Devonta Freeman went from waiver wire to No. 1 fantasy RB in 2015
With the regular season officially in the books, it’s time to look back on some of the top fantasy waiver wire pickups of the season.
Kirk Cousins – QB – Washington Redskins
Cousins wasn’t even expected to be named the starter in Washington until Robert Griffin III suffered a concussion in a late August preseason game. Even then, few expected Cousins to succeed, and Washington was expected to struggle as a whole, leading to little fantasy hype before the season.
Instead, Cousins showed massive improvement from earlier in his career and became one of the most productive fantasy quarterbacks of the season, ranking ninth in total points in ESPN standard leagues. Cousins completed just under 70 percent of his passes while throwing for over 4,000 yards and 20 touchdowns.
Those numbers were fueled by an incredible late-season hot streak that included three separate performances of at least 30 fantasy points. Cousins helped several owners win their leagues down the stretch, and was one of the best waiver wire quarterbacks of the fantasy season.
Devonta Freeman – RB – Atlanta Falcons
Freeman stands out even among the best waiver wire pickups this season, as he finished as the top scoring running back of the entire year in ESPN leagues.
After getting just 65 carries in his rookie season, Freeman received no fantasy attention heading into the year, particularly after the Falcons drafted the promising Tevin Coleman. However, Coleman suffered an injury in the second week of the season, giving Freeman an opportunity to be the main back in Atlanta.
Freeman took full advantage of that chance, running for over 1,000 yards and 14 touchdowns during the season. Owners in PPR leagues got an extra boost from picking up Freeman, as he proved to be a very capable pass-catching back.
While Freeman slowed down later in the season, partially due to injury, he still held onto the top spot and provided great waiver wire value throughout the year.
DeAngelo Williams – RB – Pittsburgh Steelers
Following an injury-plagued 2014 season, nobody expected Williams to be one of the fantasy stars of the year. Williams left Carolina, where he had a long and productive career, to back up Le’Veon Bell in 2015.
A suspension and then injury to Bell gave Williams the chance to be the primary back in Pittsburgh for much of the season. Improbably, the 32-year-old Williams put together one of the best seasons of his career as one of the top fantasy backs of the entire campaign.
Williams ran for just over 900 yards, his most productive season since 2009. Pittsburgh’s offense racked up huge yardage totals through the air, and Williams benefited by finding the end zone 11 times.
Owners who were fortunate enough to pick up Williams right after Bell’s injury got a huge boost, making him one of the top waiver wire players of the season.
Doug Baldwin – WR – Seattle Seahawks
With Jimmy Graham and Tyler Lockett added to Seattle’s offense, Baldwin figured to have fewer targets than in previous seasons to reduce his already so-so fantasy value. Instead, Baldwin had a breakout season as one of the most critical waiver wire pickups in the NFL.
Baldwin caught 78 passes for over 1,000 yards and 14 touchdowns, all of which were easily career highs. Those 14 receiving touchdowns tied for the lead league with the likes of Brandon Marshall and Allen Robinson, making Baldwin one of the top fantasy scorers of the year.
Like a few other top waiver wire pickups, Baldwin caught fire at exactly the right time for owners. Baldwin reeled in 11 touchdowns over a five-game span late in the season, helping many win in the fantasy playoffs.
Gary Barnidge – TE – Cleveland Browns
While others on this list were at least on the radar coming into the season, Barnidge truly came out of nowhere to put together one of the top fantasy seasons of any tight end in the NFL.
Barnidge was drafted by the Panthers way back in 2008, but he was used very sparingly for the next five seasons, including not making a single appearance in 2010 or 2011. He went to Cleveland in 2013 and hauled in 13 receptions in each of the next two years.
Something clicked this season, as that number of receptions jumped all the way up to 79. Barnidge improbably totaled over 1,000 receiving yards and nine touchdowns to rank only behind Rob Gronkowski and Jordan Reed in fantasy points for a tight end.
Nathaniel Reeves is a correspondent at FantasyPros. Follow him @njr3701.
