Fantasy Football: Week 12 Waiver Wire Pickups

After 3 consecutive weeks of having a QB throw 6 TDs in a game, the NFL got back to grinding it out on the ground, with 4 backs eclipsing 150 yards: Le’Veon Bell, Jamaal Charles, Jonas Gray and Alfred Blue (12.6% on NFL)(66.1% on ESPN). I’ll have more on Gray later, but I figured I’d make mention of Houston RB Alfred Blue up here. Blue has proven to be a must own for Arian Foster owners as the later continues to struggle with injury. Blue hasn’t exactly lit it up on the field for Houston, but he’s a big powerful back capable of grinding out tough yards, and the Texans have shown they’re willing to give him the ball 30+ times if that’s what it takes to win. Foster may well be back this week, but if the practice report looks iffy, grab Blue and see if he can get another start. And since I don’t want to forget teams coming off the bye I’ll make a quick mention of Joseph Randle (0.6% on NFL)(4.8% on ESPN)  Demarco Murray remains healthy for the time being, but Randle will take over the heavy lifting in Murray misses time, and with the fantasy playoffs just around the corner, it pays to back-up your stud RB, especially now that most teams have had their bye.

One more thing before we get into the new names; after last week’s win against Denver, the Rams are now 3-0 in games where Tre Mason (41.7% on NFL)(41.3% on ESPN) carries the ball more than 18 times. With the next two weeks against a San Diego team that can be run on, and a Raiders team that struggles against the run Mason should maintain fantasy starter status for at least those next two games. After that it’s the Redskins who maintain a solid run D, but they’re losing motivation quickly. Arizona in week 15 will be tough, but he’ll be against the Giants in a lot of championship leagues. The Rams can no longer deny him the lead back role, and he needs to be owned in most, if not all leagues.

If you’re new to the column the parentheticals ()() to the right of a players name reflect their

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ownership in NFL.com and ESPN leagues respectively. Generally speaking I like to stick to guys who are under 30% owned on both sites, but their are exceptions. I also try to get as many new names as possible in each week, so be sure to check out previous weeks pickups as well. Think I missed someone? Have a question? Criticism? Just want to chat? Leave a comment at the bottom of the article. Now let’s get into some new names for week 12 waiver wire pickups:

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