Every week, I highlight a few players that you should target in waivers. I use the ESPN league data when filtering players, so the only guys eligible for discussion here are those that are available on the waiver wire in at least 40% of ESPN’s leagues. I’ll list each player’s percentage-owned after their name so you have an idea of how available they are in leagues around the country. I’ll always try to mention a few players that are available in 90% of leagues for those of you in 12-team leagues or leagues with big rosters. I’ll rank them in the order I’d pick them up in a league with a high-performance scoring system.

Please note that these rankings are for total value through the end of the year. Players with particularly good matchups this week are in bold.

Ryan Fitzpatrick (34.0)
He had a brutal first half in a so-so matchup, but the Vikings’ defense plays pretty tough at home. Over the next three weeks he has CLE, @MIA and NE. That W16 matchup against the Patriots is tasty.

Jon Kitna (14.1)
It wasn’t a great matchup against Indy, but Kitna fared pretty well. He has PHI, WAS and @ARI over the next three weeks, so even without Dez Bryant, he should still be able to post solid numbers down the stretch. Romo’s pending return could be a headache, but I don’t think the Cowboys are going to rush him back.

David Garrard (42.1)
The Jags are running the ball more and more and it’s eating into Garrard’s numbers, though he has rushed for a TD in each of the last two weeks. He’s startable in W14 (OAK) and W16 (WAS).

Sam Bradford (36.3)
Do I see a chink in the rookie’s armor? After a string of five consecutive games with at least 251 yards passing or two TDs, Bradford had his first bad game since Week 5…against the Cardinals no less. I’m not terribly optimistic about his chances against a relatively tough Saints pass defense.

Matt Hasselbeck (14.3)
His matchups down the stretch (@SF, ATL, @TB) are pretty favorable, but with Mike Williams 1.0 out, Hasselbeck is running out of options, and fast. Hopefully, Ben Obomanu can shake off that lacerated hand and make it back by Sunday.

Troy Smith (4.4)
After hooking up with Vernon Davis for a long TD, Smith finished with decent numbers on the day. He has a nice matchup this week against the Seahawks, but should be avoided after that (@SD, @STL).

Jason Campbell (6.2)
It’s not always pretty, but Campbell is capable of putting up good fantasy numbers when the stars align. He has two good matchups coming up (@JAX, DEN) before a date with the Colts in W16.

Chad Henne (47.7)
He had three picks against the Browns. What is the Jets’ defense going to do to him?

Drew Stanton (0.3)
He was decent in a tough matchup with the Bears. I wouldn’t want to use him against the Packers this week, but his W15 matchup with an Aqib Talib-less Bucs secondary isn’t a bad matchup.

Kerry Collins (1.2)
Maybe dreadful is too strong of a word to describe Collins’ performance against a sketchy Jags’ pass defense. 169 yards and two TDs…no it’s not too strong. He has the Colts this week (so-so) and the Texans in W15 (great matchup) before traveling to KC.

Jake Delhomme (1.1)
Congratulations to Jake Delhomme, who threw a TD without throwing an interception for the first time this season. Assuming Colt McCoy can’t make it back, he has a decent matchup with the Bills this week.

Jimmy Clausen (1.0)
Very good matchup, but he hasn’t thrown a TD pass since W4, so why are you reading this?

Tarvaris Jackson (0.7)
He threw two TDs and three picks against the Bills. The Vikings would be better off giving him some reps to see where he’s at heading into next season, but they appear to want Favre back under center if he’s healthy. We’ll see.

Jonathan Stewart (68.4)
He’s not technically eligible for this list, but he is available in almost one-third of ESPN leagues. Mike Goodson sprained his shoulder so Stewart should get the lion’s share of touches the rest of the way, and he’s looked pretty sharp the last two weeks.

Tashard Choice (5.0)
He carried the ball 19 times for 100 yards and a score and has a nice schedule down the stretch. But he’ll be sharing time with Felix Jones, which is going to put a cap on his value.

Chris Ivory (38.1)
Pierre Thomas is supposed to be back this week, but I’ll believe it when I see it. Ivory has had three good fantasy games in a row and is a borderline RB2 in most formats.

Danny Woodhead (59.9)
The Pats aren’t going to feed him the ball, but if he can shake loose like he did on Monday night, he’s going to post good numbers, especially in PPR leagues.

Ryan Torain (46.8)
He is supposed to practice this week, per Skeletor (a.k.a. Mike Shanahan). Neither James Davis or Keiland Williams has been consistent enough to keep Torain from getting a shot to retake the starting job. Plus, he has a favorable matchup this week against the Bucs…assuming he can play.

James Starks (0.1)
With Dimitri Nance out, Starks was the main ballcarrier for the Packers with Brandon Jackson acting as the main threat out of the backfield. He finished with 18 carries for 73 yards and could perhaps surprise in good matchups over the next two weeks.

Javarris James (0.9)
Mike Hart (3.2)
I have no clue where the Indy running game is headed. James was the most impressive against the Cowboys and Hart outplayed Donald Brown a few weeks ago. Oh, yeah, Joseph Addai’s return is looming.

