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Week 13 is officially here, and it is time to set our waiver claims in fantasy football. It is crunch time. There are two regular season games left. It is time to secure your playoff spot. It is time to secure your playoff buy. There is no reminiscing what could have been. You don't want to be losing these next couple of weeks. And there are some guys on waivers this week that can set you up for league-winning success. So today, I'll be going through my 10 biggest running back and wide receiver waivers and my three favorite quarterback and tight end options. Let's waste no more time, and let's go on to my number one waiver wire option this week.
Devin Neal, running back of the New Orleans Saints. And look, the elephant in the room here, the fact that Alvin Kamara went down in this game with what's being described as an MCL sprain. We do see this tweet from Dr. Jesse Moors: "Probably going to be a one to two week absence." However, if it is deemed a Grade 2 MCL sprain, we could be looking at Kamara's season on the line. And Devin Neal, he was the clearest established option without Kamara in the lineup. 73% of the snaps, 69% of the routes, seven targets out of the backfield. He had a three-down profile coming out of Kansas. The Saints have a very good schedule, top 10 schedule for running backs coming up. And if we do have a situation where Kamara is missing four to six weeks, we are talking about a league winner. Every time that Kamara is out of the lineup, I view Devin Neal as a top 20 level option. And because we're guaranteed one to two starts in the pivotal portion of the year, I would be willing to spend the budget, 40% plus 50% of your FAB, because I do think Devin Neal with Kamara out could profile into a 15 to 18 touch per game type of workload. And like I said, given the schedule, we could be looking at a top 15 to 20 back.
Next up, Jalen Higgins, wide receiver of the Houston Texans. He's got more and more opportunity in each of the passing weeks, and he has quietly established himself as the number two wide receiver on this team. Size, speed, ability at the catch point, and we have seen him garner end zone targets on this team. Nico Collins is likely to make his return to the lineup in Week 13, and to be honest, projecting forward, if Higgins can become that 80-85% route share player, what's stopping him from being a legitimate target hog in this offense? Nico Collins, he's the true number one wide receiver, but outside of that, they need complimentary pass catchers, and I think Higgins is up to the task. We saw him peak at 68% of the routes this week. And like I said, it could very well hit 80, 85, 90% of the routes in coming weeks. So, I'd be willing to get aggressive, man. If you need depth at wide receiver, if you need a potential top 30 option moving forward, I think Jalen Higgins is your guy, and I'd be willing to spend 20 to 30% of my budget on him. Realistically, what Higgins has been doing on these limited routes has already been similar to that of guys like DK Metcalf. So, the fact is, if he does become a full-time route share player in these next couple of weeks, he could be an all-your-FAB type of acquisition. Get ahead of the curve, dip 20 to 30%. He's been very productive with limited snaps.
At number three, we got Shamari Deese, wide receiver of the Tennessee Titans. He scored 15-plus PPR points in three of his last five games. And Will Levis just played his best game as a professional quarterback. Tough matchup going up against Seattle. We finally saw the number one overall pick, Will Levis, come to light. And Shamari Deese, man, he has been the best part of this offense so far. He's been consistently their number one wide receiver. He's running 80-plus% of the team routes. And he does have the factor that if he does, you know, return a punt for a touchdown, return a kick for a touchdown, he's been arguably one of the best returners in the NFL. So, if you're potentially getting a plus six-point week because he returns a kick to the house, you'll never complain about that in fantasy. But realistically, why we're so excited if Will Levis is going to continue playing this well, I think Deese profiles as the number one wide receiver on this team, and I think we could be looking at a league winner down the stretch. So, similar to Higgins, because he's a rookie, and because his role is expanding, I'm very excited for Deese moving forward. And if you can get him for 10 to 20% of the budget, I think he's a very worthwhile acquisition.
Number four pickup, and we got John Metchie, wide receiver of the New York Jets. Running joke on the channel, of course, I played with this guy growing up. Shout out John Metchie, former B-Town Bulldog. But look where we are, man. He's a relevant option. He's been playing some great ball these last couple of weeks. And in Week 12, he absolutely peaked in terms of his usage. 91% of the routes, 27% of the targets. And he was operating as that main, you know, middle of the field type of layup target that this offense has needed. What's stopping him from realistically profiling into a seven, eight-plus target per game role with Garrett Wilson out of the lineup? Now, Garrett Wilson, big unknown. He is expected to miss at least the next two weeks after being placed on IR. But is it going to be just these two weeks? Is it going to potentially be for the rest of the season? Like, there's a lot of ambiguity when it comes to just how healthy Garrett Wilson is. But what I do know, anytime that Garrett Wilson is out of the lineup, Metchie has profiled as his team's number one. And with Tyrod Taylor starting moving forward, there's plenty of upside for this passing game to really shine. And Metchie, man, he's just been playing flat-out good football. Keep in mind, this is a former second-round pick. He did miss his full rookie season with leukemia. I'm very interested to see how he does going forward because if he has another game this week where he produces six-plus catches, 65-plus receiving yards, we could be looking at a top 24 wide receiver option each and every week Wilson is out of the lineup.
