FANTASY FOOTBALL ADD/DROPS
Week 15 working the waiver wire: League winners
Dec 10, 2019, 4:40 pm
FANTASY FOOTBALL ADD/DROPS
Congratulations if you're reading this because that means you're in the playoffs. Adding free agents should be easier with many teams already done for the season. Also, be aware that other owners that are in the playoffs will be looking to block you from picking up any players that can help you, so go all-in if you need a certain player this week.
Keep in mind the owner % mentioned is for 10-team standard ESPN PPR leagues. Some of these players below are good for this week, while others could help you in Week 16. You have to make the call on what your team needs. Immediate help to start this week, or a player to stash for next week.
Carr's matchup this week is beautiful. Photo via: Raiders/Facebook
Ryan Tannehill: I had him as the No. 1 option in this article last week, and that certainly paid off with him throwing for 391 yards and 3TDs against the Raiders. He gets the Texans at home this week, so the matchup is good. He might also have to throw a little more with Derrick Henry playing through a hamstring injury. Tannehill is still available in about 60% of ten team leagues.
Derek Carr: Just typing this makes me sick, but you could do worse this week. The Jags have quit on the season, and Carr faces them at home this week. He's terrible in cold weather historically, so being at home really matters for Carr. The Jags on average are giving up over 20 points per game to QBs over the last 4 weeks. He's owned in about 38% of leagues.
Philip Rivers and Mitchell Trubisky: Both of these guys have put up good fantasy numbers lately, but their matchups are ugly this week. Over the last 4 weeks the Vikings and the Packers have been tough on QBs, but they haven't played many good ones. Rivers is rostered in 43% of leagues and Trubisky is more available being rostered in 19% of leagues. Trubisky should at least give you some rushing production, so I would probably choose him over Rivers.
DeAndre Washington: If Josh Jacobs doesn't play, you have to like Washington's chances this week. He's playing the Jags who were ripped apart by the Chargers' RBs last week, and Jacksonville looks like they've given up on the season. He's available in 90% of leagues.
Raheem Mostert: It's hard to know which RB to start in this backfield, but Mostert's huge game against the Saints makes me think he's the best back to use. He's rostered in 24% of leagues.
Adrian Peterson: He's back... I know, he's hard to trust in a PPR league, but he has a good shot at scoring a TD every time he takes the field. And with Guice out of the picture, you could do worse. He's out there in 55% of leagues. He has a tough matchup against the Eagles, but he should get volume.
Patrick Laird: You never hope to start a Dolphins RB in the playoffs, but he's getting a lot of work, and he has a good matchup against the Giants if you need him. He's available in 90% of leagues.
A.J. Brown: He recorded over 21 fantasy points in 2 of his last 3 games, and he gets the Texans this week. Tannehill is on a roll and Brown is his main weapon. He's only rostered in 31% of leagues, and he should continue his production against Houston.
Zach Pascal: He rostered in 30% of leagues and has recorded a TD or 100 receiving yards in 2 consecutive games. Over the last 4 weeks, the Saints are giving up massive production to WRs, so the matchup is great. He should continue to be involved with Hilton still dealing with an injury.
Sterling Shepard and Darius Slayton: They face Miami this week, so there is that. Also, Slayton is coming off a huge game against the Eagles in Week 14. I'd pick Slayton if I had to choose between the two.
Tyler Higbee: If Gerald Everett doesn't return to the lineup, you have to like Higbee's chances to keep racking up fantasy points. If you haven't been watching Higbee, he's recorded over 100 receiving yards two weeks straight and caught a TD. He's out there in about 90% of leagues.
OJ Howard: It feels weird even typing his name, but he should see an uptick in targets with Mike Evans done for the year. Also, he has over 61 receiving yards in two straight games and has a great matchup against the Texans in Week 16. He's rostered in 39% of leagues.
Okay, that will do it. Be sure to check out my show MoneyLine with Jerry Bo on ESPN 97.5FM. We're on every Sunday morning from 10-noon, and we'll talk a lot of fantasy football and NFL gambling getting you ready for kickoff every Sunday. Good luck this week!
