Gross Bombs: NFL Props for Week 16
Josh Gross
The injuries are somehow getting worse around fantasy football, especially at the wide receiver position. But hey. At least there aren’t any teams on bye this week.
At FTN Fantasy, we have a Waiver Wire Tool that ranks the top waiver adds of the week,while also recommending the amount of FAAB you should use on each player. And every Tuesday, I’ll break down the top five players listed in the tool, giving you the best case for each highly ranked player. With all of the key injuries impacting fantasy rosters, being able to add key players off waivers is as crucial as ever.
Fantasy Football Waiver Wire: Week 8
1. Tyrone Tracy Jr., RB, New York Giants
Yahoo! 57%, ESPN 47%
Devin Singletary returned last week, and while he was likely limited in some capacity, Tracy still very much operated as the lead running back for the Giants. The rookie logged 67% of the snaps, though the overall touches weren’t anything to write home about (9) because the Giants offense just couldn’t stay on the field. With the loss of Andrew Thomas, we might see Daniel Jones continue to get the ball out of his hands immediately, which could benefit Tracy in the short passing game.
2. Jauan Jennings, WR, San Francisco 49ers
Yahoo! 31%, ESPN 46%
At one point, Jennings was the most added players in fantasy football leagues. But with the 49ers getting healthier, Jennings came back down to earth. But now, Brandon Aiyuk is out for the season and Deebo Samuel Sr. is dealing with pneumonia. Jennings himself has to return from his own hip injury but once he does, he’ll likely operate as the WR2 for a good 49ers offense. And we already saw the upside he can present when given more opportunities, going off for 11-175-3 back in Week 3. Since 2023, in the five games he has seen at least five targets, Jennings is averaging just over 17 PPR points per game.
3. Romeo Doubs, WR, Green Bay Packers
Yahoo! 45%, ESPN 37%
Doubs was suspended back in Week 5. In the two games since, he’s been awesome, posting stat lines of 3-49-2 and 8-94-0. He continues to lead the Green Bay wideouts in snaps whenever he is on the field. There will be some volatility with how much Jordan Love spreads the ball around but with all of the wide receiver injuries at the moment, Doubs is a viable replacement option for the time being, especially with matchups against Jacksonville and Detroit up next.
4. Alexander Mattison, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
Yahoo! 54%, ESPN 43%
It isn’t always pretty, but right now, Mattison is the clear lead running back for the Raiders. Zamir White returned from his groin injury last week and Mattison still recorded a whopping 26 touches, logging 70% of the snaps. He now has at least 17 touches in each of his last three games, and while his upside is admittedly limited in this offense, the volume is what we are chasing here.
5. Sam Darnold, QB, Minnesota Vikings
Yahoo! 64%, ESPN 45%
Darnold continues to flirt with QB1 production in fantasy, and this Vikings offense is only going to improve with the return of tight end T.J. Hockenson. The veteran is currently eighth among all signal callers in fantasy points per dropback and now gets an amazing upcoming schedule with matchups against the Rams, Colts and Jaguars over the next three weeks. Darnold will be ranked as an easy top-10 quarterback during that stretch.
