Doing your weekly waivers in fantasy football can be more stressful than performing life-saving surgery on a loved one without any professional tools or medical knowledge. While that might be a slight exaggeration, deciding which players to add off the waiver wire each week can be stressful.
Finding and adding the right players in shallow leagues is simple, as there are plenty of appealing options, and the waiver wire is full of talent. Unfortunately, making your waiver wire claims in deeper leagues can be a massive pain in the neck.
However, I’m here to help by giving fantasy players six waiver wire targets they should add in deeper leagues in Week 17.
- More Waiver Wire Pickups
- Weekly Fantasy Football Expert Rankings
- Fantasy Football Start/Sit Advice
- Fantasy Football Trade Tools
Deep League Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Targets
All the players in this article are rostered in fewer than 25% of ESPN leagues.
Tyler Shough (QB – NO): 10.9% Rostered
At this point, I feel like I’m beating a dead horse. Tyler Shough has been the ideal streaming option over the past month, especially in deeper leagues. He has averaged 240.8 passing yards, one touchdown and 18.5 fantasy points per game over the past four weeks, totaling 17+ points in every contest.
In Week 16, the rookie completed 69.3% of a career-high 49 pass attempts for 308 yards, one touchdown and 17.1 fantasy points against the New York Jets. Shough has a fantasy-friendly matchup against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.
Dylan Sampson (RB – CLE): 7.4% Rostered
Unfortunately, Quinshon Judkins suffered a significant leg injury in Week 16, ending his rookie season. With Jerome Ford on injured reserve (IR), Dylan Sampson is the next man up in the backfield on Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Hopefully, the rookie plays after missing the past two games with hand and calf injuries. However, Raheim Sanders (0.1% rostered) is an appealing deep league target if Sampson misses his third consecutive game. Whichever rookie running back starts for the Browns on Sunday should see enough volume to put up Flex-level production.
Jawhar Jordan (RB – HOU): 5.2% Rostered
Despite returning to practice on Friday, Woody Marks missed Week 16 with an ankle injury. While Nick Chubb was a factor, Jawhar Jordan was the Texans’ lead running back with Marks sidelined. He had 15 rushing attempts for 53 yards while catching all five ofhis targets for 17 receiving yards, totaling 12 PPR fantasy points.
Furthermore, the sixth-round rookie accounted for 69% of the backfield touches. Houston has a short week, facing the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday. Jordan would be a solid low-end RB2 option if Marks can’t play.
Chimere Dike (WR – TEN): 20.1% Rostered
While the Titans’ offense has been far from elite, they have played significantly better than at the start of the year. Chimere Dike has stepped up since Calvin Ridley got hurt in Week 6. He hasn’t been the most consistent player.
However, Dike has averaged 5.2 targets and 10.8 PPR fantasy points per game since Week 6, totaling 13+ points in 55.6% of the contests, including on Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs. More importantly, he should have solid Flex production against the New Orleans Saints this week.
Parker Washington (WR – JAX): 12.8% Rostered
Many were shocked to see the Jaguars’ passing attack mostly have their way with the Denver Broncos defense. While Jakobi Meyers and Brian Thomas Jr. combined for 12.4 PPR fantasy points, Parker Washington stepped up for Trevor Lawrence.
Washington had six receptions on 10 targets for 145 receiving yards, one touchdown and 26.5 fantasy points. Furthermore, Washington has scored 17+ fantasy points in every game with more than three targets since the team’s Week 8 bye. He could have another impressive performance on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts.
Taysom Hill (TE – NO): 1.4% Rostered
Taysom Hill is a do-it-all All-Star. He had a season-high 15.3 PPR fantasy points in Sunday’s win over the New York Jets. Hill had four receptions on six targets for 36 receiving yards while throwing a 38-yard touchdown pass to Chris Olave.
Hills’ value comes on the ground. The veteran had 12 rushing attempts for 42 yards, leading the team in both categories. Hill is a borderline top-12 tight end in Week 17 if the Saints don’t have Alvin Kamara for a fifth consecutive game because of a knee injury.
Subscribe: YouTube | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | iHeart | Castbox | Amazon Music | Podcast Addict | TuneIn
Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.