For all intents and purposes, the fantasy football season is over. Most leagues (wisely) hold their championships in Week 16 to avoid the kind of debacle situation that happened yesterday in the Colts game.
So in lieu of our normal list of waiver wire pickups, I’m going to list a few guys that might be able to help a team that has another game to play in Week 17. I’m looking for two things: 1) the player is readily available on the waiver wire and 2) has a good matchup in Week 17.
Josh Freeman (2.6)
Freeman has averaged 208 yards and 1.1 TD in eight starts and has a nice matchup with a sketchy Falcons defense in Week 17. He throws a lot of picks (2.0 per game), but if you’re in a league that doesn’t penalize too heavily for INTs, he wouldn’t be a bad Week 17 play. Atlanta’s offense is picking up now that Matt Ryan is back under center so the Bucs will probably have to throw to stay in the game.
Justin Forsett (54.6)
Julius Jones re-aggravated his ankle and ribs against the Packers, so expect Forsett to carry the load in Week 17 against a Titans defense that had trouble keeping LaDainian Tomlinson and Darren Sproles in check. Forsett is a Sproles-like back, so he should have success against Tennessee.
Donald Brown (58.1)
Brown will probably get the start against the Bills’ league-worst rush defense. Don’t let his numbers (16 carries, 22 yards, TD) against the Jets worry you. He should have a big game against the hapless Bills.
Sammy Morris (33.0)
It looks like Laurence Maroney fumbled his way out of the Pats’ RB1 job. He had four carries for 22 yards before fumbling the ball on his fifth carry as he headed into the endzone. Sammy Morris took over and rushed the ball 12 times for 95 yards and a TD. Moreover, he has a pretty good matchup in Week 17 with the Texans.
Austin Collie (37.6)
He doesn’t have a great matchup (BUF), but the Bills were torched last week against the Falcons, and with Reggie Wayne, Pierre Garcon and Dallas Clark likely limited or sidelined, Collie could be in for a big day.
Muhsin Muhammad (17.2)
Muhammad’s days of consistent domination are long over, but with Steve Smith sidelined with a broken arm, Muhammad figures to get the lion’s share of targets in a very good matchup against the Saints. New Orleans should be able to put some points on the board, so expect the Panthers to throw the ball to try to stay in the game.
Jermichael Finley (26.7)
He’s still out there on almost three-quarters of ESPN waiver wires and I have no idea why. He has gone over 70 yards receiving in four consecutive games and has three TD in that span. With a nice matchup against Arizona in Week 17, another nice outing is likely.
Todd Heap (38.8)
The four TD that Heap has scored the last two weeks came completely out of nowhere — zero TD in the previous 11 games — but he seems to be rolling now and although the Raiders aren’t a great matchup, he is a big target in the Ravens’ passing game, especially with Mark Clayton sidelined and Derrick Mason banged up.
David Thomas (1.7)
As long as Jeremy Shockey is sidelined, Thomas is a starter-caliber TE, at least in PPR leagues. He has 13 catches for 102 yards over the last two weeks, so if Shockey sits again, Thomas should have a solid outing against a Carolina defense that is better against wideouts than it is against tight ends.
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