Week 12 Waiver Targets

Lines have been drawn in the sand. At this point, there should be no secrets in your fantasy league. You know who the Davids are and you certainly know who the Goliaths are. At this point, the only possibility for a big shift will come in the form of a blockbuster trade as in many leagues, the trade deadline falls right around this time. If you feel like you’re still a big move away from being a true contender to win your league, then I suggest you stop reading this article, and take a peak at some teams that would be an ideal trading partner for you. As we’ve talked about all year long, these waiver wire targets are not saviors. They are players you can set your sights on that will hopefully improve your team in the margins, which is where many fantasy championships are won. Personally speaking, I’ve won playoff games by less than a point, and I’ve lost them that way too. It truly is a game of inches. If you find yourself in striking distance of taking home that championship trophy this year, check out this guy heading down the stretch.

Pat Bryant 

Bryant is the type of player I’ve personally been keeping an eye on all year long. The rookie WR out of Illinois has gradually been working his way up the Broncos’ depth chart to the point where he now has a legitimate role in the team’s offense. After registering only 6 total targets through the first 6 weeks combined, Bryant garnered 6 targets alone during the Broncos week 11 victory against Kansas City. He caught 5 of those 6 passes for a total of 82 yards. Marvin Mims, who was returning after missing time with a concussion, has all but appeared to lose his job as the Broncos’ WR3 behind Courtland Sutton and Troy Franklin. Mims was on the field for only 24% of the Broncos’ offensive snaps, whereas Bryant found himself on the field for 56% of those snaps. I’m certainly not here to tell you that Bryant is in line to become a league winner. However, don’t be overly surprised if he has a handful of very solid fantasy games down the stretch and garners flex appeal from owners in deep leagues.

Luther Burden

Unlike many players that usually find their way onto these lists, Burden did not get here by producing flashy stats or commanding double digit targets. Instead, the more advanced metrics favor Burden as a key cog in this Bears’ offense moving forward. While he commonly found himself behind Olamide Zaccheaus on the receiver depth chart, Burden got significantly more opportunities than him this week, running a pass route on 23 of the Bears’ 37 dropbacks and garnering 5 targets. Zaccheaus on the other hand, only ran 9 routes and was not targeted a single time. This trend very well could be something to monitor as the fantasy regular season winds down and playoff prep ramps up. If you have an open roster spot, consider adding the college star out of Missouri to fill that slot.