The lowlights of Week 13 were Christian McCaffrey's injury and Kirk Cousins's performance. Those developments are the primary drivers as we examine available waiver options. 

This article will discuss deep league waiver additions, focusing on Dynasty league formats. 

Players will fall into four primary categories: 

• Short-term Starters - Players capable of providing immediate production in deep leagues. 
• Proactive Pickups - Players who need the depth chart to be clear before them but are more available than other players in a similar role. 
• Deep Darts - Speculative players who have a chance at value.
• Dynasty Buys - Players whose values have changed, and the market may not have caught up.

Quarterback

Proactive Pickups

Michael Penix Jr., Atlanta (90% Sleeper rostered)

A month ago, the Falcons sat at 6-3 with a three-game lead on the Buccaneers in the loss column and two head-to-head wins. 

Now?

Current Vegas lines have the Falcons in second place after Week 14, with Atlanta traveling to 10-2 Minnesota and the Bucs hosting the 2-10 Raiders. 

Cousins is coming off the worst game of his career, a four-interception 17-13 loss to the Chargers that the Falcons would likely win if they had simply run the ball every play. Cousins has yet to throw a touchdown pass since Week 9. Given his contract and profile, the idea of benching him would be crazy. Plenty of ink has been spilled to show the Falcons selecting Penix in the Top 10 of last April's draft to show this situation is anything but ordinary. 

There has been no indication this move could happen, and Penix is likely rostered in Dynasty leagues with any level of depth. Still, his value could be dramatically different next week. 

Joshua Dobbs, San Francisco (90% Sleeper rostered)

We have no idea how much of the 49ers' lack of a passing game in Week 13 was due to the weather in Buffalo and how much was due to the shoulder injury that cost Purdy in Week 12. We do know the production was poor. We also know Brandon Allen was inactive, with Dobbs as the backup quarterback. 

Allen struggled against Green Bay in his Week 12 spot start. A hand injury that had avoided the injury report was revealed during that broadcast. 

The 49ers lost Christian McCaffrey and his backup, Jordan Mason, for the season in Week 13. They sit two games back of Seattle in the NFC West. The 49ers' schedule breaks well relative to Seattle, with a Lions team that could have little motivation, the only current playoff team in their final five games. Seattle still plays Green Bay and Minnesota. It is too early for anything too drastic. But if the playoffs are off the table, it would be unlikely to expect the team to continue to play their franchise quarterback through an injury to his throwing shoulder. 

Running Back

Short Term Starters

Isaac Guerendo, San Francisco (90% Sleeper rostered)

Guerendo is this week's league-winner, must-have fantasy waiver claim. 

We have some level of evidence that Guerendo can play. He scored a touchdown on a nifty swing play in Week 13 and had a 76-yard run against Seattle in relief of Mason back in Week 6. His best performance was a 14-85-1 game against Dallas, where he handled most of the work after Mason left early. 

Full stop: this is a starting running back available in Week 14 in what still could be a good offense. There is little reason to get cute in this play. You grab him if you can and empty your FAAB budget if needed. 

There is reason for caution when it comes to starting Guerendo. First, he was never all that productive in college. He served as a backup to Braelon Allen at Wisconsin before transferring to backup Jawhar Jordan at Louisville. He was drafted as a bet based on his athletic profile. He is a large, fast player. There is also little to show he will be very impactful in the passing game. The 49ers were willing to treat Mason as a Bellcow early in the season, but when he was out, Guerendo ceded passing down snaps to Patrick Taylor Jr.. 

Still, with a lost season in San Francisco and Mason a pending free agent, it is time for them to find out what they have in Guerendo. 

Sincere McCormick, Las Vegas (3% Sleeper rostered) 

McCormick was a Deep Dart in Week 13's article. Then, he was the best running back for the Raiders on Black Friday. His rostership shows he was ignored in last week's waiver run. Given his strong showing in an Island Game against the highest profile of teams, the Chiefs, he will not be ignored this week. 

