NFL Waiver Wire: Week 12 Pickups

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Published on November 21, 2023

It gets annoying to read anything that says something to the effect, "It was a weird week in the NFL ..." Admittedly, I was probably guilty of it in my early work here on the site. The NFL is a weird, week-to-week league, but identifying the reason why instead of giving a general statement is more helpful. This week there's a slew of quarterback changes due to injury and ineffectiveness and it should make FAAB bidding interesting for those in Superflex leagues.

There are three games on Thanksgiving and one on Friday this week, and no byes.

As always, hit up the comments section or DM me @KCPayne26 on X (formerly known as Twitter) as many of you already have.

This column is geared toward "standard" 12-team leagues and based upon a $100 free-agent budget. Please adjust for your league based on both the number of teams (I'm in a 24-team league, for example) and remaining budget

Quarterback

Primary Targets

Jordan Love, GB - Love entered the Circle of Trust earlier this season, was excommunicated and is now welcome back with open arms given the level of quarterback turnover this week. Love is coming off a career-high 322 passing yards with two scores and has shown a preference for spreading the ball around. He had an ideal home matchup last week against the Chargers, who rank 32nd against the position, and gets another good matchup this week against the Lions (22nd). He also quietly had rushing touchdowns in back-to-back

There are three games on Thanksgiving and one on Friday this week, and no byes.

As always, hit up the comments section or DM me @KCPayne26 on X (formerly known as Twitter) as many of you already have.

Quarterback

Primary Targets

Secondary Targets

Jake Browning, CIN - Browning had only attempted one pass in the NFL before relieving Joe Burrow on Thursday night but had some success despite coming in cold. He threw a touchdown pass with no interceptions and rushed four times for 40 yards. This week's matchup against Pittsburgh isn't great but Jacksonville, Indianapolis and Minnesota the three weeks after are very good. The attraction with Browning is his scrambling ability along with elite group of wide receivers to target. FAAB: $3-$6

Hail Mary

Jameis Winston, NO - I'd bet a lot of money Derek Carr will be out of the concussion protocol and ready to play before Sunday's game with the Falcons. If not, I'd rather have Winston this week rather than Tim Boyle, Tommy DeVito, etc. FAAB: $1-$2

Running Back

Primary Targets

Zach Charbonnet, SEA - Here's the big pickup of the week at running back with Kenneth Walker leaving Sunday's game with a significant oblique injury. Charbonnet was already getting a bigger role as a backup, receiving a season-high 10 touches Week 10 before the injury, and is now in line for 15-plus touches while Walker is out. He has the skill set to catch passes (15 in his last five games) and has the size (6-foot-1, 215) to handle the goal-line work as well. The only hesitation is lack of a return timetable for Walker, and the next four games on the schedule are difficult (an upgraded San Francisco defense twice, Dallas and Philadelphia). FAAB: $10-$20

Secondary Targets

Ty Chandler, MIN - Chandler was discussed in this space last week and gets another mention as a player on rostered in 44 percent of Yahoo leagues. I was a bit surprised Alexander Mattison came out of the concussion protocol for last week's game, but he was underwhelming and lost a key fumble in the loss to the Broncos. Chandler gained 107 scrimmage yards (14 touches) and continues to show he's a better pass-catcher than Mattison. While Mattison appears to still be the lead back, Chandler has carved out for himself a double-digit-touches role, and another fumble could put Mattison in the doghouse for a while. FAAB: $4-$8

Ezekiel Elliott, DAL - Quick, how old is Elliott? It might surprise some (myself included) that he's only 27. He has a lot of mileage and is approaching 2,000 career carries (1,967 currently). He hasn't been a model of efficiency this season, averaging 3.8 yards per carry, and has only scored two touchdowns after finding the end zone 40 times the previous four seasons. However, it would be logical for the Patriots to be a run-heavy offense the rest of the season, and Elliott had 15 touches Week 10 before the bye. He doesn't have a ton of upside with Rhamondre Stevenson still the lead back, but there are six teams on bye in Week 13, so now would be the time to acquire his services. The schedule the rest of the way for both New England backs is terrific. They face six teams ranked 20th or worse against running backs, sandwiched around the Chiefs (13th) Week 15. FAAB: $3-$6

