last year in 3 games without David Montgomery 👀

23 touches/game
132 total yards/game
2 TDs
19.7 fantasy points/game pic.twitter.com/BOgMvEZTlY

— Yahoo Fantasy Sports (@YahooFantasy) December 16, 2024

It's easy to see why. Gibbs was the team's 12th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, and the move to get him was seen as a reach for a player at his position. Detroit chose to spit in the face of the league wide devaluation of the RB position, and it's benefitted them hugely by lending them one of the best running games in the league.

It's unlikely that Reynolds will take any meaningful work away from Gibbs, but he could see a handful of touches to spell him. But he's probably the guy to at least take some of Monty's role.

Sione Vaki Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Outlook

Vaki presents a slightly more interesting case, at least. He's a rookie, so the team should want to evaluate him, at least over the final few regular season games. But with the division and potentially the No. 1 seed and a bye week in the playoffs on the line, it's difficult to see Detroit giving a freshman player a ton of work right out the gate.

The Rook @sione_vaki making waves on special teams already! Pro Bowl invite coming soon? 👀 #lions #detroit #detroitlions #nfl #probowl #polynesian #tongan #football pic.twitter.com/fcjaTr10rV

— The Standard ~ Sports Management (@TheStandard_Co) October 29, 2024

Vaki has mostly played on special teams so far, and that's still a valuable role for NFL teams. It's unlikely he gets much backfield work. They'll continue to evaluate him for special teams, where he's made a difference.

Should I Pickup Craig Reynolds or Sione Vaki For Fantasy Football?

The most reasonable angle seems to be that the team's emergency plan was to restrict the touches of both Montgomery and Gibbs to reduce both wear and tear and their risk of injuries. This puts them in a good position to run Gibbs in a workhorse role for the rest of the season because, through 14 games, he's only averaged just under 16.1 touches per game.

Jahmyr Gibbs has 1,016 rushing yards on 178 carries.

He's the only running back in the NFL with 800+ yards on fewer than 185 attempts ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/aTlGuEwttv

— Underdog (@UnderdogFantasy) December 14, 2024

But with the Lions wanting to run the ball over 30 times per game, they probably don't want to run Gibbs into the ground but securing that all-important first round bye is pivotal for a team loaded with injuries right now.

Reynolds should have a smaller role than Monty, but he'll likely have at least something. In deeper leagues, he's worth a pickup. In leagues with 12 or fewer teams, though, you're better off looking for other options on other teams at this point.

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