It is Monday again and that means there is a new installment of Burn City Fantasy Football Flavor of the Week out to prepare yourself for Week 13 of the NFL season.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!A week ago, I hit on two of my predictions with one not doing too much, but keep in mind, it is extremely difficult nowadays to pickup an impact player from the waiver wire unless you are in a shallower league.
Here were my recommendations from the last edition and how they did for Week 12:
Trade For:Â Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford vs. Arizona Cardinals on Nov. 26 — 229 yards passed, 4 TD, 2 yards rushed = 24.4 Fantasy Points
Waiver Wire Pickup: Buffalo Bills Khalil Shakir vs. Philadelphia Eagles on Nov. 26 — 3 receptions, 47 yards = 4.7 Fantasy Points
Cut:Â New York Jets tight end Tyler Conklin vs. Miami Dolphins on Nov. 24 — 4 receptions, 33 yards = 3.3 Fantasy Points
Let me start off by saying, if you were able to craft a package and get Stafford, kudos to you.
Yesterday, he completed 25 of 33 passes and threw for 229 yards with 4 touchdowns to earn 24.4 points in fantasy.
As for Shakir, he was only able to have 4 receptions yesterday and didn’t make that big of an impact.
Still, if you did pick up Shakir, you could give him another go this week, but I wouldn’t blame you if you dropped him either.
Finally, I said to stay away from any Jets offensive players and go for someone else due to New York struggling this year.
Conklin did not do much, as expected, and should be dropped ASAP if you haven’t already.
Now, here are three players to trade, pick up off waivers or drop for Week 13.
Trade For: WR Jayden Reed, Green Bay Packers
Unless your league’s trade deadline has passed, there is still some time to strike a deal.
I have looked at possible targets and there is one player who pops out in my mind for this week, Jayden Reed.
At 48% rostered in Yahoo and 32% in ESPN leagues, Reed could very well be on the waiver wire if you are in a league of 10 or less.
Like I have done the previous three weeks, I try to track players under 50% owned or “buy-low” candidates.
Regardless, Reed has been one of the main focal points for the red-hot Packers who have won two-straight and three out of their last four games.
Additionally, Reed has caught 4-of-8 passes for 34 yards and a touchdown to earn 11 fantasy points in a 29-22 win over the Detroit Lions on Nov. 26.
Overall, the Packers rookie has started 9-of-11 games, had 46 receptions for 497 yards and 5 touchdowns this season.
From first glance, it may look impossible to get Reed since he has averaged 13.5 fantasy points over the last three weeks.
Also, he is a top-30 wide receiver in fantasy and someone in your league of 12+ teams will want to keep him as another option.
But, besides Green Bay’s next game against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Packers have a very intriguing schedule for the remainder of the fantasy football season and constructing a package to get him would be massive.
Packers Schedule (Games During Fantasy Playoffs in Italics)
- vs. Chiefs (8-3), Dec. 3
- at New York Giants (4-8), Dec. 11
- vs. Tampa Buccaneers (4-7), Dec. 17
- at Carolina Panthers (1-10), Dec. 24
- at Minnesota Vikings (6-5), Dec. 31
Free Agent Pickup: RB Samaje Perine, Denver Broncos
Since the prediction of picking someone who was less than 20% rostered didn’t work out too well with Shakir, I’ll pick someone slightly higher and see where it goes.
The inclusion of Perine in this could backfire as I am mentioning him coming off of one big game this season.
However, looking at his recent numbers and fantasy upside, I believe Perine could be yet another sneaky pick up from the waiver wire.
So far, Perine has averaged a total of 4.8 fantasy points in 2023, but the Broncos as a whole struggled at the beginning of the season.
Initially, Denver was 1-5 in their first six games of the season before recently going on a remarkable five-game winning streak.
During this stretch, Perine has been gradually been earning more fantasy points each week.
Going in as underdogs, the Broncos were able to crush the Cleveland Browns 29-12 yesterday and Perine had a massive day.
With 7 carries, rushing for 55 yards and scoring a touchdown, Perine recorded 12.6 fantasy points against Cleveland.
At 26% owned on ESPN and 20% on Yahoo, there are far worse options to choose from than Perine.
If you are in need of a running back due to injuries or lack of depth in that position, Perine is a noteworthy option going into Week 13.
Drop: WR Michael Thomas, New Orleans Saints
Unless you are in a dynasty league where you can keep your players past this season, it is time to drop Michael Thomas.
On Nov. 21, it was announced that Thomas was placed on injured reserve with a knee injury.
With that in mind and understanding that Thomas will miss at least the next four weeks, the only real chance he can make an impact for you is if you believe he returns this season.
Currently, Thomas has minimal trade value with this setback and it will be more valuable for you to pick up someone off the waiver wire because at least some points are better than none.
Rostered in 49% of Yahoo and 56% of ESPN leagues, Thomas should be dropped immediately even if he was one of your higher draft picks coming into this season.
Furthermore, the three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver has only averaged 5.1 fantasy football points, so it is not like you will miss out on much  if he does not play again this season.
Will he have 10+ fantasy-point games from time-to-time?
Sure.
But, just keeping a player who is questionable and takes a roster spot away for the rest of the season makes no sense.
Something is better than nothing.
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Alec Cipollini is a reporter of the Arizona Coyotes and Cardinals for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account @AlecCipollini
