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Waiver Wire
2018 Week 14 fantasy football waiver-wire targets
Week 13 was a quintessentially chaotic week in fantasy football. Kareem Hunt (domestic violence) was released on Friday night. The Saints (10), Vikings (10), Falcons (16), and Packers (17) combined to score just 53 offensive points in losses. Packers' HC Mike McCarthy was subsequently fired. Cam Newton threw 4 INTs... against the Buccaneers. Russell Wilson threw 4 TDs... on 17 attempts. On a day where the Chiefs put up a 40 spot on the Raiders, Tyreek Hill caught just one pass for 13 yards. Finally, in a off-side laden finish, the Chargers needed three field goal attempts to knock off the Steelers on the road. Every week in the NFL is unique, but this past slate was particularly unpredictable. Let's take a step back from the madness and hit the wire as most fantasy leagues enter the opening round of the playoffs:

Obviously, Godwin should be on rosters in most competitive leagues -- but he still may be floating on the wire in shallow 10-team formats. Without DeSean Jackson (thumb) in Week 13, Godwin proceeded to rip the Panthers secondary for 5/101/1. Unsurprisingly, Godwin's 80 percent snap rate was a season-high. While Jackson was wearing a cast in practice all last week, Godwin will remain a high-end WR3 for as long as Jackson is out. Over the full season, Godwin is 23rd-of-93 in yards gained per route run per PFF.

While Matt Breida (ankle) was limited, Wilson carried the rock 15 times for 61 yards and caught 8-of-9 targets for 73 yards in Week 13. Alfred Morris (healthy scratch) sat out. The 'Niners backfield has been inherently unpredictable and has frustrated fantasy managers all season, but Kyle Shanahan's group of second, third, and fourth-stringers trails only Denver and Seattle for the league in rushing yards per game (running backs only). While Breida has played through shoulder, knee, and ankle injuries all year and with Raheem Mostert (arm) on I.R., Wilson has a direct path to high-volume touches in Week 14 against Denver.

Melvin Gordon (knee) received some good news and may not miss too much time after all, but the nearly playoff-bound 'Bolts should be careful with their workhorse rusher. After turning in an explosive 82 yards from scrimmage and a score on nine touches in Week 13 against Pittsburgh, Jackson is a wait-and-see stash in all leagues ahead of the Chargers gorgeous Week 14 draw against a lifeless Bengals defense that is allowing the fourth-most yards from scrimmage and rushing fantasy points per carry to opposing backs.

Greg Olsen re-injured his foot for the second time this season, allowing Samuel to thrive in a more voluminous role. Samuel saw a team-leading 11 targets in Week 13, parlaying 6/88 through the air. After averaging a 26 percent snap rate in Weeks 5-11, Samuel has played on 87 of Panthers' snaps over the last two weeks. With Devin Funchess (back) and Olsen banged up, Samuel's full-time role should continue. Carolina's fantasy playoff schedule is ripe, too (Cleveland, New Orleans, Atlanta).

Pettis has quietly collected 20 targets over the last three weeks, recording 4/12, 4/77/1, and 5/71/2 receiving lines in the process. During this span, Pettis (17 percent) trails only George Kittle (27 percent) in target share and has tied Kittle for the team-lead in air yards (27 percent share). Pettis has been a small-sample YAC monster this season, as his 8.8 yards after the catch is second-most among all qualified receivers. The only problem is that the 'Niners face a Broncos secondary that has allowed the fifth-fewest fantasy points per target to enemy wideouts this season next up in Week 14.

Without Sammy Watkins (he only played five snaps in Week 11) over the last three games, Chris Conley has played over 90 percent of Chiefs' snaps in each contest. Conley has hit 7/74/2 (eight targets) and 3/25/1 (seven targets) over the last two weeks, specifically. Since Kansas City is a lock for a playoff spot, the team will wisely continue to take it slow with Watkins' foot issue. Conley will maintain WR4 value for as long as Watkins is on the shelf. Conley's share of Chiefs' targets over the last three weeks rests at 17 percent, well above his lowly 7 percent clip in Weeks 1-9.

Since Kerryon Johnson (knee) remains without a time-table for return, LeGarrette Blount will continue to see starter carries for the Lions. Without Johnson over the last two weeks, Blount has turned in decent volume-driven fantasy days with 19/88/2 and 16/61 rushing. In this two-game span, Blount has handled a robust 72 percent of Lions' carries. The Lions face a Cardinals' side that has allowed the sixth-most rushing fantasy points per carry next.

In the Chiefs first game without Kareem Hunt, Kansas City gave Spencer Ware the majority of snaps (69 percent) over Williams (27 percent). Ware also ran significantly more routes than Williams (23 to 8), per Next Gen Stats. Still, Damien Williams turned his seven touches into an efficient 45 yards while Ware recorded just 52 yards from scrimmage on 15 touches. The Chiefs are reportedly interested in bringing in veteran running back help, but if anything happens to Ware over the next few weeks, Williams is Kansas City's sure-fire No. 2 back now.

Without Golden Tate over the last three weeks, Bruce Ellington has seen 9, 7, and 10 targets, respectively. Somehow, he's only logged 115 yards on 19 catches in this span -- but Ellington's reception totals keep him viable in the WR4/5 range in PPR leagues. The only problem is that Ellington is averaging a pitiful 3.3 air yards per target, severely capping his upside. For reference, Tate averaged 6.6 air yards per target this season in Detroit.