Detroit Lions (DEF, DET) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stream in 12-Team Leagues OWNED IN: 19% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: So, maybe we need to reevaluate this Lions defense. They entered Week 13 ranking out at a horrible 31st in DVOA, but we know that doesn’t necessarily tell the whole story. Especially with fantasy. The Lions just shut down Drew Brees and the Saints in their own home, […]

Derrick Henry (RB, TEN) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues OWNED IN: 60% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Derrick Henry looked good against the Bears in Week 12, better than DeMarco Murray did, and it was said by HC Mike Mularkey that they've discussed using Henry in more short-yardage situations moving forward. This was overshadowed by Tennessee hitting their bye, but don’t let it sneak […]

D'Angelo Williams (RB, PIT) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues as a LeVeon Bell handcuff OWNED IN: 52% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Nothing has changed here, as D'Angelo Williams remains the premier handcuff in the fantasy football universe. LeVeon Bell is a force, but if he goes down then Williams has shown to be quite valuable in this potent Pittsburgh offense. You don’t […]

Dion Lewis (RB, NE) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10- and 12-Team Leagues OWNED IN: 47% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Dion Lewis barely outgained James White, with 38 total yards to White’s 35, but he had five rushes to White’s three and they each saw five targets. The truth is that they may cancel each other out in the passing game the rest of the […]

Tim Hightower (RB, NO) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues as a Mark Ingram handcuff OWNED IN: 50% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: After Tim Hightower collected 105 yards last week alongside Mark Ingram, he pulled a magic act in Week 13 and disappeared despite Mark Ingram missing a few series with his toe injury. Hightower and the Saints were embarrassed by the Lions, […]

Charles Sims (RB, TB) - NFL Waiver Wire PIckups

BALLER MOVE: Stash in 10- and 12-Team Leagues for playoff run OWNED IN: 46% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Charles Sims has been practicing and is eligible to return for the Bucs first game against the Saints in Week 14. It’ll be tough for fantasy owners to trust him out of the gate in the first week of the fantasy playoffs, but […]

Kenneth Dixon (RB, BAL) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stream in 10- and 12-Team PPR Leagues OWNED IN: 34% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Kenneth Dixon looked very good with the ball in his hands in Baltimore's Week 13 shellacking of Miami, but unfortunately it was Terrance West who scored twice. While Dixon totaled a steady 77 yards on only 10 touches (six rushes, four catches), the red-zone usage remains […]

Jerick McKinnon (RB, MIN) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12- and 14-Team Leagues as a potential playoff back; avoid in Week 14 OWNED IN: 39% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: The Vikings almost beat the Cowboys thanks to leaning more on McKinnon than the plodding Matt Asiata (37% Owned), but they still came up short. This was a plus matchup for the pass-catching RB against […]

Wendell Smallwood (RB, PHI) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14-Team Leagues OWNED IN: 32% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Ryan Mathews has now missed two games in a row, and Wendell Smallwood has failed to do much of anything in each of those games. He has rushed it 17 times for 56 yards in those contests, so we’re being generous in our not lambasting him […]

Alfred Morris (RB, DAL) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12- and 14-Team Leagues as an Ezekiel Elliott handcuff OWNED IN: 33% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: With the bye weeks all gone now, there’s really no excuse for the second-most important RB handcuff in the game to be owned in only one-third of the leagues. Check out RotoBaller's famous fantasy football draft sleepers and waiver […]

Mike Gillislee (RB, BUF) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues as a LeSean McCoy handcuff OWNED IN: 31% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Another big handcuff to own, but the interesting part with Mike Gillislee is that he’s actually still playable even with LeSean McCoy active. Buffalo takes such a run-heavy approach with their offense that he gets a chance to turn his spellback […]

Jacquizz Rodgers (RB, TB) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues as a Doug Martin handcuff OWNED IN: 29% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Yes, Charles Sims is eligible to return in Week 14, but we all saw how effective Jacquizz Rodgers can still be in space on a nice little flat route that he turned into a crucial first down. Rodgers isn’t playable with […]

Paul Perkins (RB, NYG) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add as a handcuff for Rashad Jennings OWNED IN: 21% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Paul Perkins shows some healthy signs of life when he touches the ball, but the Giants just haven’t been good enough at the running the ball to provide us with two fantasy-viable RBs. He remains nothing more than a handcuff to the preferred goal-line option […]

Shaun Draughn (RB, SF) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues as a Carlos Hyde handcuff OWNED IN: 12% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Shaun Draughn didn’t have a chance to do anything, as the 49ers really couldn’t generate any offense in Week 13 against the Bears. He actually got all of his points from rushing, as he notched 20 yards on five totes. He hadn’t […]

Alfred Blue (RB, HOU) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14-Team Leagues as a Lamar Miller handcuff OWNED IN: 9% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Lamar Miller didn’t end up missing much time in Week 13, but Alfred Blue still was the one come in when Miller left, and he also got to come in and play on Houston’s final series in the fourth quarter. He […]