As we barrel toward Opening Day which is now less than four weeks away, so far it’s been largely a case of no news is good news at Astros’ spring training. Meaning no major injuries to key players, no controversies brewing. There are numerous question marks that can’t truly be answered until we get into the games that count, such as how will Jose Altuve fare as a left fielder. The most exciting thing to happen over the first week of Grapefruit League games would probably be the two-home run game from top prospect Cam Smith, he of the Kyle Tucker trade. Both came off minor league caliber pitchers, but so what. Smith turned 22 years old last Saturday, the ideal is that he forces his way to the big leagues by the end of this season.
A strong majority of players who go on to greatness in Major League Baseball get to the big leagues before they turn 23. I spoke to this with Astros-specific perspective this week during an episode of our Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. The ten greatest offensive players in franchise history as measured by Baseball Reference’s Wins Above Replacement metric are: Craig Biggio, Jeff Bagwell, Jose Altuve, Lance Berkman, Cesar Cedeno, Jimmy Wynn, Jose Cruz, Alex Bregman, Joe Morgan, and Bob Watson. Eight of those ten debuted in the majors at 22 years old or younger. Cedeno was 19! Morgan and Watson were 20. Wynn and Altuve were 21. Biggio, Bagwell, and Bregman were 22. That leaves Cruz and Berkman as the exceptions. “Cheo” debuted with the Cardinals and didn’t get to the Astros’ organization until he was 27. Berkman arrived at 23. He should have been up sooner but was backlogged in 1998 behind a fabulous outfield of Moises Alou, Carl Everett, and Derek Bell, with youngster Richard Hidalgo as the top reserve, while first base was manned by Bagwell in the heart of his prime.
The point is, special talents should be fast-tracked and/or fast-track themselves to the Major Leagues. There are numerous exceptions (team mistakes, late bloomers), but a very high percentage of eventual big stars get to The Show at a young age. Juan Soto, Bryce Harper, and Mike Trout entered at 19. Ronald Acuna Jr., Vlad Guerrero Jr., Freddie Freeman, and Jose Ramirez did so at 20. Bobby Witt Jr., Gunnar Henderson, Mookie Betts, and Yordan Alvarez were 21. Not all tear it up immediately the way Yordan did upon his promotion in 2019, but rare tools and talents merit accelerated opportunity. The focus here is on hitters, but this isn’t a bad spot to note that among the four greatest pitchers ever to hurl for the Astros, only Randy Johnson was older than 22 when he started (25 as a notoriously raw and wild Montreal Expo). Nolan Ryan was a 19-year-old New York Met, Roger Clemens a 21-year-old Boston Red Sox, and Justin Verlander a 22-year-old Detroit Tiger.
This is not predicting mega-stardom or a plaque in Cooperstown for Cam Smith, but if the Astros have such a player in what is presently a lousy farm system overall, the odds overwhelmingly favor Smith being that guy. He should be ticketed for double-A Corpus Christi to start this season after having had just 96 at bats in single-A and 19 at AA in the Cubs’ system after being drafted last July. Should Smith excel with the Hooks, it’s not preposterous to see him getting to the Astros over the summer, especially given the shaky state of the big club’s outfield going into the 2025 campaign. Plenty of players have skipped over AAA. While Smith was drafted as a third baseman, unless the Astros grow offensively desperate enough to move Isaac Paredes to second base, Smith’s fastest path to Daikin Park right now might lead to right field. Coming off a relentlessly bad 2024, it’s make-or-break time for Chas McCormick. Chas is making three-point-four million dollars this season and turns 30 in April. If he is not a heckuva lot better this year, there is no way the Astros are bringing him back at an even bigger salary number in 2026.
Jacob Melton is another outfield prospect, but he’s already 24 years old and has yet to show any sort of elite hitting traits in the minors. Melton looms as a cheaper replacement for Jake Meyers in center.
Those who will ultimately be great only have time siphoned from their careers when not brought up as soon as reasonable. Of course there is risk of unfulfilled potential or straight up bust status. If early failure crushes a player, he wasn’t headed for greatness anyway.
On the upswing
Closing aside: a pinging endorsement for the Astros’ Annual College Classic Friday through Sunday. The reigning national champion Tennessee Volunteers and runner-up Texas A&M Aggies head the field. Rice, Mississippi State, Oklahoma State, and Arizona fill out what is always an excellent six-team event. With gorgeous weather forecast through the weekend the roof should be open throughout. RIGHT?
The countdown to Opening Day is on. Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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