Fantasy football is all about spotting emerging trends and making smart roster decisions week after week. Every season, new opportunities arise as NFL teams shuffle their lineups and injuries create unexpected openings.
With constant changes and shifting workloads, savvy managers can get ahead by keeping a close eye on players who show real signs of upside. Staying curious and flexible is key when searching for potential difference-makers on the waiver wire.
DeMario Douglas, New England Patriots
Rostered: 4%
This one is obligatory. DeMario Douglas posted 20 fantasy points, which requires his name in this column.
The Patriots rotate their wide receivers weekly. One game, it’ll be Kayshon Boutte. Next, it’ll be Mack Hollins. This week, it was Douglas.
Now, there is a little more to this because Boutte strained his hamstring, which could consolidate the rotation a bit. Thus, Douglas has some appeal, which would otherwise lead me to dismiss him.
At the same time, he’s scored more than 5.7 fantasy points just twice in the last eight weeks. You will never feel confident starting Douglas, but there’s at least some weekly upside given how well Drake Maye is playing.
Aggressiveness Rating: 2.0
Olamide Zaccheaus, Chicago Bears
Rostered: 1%
After failing to reach double-digit fantasy points for the first six games of the season, Olamide Zaccheaus has now done it in back-to-back games. Is there something here for fantasy? It seems doubtful.
Zaccheaus does have 15 targets over his last two contests. That’s certainly something worth paying attention to. But it’s also essential to understand the context. The Chicago Bears played the Cincinnati Bengals, who have the worst defense in the NFL. Luther Burden III was also absent due to a concussion.
The Bears have a couple of favorable spots, but their remaining schedule is mostly more difficult than not. You can add Zaccheaus if you are desperate for a spot starter with all the players missing in Week 10 due to byes or injuries, but he is far from a priority.
Aggressiveness Rating: 1.0
Alec Pierce, Indianapolis Colts
Rostered: 26%
This was a unique game for the Indianapolis Colts, who faced an extreme negative game script for the first time all season. As a result, Daniel Jones tossed it up 50 times. Naturally, every Colts receiver was able to eat.
Alec Pierce caught six of 13 targets for 115 yards. He’s definitely worthy of being added. But obviously, don’t expect this often.
Pierce does have two double-digit target games in his last three. He’s also a deep ball merchant. That lowers his weekly floor, but it means he is capable of producing on limited volume.
Given that his big game was not predicated on a single long catch or a touchdown, he is one of the strong pickups this week.
Aggressiveness Rating: 5.5
Parker Washington, Jacksonville Jaguars
Rostered: 18%
Even before Brian Thomas Jr. injured his ankle, Parker Washington was serving as Trevor Lawrence’s preferred target. Now, he’s essentially the only one left.
The Jaguars have been without Brenton Strange for weeks. Travis Hunter is on IR. Thomas is likely to miss time with his sprained ankle. Dyami Brown also got hurt in the Jaguars’ overtime win over the Las Vegas Raiders. Who else is Lawrence going to throw to?
Washington caught eight passes for 90 yards. He’s now seen 19 targets over his last two games. He needs to be added everywhere.
Aggressiveness Rating: 8.0
Troy Franklin, Denver Broncos
Rostered: 48%
After two straight strong performances, Troy Franklin came back down to earth against the Houston Texans. He caught just four of 10 targets for 27 yards. It was a disappointing outing, albeit an expected one, against a very good defense.
The Denver Broncos won’t face an opponent as problematic as this for the rest of the season. Franklin has proven upside and should be much better next week against the Raiders. He is very much worth adding.
Aggressiveness Rating: 4.0
Tory Horton, Seattle Seahawks
Rostered: 5%
A popular deep league sleeper, Tory Horton has flashed upside the season, but hasn’t been on the field enough to really do anything for fantasy managers. In Week 9, that changed when Cooper Kupp tweaked his hamstring at practice, leading to him missing Sunday night’s game.
With Kupp out, Horton served as the clear WR2 opposite Jaxon Smith-Njigba. The rookie actually led all wide receivers in snaps and ran a route on 83% of Sam Darnold’s dropbacks. Horton caught all four of his targets for 48 yards and two touchdowns, bringing him to five on the season.
Kupp’s injury is reportedly minor, and he expects to return soon, possibly next week. But perhaps Horton is simply too good to deny. He’s very clearly a superior receiver to Kupp at this point in his career. The young Seahawk is absolutely worth a pickup after his breakout performance.
Aggressiveness Rating: 5.0