Monday Night Football provided a microcosm of last week's fantasy developments: A big injury (Alshon Jeffery), a big breakout (Boston Scott), and repeated production from an overlooked sleeper (Darius Slayton). Those types of situations were happening everywhere you looked on Sunday, creating a plethora of Week 15 fantasy waiver wire pickups and free agent adds. Some obvious handcuffs stepped up (DeAndre Washington, Bilal Powell, Adrian Peterson, Ian Thomas), other injury fill-ins produced (Breshad Perriman, Hayden Hurst), and several players continued their under-the-radar stretch of solid performances (Raheem Mostert, Ryan Tannehill, Cole Beasley). When you put it all together, there are plenty of players worth targeting during waivers and after waivers clear around 4-5 a.m. ET on Wednesday morning in Yahoo and ESPN leagues.
And that's not even mentioning the Week 15 streamers. Our full free agent list is loaded with players set to benefit from favorable matchups in the fantasy semifinals. From QBs (Ryan Fitzpatrick, Gardner Minshew, Jacoby Brissett) to WRs (A.J. Brown, Zach Pascal, Kendrick Bourne) to TEs (David Njoku, Jeff Heuerman) to D/STs (Chiefs, Seahawks, Buccaneers), we have something for everyone. (Streamers are located at the end of the list). You can even check out our Week 15 kicker rankings if you think kicker matchups matter (which they don't, but we don't judge you if you think they do).
MORE WEEK 15:
Waiver pickups | FAAB planner | Stock watch | Snap counts | Fantasy playoff tips
As we said last week, now is not the time to save your waiver claims. Because of injuries, there are legitimate pickups at every position who would warrant high waiver claims at any week. But even if you are just looking for a stream, you have to do whatever it takes to get the player you need. Sure, there will probably more worthwhile pickups next week, but you have to get there first -- and there should be even fewer owners in your league looking to make pickups.
WEEK 15 NON-PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
Top fantasy football waiver wire pickups and free agent adds for Week 15
Unless otherwise noted, only players owned in fewer than 50 percent of Yahoo leagues considered.
Darius Slayton, WR, Giants. Slayton has been on this list before, and he returns after a dominating turn as Eli Manning's favorite receiver on Monday night. Slayton had a team-high eight targets (one more than Sterling Shepard, three more than Golden Tate), catching five for 154 yards and two TDs. Slayton has averaged just under 10 targets per game over his past four, and he's had three two-TD games in his past six contests. With the Dolphins and Redskins on deck for the rest of the fantasy playoffs, Slayton could be a major difference-maker, regardless of who New York's QB is.
WEEK 15 DFS LINEUPS:
FD Cash | FD GPP | DK Cash | DK GPP | Y! Cash | Y! GPP
Boston Scott, RB, Eagles. Scott provided a real boost to the Eagles offensive attack on Monday night, rushing 10 times for 59 yards and a score and adding another six catches (six targets) for 69 yards. Scott looked better than Miles Sanders as both a runner and receiver, and it seems likely that he'll continue to get playing time if Jordan Howard (shoulder) misses time. Even if Howard returns, Scott might have earned playing time over Sanders as the change-of-pace/receiving back. Either way, he's worth an add in PPR leagues with the Redskins on tap for Week 15.
WEEK 15 PPR RANKINGS: Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end
Nelson Agholor WR, Eagles (or Greg Ward or JJ Arcega-Whiteside). By the end of Monday night's game, Philadelphia was down to one healthy wide receiver (Greg Ward). Seriously. Alshon Jeffery left early because of a foot/ankle injury, and JJ Arcega-Whiteside limped off with a late hamstring injury. It's unclear if Agholor (or Jeffery or Arcega-Whiteside) will be ready for next week, so it's possible Ward and some free agent signees will be starting next week. Maybe Ward is actually the guy to pick up here -- who knows? Agholor has at least proven something and would be heavily targeted next week against the Redskins if he's back, but we'll have to see who's healthy and worth a late-week free agent pickup.
MORE WEEK 15: Waiver pickups | Snap counts | Fantasy playoff tips
David Njoku, TE, Browns. Njoku's return from a wrist injury didn't go well, as he caught just one-of-three targets for four yards. But he played 10 more snaps and had two more targets than Ricky Seals-Jones, so he remains the preferred pass-catching TE option in Cleveland. Against Arizona, who's still allowing by far the most fantasy points per game to TEs, Njoku could pay off in a big way.
Tyler Higbee, TE, Rams. Higbee has turned in back-to-back 100-yard games in Gerald Everett's absence, and he gets his third straight favorable matchup (@ Cowboys) in Week 15. Assuming Everett (knee) remains out, Higbee should be owned in all leagues and could easily be better than whoever you're starting at TE.
Check our full Week 15 waiver list for additional waiver and free agent ideas, including top pickups DeAndre Washington, Adrian Peterson, Raheem Mostert, Patrick Laird, and more injury fill-ins and streamers for the second round of the fantasy playoffs.
