Welcome to Week 15’s breakdown of wide receivers and tight ends to stash on your fantasy football rosters. If you’re reading this article, congrats on making the playoffs or good luck in avoiding your league’s punishment.

As I mentioned last week, I will be focusing more on short-term waiver wire stashes for the rest of the season. After all, the rest of the fantasy season is a short-term time frame at this point. With that in mind, it was great to see Jalen McMillan from last week’s article immediately pay dividends with two touchdowns. Hopefully, we can have some more hits with this week’s picks,

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Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Stashes: WR & TE (Week 15)

Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Stashes: Week 15

Cedric Tillman (WR – CLE): 47.2% Rostered

Is calling Cedric Tillman a stash cheating? I think not, as the second-year wide receiver is trending down in terms of fantasy interest after missing both of the last two weeks with a concussion. However, fantasy managers would do well to remember Tillman was, at least statistically, the Browns’ No. 1 WR before missing time.

In four healthy games without Amari Cooper, Tillman led Cleveland’s receivers in target share (21%), air yards share (31%) and first-read target share (26%). He trailed Jerry Jeudy slightly in route participation rate but still posted a respectable 87%. Most importantly, he averaged a team-high 15.6 Half-PPR points per game.

In the two games Tillman missed, Jeudy has ascended. I wouldn’t be surprised if Tillman is unable to put himself back in the conversation as the Browns’ No. 1 WR. However, with Jameis Winston chucking it out, he doesn’t have to lead the team in targets to be a viable fantasy play.

If we look ahead to the fantasy playoffs, Cleveland has two matchups that could be shootouts — in Week 16 against the Bengals and Week 17 against the Dolphins. I highly recommend adding Tillman now, monitoring his usage in Week 15, and rolling him out if need be in the fantasy semi-finals.

Calvin Austin (WR – PIT): 2.8% Rostered

Let’s stick in the AFC North with another young receiver. Calvin Austin was a fourth-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. He hasn’t made much of a fantasy football impact yet this season. But now George Pickens is dealing with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, potentially opening up an opportunity in the Steelers’ receiving room.

If we want to look at things glass half empty, that opportunity went to nobody in Week 14. With Pickens sidelined, no Steelers receiver posted a route participation rate above 52% (Austin and Van Jefferson) or saw more than four targets (Scott Miller and Mike Williams).

However, if we’re going to bet on one player to emerge from this crowded situation, it might as well be Austin. He is the youngest member of the group and leads them in both targets and yards per route run.

To be clear, this is a deep-league play only. There are a lot of ifs between Austin and being a playable fantasy receiver. But if Pickens misses the next two weeks and if Austin sees decent usage in Week 15, he could be a desperation Flex fantasy start sit option in Week 16 against a leaky Baltimore secondary. Depending on your format, that could be worth an add.

Adonai Mitchell (WR – IND): 8.9% Rostered

I featured Adonai Mitchell last week. The Colts were on bye in Week 14, so not much has changed. You can read last week’s article for my full thoughts, but here is the elevator pitch: Mitchell is seeing an expanded opportunity with Josh Downs sidelined. He also has a chance to steal routes from Alec Pierce and/or a banged-up Michael Pittman Jr. down the stretch.

When he’s been on the field, his advanced metrics, from targets per route run to separation win rate, have been elite. There are worse players to stash at this stage of the season than a second-round rookie with potentially sky-high upside.

Fantasy Football Tight End Stashes: Week 15

Isaiah Likely (TE – BAL): 41.6% Rostered

This article has now come full circle. I recommended Isaiah Likely as perhaps the only true tight end handcuff in the league before Week 1. He proceeded to blow up in the season opener, be the hottest waiver pickup in the league and do essentially nothing for the rest of the season. The time has now come for me to feature him again.

I’m going back to Likely for two reasons. First, he spent a large chunk of the season rostered in over 50% of leagues, and therefore ineligible for this article. Second, this late in the season is the only time when handcuffing a tight end might make sense.

A more traditional stash tight end could have a big game, but would you feel comfortable starting say, Daniel Bellinger (more on him later) in the fantasy playoffs after just one good outing?

Likely, on the other hand, would be a no-brainer TE1 if Mark Andrews were to miss time. At this stage of the season, you want players who can force their way into your lineup immediately. Likely fits that bill.

Juwan Johnson (TE – NO): 9.8% Rostered

I featured Juwan Johnson last week, and he proceeded to finish as the TE3 (pending Monday Night Football) on the week, catching four of his five targets for 50 yards and a touchdown. This blurb can be considered part victory lap and part double-down.

Johnson’s solid day wasn’t just a fluke — he ranked second on the Saints to only Marquez Valdes-Scantling with a 77% route participation rate, tied for second on the team with five targets (a 16% target share) and posted a solid 23% first-read target share. New Orleans’ offense is desperate for playmakers, and they know Johnson is one of the best options they have.

Going forward, Johnson takes a hit with the loss of Derek Carr, who fractured his hand on Sunday. But there’s also a chance Spencer Rattler, Jake Haener or whoever gets the nod will look to the big tight end as a safety valve. In the three games Carr missed earlier this season, Johnson and Taysom Hill combined for a 20% target share … and that was with Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, Cedrick Wilson and Bub Means healthy (what a season the Saints have had).

Daniel Bellinger (TE – NYG): 1.2% Rostered

Giants rookie Theo Johnson was a staple in the tight end section of this article, but his season was unfortunately cut short by a foot injury. In his absence, Daniel Bellinger posted a 79% route participation rate on Sunday. He saw five targets — catching all five for 45 yards. Those five targets were just a 10% share as the Giants were playing from behind, but that’s not likely to change anytime soon.

And we would do well to remember Bellinger was once a lukewarm (not quite hot) fantasy sleeper in his own right. He has spent most of his NFL career running cardio, but perhaps he can establish himself as a top target for Drew Lock/Tommy DeVito. Bellinger is only worth considering for incredibly deep leagues or those with extra value for tight ends, but his high route participation makes him worth considering in those formats.

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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.