Chris Olave Injury: Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Replacement Pickups (Week 13)

With the injury to Chris Olave, fantasy football managers are left with a void on their roster. Let’s check out the extent of the injury and players you can target on your waiver wire this week.

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Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Injury Replacement Pickups

Injury Outlook

Chris Olave (concussion) ruled out Sunday
Saints WR Chris Olave has been ruled out for the remainder of Week 12 with a concussion.

Fantasy Impact

Olave exited Sunday’s game with a head injury and has officially been placed in the league’s concussion protocol. The star wide receiver will finish the day catches on 7-of-9 targets for 114 yards.

Jesse Garcia

Waiver Wire Replacements to Target

Jayden Reed (GB): 47% rostered

• Next Opponents: KC, @NYG, TB
• True value: $7
• Desperate need: $11
• Budget-minded: $4

Analysis: Reed has earned snap shares of 69% or higher in each of the last two weeks – a feat he had not previously accomplished. Last week, he handled a 25% target share while scoring his second touchdown in his last three games. Reed’s stock is on the rise, as he is also getting involved on the ground. Reed now has at least 16 rushing yards in three of his last four games while also scoring a rushing touchdown in Week 11. After he faces Kansas City this week, his next few matchups look amazing, as the Giants and Buccaneers have allowed the second-most and fifth-most receiving yards to slot receivers this season (per Fantasy Points Data).

Demario Douglas (NE): 36% rostered

• Next Opponents: LAC, @PIT, KC
• True value: $6
• Desperate need: $10
• Budget-minded: $4

Analysis: Douglas continues to operate as the Patriots’ WR1. Before discussing his Week 13 outlook, I have to mention that he left Week 12 with a head injury, so monitor his practice reports this week, because his availability isn’t written in stone. Douglas now has four consecutive games with at least seven targets, including nine-target outings in each of his last two games. He’s still searching for his first touchdown of the season, but if Douglas continues to see this type of volume weekly, the touchdowns are coming. Douglas’ next two matchups should allow him to continue providing strong flex/WR3 value. The Chargers and Steelers have allowed the third-most and fourth-most receiving yards to slot receivers this season, respectively (per Fantasy Points Data).

Curtis Samuel (WAS): 28% rostered

• Next Opponents: MIA, BYE, @LAR
• True value: $4
• Desperate need: $7
• Budget-minded: $2

Analysis: Samuel smashed last week with a 27.3% target share, 100 receiving yards and 3.13 yards per route run. He made Jourdan Lewis look silly all day. Prior to Week 12, Samuel had already displayed the ability to pop off with a big week in the right matchup, with three top-24 finishes already on his 2023 resume (WR12, WR14, WR23). Samuel could have another strong game in Week 13 against Miami. The Dolphins’ outside corners are the strength of their secondary, but they have been vulnerable to slot receivers. Miami is tied for the sixth-most receiving touchdowns allowed to slot receivers (per Fantasy Points Data).

Noah Brown (HOU): 45% rostered

• Next Opponents: DEN, @NYJ, @TEN
• True value: $2
• Desperate need: $4
• Budget-minded: $1

Analysis: Brown has now missed two consecutive games with a knee injury. He didn’t practice at all last week, so I doubt he is back in Week 13, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t deserve a roster spot. In Weeks 8-10, Brown had a 17.1% target share, a 23.4% air-yard share, 4.55 yards per route run and a 16.7% first-read share, as he averaged 127.3 receiving yards per game over that stretch. With Brown producing this season when called upon, and with Robert Woods looking over the hill, Brown may kick Woods to the curb and become the team’s starting slot receiver upon his return. C.J. Stroud continues to play amazingly well. Investing in this passing offense is a no-brainer.

A.T. Perry (NO): 3% rostered

• Next Opponents: DET, CAR, NYG
• True value: $1
• Desperate need: $2
• Budget-minded: $0

Analysis: The Saints’ WR room has been decimated. Michael Thomas is on IR. Chris Olave left Week 12 with a concussion, so his Week 13 availability is questionable at best. Rashid Shaheed left Week 12’s game due to a quad injury. Perry could be starting in two-WR sets in Week 13 with Lynn Bowden at his side. This inserts Perry into the flex conversation immediately for Week 13 against a Lions secondary that, since Week 6, has allowed the fifth-most PPR points per target to perimeter wide receivers.

Khalil Shakir (BUF): 18% rostered

• Next Opponents: BYE, @KC, DAL
• True value: $1
• Desperate need: $2
• Budget-minded: $0

Analysis: Shakir has flashed both a ceiling and a decent floor since assuming a starting role in the Buffalo offense. Over the last five games, he has eclipsed 92 receiving yards twice while also posting two games with at least three receptions and 47 receiving yards. If you toss a touchdown on top of either of those floor games, Shakir is staring down a WR2/3 finish for the week. Shakir is the “healthy Noah Brown” in that he offers readily available waiver wire access to one of the best passing offenses in the NFL. Picking up Shakir now is also a calculated move for the future. In Week 15, the Bills face off against the Cowboys, who slot receiver Curtis Samuel just destroyed on Thanksgiving. Dallas has allowed the eighth-most PPR points per target to slot receivers this season (per Fantasy Points Data). Play chess while your league mates play checkers.

Jalin Hyatt (NYG): 3% rostered

• Next Opponents: BYE, GB, @NO
• True value: $1
• Desperate need: $2
• Budget-minded: $0

Analysis: Hyatt popped off in Week 12 with a team-leading 24% target share and 109 receiving yards while playing 65% of the snaps. That was Hyatt’s third-highest snap share of the season and the third time he has eclipsed 75 receiving yards in a game. The bottom can fall out again for Hyatt in any week, but he has displayed a high ceiling if you are desperate for a flex play. There are worse flex-type dice rolls to take.

Odell Beckham Jr. (BAL): 49% rostered

• Next Opponents: BYE, LAR, @JAX
• True value: $1
• Desperate need: $2
• Budget-minded: $0

Analysis: Beckham’s hot streak ended in Week 12. He drew a 15.6% target share, producing 34 scoreless receiving yards. That’s a far cry from the 116 receiving yards he posted in Week 11. It’s also not close to the two games prior, where he posted at least 40 receiving yards and a score in each game. Beckham still deserves roster consideration, as he is tied to one of the best quarterbacks in football in a passing offense that is still searching to fill the Grand Canyon-sized hole left by Mark Andrews‘ injury. Beckham likely never develops into a weekly WR3 we can count on, but he can still have spike-week games in the right matchups.

Stash Candidates:

• Joshua Palmer

If Palmer is available in your league, STASH HIM NOW! The Chargers’ offense has been sputtering, as Justin Herbert has hyper-targeted Keenan Allen and Austin Ekeler weekly, with no one else capable of stepping up and producing. As soon as Palmer is back in the lineup, he’ll resume kicking out WR2/3-worthy state lines. Grab him now.