Welcome to Week 14’s breakdown of wide receivers and tight ends to stash on your fantasy football rosters! With the fantasy football playoffs just around the corner, even this theoretically long-view article is going to take a more short-term approach than normal (this may just be my excuse for listing Jonnu Smith again). Believe it or not, the game we love will be gone in just four short weeks. Keep that in mind with every move you make at this time of the year.
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Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Stashes: WR & TE (Week 14)
Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Stashes: Week 14
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine(WR — TEN): 17.5% Rostered
In some ways, including NWI goes against the entire ethos of this article. All season long, I have tried to feature players who have more impressive underlying stats than they do actual performance. With eight touchdowns in his last eight games but just 20 receptions all season, Westbrook-Ikhine is the opposite.
However, as I mentioned in the intro, we have to be more present-focused at this time of the year, and NWI sure is putting up points in the present (plus, I featured him back in Week 10, before his hot streak, so I’m giving myself some extra leeway featuring him again). He is the WR25 in Half-PPR points per game throughout his hot streak and the WR14 in total points.
With that said, there are also reasons to be more bullish about Westbrook-Ikhine going forward, even if he doesn’t maintain his absurd 40% TD rate. For one, he posted a truly elite 95% route participation rate in Week 13 and being on the field that often is always a good thing. Week 13 also saw him set a season-high with seven targets (a 19% share). If he can maintain actual volume to go with his nose for the end zone, Westbrook-Ikhine will be well set up for the rest of the season. This is particularly important because the Titans have a juicy schedule for the rest of the fantasy season, facing off against the Jaguars (x2), Bengals, and Colts.
Jalen McMillan (WR — TB): 16.1% Rostered
On Sunday, McMillan tied Mike Evans for the highest route participation rate on the Buccaneers’ offense at 77%. He only saw three targets, catching just two for 25 yards, but we have to take note of a highly drafted rookie seeing an expanded role in their team’s offense.
Like Westbrook-Ikhine, McMillan also benefits from an enticing schedule, including matchups with the Raiders, Panthers, and Cowboys. Unlike NWI, the rest of McMillan’s situation is excellent. The Buccaneers have a terrible defense, often finding themselves playing from behind. Even still, they rank eighth in the league with a pass rate 3.6% above expected. And Baker Mayfield has been playing like one of the best quarterbacks in the league (he ranks seventh in yards per game and third in touchdowns per game). If McMillan can establish himself as the second target behind Evans in this offense, he could be a very nice piece to have for the fantasy football playoffs.
Adonai Mitchell (WR — IND): 10.7% Rostered
Mitchell has made multiple appearances in this article, but he deserves another mention this week. I imagine many fantasy managers will give up on him after Sunday, in which he caught neither of his two targets and dropped a complete donut. Even worse, he posted just a 52% route participation rate, which is not what we would have hoped to see with Josh Downs out.
However, Downs has a real chance to miss multiple weeks, if not the rest of the fantasy football season. That means the Colts will head into their Week 14 bye with a chance to reevaluate their wide receiver room, perhaps giving the second-round rookie more work.
After all, Mitchell’s efficiency numbers this season have been elite. Among players with at least 100 routes, he ranks 11th with a 28% target per route run rate and ranks third in Fantasy Points Data’s separation win rate. ESPN’s Receiver Tracking Metrics also have him second among all WRs and TEs in Open Score. If he does nothing again in Week 15, Mitchell can safely be dropped. But I’m not giving up on a rookie with efficiency metrics that jump off the page and a shot at expanded opportunity just yet.
Fantasy Football Tight End Stashes: Week 14
Jonnu Smith (TE – MIA): 35.5% Rostered
At this point, I might just include Jonnu every week for the rest of the season. I simply don’t understand how he isn’t rostered in more leagues, and he is undeniably the best fantasy option widely available at the TE position.
In fact, Jonnu is simply one of the best fantasy options at the TE position, period. Since Tua Tagoaviloa returned in Week 8, here is the list of tight ends with more fantasy points than Smith: nobody. If we switch to points per game, he only falls behind Brock Bowers, Trey McBride, Taysom Hill (RIP), and George Kittle. Over that span, Jonnu has also averaged 7.5 targets per game — third at the TE position and the most of any player on the Miami offense, Tyreek Hill included. He’s simply a must-add if you are looking for TE production for the fantasy playoffs.
Juwan Johnson (TE — NO): 4.9% Rostered
Taysom Hill is unfortunately done for the season with a knee injury. In past years, this wouldn’t have had much of an effect on Johnson, as he and Taysom played entirely different roles despite both being listed as tight ends. However, Hill has actually been playing more as a traditional TE in recent weeks, running routes and racking up targets. Outside of Alvin Kamara, one of the two of these tight ends has led the Saints in targets every week since Week 9.
On Sunday, with Taysom leaving early, Johnson tied Kamara (and Taysom) for the team lead with six targets (a 16% share). He also ranked second to only Marquez Valdes-Scantling with a very solid 77% route participation rate. The Saints are desperate for playmakers, and the college WR Johnson may be the best answer they have.
Ja’Tavion Sanders (TE — CAR): 5.0% Rostered
Sanders missed Week 13’s action with a concussion, but Panthers HC Dave Canales is hopeful that he will return for Week 14. That is very intriguing for us, as the rookie was on his way to a breakout game in Week 12 before his day was cut short. He racked up three catches for 49 yards on just 11 routes prior to his exit.
There are some reasons for concern here. Even in Week 12, Sanders split snaps with veteran TE Tommy Tremble. With Sanders out on Sunday, Tremble posted a bonkers 98% route participation rate — the highest of any tight end all season. There’s a real chance that Tremble stays involved enough that Sanders is unable to have a fantasy-relevant role. However, I chose to look at this from a “glass half full” perspective: Maybe the Panthers will give that elite usage to Sanders when he returns. Especially with Bryce Young looking vastly improved of late, Sanders is someone to consider for deep leagues or leagues where TEs are especially valuable.
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Ted Chmyz is a fantasy football contributor for FantasyPros.com. Find him on Twitter @Tchmyz for more fantasy content or to ask questions.