Week 12 Waiver Wire: Fantasy Projections for Top Pickups and Sleeper Targets

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Fantasy football owners are going to be scrambling yet again heading into Week 12, with a number of high-profile players succumbing to late-season injuries.

Injuries are commonplace in the NFL. Week in and week out, they force fantasy owners to find new players to fill out their rosters. Week 11 saw a number of key players go down, including A.J. Green, Giovani Bernard, LeSean McCoy and Andrew Luck, to name a few.

Not all of these players are fantasy luminaries, but it's nevertheless created holes on rosters while also opening up opportunities for other players to shine.

Here's a look at the top pickups in Yahoo and ESPN fantasy football leagues heading into Week 12. To account for the larger league formats, players owned in more than 50 percent of leagues are not included in the table below.

   

Fantasy Projections for Week 12

Wendell Smallwood, RB, Philadelphia Eagles

Injuries have cleared a path for Wendell Smallwood to take on a major role in the Philadelphia Eagles offense in Week 12. Running backs Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles both suffered injuries in Week 11. Mathews suffered an MCL sprain and is considered day-to-day, per ESPN.com's Tim McManus.

Sproles is also day-to-day after fracturing a rib, but McManus reported that Eagles head coach Doug Pederson "sounded optimistic" that the veteran back could play Monday against the Green Bay Packers.

In any case, Smallwood stands to be the featured back against the Packers, who are mired in a slump and allowed Washington Redskins running back Rob Kelley to carve them up for 137 rushing yards and three touchdowns in Week 11.

Smallwood has performed well when given the opportunity. He has 118 rushing yards on 26 carries over the last two weeks, and he flashed potential earlier this season with 79 rushing yards and a touchdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 25. 

Smallwood's production will depend heavily on the availability of Mathews and Sproles. Mathews is an injury-prone back who is productive when healthy. It's easy to see the Eagles protecting him for a week with the goal of having him around for what should be a crowded battle for an NFC wild-card spot.

While Sproles saw more backfield snaps in Week 10 against the Atlanta Falcons than either Mathews or Smallwood, per the Philadelphia Inquirer's Zach Berman, a fractured rib should have the Eagles looking to greatly reduce his workload, if he even plays at all.

Look for the rookie Smallwood to get plenty of productive touches in Week 12 against a reeling Packers team.

Projection: 20 carries, 100 yards; 3 receptions, 20 yards

   

Tyler Boyd, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals' frustrating season got that much tougher when two key offensive players—Green and Bernard—went down with injuries in Week 11 against the Buffalo Bills. Green's injury was initially thought to be severe, but head coach Marvin Lewis had some positive news on that front on Monday, per the Cincinnati Enquirer's Paul Dehner Jr.: 

That still leaves quarterback Andy Dalton without one of the league's best weapons for one week, and the double-digit targets Green routinely racked up are going to have to go somewhere.

Tyler Boyd is the team's third-leading receiver behind Green and Brandon LaFell, and he stepped up in Green's absence in Week 11 with six receptions for 54 yards and a touchdown. 

From a fantasy perspective, the 22-year-old Boyd hasn't turned in any other noteworthy performances in his debut season. His touchdown against the Bills was his first of the season, and he's only topped 50 receiving yards three times this year. 

Still, he stands to see plenty of action with Green out of the picture. The Bengals get the Baltimore Ravens in Week 12, who have allowed the fourth-most fantasy points per game to wideouts this year, per Yahoo Sports.

This is a big opportunity for the rookie, and fantasy owners will be looking for him to pay immediate dividends. While he should see plenty of snaps and targets, it's going to be tough for the Bengals offense to operate in a road game against a division rival with the running game hampered and Green not there to command the Ravens secondary's full attention. 

Projection: seven receptions, 85 yards

   

Mike Gillislee, RB, Buffalo Bills

Fantasy owners have likely grown accustomed to keeping tabs on Bills running back Mike Gillislee, with Shady McCoy making plenty of appearances on the injury report this season. 

McCoy exited Sunday's win over the Bengals with a thumb injury, and although it requires surgery, it might not be serious enough to prevent him from playing in Week 12, per ESPN's Adam Schefter: 

While it seems McCoy is likely going to play on Sunday, one has to imagine he won't see his usual workload of 20-25 touches.

Gillislee has proved to be plenty effective in his own right this season, averaging 5.8 yards per carry and scoring four touchdowns in limited opportunities backing up McCoy. He put up similar numbers last year with the Bills, so the team should have plenty of familiarity and trust with what he can accomplish.

Head coach Rex Ryan should have no issue letting Gillislee get the lion's share of snaps against the Jacksonville Jaguars, who are firmly middle-of-the-road defenders against fantasy running backs. He's not the biggest back, but he's a tough runner who can break tackles, per PFF Fantasy Football:

Even if McCoy does see more touches than one might expect after surgery, there could still be plenty to go around in the Bills backfield.

There's a good chance the Bills will lean heavily on the ground game against Jacksonville with key players in the passing game banged up. Wide receiver Robert Woods suffered a knee sprain against the Bengals on a dirty hit from linebacker Vontaze Burfict, and Sammy Watkins' status is still in doubt as he recovers from a foot injury. 

Look for Gillislee to make the most out of his increased opportunities in Week 12.

Projection: 15 carries, 80 yards, 1 touchdown

   

Sleeper: Tajae Sharpe, WR, Tennessee Titans

Tennessee Titans wide receiver Tajae Sharpe drew draft-day sleeper fantasy consideration at the beginning of the season thanks to some sterling performances in preseason play, but until recently, those who had hoped to look clever among their friends by drafting Sharpe were left bitterly disappointed.

Sharpe struggled to make an impact, amassing just 27 receptions for 317 yards in his first nine games of the season. The Titans have enjoyed plenty of success running the ball, and only until the past few weeks has it really opened up the passing game for second-year quarterback Marcus Mariota (13 touchdowns, two picks in his last five games). 

It took another couple of weeks for Sharpe to catch on, but he's picked up 68 receiving yards and a touchdown in each of the last two games. While the stats alone are encouraging enough, his touchdown celebrations are practically begging for him to be considered a sleeper, per NFLonCBS and SB Nation:

With the Titans hitting the road to play the Chicago Bears, the rookie has a fine chance to make fantasy owners regret snoozing on him in Week 12.

Chicago has struggled mightily with injuries on both sides of the ball this season, with the secondary no safe haven. Cornerback Kyle Fuller is on injured reserve, and three corners were listed on the team's injury report for Week 11, per ChicagoBears.com. The Bears are giving up the third-most fantasy points per game to wide receivers, per Yahoo Sports.

While wide receiver Rishard Matthews and tight end Delanie Walker are the top two targets in the passing game, Sharpe could still put in a strong shift in Week 12. He has less value in points-per-reception leagues, but he's shown he can stretch the field a bit and could benefit from defenses focusing more of their attention on Matthews.

Projection: four catches, 65 yards, 1 touchdown

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

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