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Fantasy Football Waiver Wire for NFL Week 18

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire for NFL Week 18

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By: Zach Thompson

Most season-long fantasy football leagues are wrapped up, but if you’ve found this post, your league probably uses Week 18 for a championship or maybe even for punishment avoidance. If your league does use Week 18, it’s probably very important for you, so getting just the right lineup in place is critical. The good news is that there are usually some awesome options on fantasy football waiver wires heading into the final week of the regular season.

NFL teams are in a wide variety of situations heading into the final week of the season, and injuries have also built up throughout the season. Some games matter a lot to both teams, some matter to only one team, while others have no impact on the playoffs. Each team approaches the week differently, so be sure to keep a close eye on breaking news for who will play, who will sit and who will have an opportunity.

DK Network will have you covered with picks and plays all week long, so be sure to stay tuned.

Every week, players from the fantasy football waiver wire step up with big games to emerge as potential pickups. In this post, I’ll list my favorite options that are set for success in Week 18. Another key factor to keep a close eye on every week is that new injuries occur — here are some new situations to keep a close eye on moving forward:

Players with new injuries from Week 17 to watch:

  • QB Kenny Pickett, Philadelphia Eagles
  • RB Jerome Ford, Cleveland Browns
  • RB Tyjae Spears, Tennessee Titans
  • RB Kendre Miller, New Orleans Saints
  • WR DeVonta Smith, Philadelphia Eagles
  • WR Amari Cooper, Buffalo Bills

With those injuries in mind, here are some of my top names to watch if you’re shopping on the Week 18 waiver wire.

WR Marvin Mims Jr., Denver Broncos

On Saturday night, Marvin Mims Jr. had a monster game against the Bengals. He was the No. 3 WR in Week 17 going into Sunday night’s matchup after catching all eight of his season-high eight targets against the Bengals for 103 yards and two touchdowns.

Mims had already had a big game before catching this touchdown at the end of regulation to force overtime:

Mims has been much more heavily involved over the last few weeks as the Broncos offense has rounded into playoff shape. He has at least four targets in five straight weeks and also had 100+ yards against the Browns at the beginning of December.

As he proved on Saturday, he is a big-play threat whenever he’s involved and just needs a one or two plays to be a great fantasy option. His strong connection with Bo Nix will have him on the fantasy radar next week since the Broncos will be at home against the Chiefs for the season finale. Early reports say the Chiefs could rest players since they have the No. 1 seed secure, so Mims has a high ceiling as he looks to finish the year strong.

Some other strong options from most waiver wires at WR based on their expected role, playing time and matchup in Week 18 include Alec Pierce ($4,700; 27.2 FPTS), Jalen McMillan ($4,600; 23.0 FPTS), Jalen Tolbert ($4,100; 12 FPTS) and John Metchie III and Olamide Zaccheaus.

RB Ameer Abdullah, Las Vegas Raiders

Several running back options make sense on the fantasy football waiver wire in Week 18.

The No. 3 RB of the week in Week 17 was Ameer Abdullah ($5,100; 20.7 FPTS), as the veteran finished with 20 carries for 115 yards and three catches for 32 yards against the Saints. He didn’t find the end zone but scored a touchdown in each of the past two weeks and has four scores in the last six weeks.

The Raiders have proven in the last two weeks that they’re still playing hard for coach Antonio Pierce, posting back-to-back wins against the Jaguars and Saints. Abdullah has a tougher matchup against the Chargers, but they may not have much to play for before going to the playoffs.

Cam Akers ($4,900; 11.3 FPTS), Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Pierre Strong Jr. ($4,300; 7.8 FPTS), Khalil Herbert ($4,600; 2.3 FPTS) and Raheem Blackshear ($4,000; 2 FPTS) could all be lined up for starts in Week 18 as well, so keep a close eye on who is expected to play in Week 18.

Another very important situation to monitor is the Rams, who could seal the NFC West and a playoff berth before next week. If they opt to rest Kyren Williams ($7.500; 16.2 FPTS) in that scenario, Blake Corum ($4,599; -0.4 FPTS) could get a big workload in a good matchup against Seattle. Corum has shown potential, but hasn’t had a big workload yet.

QB Tanner McKee, Philadelphia Eagles

Tyler Huntley ($4,000; 24.2 FPTS), Drew Lock ($4,900; 37.36 FPTS) and Joe Flacco ($4,900; 21.3 FPTS) all had big weeks in Week 17 and could be strong options if they start again in Week 18. Carson Wentz could also step in if Patrick Mahomes sits against the Broncos.

Another QB play who makes sense if he gets the start next week is the Eagles third QB Tanner McKee ($4,500; 9.96 FPTS). Jalen Hurts was out this week and Kenny Pickett ($5,500; 16.02 FPTS) left with a rib injury. Since the Eagles wrapped up the division, they could give McKee a look in their season finale against the Giants, who have been a very favorable matchup lately.

McKee is a fan favorite and showed real promise the last few preseasons. If he starts the meaningless Week 18 against the Giants, he has the potential for a big game, although the Eagles could also try to get Saquon Barkley ($8,600; 21.9 FPTS) the single-season rushing record.

If McKee doesn’t start and Huntley does, he’d be my second option since the Dolphins close the year against the hapless Jets.

TE Tyler Conklin, New York Jets

On the other side of that AFC East matchup, Tyler Conklin has shown enough upside to be a good last-week add. I highlighted him in my sleeper tight ends and he delivered with eight catches for 57 yards and a touchdown on eight targets in the Jets’ lopsided loss to the Bills.

Conklin has at least three catches and at least five targets in four consecutive games with over 50 yards in each of the last two games. With Aaron Rodgers ($5,700; 2.45 FPTS) probably starting his last game for the Jets, the Jets will try to play spoiler and knock the Dolphins out of the playoffs.

Other tight ends on many waiver wires who had good Week 17’s include Mike Gesicki ($3,100; 18.6 FPTS), Foster Moreau ($3,000; 13.7 FPTS) and Chig Okonkwo ($3,600; 10.9 FPTS). Both Jordan Akins ($2,700; 10.9 FPTS) and Payne Durham ($2,900; 11.6 FPTS) had big weeks filling in for David Njoku and Cade Otton, and they’ll be solid plays if they get another start next week as well.

Falcons DST

The Falcons DST plays on Sunday Night Football, but they’re a top addition from the Week 18 waiver wire regardless of how they do against Washington. In Week 18, the Falcons host the Panthers, who won’t have Chuba Hubbard and looked very one-dimensional on Sunday in their loss to the Bucs.

The Falcons defense has been very solid over the last four weeks since their bye week. They have at least three sacks in each of those four games and have forced seven turnovers and scored two touchdowns over that span. It’s true that many of their best games have come against struggling offenses, but they’ll get another one at home in Week 18 to close the season, so they make a strong pickup.

Other options that are available and in good matchups include the Texans DST (vs. TEN), the Buccaneers DTS (vs. NO) and the Rams DST (vs. SEA), especially if they have not clinched the division yet.

All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook, lines and odds subject to change.

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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.

Zach Thompson
Zach has been part of the DraftKings team since 2017 and covers baseball, basketball, golf, football and any other sport that offers DFS fun. He has been playing fantasy sports since box scores were only available in the newspaper the following day. Even though he grew up almost 8,000 miles away in Guam, he is a diehard Boston sports fan but will take a fantasy value play wherever he can get it, even if it’s from the Yankees.
Disclaimer

I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skills and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.