Week 15 Fantasy Football FAAB Bids: Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Taylor Jr., Adam Thielen and More

It’s the first week of the fantasy football playoffs for most leagues; no matter what you did up until this point, you are now at the mercy of the week-to-week randomness of fantasy sports.

In the free agent auction bidding (FAAB) world, it’s getting time to make the final moves to push your team over the top at the most important time. There’s no need to hold onto your budget at this point: use it or lose it.

That means making more moves and expanding your views on player value. A guy you would have spent $6 on in Week 10 might now be worth $11 or more depending on your roster needs and remaining budget.

Let’s go through some of the hot names on the waiver wire heading into Week 15 and what reasonable bids might look like. Your own numbers will vary depending on what you need and what you have, but this is a good idea of where to start when choosing your bids.

Quarterback

Aaron Rodgers, New York Jets

Things are wearing on Rodgers. He just turned 41, and his team is out of playoff contention, holding a 3-10 record. They might be in position to draft the quarterback of the future. It’s tough to imagine Rodgers wanting to repeat this process next year.

Week 15 is in the venerable quarterback’s favor, though, as his opponent, the Jacksonville Jaguars, might be the worst pass defense in the league. The Jags just held down the Titans, allowing six points to Tennessee, but that offense is broken and has a basement-level floor.

While the Jets are far from a juggernaut, Rodgers just had his first 300-yard game of the season, and Garrett Wilson and Davante Adams both topped 100 yards receiving. With a pristine matchup, New York has a chance to repeat their big performance from Week 14.

Rodgers is nothing more than a streamer, but the situation couldn’t be much better.

Conservative Bid: $0

Aggressive Bid: $1

Desperation Bid: $2

Cooper Rush, Dallas Cowboys

Rush had a spot here last week as well because of his good matchup with the Bengals. He didn’t take advantage of that matchup, throwing for just 183 yards, though he had two touchdowns (and an interception). Rush has another good matchup this week against the Panthers. Even after Carolina limited Philadelphia last week, the numbers say to target the Panthers.

Rush is a low-floor player, as is any backup quarterback. The bottom just falls out sometimes, and backups don’t have the ability to adapt and overcome the way Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson can.

This is a low- to mid-level streaming play, and I don’t have a ton of confidence in a huge week (just OK).

Conservative Bid: $0

Aggressive Bid: $1

Desperation Bid: $2

Running Back

Sincere McCormick, Las Vegas Raiders

McCormick led the Vegas backfield, carrying the ball 15 times compared to just one attempt for all other running backs. He had a nice day, with 78 rushing yards and two receptions for 11 yards, though quarterback Aidan O'Connell stole the rushing touchdown.

Things have been unraveling for the Raiders over the past few weeks, with injuries and reports of unrest in the locker room. O’Connell left last week’s game in the second half with a knee injury, and while it’s just a bone bruise, it may force him to miss more time.

No matter who starts at quarterback, Vegas has a bad offense that will make most players poor fantasy options with bye weeks done. Tight end Brock Bowers is a weekly starter, but everyone else is worth scrutinizing.

McCormick is likely to top out as a flex player, but there are worse guys to add to your bench. This is a depth option.

Conservative Bid: $3-4

Aggressive Bid: $6-9

Desperation Bid: $11-21

Patrick Taylor Jr., San Francisco 49ers

Taylor rose to the backup running back spot in San Fran when Christian McCaffrey and Jordan Mason were both placed on IR last week. Rookie Isaac Guerendo took the starting role and turned 17 touches into 128 yards and two touchdowns.

Guerendo left the game late in Week 14, though, with a foot sprain that has him “day to day.” With a game on Thursday night, Guerendo might be forced to miss Week 15, pushing Taylor into one of the most lucrative fantasy positions.

Even if Guerendo plays, Taylor is in a valuable fantasy spot. The conservative bid below is good if you see Taylor as nothing more than a handcuff, while the desperation bid is if you’re thinking of him as a possible top-10 fantasy back in Week 15.

Conservative Bid: $6

Aggressive Bid: $11-21

Desperation Bid: Your whole budget

Wide Receiver

Jalen McMillan, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

McMillan had the best day of his rookie season on Sunday, catching four of seven targets for 59 yards and two touchdowns. Each of those was a career high other than targets (eight), and it comes at a time when the Bucs need a WR2.

Chris Godwin is out for the season, and Mike Evans missed a stretch of his own. Evans is back; tight end Cade Otton has a role. A team in playoff position would get a huge boost if McMillan could build off his career day.

The most likely outcome is that McMillan is a fringe fantasy player moving forward, the way he has been most of the season. Blips on the radar happen every week, and Tampa was up against a flailing Raiders team.

Someone will make a play hoping this is a new normal, but don’t be the one who overpays.

Conservative Bid: $0

Aggressive Bid: $1

Desperation Bid: $2

Adam Thielen, Carolina Panthers

Thielen was the one receiver to hit big against the Eagles in Week 14. He had nearly half the receptions (nine) and receiving yards (102) on the team, as Bryce Young struggled in an ugly game.

Thielen’s ceiling will always be capped by Young’s presence at quarterback. The matchup dictates if he’s a low-level player to consider, but Thielen will never reach a consistent weekly starter role on this team.

The matchup against the Cowboys this week is a good one, so Thielen is on the long list of WR3/4/flex types. Don’t overpay for that production, and don’t expect Thielen to be at this level regularly.

Conservative Bid: $0

Aggressive Bid: $1-3

Desperation Bid: $4-6

Tight End

Tyler Conklin, New York Jets

Conklin is averaging around three receptions and 24.4 yards per game. Those are middling or worse results, leaving Conklin as a low-end fantasy option even with the best matchups.

This is one of the best tight end matchups, as Conklin joins his quarterback among those with a chance for big things in Week 15. The Jaguars have allowed the most yards per pass attempt and seventh-most fantasy points per game to tight ends.

Conklin is a desperation option, but he is feasible if you’re truly without another play.

Conservative Bid: $0

Aggressive Bid: $1

Desperation Bid: $2

Chig Okonkwo, Tennessee Titans

Okonkwo’s season and career per-game averages are very close to those listed above for Conklin. Okonkwo joins his fellow tight end as a low-end fantasy player on the fringe. Also, like Conklin, Okonkwo is here exclusively because of his matchup in Week 15.

The Titans play the Bengals, the team that has allowed the ninth-most yards per pass attempt and the most fantasy points per game to tight ends (both numbers are before Monday night’s game). Jake Ferguson and Luke Schoonmaker combined for five receptions and 54 yards on Monday, an OK day.

Only pick up Okonkwo if you’re truly desperate. He’s more likely to bottom out than excel, even with a great matchup.

Conservative Bid: $0

Aggressive Bid: $1

Desperation Bid: $2