Fantasy
12/2/24
3 min read
Fantasy Football 2024: NFL Week 14 Waiver Wire Targets
NFL Week 14 represents the final game of the regular season in most fantasy leagues.
Unless you’re in a league that plays into Week 18, the quest for the championship begins soon, and that means this coming weekend’s action carries tremendous significance. Unfortunately, Week 14 brings fantasy managers another large group of teams on bye:
- Baltimore Ravens
- Denver Broncos
- Houston Texans
- Indianapolis Colts
- New England Patriots
- Washington Commanders
Hopefully, you were proactive about this wave of missing players and added non-bye week guys already. I mentioned it plenty leading up to this point. And while it won’t be easy for folks to replace talented lineup stalwarts like Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry, or Joe Mixon, just to name a few, you’ve got to try.
So, in case you didn’t beat the wire already, here's a quick-hitting list of five names you can look out for that can help solidify your odds of punching a playoff ticket:
NFL Week 14 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Advice
Caleb Williams, QB, Chicago Bears
- ESPN Rostership: 37 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 54 percent
The best and most broadly-available quarterback on the waiver wire this week is Caleb Williams.
According to FantasyData, the rookie has averaged 275.7 passing yards and 47.3 rushing yards per game during the past three weeks with new offensive coordinator Thomas Brown in charge.
In the nine games prior to this personnel move, Williams only averaged 198.3 passing yards on 32.6 attempts per game, which shows how positive this staff shift has been for the Bears.
In fantasy terms, Williams’ 23.1 fantasy points per game in four-point per passing touchdown scoring ranks fourth-best among quarterbacks during these three weeks. That’s right; we’re talking about a top-five-level asset, folks.
Between his rushing floor and overall increased efficiency as a passer, it would be foolish not to pick up Williams if you need a replacement quarterback.
Michael Penix Jr., QB, Atlanta Falcons
- ESPN Rostership: 0.6 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 1 percent
This call is a touch more speculative, but adding Michael Penix Jr. off the wire feels like a wise move for season-long managers in superflex leagues.
Bluntly, Kirk Cousins has been dreadful of late. The veteran has thrown six interceptions with zero touchdowns throughout the past three weeks and only averages 241.3 passing yards per game in this span.
At some point, it might be wise for the 6-6 Atlanta Falcons to see what they have in their rookie signal-caller on whom they spent the eighth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, right?
Well, it’s not so simple, unfortunately.
The Falcons are the division leader in the NFC South and are in playoff contention. Sure, their odds of success in the postseason aren’t remarkably high, but a shakeup at quarterback could be potentially disruptive.
But even though it might be a tough call, we can’t ignore how bad Cousins has been for them on the season as a whole. Even zooming out beyond the past two weeks, the 36-year-old holds a 2:3 touchdown-to-interception ratio across 10 games this season in which his opponent wasn’t the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
That pair of four-touchdown performances this season heavily skew what are already pretty unimpressive numbers, and at this point, defending Cousins would just be making excuses.
So, to be proactive rather than reactive, scoop Penix Jr. now.
Jordan Mason, RB, San Francisco 49ers
- ESPN Rostership: 41.7 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 42 percent
Sunday night's game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Buffalo Bills was still underway at the time of this initial writing.
The severity of RB Christian McCaffrey’s second-quarter knee injury was unknown to me prior to the deadline, but as it turned out, the superstar was labeled with a season-ending PCL ailment, per head coach Kyle Shanahan. Suffice it to say fantasy managers are at a significant disadvantage following this news.
Backup Jordan Mason performed admirably well in relief duty (13 carries, 78 rushing yards), demonstrating why he shouldn’t have been dropped below a 50 percent rostership threshold to begin with.
Remember the early part of the 2024 season? We’ve already seen why Mason is arguably the most crucial handcuffback in fantasy football.
While CMC was recovering from Achilles tendonitis, Mason ranked third among all running backs in total rushing yards (683) and averaged 13.0 points per game in point-per-reception (PPR) scoring between Week 1 and 8, per Fantasy Points Data.
These kinds of plug-and-play backs don’t grow on trees, and now that we know McCaffrey’s knee will cause him to miss time down the stretch, Mason will be useful for both Week 14 and into the fantasy playoffs.
Of any player on this list, he’s the top priority add by a wide margin.
Adam Thielen, WR, Carolina Panthers
- ESPN Rostership: 19.9 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 31 percent
Welcome back to the big time, Adam Thielen.
After missing seven games due to a hamstring injury, the 34-year-old has been impactful in the Carolina Panthers’ offense. Thielen is averaging 7.0 targets, 5.5 receptions, and a team-leading 78.0 receiving yards per game since returning in Week 12.
The former Pro Bowler is also racking up an average of 16.3 PPR points per game in that span, ranking 20th among all wideouts. Thielen’s totals would’ve been even more impressive had it not been for a controversial non-touchdown call on a tremendous catch made in the second quarter of Sunday’s game vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers:
Regardless of that single play, it can’t be overstated how reliable Thielen has been lately, and it stands to reason his rapport with QB Bryce Young will only continue to solidify as the end of the year approaches.
If you need a flex play in Week 14, Thielen is your guy.
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, WR, Tennessee Titans
- ESPN Rostership: 19.9 percent
- Yahoo Rostership: 17 percent
The ridiculous Nick Westbrook-Ikhine touchdown streak is still underway.
On Sunday, the 6-foot-4 pass-catcher recorded three receptions for 61 receiving yards and a pair of end zone snags against the Washington Commanders.
As things stand, the Titans standout has found himself on the receiving end of eight touchdowns since Week 6 and only has one contest without a score in those eight weeks.
In this period, Westbrook-Ikhine is averaging just 2.5 receptions and 45.6 receiving yards per game, but as long as he and QB Will Levis continue to link up for six weekly, does it really matter how fluky this success seems?
Nope, and it’s especially irrelevant in a week in which fantasy managers will be without wideouts from six NFL franchises on bye weeks. Whether you believe in the magical Music City connection or not, it would behoove desperate managers to take a stab at Westbrook-Ikhine as a hired gun of sorts.
