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.

• Waiver Wire Advice
• Weekly Fantasy Football Expert Rankings
• Fantasy Football Start/Sit Advice
• Fantasy Football Trade Tools

However, I’m here to help by giving fantasy players six waiver wire targets they should add in deeper leagues in Week 17.

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups: Week 17

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

Bryce Young (QB – CAR): 4.9% Rostered

Young was awful to start the year, totaling three interceptions over the first two weeks. However, spending time on the bench turned around his season. The former Alabama star has played well since the Week 11 bye, averaging 1.2 passing touchdowns and 18.4 fantasy points per game over the past five weeks, totaling 23.6 or more twice. Furthermore, Young is coming off his best performance this year, totaling 158 passing yards, two touchdowns, 68 rushing yards, a rushing score, and 27.1 fantasy points in the win over the Arizona Cardinals.

The second-year pro ends the fantasy season with a matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They’ve surrendered 20.4 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, one of the highest averages in the NFL, allowing 23.6 or more in nearly half of their contests. Last week, Cooper Rush completed 74.3% of his pass attempts for 292 yards, a touchdown, and 15.3 fantasy points against Tampa Bay. More importantly, Young had 298 passing yards, a passing touchdown, a rushing score, and 23.6 fantasy points in the Week 13 matchup against the division rivals.

Trey Benson (RB – ARI): 17.9% Rostered

Unfortunately, James Conner left the Week 16 loss to the Carolina Panthers with a knee injury after managing to play in every game this season. The star running back didn’t return to the game despite it being a must-win contest for the Cardinals. Fantasy players shouldn’t expect Conner to play again this year with Arizona eliminated from the playoffs. Therefore, Benson will be the lead guy in the backfield for the rest of the season if healthy. The rookie running back missed last week’s matchup with an ankle injury.

However, Benson could be a title game winner if he can play on Saturday against the Los Angeles Rams. The NFC West division rivals have surrendered 20 half-point PPR fantasy points per game to running backs this year, slightly below the league average. However, Los Angeles has given up 107 rushing yards and 21.5 fantasy points per game to running backs over the past five weeks. Furthermore, the Rams allowed the Cardinals backfield to score 25.7 fantasy points and average 5.2 yards per rushing attempt in the Week 2 matchup.

Audric Estime (RB – DEN): 8.4% Rostered

Every week, fantasy players try to guess which Broncos running back they can trust in their lineup. Estime was the team’s best option last week, totaling nine rushing attempts for 48 yards, a touchdown, and 10.8 half-point PPR fantasy points, averaging 5.3 yards per attempt. While Javonte Williams averaged six yards per rushing attempt in the loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, he had five ewer rushes and two fewer fantasy points in the Week 16 contest. More importantly, head coach Sean Payton hinted at Estime earning more work.

Fantasy players have heard Payton hype up the rookie running back in the past, only to give the ball to someone else. However, Estime has an appealing matchup in Week 17 against the Cincinnati Bengals. Last week, Jerome Ford had 11 rushing attempts for 92 yards, a touchdown, five receptions for 39 receiving yards, and 21.6 fantasy points against the Bengals, setting season highs in several categories. More importantly, Cincinnati has surrendered 96 rushing yards, one touchdown, and 27 fantasy points per game to running backs over the past month.

Kayshon Boutte (WR – NE): 4.3% Rostered

New England has the worst wide receiver core in the league. However, Boutte has been solid lately. The second-year wide receiver has averaged 3.3 receptions on six targets for 51.7 receiving yards and 9.5 half-point PPR fantasy points per game over his past three contests, totaling 7.6 or more twice. Furthermore, he is coming off the best performance of his career. Last week, Boutte had five receptions on seven targets for 95 receiving yards, a touchdown, and 18 fantasy points, leading the team’s wide receiver core in every category.

Meanwhile, he has a fantasy-friendly matchup during the championship game week. Boutte faces a Los Angeles Chargers defense that surrendered 12 receptions for 158 receiving yards, a touchdown, and 28.1 fantasy points to the Denver Broncos wide receiver last week. Furthermore, they’ve given up 13.8 receptions for 178.5 receiving yards, 1.3 touchdowns, and 32.3 fantasy points per game to wide receivers over the past month, allowing 200 or more yards in half the contests. Don’t be surprised if Boutte finds the end zone for the second consecutive week on Saturday.

Olamide Zaccheaus (WR – WAS): 0.1% Rostered

The Commanders had an impressive 36-33 comeback win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 16, thanks to five passing touchdowns from Jayden Daniels. While Terry McLaurin is the team’s go-to receiver, Zaccheaus played a critical role in the team’s victory. The veteran wide receiver had five receptions on eight targets for 70 receiving yards, two touchdowns, and 21.5 half-point PPR fantasy points against the division rivals. Furthermore, Zaccheaus led Washington in every category, earning 25% more targets than McLaurin. More importantly, he has played well when seeing enough volume.

Zaccheaus has two games with more than four receptions this season. The veteran wide receiver had at least 70 receiving yards and 11.5 fantasy points in both contests. Meanwhile, he faces an Atlanta Falcons defense that has struggled to slow down opposing passing attacks. They’ve surrendered 30.9 fantasy points per game to wide receivers, one of the highest averages in the NFL. Furthermore, the Falcons have given up at least 260 receiving yards and 53.9 fantasy points to wide receivers in two of their past five games.

Chigoziem Okonkwo (TE – TEN): 6.4% Rostered

While he had no fantasy value earlier this season, Okonkwo has become an excellent streaming option lately. The third-year tight end has averaged 4.8 receptions on 6.4 targets for 49 receiving yards and 8.9 half-point PPR fantasy points per game over the past five weeks. Furthermore, he has recently become a target machine. Okonkwo has double-digit targets in back-to-back games, seeing a season-high 11 in Week 16. Moreover, he has had 17 receptions on 21 targets for 140 receiving yards and 24.5 fantasy points over the past two weeks.

More importantly, the former Maryland star has an appealing fantasy matchup on Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars. They have surrendered 11.1 fantasy points per game to tight ends, one of the highest averages in the NFL. Jacksonville has given up 15 or more fantasy points to tight ends in two of their past four games. Last week, Brock Bowers had 11 receptions on 13 targets for 99 receiving yards and 15.4 fantasy points against the Jaguars. Expect Okonkwo to have his third consecutive top-seven finish against the division rivals.

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