Vinny’s Variety Pack Week 13: The push for playoffs

I woke up this morning and noticed a little twinge in the air. Everything seemed more vivid, more alive. I was overcome with an overwhelming feeling of euphoria. Why was I feeling this? No, it wasn’t because I was enjoying the newly passed Question 4. It’s because I made it into the fantasy playoffs in three of my leagues!

If you made your league’s playoffs, I’d have to assume that your team is pretty much set in stone. However, that doesn’t mean that it can’t be improved with a last minute waiver wire pick-up. This week, I’m going to toss out names that should be on your roster, but who are currently on the waiver wire in many leagues.

Tyrod Taylor, QB, Buffalo Bills

Taylor is one of those guys that everyone thought would go off this year, but he has been pedestrian at best. Taylor is a deep-ball QB who has missed his number one deep threat. With the return of Sammy Watkins last week, Taylor added back the missing dimension to his game and was able to scrounge up 19 points in a win against Jacksonville. Taylor's remaining games feature bouts against Oakland, Cleveland and Miami, who are all mediocre against the pass, so go submit a waiver claim for Taylor.

Marcus Mariota, QB, Tennessee Titans

According to ESPN, Mariota is owned in only 83.9 percent of leagues and is the fourth best quarterback in fantasy. He’s scored 20+ points in 4 straight weeks. Mariota is currently riding a bye week right now, so the time to pick him up has never been better. If you are weak at QB and have a spare bench spot, store him for Weeks 15 and 16.

Sammy Watkins, WR, Buffalo Bills

Heeeeeee’s baaaaaaaackkkkkk. The long awaited return of Watkins is over. Unless you had the foresight to pick up Watkins a couple weeks ago like I did (humble brag), chances are he’s still a free agent. He is currently owned by only 59.1 percent of leagues and, as I mentioned with Tyrod Taylor, has a pass-favorable schedule approaching. Watkins got 80 yards playing less than 50 percent of the snaps last week, so expect him to be a weapon for the rest of the year.

AJ Green, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

When Green went down two weeks ago against Buffalo, people panicked. Some of his owners even dropped him. There is no explanation needed here: if AJ Green is available in your league, stop what you are doing right now and pick him up because he’s returning to action this Sunday.

Adrian Peterson, RB, Minnesota Vikings

This one is a long-shot, but if you have roster space and need a running back, this might win you a championship. Peterson is owned in 41.8 percent of leagues and is (hopefully) going to return by Week 15. Yeah, holy s---, am I right? IF his recovery goes according to plan and Peterson starts Week 15 (aka the playoffs), this power pick-up is gonna make you some cash.

Two Guys You Should Have, But I Don’t Have Enough Words To Tell You Why:

Malcolm Mitchell (WR, New England Patriots), Alshon Jeffery, (WR, Chicago Bears)