Maurice Morris (7.9)
I guess Jahvid Best has a little gas left in the tank this season. Week-to-week, Morris’ carries dropped from 14 to 11 and he failed to score. With the Packers up this week and Best vulturing touches, he’s not a good option.

Tim Hightower (56.4)
He continues to dominate the carries, even though Beanie Wells is supposedly healthy.

Anthony Dixon (6.9)
The Packers are a tough matchup for opposing RBs, so it’s no surprise that Dixon didn’t do much with his 10 touches. He should fare better against a Seattle rush defense that has really struggled this season.

James Davis (0.5)
If Ryan Torain can’t go, Davis appears to be gaining favor with Shanahan. He had 12 touches to Williams’ seven.

Sidney Rice (55.7)
Um, yeah. After 4-76 over the previous two games, Rice took advantage of Percy Harvin’s absence and a sketchy Bills secondary to the tune of 5-105-2. Even with bad matchups over the next two weeks, Rice can help fantasy owners down the stretch.

Roy Williams (38.3)
With Dez Bryant out for the year, Williams should be usable in three pretty nice matchups down the stretch (PHI, WAS, @ARI).

Ben Obomanu (13.4)
He cut his finger, but should be able to go in W14, and with Mike Williams 1.0 out for at least one week, Obomanu could help a fantasy owner in need.

Davone Bess (27.9)
With Chad Henne back under center, Bess is back to being a quality PPR WR. It only helps that Brandon Marshall (hamstring) and Brian Hartline (finger) are struggling with injuries. He has a bad matchup in W14 (@NYJ), but things ease up in W15 (BUF) and W16 (DET).

Mike Thomas (24.3)
It was a rather quiet day against the Titans (4-34), but Thomas has 27 catches in his last five games, so he’s startable in PPR leagues. He could struggle this week against Nnamdi Asomugha.

Earl Bennett (1.0)
It’s time to take notice of Bennett, who has back-to-back good games and has been a relevant PPR wideout in five of his last seven games. Throw in a great matchup with the Pats and maybe he can keep this run going.

Kenny Britt (54.0)
He’s no longer on the Titans’ injury report. Perhaps with a decent showing against the Colts in W14, he might be usable in a great matchup against the Texans in W15.

Robert Meachem (53.8)
It seems like Meachem is having a nice day every other week.

Steve Breaston (48.8)
Breaston has been spotty of late, but with a nice matchup coming up in W14 (DEN), he may be startable in deeper formats.

Danny Amendola (30.4)
Brandon Gibson (0.3)
Amendola only got two targets on Sunday, and there were four other Rams with more. Not good. As for Gibson, he now has four double digit games (in PPR formats) in his last five games. He’s worth a look if you’re in a bind.

Jacoby Ford (7.9)
He caught a TD against the Chargers, but that was about it. He has the Jags and Broncos over the next two weeks, so who knows.

Blair White (4.8)
He didn’t do much against the Cowboys, but if Austin Collie misses W14, he could be a factor.

Anthony Armstrong (1.9)
With Aqib Talib out for the season, there are going to be some holes in the Bucs’ secondary. If Armstrong can connect on one deep ball…

Derek Hagan (0.9)
His value hinges on the overall health of the Giants’ receiving corps.

Mohamed Massaquoi (9.5)
He now has four catches in three straight games and four of the last five.

Nate Washington (53.7)
The Tennessee passing attack looks dreadful right now. Dreadful.

Benjamin Watson (21.5)
Watson erupted for 10-100-1 and has a great matchup with the Bills, who have struggled against opposing TEs this season. He and Jake Delhomme built a rapport on Sunday, so if Delhomme gets another start, it will be good for Watson.

Brandon Pettigrew (40.8)
I was worried how the change at QB would affect Pettigrew, but he posted five catches for 36 yards. That’s not a great day, but he’s still usable in most formats.

Jimmy Graham (2.1)
He now has 14 catches in the last four weeks and is clearly outplaying Jeremy Shockey, at least from a receiving standpoint.

Kevin Boss (53.1)
Boss only had three targets as the Giants’ passing attack suddenly looked pretty suspect. If Steve Smith 2.0 makes his return, it will likely cut into his targets.

Rob Gronkowski (23.0)
Aaron Hernandez (57.9)
Just when it looks like Gronkowski is taking over as the Pats TE1, Tom Brady targets Aaron Hernandez five times to Gronk’s two against the Jets. Apparently, Hernandez plays better against man coverage (due to his athleticism), while Gronk finds success against zone defense, so keep that in mind when setting your lineup each week.

Tony Moeaki (25.5)
He got seven targets this week, which is partially why Dwayne Bowe was so quiet. The Chargers aren’t very good against opposing TEs, so Moeaki is something of a W14 sleeper.

Greg Olsen (54.0)
The Lions are tough against TEs, but Olsen has only been targeted twice in the last two weeks. He has a nice matchup this week, however.

Owen Daniels (42.5)
Joel Dreessen (3.9)
Daniels may return this week. I wouldn’t recommend using him in his first game back

Martellus Bennett (0.6)
Jason Witten apparently has a high ankle sprain, but he played through it on Sunday, so he should play W14. If he can’t go, his owners could do a lot worse than Bennett.

Billy Bajema (0.6)
He has a good matchup, so there’s that.