Mike Fanelli | Mon, Dec 9th 2024, 7:03am EST

7 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups: Deep Leagues (Week 15)

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 guys 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 seven waiver wire targets they should add in deeper leagues in Week 15.

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups: Week 15

All the players in this article are rostered in under 20% of ESPN leagues.

Jameis Winston (QB – CLE): 19.9% Rostered

Fantasy players either love or hate Winston. The veteran quarterback is arguably the top boom-or-bust player in fantasy football. He had 497 passing yards, four touchdowns, and 33 fantasy points against an elite Denver Broncos defense in Week 13 despite three interceptions. However, Winston returned to Earth in Week 14, totaling 15.3 fantasy points in the loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

While the veteran didn’t have a record-setting performance, he finished with 212 passing yards, two touchdowns, and 28 rushing yards against the division rivals. Furthermore, Winston scored more fantasy points than the Steelers had surrendered to quarterbacks on average heading into the Week 14 matchup (12.3). More importantly, the veteran has appealing matchups against the Cincinnati Bengals and Miami Dolphins in the fantasy playoffs.

Jaleel McLaughlin (RB – DEN): 15.6% Rostered

Unfortunately, Denver’s backfield has been a nightmare for fantasy players. Many had high hopes for Javonte Williams entering the year. Meanwhile, McLaughlin was hyped up as Sean Payton’s next Alvin Kamara. Yet, every Broncos running back ranks outside the top 30 for the season, averaging under 8.5 half-point PPR fantasy points per game. Instead, the team has leaned on the hot hand.

Denver had their bye last week. However, McLaughlin shined in the Week 13 win over the Cleveland Browns. He had 14 rushing attempts for 84 yards, averaging six yards per attempt, setting season highs in every category. More importantly, McLaughlin had 14 of the 22 backfield rushing attempts (63.6%), totaling seven more than Williams and Audric Estime combined. He is worth a speculative add.

Sincere McCormick (RB – LV): 11.2% Rostered

The Raiders’ 2024 season is all but over. Las Vegas is on track to have the top pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. More importantly, Aidan O’Connell left Sunday’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with a knee injury the team fears is season-ending. Unfortunately, Desmond Ridder will likely lead the offense for the rest of the year. Therefore, the Raiders should continue to lean on McCormick.

Alexander Mattison has missed the past three games with an ankle injury, allowing McCormick to shine. He has averaged 6.9 half-point PPR fantasy points per game over the past three weeks despite not finding the end zone. However, McCormick has averaged 5.5 yards per rushing attempt, totaling back-to-back games with 10 or more attempts. Hopefully, Las Vegas sticks with him over the final month of the season.

Isaiah Davis (RB – NYJ): 3.4% Rostered

Reportedly, the Jets have no plans to shut down Breece Hall despite the superstar missing Sunday’s loss to the Miami Dolphins with a knee injury. However, New York has been eliminated from the playoffs, which could lead to the team changing course. While Braelon Allen has been Hall’s handcuff all season, Davis has shined over the past two weeks, especially in Week 14.

Last week, the rookie running back had 10 rushing attempts for 40 yards and a touchdown against the division rivals. More importantly, Davis had a meaningful role in the passing game for the second consecutive week, totaling three receptions for 27 receiving yards, ending the contest with 14.2 half-point PPR fantasy points. He has scored a touchdown and double-digit fantasy points in back-to-back contests.

Ray-Ray McCloud (WR – ATL): 11.9% Rostered

While Kirk Cousins has severely struggled recently, McCloud has played well. The veteran is the WR60 for the year, averaging seven half-point PPR fantasy points per game. However, he has become a consistent part of the passing offense lately. McCloud has averaged 7.7 targets and 10.3 fantasy points per game over his past three contests despite not finding the end zone.

Despite Drake London being the team’s No. 1 wide receiver, McCloud had more targets than the former USC star in Week 14. The veteran had a team-high 11 targets against the Minnesota Vikings, totaling eight receptions for 98 receiving yards and 12.1 fantasy points, setting season highs in every category. Furthermore, he has had at least 95 receiving yards and 11.3 fantasy points in back-to-back games.

Jalen McMillan (WR – TB): 8.5% Rostered

Many thought McMillan would become a borderline flex option for fantasy players after Chris Godwin suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 7. Unfortunately, Sterling Shepard has stepped up as the Godwin replacement. Meanwhile, the rookie has missed significant time with injuries. Furthermore, McMillan averaged only 3.4 targets and 3.7 half-point PPR fantasy points per game heading into Sunday’s matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders.

However, the former Washington star was outstanding in Week 14. He had two receiving touchdowns after totaling only once over the first 13 weeks, finding the end zone in his NFL debut. More importantly, McMillan had a team-high seven targets, seeing nearly 30% more than Mike Evans. While he won’t score two touchdowns every week, the rookie has some appealing matchups during the fantasy playoffs.

Grant Calcaterra (TE – PHI): 1.7% Rostered

Thankfully, the Eagles got DeVonta Smith back this week after missing the past two games with a hamstring injury. Unfortunately, Philadelphia placed Dallas Goedert on injured reserve before Sunday’s matchup against the Carolina Panthers because of a knee injury, knocking him out of the lineup for four games. Therefore, fantasy players whose season ends in Week 17 can drop Goedert from their redraft rosters.

Yet, fantasy players can look to his backup as a solid replacement option. Calcaterra has played well with Goedert out of the lineup, averaging 3.7 receptions for 34.7 receiving yards and 7.3 half-point PPR fantasy points per game in his past three starts. Last week, he had a 14.3% target share, a receiving touchdown, and 9.1 fantasy points despite Jalen Hurts totaling only 21 pass attempts.

Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.

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