Wide Receiver

Secondary Targets

Jayden Reed, GB - While Jordan Love, as mentioned, likes to spread the ball around, it's also true that Reed has become a significant part of Green Bay's gameplan every week. He has double-digit fantasy points in four of his last five games (PPR) and has 19.2 and 19.4 fantasy points in his last two. The loss of Aaron Jones saw him get a season-high three carries, one of which he turned into a touchdown. If Jones stays out it's possible Reed continues to see a few carries and he should continue to get about 4-5 targets per game as well. FAAB: $4-$8

Odell Beckham, BAL - Beckham hurt his shoulder at the end of Thursday's game with the Bengals but appears to be ready to face the Chargers this weekend. He had his best receiving game as a Raven, finishing with four catches for 116 yards. This was the third week in a row he scored double-digit fantasy points (PPR) and he has a good matchup this weekend with the Chargers, who allow the second-most fantasy points to wide receivers. The loss of Mark Andrews could mean a slight uptick in targets for Beckham. FAAB: $3-$6

Tutu Atwell, LAR - It looks like Cooper Kupp could miss some time with an ankle injury and both Puka Nacua and Atwell stand to gain from it. Atwell started the season with games of eight, nine, nine and nine targets and showed enough to make Van Jefferson expendable. He has three receiving touchdowns and will see softer coverage playing opposite Nacua. FAAB: $2-$4

Hail Mary

Jameson Williams, DET - I'd love to see what Williamson could do running more routes and getting more targets than the three or fewer he had in five of six games this season. He's capable of scoring (two touchdowns in six games) but also has a low ceiling, scoring 3.8 fantasy points (PPR) or fewer in four games. FAAB: $1-$2

Khalil Shakir, BUF - Buffalo's top two receiving threats are Stefon Diggs and Dalton Kincaid (Dawson Knox should return this week), but Shakir might have bypassed Gabe Davis on the depth chart. He scored a long touchdown against the Jets, a game in which Davis wasn't even targeted. Starting Week 2, Shakir had exactly one target in five consecutive games, but has totaled 20 in his last four. He has a low floor, and the Bills have a bye Week 13, so for now he's just someone to have on your radar. FAAB: FCFS or $1

Tight End

Secondary Targets

Isaiah Likely, BAL - I wouldn't count on Mark Andrews returning this season, especially for fantasy purposes. That puts Likely in a good spot in the Baltimore offense, considering Lamar Jackson's tendency to throw to his tight end and the 6.1 targets per game Andrews leaves behind. Likely had a 4-4-42 in Week 10 and had a 13-8-103 game last season, totaling three touchdowns in 2022. He definitely has upside and, as usual, I'll mention that tight end has been a difficult position to navigate this season. The next three games are good as he faces the Chargers (31st against tight ends) and then after a bye, the Rams (26th) and Jaguars (17th). FAAB: $4-$8

Pat Freiermuth, PIT - Freiermuth was activated of IR and immediately put up a fantasy dud with one catch for seven yards Sunday. To be fair, it was an awful matchup in Cleveland against a Browns team that is the toughest in the league against tight ends. The problem I have with Freiermuth isn't his ability, it's that he has Kenny Pickett throwing him the ball. I'd for sure prefer Likely over Freiermuth the rest of the season. FAAB: $2-$4

Defense

Hail Mary

Tennessee Titans - This might be the only time all season to stream the Titans, who have an ideal matchup at home against Bryce Young and the Panthers. Carolina hasn't scored more than 15 points in any of its last four games and Young has a 9:8 TD:INT ratio, fumbling five times with three lost. FAAB: $1-$2

Atlanta Falcons - The Falcons are at home this week, coming off a bye, but this is about being proactive for Week 13. They play a team next week that rhymes with "Mets" and also will play in New York. FAAB: FCFS