The fantasy football playoffs are looming in a huge number of league formats, so the pressure is mounting to make late improvements to rosters with the hopes of building depth for a postseason run. And while the Week 14 waiver wire pool doesn’t feature a ton of immediate help, there are promising prospects available at all positions ranging from Johnny Manziel to Isaiah Crowell to Daniel “Boom” Herron and plenty more.
Manziel looks like a good bet to make his first career NFL start in Week 14 after appearing in a reserve role in last week’s loss to the Buffalo Bills. He offers a stronger arm, better rushing ability and a more dynamic overall skill set than incumbent starter Brian Hoyer, all of which make him a higher upside play in fantasy, too.
Manziel’s teammate, Isaiah Crowell, also takes another step forward this week despite picking up just 29 carries on 17 carries against the Bills’ vaunted run defense. While he had his struggles, Terrance West might have landed in coach Mike Pettine’s doghouse by losing a key fumble that was returned for a touchdown. That could lead to extra work for Crowell against a soft Colts run defense.
Herron continues to look like a better and better option as Trent Richardson continues to show significant limitations in his game. Herron is the latest in a growing line of teammates to dwarf Richardson’s production as he fills the role vacated when Ahmad Bradshaw suffered a season-ending ankle injury. Herron should only carve out a bigger role down the stretch.
At the wide receiver position, Kenny Stills stands out for his 132 yards and a touchdown last week, but also by showing an improved skill set in his second season. An explosive deep threat as a rookie, Stills already has more catches (44), targets (57) and yards (691) than he had over a full 16-game schedule last season. His stock continues to rise as he plays a bigger role in the aftermath of Brandin Cooks’ thumb injury.
Jon Ritchie, Bob Flounders and Dustin Hockensmith took a quick tour through the waiver wire, tackling those players and more in this week’s Keystone Sports Network segment. Check out audio from the show in this post and get plenty more podcasts and analysis on KeystoneSportsNetwork.com and by following @KSNSportsNet on Twitter.