Week 13 Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Waiver Adds: Noah Brown, Devaughn Vele, Adonai Mitchell

Welcome to FantasySP’s Week 13 fantasy football wide receiver waiver wire breakdown! For this late in the season, there are a shocking number of legitimately exciting options available in over 50% of leagues. Here are my favorites for this week: 

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Week 13 Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Waiver Adds

Noah Brown, Washington Commanders (8.4% Rostered)

Noah Brown has been the Commanders’ WR1 in usage for the last four weeks. He leads the team in route share (77%), target share (20%), air yards share (34%), and first-read target share 26%. Unfortunately, all that usage hasn’t turned into fantasy points, as he is averaging just 6.1 Half-PPR points over that span. Washington’s offense as a whole has regressed, and Brown isn’t exactly shining himself, underperforming his expected points by over 50%.

With that said, this usage is still exciting. If the Commanders can turn things around offensively, Brown could provide flex value down the stretch. This is true even if (as is likely) Terry McLaurin passes him up in usage — at its early-season best, this offense was more than good enough to support two fantasy-relevant WRs.  

Devaughn Vele, Denver Broncos (5.1% Rostered)

A seventh-round rookie out of Utah, Vele has been solidly impressive whenever he has seen the field this season. He leads the Broncos in both yards per route run and PFF Receiving Grade, narrowly edging out Courtland Sutton with above-average marks. Vele’s issue has been usage, as he spent multiple weeks early in the season as a healthy scratch and has struggled to see the field even when active.

However, that has changed for the better in recent weeks. Vele has averaged a 62% route participation rate over the last three weeks — that’s still not ideal, but it’s a step in the right direction. He did trend in the wrong direction with a 55% participation rate on Sunday, but he made the most of those routes with six catches on nine targets for 80 yards. Going forward, Vele is still just a desperation play for now. But he could become very intriguing very quickly if he can secure a full-time WR2 spot on this ascending Broncos offense.  

Adonai Mitchell, Indianapolis Colts (9.3% Rostered)

The thesis for this suggestion is simple: Josh Downs is reportedly week-to-week with a shoulder injury. That means Mitchell will take his spot as the Colts’ starting slot receiver for the foreseeable future. Now, there’s absolutely no guarantee that Mitchell will succeed with that increased responsibility. He will be competing with Michael Pittman Jr. and Alec Pierce for targets, and Anthony Richardson’s accuracy issues are such that there aren’t many catchable passes to go around. 

However, Mitchell is still a 22-year-old second-round rookie. He even has some intriguing peripherals in his NFL career so far, including a very impressive 29% target per route run rate. In deeper leagues, a guy like that seeing an expanded role is definitely worth grabbing.

Xavier Legette, Carolina Panthers (39.8% Rostered)

Honestly, there are a lot of options in Carolina right now if you need wide receiver help. Adam Thielen (32% rostered) returned in Week 12 and immediately took over as the Panthers’ starting slot receiver. Former Seahawk/Panther/Raider/Bronco/Packer/Bear/Buccaneer David Moore (0.1% rostered) racked up a team-high 10 targets on Sunday, catching six for 81 yards and a touchdown. With Bryce Young suddenly looking like the guy he was drafted to be, both of those players are worth considering, depending on your league format and size.

However, Legette is the prize pickup here. A first-round selection in this year’s NFL Draft, Legette has posted route participation rates of 96% and 90% over the last two weeks. Of these three players, he has the best role and the profile that is by far the most conducive to a late-season breakout. Give me the highly drafted rookie over the 34-year-old slot WR and the career journeyman any day. The Panthers have some favorable matchups coming up, and we know they will be playing from behind often. Adding Legette now could pay huge dividends in the fantasy playoffs.

Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Tennessee Titans (11.2% Rostered)

Nick Westbrook-Ikhine just can’t stop scoring touchdowns. He has hit pay-dirt in seven of the last eight weeks, including a 38-yard strike on Sunday and a 98-yard bomb the week before. Since Week 8, he has posted an absolutely elite 88% route participation rate and a solid 26% air yards share in the Titans’ offense. 

Unfortunately, his 15% target share isn’t ideal, converting to just 4.6 targets per game. The one issue with that elite participation mark is that there isn’t much room for his role to expand — he’ll simply have to start earning more targets, which doesn’t seem hugely likely. He’s a valid deep-league pickup and flex play, but I’d rather chase someone with more upside in most formats.

Ted Chmyz is a fantasy football contributor for FantasySP. Find him on Twitter @Tchmyz for more fantasy content or to ask questions.