Joe Serpico shares his top fantasy football waiver-wire pickups heading into Week 13.
It’s officially handcuff season as we inch closer to the end of the fantasy regular season. Rather than rostering a second tight end or a fifth and sixth receiver, add backup running backs in the event of an injury to the player ahead of them on the depth chart. Players who should be on your radar are Zack Moss, Rico Dowdle, Joshua Kelley, Ty Chandler, Kenneth Gainwell, Tyjae Spears and Antonio Gibson.
Derek Carr, QB, New Orleans Saints: Injuries have decimated the quarterback position so options have become limited in fantasy football, but Derek Carr is available in more than 55 percent of Yahoo and Sleeper leagues and more than 75 percent of ESPN leagues. Carr has failed to throw a touchdown pass the last two weeks, but did throw for 300 yards against the Falcons and has a juicy schedule upcoming with the Lions, Panthers and Giants’ suspect defenses looming. If you’ve been forced to stream quarterbacks due to injury, Carr is a solid option the next few weeks.
Jayden Reed, WR, Green Bay Packers: The latest rookie wide receiver to catch fire is Reed, who has finished as WR10, WR 11 and WR24 the past three weeks. The Packers are not only getting him involved in the pass game, but they’re dialing up run plays to get the ball in his hands as much as possible. The result has been a touchdown in three straight games in addition to an increase in snaps each week. He is technically still third in the pecking order behind Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs, but Reed is the only one taking advantage of his opportunities.
Pat Freiermuth, TE, Pittsburgh Steelers: Available in more than 50 percent of all leagues, get the Steelers tight end on your roster if he’s on waivers. He caught 9 of 11 targets for 120 yards against the Bengals on Sunday, all career highs, and finished as TE2 for the week. He missed extended time due to a hamstring injury and fantasy owners cut ties with him as a result. If you lost Mark Andrews a week ago and still haven’t found a reliable replacement, Freiermuth is a top-15 option the rest of the way.
Juwan Johnson, TE, New Orleans Saints: Taysom Hill has gotten much of the attention at tight end for the Saints, but don’t overlook Johnson, who had seven targets against the Falcons on Sunday. New Orleans is without its top three receivers, as Chris Olave and Rasheed Shaheed both left Sunday’s game early and Michael Thomas is on injured reserve. Johnson should see an uptick in targets with the Saints’ receivers banged up and the aforementioned schedule looming.
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