McCormick is still a mystery box, but he has looked better than any of the other four backs who have played for the Raiders. At 2-10, the Raiders would be best served to see what they have here compared to playing proven veterans like Alexander Mattison and Ameer Abdullah. But McCormick risks disappearing as soon as Mattison or Zamir White is available again. 

Kendre Miller, New Orleans (42% Sleeper rostered) 

Miller is back from the bizarre IR placement that preceded Dennis Allen's firing and the surprise appendectomy that put him on the NFI list. Interim coach Darren Rizzi said he is “comping at the bit.”

The Saints need him. 

Atlanta's collapse has given the Saints the slightest of playoff hopes; at 4-8, they are two games back from the 6-6 Falcons and Buccaneers. Taysom Hill had emerged as a significant weapon, but an ACL injury ended his season. Without a secondary option in this offense, the team runs the thread-thin on Alvin Kamara. Miller is a potential desperate flex option who would gain significant value if Kamara misses time. 

Deep Darts

Isaiah Davis, NY Jets (25% Sleeper rostered) 

Breece Hall is recovering from a knee injury that cost him significant playing time in Week 13. The Jets are also working through their season-ending injury. 

There is little indication that Hall will miss time, but running your franchise back on a bad knee in a lost season is not ideal. 

Allen would be the primary back, but Davis is the other rookie and a player who would project to see work in the passing game. He broke through with a receiving touchdown in limited work this past week. 

Wide Receiver

Short Term Starters

Adam Thielen, Carolina (86% Sleeper rostered) 

Week 12's breakout was David Moore. Week 13's was Thielen. Thielen is more sustainable. 

Bryce Young looked much better in his second stint as the starter. His past success with Thielen makes the Week 13 performance pop. Thielen was WR3 from Week 2 to Week 6 in 2023, and the Panthers can replicate that run as they close out the season. Thielen is rostered in most leagues. However, deep leagues that start ten or eleven players weekly can pick up a contributor cheaply, primarily if the season is over for the team that rosters Thielen.

Proactive Pickups

Marquise Brown, Kansas City (91% Sleeper rostered) 

Stories about Brown returning during the regular season emerged this past week. His timeline is still vague. 

Expecting much production from Brown is optimistic. After missing the entire season, there would likely be a ramp-up period as the Chiefs work to integrate him into an offense with multiple options. Brown is still a former high-end producer playing in a Patrick Mahomes II offense. 

He deserves a mention.

Deep Darts

Dyami Brown, Washington (20% Sleeper rostered) 

Noah Brown left Week 13 with an injury, and his status is questionable. Brown was the primary beneficiary and responded with one of his career-best games. Terry McLaurin is the top option, and Noah Brown has emerged as the second receiver. Outside those two, the team had been rotating Dyami Brown, Luke McCaffrey, and Olamide Zaccheaus. Dyami Brown is the most explosive of the bunch. The Commanders have a bye in Week 14, so nothing could come from this. But intense Bestball formats should take notice. 

Tylan Wallace, Baltimore (6% Sleeper rostered) 

There are eerie similarities between Baltimore's and Washington's situations. The Ravens' nominal WR2, Rashod Bateman, is working through an injury that cost him time in Week 13. The Ravens have a bye in Week 14. Diontae Johnson's status with the team is highly questionable. Wallace has flashed in limited opportunities. He would not be a priority in the offense, but he is the type of splash player who fills a gap in an emergency. 

Tight End

Deep Darts

Tommy Tremble, Carolina (11% Sleeper rostered) 

Tremble was Carolina's starter before injuries allowed Ja'Tavion Sanders to emerge. After Sanders' injury, the tables flipped. Tremble played every snap in Week 13 and delivered the best game of his career, catching five passes for 77 yards. This article has mentioned six different receiving options for the Panthers at varying points of the season. The target tree is still unsettled in Week 14. However, Young's play shows that someone is capable of emerging. Tremble is getting a chance.