DeVante Parker: Priority Waiver Wire Pickup for Week 8 (Fantasy Football)

We often hear about third-year wide receiver breakout candidates. Fifth-year breakouts? Not so much. But that’s precisely what it appears to be that we’re witnessing from DeVante Parker. If you play in dynasty leagues, I understand your hesitation in buying in when it comes to him. After a promising second-year, he was going off the board as the WR30 in 2017. He went on to finish as the WR50 in 2017 and as the WR105 last season. It’s time to leave the past in the past and deal with the present, though. He’s now posted double-digit scoring fantasy weeks in four of six weeks this season, including a season-high 16.5 points this past Sunday. He’s been targeted at least four times every week, including four weeks with six or more targets, and saw a season-high 10 targets on Sunday.

View consensus waiver wire rankings for Week 8

Player Profile

I’d venture a guess that you weren’t aware that through seven weeks, Parker ranks 11th at the wide receiver position in Air Yards, per airyards.com. His 650 Air Yards leads the Dolphins, with Preston Williams a full 75 yards behind. His aDOT (average depth of target) of 17.1 yards is a full four yards more than the next Dolphins receiver, also Williams. Among receivers with at least 20 targets on the season, Parker’s aDOT is the second highest in the league (behind Darius Slayton).

Josh Rosen losing his starting role to Ryan Fitzpatrick in the fourth quarter against Washington two games ago, has turned into a boon for Parker. His five red-zone targets are second on the Dolphins, trailing Preston Williams seven targets. He’s converted two of his targets into touchdowns compared to Williams, only converting one of his targets into a touchdown. Four of Parker’s five red-zone targets have come in the past two games, and all with Fitzpatrick under center, while Williams has two red-zone targets the past two weeks. Against the Bills, he was targeted three times in the red zone, catching two passes and converting one into a touchdown. The touchdown was Parker’s third on the year, and also the third week in a row he’s caught a touchdown. Taking the pass near the line of scrimmage and then blasting through the defensive back for the score, is the type of thing that endears you to your quarterback.

Devante Parker bulldozed his way into the endzone ??@DeVanteParker11 #CardsGonePro pic.twitter.com/wCh4eGCUYd

— CardsGonePro (@CardsGonePro) October 20, 2019

Fitzpatrick has shown an affinity for Parker outside of the 20s as well. In the three games that Fitzpatrick has started, Parker has averaged eight targets a game for a 23% target share. He leads the Dolphins in Air Yards by 128 yards more than the next Dolphins’ receiver during those three weeks. He also has the highest aDOT in those three games by 2.3 yards over the next closet Dolphin receiver. Preston Williams has outscored Parker in those three games, but that’s due to Parker being shut out in Week 2 against the Patriots. For years the Patriots have made it their defensive game plan to shut down an opponent’s premier weapon. That’s what they did while picking off Fitzpatrick on three of the occasions he targeted Parker. Parker is seeing a large target share, his red-zone targets are rising, and his aDOT and Air Yards lead all Dolphin receivers, making him by far the most valuable asset in Miami.

Outlook

If you want to obtain Parker you should be ready to spend 40% to 50% of your available FAAB on him. If you look at the bottom of your roster, I’m certain there are several players you can cut loose to pick up Parker. Antonio Brown is still rostered in 33% of Yahoo Fantasy Leagues, and he’s not even on an NFL team. Not many people heard of Allen Lazard two weeks ago, and even he’s owned in more leagues than Parker. Meanwhile, a receiver that’s been producing most of the season is available in 87% of leagues. It’s time for that to change.

Thank you for reading. Now go get Parker.

Wide receivers to consider dropping for Parker based on our Rest of Season rankings: