Remember Breshad Perriman?
It’s OK if you don’t.
Diehard NFL fans will recognize Perriman as a recent draft bust, a first-round pick with rare speed who failed to find any consistency throughout a nondescript career.
Hardcore fantasy players may have a slightly different take on Perriman, who randomly erupted for 506 receiving yards and five touchdowns over the final five weeks of the 2019 season. This included three consecutive 100-yard games to finish the year, and a 134-yard, 3-TD performance in Week 15.
Any fantasy team that acquired Perriman for the stretch run probably found itself in the championship game – at minimum (unless in Week 15 you sat Perriman for Tevin Coleman, who totaled 0.9 points, but we don’t need to get into that now).
The catch to this whole concept: If you’re good enough to make the fantasy playoffs, you probably don’t need to be scouring the waiver wire for Breshad Perriman. That’s true in theory, but there are plenty of scenarios where late-season free agent adds become necessary:
- Injuries are piling up. This week alone, fantasy playoff teams are potentially down C.J. Stroud, Nico Collins, Isiah Pacheco, Tyreek Hill, De’Von Achane, D.J. Moore, Alexander Mattison, Brian Robinson, and Rhamondre Stevenson. Of course, Justin Herbert, Keenan Allen, and Josh Jacobs all missed Thursday night’s game, as well.
- Plenty of fantasy teams piece it together throughout the year, particularly at running back. Teams that started out with Nick Chubb or Jonathan Taylor were unlikely to find 1-for-1 replacements. Instead, those teams have likely been cycling through the waiver wire and playing matchups.
- League size varies. These late-season additions become much more important in deeper leagues with multiple flex spots.
Let’s look at the candidates in line for late-season breakouts in the fantasy playoffs:
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D’Onta Foreman, RB, Chicago Bears
- Rostered in 33.8 percent of 12-team ESPN leagues
Pencil him in for this list every year. Foreman is Derrick Henry lite – a bigger back who seems to get rolling when the calendar flips to December.
Filling in for an injured Henry in 2021, Foreman averaged 91.5 yards from scrimmage over the final month. Last year with the Panthers, Foreman piled up 165 rushing yards and a touchdown in Week 16.
This year, Foreman appears to be taking hold of the top spot in Chicago at just the right time. The Bears have rotated between Foreman, Khalil Herbert, and Roschon Johnson throughout the year, but Foreman has clearly been their most effective runner. He played 55 percent of the snaps in last week’s win over Detroit and totaled 77 yards from scrimmage on 13 touches.
Chicago is likely to win the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft through its trade with Carolina, so the franchise isn’t quite as concerned with “tanking” as some other downtrodden teams might be. Bottom line: The coaches are trying to save their jobs and they’re going to play their best players. Foreman is certainly one of them.
He gets a favorable schedule over the next three weeks: at Cleveland, vs. Arizona, vs. Atlanta.
While Cleveland’s pass defense has been exceptional, over the past month the Browns allowed 164 yards on the ground to Pittsburgh’s Jaylen Warren and Najee Harris, 120 to Denver’s Javonte Williams and Samaje Perine, and 112 yards from scrimmage to Los Angeles’ Kyren Williams.
Ezekiel Elliott, RB, New England Patriots
- Rostered in 75.6 percent of 12-team ESPN leagues
I don’t care that the Patriots are historically inept on offense. Any running back getting 29 touches in a game is worth playing in fantasy.
Also, allow me some space for a quick Zeke rant: He’s still good! It’s true that Zeke was never a home-run hitter, which has always capped his fantasy upside to a degree. He is even less explosive now at age 28, but the strengths of his game – his instincts, vision, lateral movement between the tackles, and three-down capability – remain intact.
With Rhamondre Stevenson tracking to miss Sunday’s game versus Kansas City, Elliott possesses a nice floor in part due to his pass-catching prowess. He caught seven passes from quarterback Bailey Zappe in last Thursday’s win over the Steelers and figures to play a similar role Sunday. Barring injury, it’s hard to envision a scenario where Elliott does not receive 20 touches against the Chiefs. The Patriots, completely devoid of wide receiver talent, run the offense through their backs. And Zeke will be the only one of the field in Week 15.
Jerick McKinnon, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
Rostered in 35.1 percent of 12-team ESPN leagues
We could be in for a repeat of 2022, when the Chiefs leaned heavily on McKinnon with the playoffs around the corner.
Starter Isiah Pacheco has not practiced or played since injuring his shoulder on Dec. 3 against the Packers. The Chiefs took a split backfield approach a week ago, as Clyde Edwards-Helaire handled 48 percent of the offensive snaps and 13 touches while McKinnon took 45 percent of the snaps and received seven touches. Don’t be surprised to see the touch total flip in Week 15.
The Chiefs are in desperate need of playmakers outside of Travis Kelce and Rashee Rice, so much so that they gave Kadarius Toney, whose difficulty lining up correctly has been well-documented, a season-high 44 percent of the offensive snaps this past Sunday. McKinnon is a far superior playmaker to Edwards-Helaire. And Kansas City has always utilized him creatively around the goal line; he scored nine touchdowns on 60 touches (!) in December and January last season.
Russell Wilson, QB, Denver Broncos
- Rostered in 73.4 percent of 12-team ESPN leagues
Many teams are down a quarterback at a very inconvenient time following the Week 14 injuries to Justin Herbert and CJ Stroud.
Wilson has topped 250 passing yards just three times this season, yet a consistent two touchdowns per week continues to salvage his fantasy performances. You can bank him for 15-18 fantasy points every game. Nothing more, nothing less.
But…that playoff schedule is awfully juicy. Wilson gets the Lions on the road in Week 15, followed by home games against the Patriots and Chargers in Weeks 16 and 17. Detroit has been poor against the pass all year, surrendering 7.3 yards per attempt (10th worst in the league) and 21 touchdowns (6th worst).
Wan’Dale Robinson, WR, New York Giants
- Rostered in 5.5 percent of 12-team ESPN leagues
No one is going to feel supremely confident starting one of Tommy Devito’s receivers, but options are scarce out there.
And Robinson has seen his playing time and targets increase in each of the past four weeks, culminating in a 115-yard performance in Monday night’s win over Green Bay.
The Giants have turned to a quick-hitting passing attack to help mitigate Devito’s extreme propensity for taking sacks, and Robinson is the team’s best threat in the short-to-mid range. He is nearly 13 months removed from an ACL tear. Everything points to a strong finish for Robinson, who could serve as a safe WR3 in the fantasy playoffs.
His Week 15 opponent, New Orleans, is strong against outside receivers, but somewhat susceptible against the slot.
Tyjae Spears, RB, Tennessee Titans
- Rostered in 39.5 percent of 12-team ESPN leagues
Despite sharing a backfield with Derrick Henry, Spears has the talent to explode down the stretch. He saw 66 percent of the offensive snaps — which led to seven carries, eight targets, and 128 yards from scrimmage — in Tennessee’s Monday night comeback over Miami. Spears is the preferred passing game running back, and the Titans aren’t only using him on screens and checkdowns. They’re designing downfield routes for the rookie tailback.
If CJ Stroud plays in Week 15, the Titans may once again find themselves in a high-scoring affair, which would favor Spears over Henry.
Keaton Mitchell, RB, Baltimore Ravens
- Rostered in 35.1 percent of 12-team ESPN leagues
Mitchell should not be on waivers in any league, but hey, sometimes fantasy managers get impatient. Since his 138-yard outburst in Week 9, Mitchell has totaled four, nine, 11, and 10 touches. This backfield remains a messy timeshare, which may steer some managers away from Mitchell.
Scoop him up if someone cut bait.
Mitchell’s big-play ability is similar to what De’Von Achane brings to the Dolphins. He can go the distance on any one of those 10 touches. If you need a home-run swing because your team lacks upside, Mitchell is a terrific play on Sunday night at Jacksonville, where plenty of points will be scored (not to mention his Week 16 and 17 matchups with the Niners and Dolphins).