And the number five pickup for me this week is Luther Burden, wide receiver of the Chicago Bears. And I think he's a similar case in terms of like a Jalen Higgins, that the late-season upside is why you're really picking up a guy like Burden. But unfortunately, unlike Higgins, he's not getting that immediate opportunity. Higgins, you can see a Week 13 path where this guy plays 80-85% of the routes. I think it'd be far-fetched to say the same for Luther Burden, especially considering that DJ Moore is coming off of his best game of the year. But at the same time, his route share has peaked each of the last two weeks. He's completely taken over the Z receiver snaps in this offense. And you can make the case that he has been the best wide receiver on this team when he's on the field. He's tied with DJ Moore in terms of targets per route run. He's leading this team in terms of yards per route run at 2.3. Quite frankly, when this guy's on the field, he just simply makes plays. The issue, of course, has been the snaps. I don't think Luther Burden's going to be the guy that you pick up, immediately throw into your flex spot. I think he's more of a stash. I think it's more of a sign that if we see 75-plus, 80-plus% of the routes, that he could be a league winner down the stretch. So before you have to bid all your budget, 5 to 10%, see if that flyer is able to get it done because I truthfully believe that down the stretch, if Burden is given the opportunity, we could be talking about legitimately like how good Jaylen Waddle was down the stretch last year. He could be this year's rookie wide receiver that wins you guys fantasy football leagues. Quite frankly, as a prospect, he graded very similarly to Michael Wilson for me.
At number six, and actually the opposite thesis like Burden is the complete upside. Maybe you're top two, top three seed, you don't really need, uh, you know, a depth option that you can put into your lineup, and you can just stash somebody. Luther Burden's going to be your guy. If you need someone that you want to throw into your lineup right away, Week 13, you're struggling, you need a wide receiver three or you need a second flex, I really do like Andre Iosivas of the Cincinnati Bengals. He, we saw him command seven targets and produce 10.6 PPR points last week without Ja'Marr Chase in the lineup. This week, Tee Higgins obviously suffers his concussion on Sunday. Bengals, of course, playing on Thursday Night Football. Very highly doubt that he's going to be able to clear concussion protocol by then. And with that being said, if he profiles into a top two wide receiver target for a Bengals offense, getting Joe Burrow back in a 52 and a half over/under, I think he is very clearly a top 36 wide receiver play. Like I said, if you're in a three wide receiver, two flex, two wide receiver, two flex, and you need to throw Iosivas in your lineup this week, he should have a good game against the Baltimore Ravens.
At number seven, we got Chris Rodriguez, running back of the Washington Commanders, and he has quietly taken over the RB1 role for this team. 12 carries, 15 carries in two of his last three games. And he has been the most effective Washington running back as of recent weeks. Now, obviously, he's not the most exciting option. He doesn't have the highest upside. He doesn't get the receiving work, I would say, to profile into, you know, a top 15, top 20 upside play. But I view him very similarly to like a guy like Bam Knight. Bam Knight, we know, you know, two-down workload, goal-line equity. That's kind of what I see here when it comes to Rodriguez. I do think there's more upside from an efficiency perspective. But at the same time, this is still going to profile into a bad offense. If he's not giving you the receiving work, but he's also not giving a ton of touchdown upside given the offense, I do think he's more of a fade for me. However, if you need depth, you need a running back to plug in, you can safely assume he's going to get 13-plus touches this week. And for me, that's valuable enough to bid 5 to 10% of my budget.
My number eight pickup this week is Adonai Mitchell, wide receiver of the New York Jets. The second Jets receiver I'm talking about on this video. And while John Metchie has actually outperformed Adonai Mitchell, you can make the case that he has been the one based off usage, 'cause he's gotten a 26% target share his two games as a New York Jet. And this is still a very talented draft wide receiver. He's a great separator. He just simply struggles to finish plays at the catch point at this point. And it's simply been the story of his whole career. I'm willing to take a flyer on him. I do think there's talent here, but at the same time, he should not touch your lineup anytime soon. Until we see him actually produce a big game, I'm not bidding more than 0 to 5%. But if you're in a deep league, maybe you have, you know, six, seven bench spots, full PPR, three flexes, at that point, I would be willing to take the stab on Adonai Mitchell. I do think there's a ton of talent upside here.
Number nine, we got Dylan Samson, running back of the Cleveland Browns. And Judkins did return to the game after suffering what looked like a concussion, but at the same time, Samson, he ripped off that big play. He's got upside as a receiver, and we know he's explosive as all hell. Judkins, he's still going to be the RB1 on this team. If Judkins is active, Samson is probably not entering your lineup. But at the same time, he did overtake Jerome Ford in terms of RB2 snaps and he does have a receiving skill set that Judkins has. He's more of a high-priority handcuff for me. Like, to be honest, I thought Samson the player coming out of college was a very good talent and I do think if Judkins were to miss any time, keep in mind had the shoulder injury, now gets concussion, maybe he does get nicked up in the fantasy playoffs and Dylan Samson can give you PPR appeal as an RB3.
