NFL Waiver Wire: Week 15 Pickups

Hopefully, you had a bye last week in the fantasy playoffs or  gutted out a victory in the first round. This week, there again are significant injuries that will have owners looking to the waiver wire for help. Here's who to consider this week.

This column is geared toward "standard" 12-team leagues and based upon a $100 free-agent budget. Please, please adjust for your league based on both the number of teams (I'm in a 24-team league, for example) and budget.

QUARTERBACK

PRIMARY TARGET

Ryan Tannehill, TEN -  We highlighted Tannehill a few weeks ago, but for some odd reason he remains owned in only 48 percent of Yahoo leagues. He's leading the league with a 9.8 YPA (a historically good number) and has more than 30 fantasy points in three of his last five games. It's a great matchup this week against the Texans. Houston doesn't have J.J. Watt,  allows the sixth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks and was just lit up by Drew Lock. FAAB: $6-$12

SECONDARY TARGET

Mitchell Trubisky, CHI - Is it time to start trusting Trubisky again? Are we late getting on the bandwagon after games of 21.5, 25.7, 29.3 and 36.5 fantasy points in four of his last five? He has a tough road matchup with the Packers this week at Lambeau Field but seems to have turned the corner in this Matt Nagy offense. One of the differences is he's using his athleticism and running more with 21 carries in his last three games (15 rushes over his previous nine games).  FAAB: $4-$8

HAIL MARY

Drew Lock, DEN - Lock did enough this week to warrant a mention after throwing for 309 yards and a score against the team that just beat the Patriots. The Broncos shut down the passing game in the second half or Lock would have had bigger numbers. It's a nice schedule for him down the stretch with the Chiefs, Lions and Raiders on tap — all teams in the bottom 12 in fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks. Denver might have finally found its quarterback of the future. FAAB: $2-$4

RUNNING BACK

PRIMARY TARGETS

DeAndre Washington, OAK - Jalen Richard is worth throwing a couple of bucks at but it appears Washington will be the main beneficiary of the Josh Jacobs injury. Washington out-touched Richard 20 to nine Sunday and got the goal-line work, which resulted in a touchdown. A fractured shoulder plate sounds like a serious injury for Jacobs, and this could easily be the end of his rookie season. Washington has a great matchup this week against Jacksonville, which is down multiple players on defense and has allowed the third-most fantasy points to quarterbacks. FAAB: $10-$20

Adrian Peterson, WAS - It looks like Derrius Guice is done for the season with a sprained MCL.  That leaves Peterson to handle both the early down and short-yardage work with Chris Thompson handling the passing downs. Without Guice, the Redskins should run Peterson into the ground, and coach Bill Callahan has used a run-heavy approach. Expect at least 15 touches from Peterson every week. FAAB:$8-$16

SECONDARY TARGET

Ty Montgomery, NYJ - Le'Veon Bell (illness) could be back for Thursday's game, but Bilal Powell (ankle) could be out with such a quick turnaround. That leaves Ty Montgomery to pick up the slack in what should be considered an extremely tough road matchup. However, If both Powell and Bell are out, Montgomery would be in line for 15-plus touches and a potential blowout would keep him on the field due to his pass-catching abilities. Keep an eye on the injury report for the Jets this week. FAAB: $4-$8

HAIL MARY

Boston Scott, PHI - Miles Sanders left the Monday night game and Jordan Howard is already dealing with his shoulder injury. Either running back could be ready this week, and it's not like Scott is a menacing force at 5-foot-6. Here's another situation to keep an eye on this week as Scott — like the depleted wide receiving corp for the Eagles — could have a significant role. FAAB: $2-$4

WIDE RECEIVER

PRIMARY TARGETS

Breshad Perriman, TB - It looks like Mike Evans might be done for a while after suffering a hamstring injury as those tend to linger. Perriman gets vaulted into the No. 2 role for the Buccaneers, who relies on the passing attack to win games. Perriman is a 2015 first-round pick who has 11.2 and 14.5 fantasy points in his last two games, numbers he can continue to replicate while Evans is out. It's a great matchup this week against the Lions with Darius Slay likely to shadow Chris Godwin. FAAB: $8-$16

Greg Ward, PHI - The Eagles are down Nelson Agholor and Alshon Jeffery and might have to beg Jordan Matthews to come back to the team. Ward led the wide receivers with nine targets Monday night and should continue to have a prominent role. The Eagles are still in the hunt in the NFC East and end the season with the Redskins, Cowboys and Giants; all good matchups. He could be the top wide receiver this week for the Eagles. FAAB: $5-$10

Isaiah Ford, Allen Hurns, MIA - Concussions knocked both DeVante Parker and Albert Wilson from Sunday's game, paving the way for Ford (nine) and Hurns (eight) to lead the team in targets. The severity of Parker and Wilson is unknown for this  week, but it's likely at least one misses the game. Hurns is the slightly more attractive option given he's the veteran, but Ford should be a target for most fantasy teams as well. Watch to see if Parker and/or Wilson practices by Friday to get a better indication of their status for this week. It's a good matchup for Miami against the Giants. FAAB: Hurns $5-$10, Ford $4-$8

SECONDARY TARGETS

A.J. Brown, TEN - It's tough to completely trust any wide receiver for the Titans given their inconsistency this season. Brown has games of 21.5 and 31.1 fantasy points in two of his last four games, but those other two games saw him hit only 2.2 and six fantasy points, showing a low floor. He has a good matchup this week with the Texans, and it helps that Ryan Tannehill and not Marcus Mariota is under center for the Titans. FAAB: $4-$8

Russell Gage, ATL - Gage returns to this space after being included a few weeks ago with the news that Calvin Ridley (lower abdominal) will be out for the season. It's possible with all of Julio Jones' aches and pains he gets shut down at some point too. Gage has 11.6 and 13.7 fantasy points in two of his last three games and should get a couple of more targets per game now being the No. 2 wide receiver. FAAB: $3-$6

TIGHT END

PRIMARY TARGET

David Njoku, CLE - Njoku's first game back was underwhelming with a 3-1-4 line, but it was good to see him back on the field. He has the best matchup for a tight end this week against the  Cardinals, who have been terrible against tight ends this season. Njoku is a 2017 first-round pick who should have plenty of room to operate over the middle with Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry working the outside of the field. FAAB: $5-$10

SECONDARY TARGET

Hayden Hurst, BAL - While John Harbaugh says that Mark Andrews will be ready for Thursday night's game, it's tough to trust that at this point. Andrews didn't practice Monday and with a quick turnaround keeping him out to rest him might make sense looking at the big picture. Hurst and teammate Nick Boyle would be interesting options with Hurst being the lean.  FAAB: $2-$4