Denard Robinson (RB, JAX) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14-Team Leagues as a Jaguars running back handcuff OWNED IN: 7% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Denard Robinson tallied an impressive 17 rushes in Week 13’s ugly matchup against the Broncos, which only yielded 53 yards on the ground. He also chipped in an 11-yard catch, but this day wasn’t likely to produce much fruit against […]

Rex Burkhead (RB, CIN) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 16- and 18-Team Leagues OWNED IN: 5% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Rex Burkhead turned eight rushes into 38 yards and caught four-of-five targets for 28 yards, but also had a fumble lost to take the edge off of his day. It wasn’t anything special, but those in deep PPR leagues may have found his ~8 […]

Aaron Ripkowski (RB, GB) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Very Deep Leagues OWNED IN: 1% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: You don’t want to rely on a fullback in this era of the NFL, but there’s no doubting that Aaron Ripkowski has the confidence of his head coach and quarterback. Christine Michael may very well end up being the go-to goal-line back as time ticks on, […]

Ladarius Green (TE, PIT) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues OWNED IN: 36% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: It appears we may have finally reached the point of no return with Ladarius Green’s usage, as he had shown flashes in previous weeks when he was utilized, but still hadn’t been in on more than 26% of Pittsburgh’s snaps. That changed in Week 13 against the […]

Zack Ertz (TE, PHI) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues OWNED IN: 74% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: He’s owned in many Fleaflicker leagues, but may have fallen by the wayside in your league after last week’s middling effort. Zack ZErtz got back to his target-monster ways with nine catches for 79 yards and a TD. With Jordan Matthews (ankle) out, Ertz was pretty much […]

Cameron Brate (TE, TB) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10- and 12-Team Leagues OWNED IN: 52% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Cameron Brate set a new season-high mark in receiving yards with 86 in Tampa Bay’s Week 13 victory over the Chargers, as he also returned to the end zone after missing out in the previous two weeks. Brate ran a nice post route that shook the […]

Dennis Pitta (TE, BAL) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stream in 12-Team Leagues OWNED IN: 42% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: What year is it?! Relax, it’s 2016 and not 2013, despite what Dennis Pitta’s box score reads. He hadn’t scored in nearly three years, but Pitta made things even wilder by scoring twice! His 9-90-2 line came on 11 targets, which came out of left field after […]

C.J. Fiedorowicz (TE, HOU) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stream in 12-Team Leagues OWNED IN: 41% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: C.J. Fiedorowicz saw a healthy nine targets in Week 13 against Green Bay, but they were Brock Osweiler targets. Not only that, but they were Brock Osweiler targets in a snow-covered Lambeau Field. Osweiler isn’t a new factor with Fiedorowicz, sometimes it’s just fun to beat a dead […]

Jermaine Gresham (TE, ARI) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stream in 12-Team Leagues OWNED IN: 6% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Jermaine Gresham continues to stir up some deep-league waters here, as he’s averaged roughly six targets per game over his last five contests, and has seen a real uptick in his red-zone usage. He had scored in Weeks 11 and 12, and was tackled at the one […]

Vernon Davis (TE, WAS) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12- and 14-Team Leagues as a Jordan Reed handcuff OWNED IN: 38% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Vernon Davis turned in a relatively solid effort against an Arizona defense that is well known for its ability to lock down tight ends, but a 5-47-0 line is still not going to help us win in a vacuum. With Jordan Reed […]

Vance McDonald (TE, SF) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stream in 12-Team Leagues OWNED IN: 31% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Vance McDonald didn’t stand a chance of producing any value in Week 13, as the 49ers offense barely turned in more stats in Chicago than you or I did. We’ll chalk this one up to the horrible weather and a scary-ineffective Colin Kaepernick, as McDonald had turned […]

Trey Burton (TE, PHI) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues OWNED IN: 2% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Burton has gotten more involved recently thanks to the smattering of injuries to Philadelphia’s offense, as he saw nine targets in Week 13 against the Bengals to the tune of five catches for 53 yards. The Eagles really don’t have much left in the wide-receiver pipeline with Jordan […]

Waiver Wire Express - Week 13 Lightning Round

This column is published early every week, and then updated on a daily basis. Over the course of each week, we also publish more in-depth waiver wire analysis for all positions. But in efforts of bringing you timely information, as fast as possible, consider this the waiver wire lightning round heading into Week 13. Waiver […]

Week 13 Rankings Analysis: Nick Mariano vs. Industry Consensus

Unfortunately the Eagles losing their starting RG to illness and #1 receiver to a right ankle sprain really hurt Carson Wentz and the Eagles, which was most unkind to my rankings. At least Ryan Fitzpatrick proved to be worthy of QB2 status, and slipping Michael Crabtree and Demaryius Thomas down a bit was warranted. While […]

Jared Goff (QB, LA) - NFL Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stream in Two-Quarterback Leagues OWNED IN: 4% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Jared Goff came out of the gate scorching in Week 12 against the Saints, as he threw two touchdowns in the first half and actually had the lead over Drew Brees at one point. That lead, and his pace, quickly went by the wayside. […]