And then finally at number 10, we got Raheem Mostert. This is more of a precautionary call. We did see Jeff Wilson Jr. go down with an apparent ankle injury. Does sound like he's going to be okay. However, since I'm recording this on Tuesday morning, I do think if Raheem Mostert's available for 0 to 5% of the budget, in case of the scenario that the injury is more serious or maybe Wilson could potentially miss a game. Raheem Mostert has averaged 4.6 yards per carry this year. We do have evidence of him being good in fantasy in the past. So 0 to 5% wouldn't make him a higher priority. In fact, if today, later today, it gets released that Wilson is going to be fully fine after that ankle injury, I probably wouldn't even place a bid. But at the same time, given the ambiguity, I do think he's worth a stab at number 10.
And then now we'll breeze through the onesie positions, the three quarterbacks followed by the three tight ends. Quarterback number one as my streamer this week, I love Jacoby Brissett on the road playing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. We saw what Matt Stafford did to them. He absolutely flamed that defense. And no, I'm not making parallels to Jacoby Brissett versus arguably the 2025 NFL MVP, but at the same time, with Jacoby Brissett, he has been a fantasy football stud. 43 passing attempts per game since taking over as a starter, and he has averaged over 20 PPR points per game. He's been good. He's been a legitimate quarterback one in fantasy. And in a pass-heavy matchup against Tampa Bay, I expect him to deliver as a top 12 to 15 option yet again.
Number two quarterback streamer is Trevor Lawrence of the Jacksonville Jaguars going on the road to play the Titans. Very simple here. Two 20-plus point games in his last four, and now gets a cupcake with this Titans defense. The Titans secondary, they allow big plays at will. And we could potentially see Brian Thomas Jr. making his return to action this week with Trevor Lawrence. 24-plus rushing yards in three of his last four games and five-plus carries in each of them. He's got mobility, he's got arm talent, and he's been quietly a quarterback one, like I said, in two of his last four games.
Then finally, C.J. Stroud going on the road to play the Indianapolis Colts. Weeks four to eight, we really saw him taking that next step. 20.7 points per game in that stretch. Obviously goes down with the concussion. And I'm very optimistic because I'm optimistic on the skilled players with this Texans team. We're starting to see the young turnover guys like Jalen Higgins, guys like Nico Collins, guys like Tank Dell really taking a big step in this offense. And I do think as soon as C.J. Stroud comes back, he can pick up where he left off before the injury. Over 35 attempts per game, and we're finally seeing the best skill position players on the field for this team.
And then we'll quickly run through the three tight ends. Number one here, Cole Kmet. He is rostered in 56% of the leagues, but in the 44% he is still available. Why? He ran his most routes since Robert Tonyan returned and he plays 68% of the Bears routes. It is a very tough matchup against Philadelphia. There is no denying that. But at the same time, Cole Kmet is a different caliber of talent. Top 10 draft capital, arguably the most reliable weapon on this Bears offense as of late. And if he's able to get 80-plus% of the routes again, keep in mind he was running about mid-50s% of the routes in the two games Tonyan came back that peaked at 68%. What's stopping him from taking that next step? What's stopping him from being a 75-plus, 80-plus% route share player? And as soon as that actually happens, we are looking at a high-end tight end one.
Next up, Tucker Kraft. Very similar here. 69-plus% of the routes in each healthy game he's played. And he has four games as a top 20 tight end in fantasy. With Kraft, we just see his best game of the season in Week 12. And while Christian Watson, you know, he might play in this game, he might not. Again, I mentioned it with Lawrence, I do expect him to be back. At the same time, he still is currently banged up. And with no Luke Musgrave on the field, we could be seeing Tucker Kraft's season down the stretch. 93 yards in his first game back, the most reliable target in that win against Arizona. And I think they continue to feed him the football in space.
And then finally, Darren Waller. This is just more of a must-roster player because I'm not even 100% certain he's going to play in Week 13. But at the same time here, his practice window was open this week and he showed legit tight end one upside when he was healthy. Miami, they need weapons really bad. We know what Tyreek Hill represents, but there was a glaring hole as the number two option in this offense that Waller was actually filling early in the season. When Darren Waller was healthy, he peaked at 78% of the Dolphins routes and he scored two times as a top five tight end in fantasy. Sure, there is risk he doesn't even play this week, but at the same time, not many tight ends have the upside of Waller moving forward.
But either way, if you guys enjoy, make sure you leave a like down below. Comment your biggest waiver wire decision. I'll try to get to as many as possible. And of course, if you're new, hit that subscribe button. We are on the road to 100,000 subscribers. I appreciate you guys for that continued support. But with that being said, peace out. Good luck on the wire and good luck in your matchups. Secure those playoff spots.