Week 12 Waiver Wire Pickups RBs/WRs: Zach Charbonnet, AJ Dillon, Tutu Atwell, Elijah Moore and More
We finished our 11th football Sunday, and now it's time to hit the waiver wire. With Week 11 over, we are really starting to see things take shape around the league. Here, we are going to focus on the best running backs and wide receivers that may be available in your league.
Week 12 Waiver Wire Pickups
Running Backs
Zach Charbonnet, Seattle Seahawks
Kenneth Walker went down with an oblique injury on Sunday and is essentially a lock to miss this week's Thanksgiving game and potentially more games moving forward. Even before the injury, Charbonnet had been out-snapping Walker for weeks despite Walker still seeing more work. We don't know the extent of Walker's injury just yet, but it sounds like a multi-week injury. With Walker out, Charbonnet should see bell-cow back touches. He should be the top priority on the waiver wire this week.
Ty Chandler, Minnesota Vikings
Even with Mattison active, Chandler still saw 10 carries and four receptions while once again outperforming Mattison. Mattison carries the ball 18 times for 81 yards at 4.5 yards per carry and caught one pass for -1 yard. Chandler carried the ball 10 times for 73 yards at 7.3 yards per carry and caught all four of his targets for 37 yards. It appears that Chandler is working his way into a larger role and has a real chance of earning the RB1 role for the Vikings down the stretch.
Roschon Johnson, Chicago Bears
D'Onta Foreman went down with an injury in Week 11 and it's unclear how serious the injury is. Khalil Herbert will still likely be the RB1 with Foreman sidelined, but Johnson could see an increased role in the offense. Even with Foreman healthy there was a chance they began to give the rookie more work while looking to the future. He is likely their running back of the future, and with their season over for all intents and purposes, it would make all the sense in the world to move forward with their rookie back to see what they have in him.
AJ Dillon, Green Bay Packers
We understand that Dillon isn't very good and neither are the Packers. However, it looks like Aaron Jones is going to miss some time and that makes Dillon the Packers' RB1, which warrants him being added in most leagues. The volume should be there and that's enough for a lot of fantasy owners who are dealing with injuries and bye weeks down the stretch. If Dillon is out there, go grab him. You may just end up needing him and there is a chance Jones is out for an extended period of time.
Keaton Mitchell, Baltimore Ravens
Mitchell disappointed this week and that will lead a lot of fickle fantasy owners to cast him off to the waiver wire. If they do, you need to pick him up. This kid is electric and he is now clearly playing ahead of Justice Hill. Despite it not working out for fantasy this week, we are encouraged by the fact he saw eight carries and a target. If he can stay in the area of 10 touches per game he will have a ton of fantasy value even if he is a bit of a boom-or-bust option.
Wide Receivers
Khalil Shakir, Buffalo Bills
Shakir is a hit-or-miss option who hit again this week. We view him as more of a stash option who you only start if you have to, but it's worth picking him up and seeing how things go. This week he caught three of four targets for 115 yards and a TD, including an 81-yard TD catch. Stefon Diggs is going to get his looks every week, however, it's starting to look like Shakir and Gabe Davis are rotating in the WR2 role from week to week.
Tutu Atwell, Los Angeles Rams
Cooper Kupp left the game Sunday with a sprained ankle and could miss some time. If Kupp misses time, Atwell should see a fantasy rejuvenation. He was excellent early in the season prior to Kupp returning from injury and there is no reason to believe that won't be the case if Kupp misses time again. If you need a guy to plug in for a few weeks, Atwell looks like a great option. We do expect Kupp to miss at least one week, but he has been diagnosed with a low-ankle sprain which generally doesn't hold a player out for more than a week or two.
Elijah Moore, Cleveland Browns
Moore was Dorian Thompson-Robinson's top receiver this week and it looks like DTR will be the starter moving forward. We have seen more flash greatness in the past and we have to consider that he may have a connection with DTR. He caught six of seven targets for 60 yards. Every player in this passing attack has a low ceiling with Watson out, but there is a chance that Moore has the better rapport with DTR. We wouldn't rush to start him, nevertheless, he is worth taking a flier on.
