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Week 13 Fantasy Football Surprise Sensations

Find out which players came out of nowhere and put up big numbers in Week 13 fantasy football and see if they could help your team in the playoffs.
Week 13 Fantasy Football

For those of you in certain formats, the fantasy playoffs are about to commence. Whether you’re in the championship or consolation bracket, there are players worth looking at claiming on waivers as a means of giving yourself an edge. Are there any players who put up huge numbers in Week 13 fantasy football despite low ownership numbers worthy of consideration? Let’s take a look at their exploits during the recently completed week of league action.

Note: all references to ownership rates are based on data from Yahoo Sports leagues. 

Week 13 Fantasy Football Surprise Sensations

Mitchell Trubisky

It was tempting to go with Ryan Fitzpatrick here as his 10 percent ownership rate in Yahoo leagues was the lowest among quarterbacks who managed at least 25 points in Week 13. But he’s already made an appearance in our surprise sensations column. Trubisky gets the nod here as he’s been under fire from the Chicago Bears fanbase yet led them to a road victory in their Thanksgiving Day clash with the Detroit Lions.

Some probably benefited from his 24.92 fantasy points, seventh-most among quarterbacks. But at 19 percent, his Yahoo ownership was still relatively low. And who knows. He might be due for another big night at Soldier Field on Thursday against a Dallas Cowboys team in crisis after an embarrassing home loss to the Buffalo Bills on Thanksgiving.

Allen Lazard

If you started Davante Adams in Week 13, then Lazard’s performance wasn’t too maddening as he actually finished with more fantasy points. Nevertheless, Lazard did tally 16.30 non-PPR points which ranked top-10 among wide receivers. But that didn’t benefit many as just five percent of owners in Yahoo leagues had him on their roster. It wasn’t the first time this year that he registered double-digit points as he also did so in a Week 6 win over the Detroit Lions. But excluding his output on Sunday, his combined output on the year came at 18.10 non-PPR points. With the Green Bay Packers receiving corps a bit banged up, he might be worth a look given they welcome the Washington Redskins to Lambeau Field this coming Sunday.

Raheem Mostert

Mostert and fellow San Francisco 49ers running back Tevin Coleman likely had a friendly wager on Saturday’s game between their respective alma maters and hated rivals, Purdue and Indiana. Coleman came out the winner there, but not in the rushing department one day later. In what could be a potential preview of Super Bowl LIV against the Baltimore Ravens, Mostert scampered for 146 yards and added a rushing touchdown while Coleman managed a minuscule six yards on the ground. Though the Niners fell victim to a last-second Justin Tucker field goal, they probably feel like they’re capable of coming out on top should these two sides meet again in Miami. Mostert came into Sunday’s game with a 13 percent ownership rate in Yahoo leagues. But the timeshare nature of San Fran’s backfield means he’s a risky waiver wire add as they face the formidable New Orleans Saints in Week 14.

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Jaeden Graham

Death, taxes, tight ends owned by zero percent of Yahoo players putting up impressive fantasy numbers. It’s simply the nature of the position. And Week 13 was Graham’s chance to shine. The undrafted second-year player out of Yale came into the Atlanta Falcons‘ Thanksgiving night contest with the New Orleans Saints having totaled just 10.80 non-PPR fantasy points on the year. But he totaled 10.10 on Thursday and was one of eight tight ends who registered double-digit points last week. He certainly made the most of Austin Hooper‘s injury-related absence. But even if Hooper can’t go once more, there probably won’t be many fantasy players itching to pull the trigger on Graham. Atlanta’s Week 14 opponent, the Carolina Panthers, is pretty stingy against opposing tight ends.

Brandon McManus

This one’s a bit of a surprise. McManus had tallied seven or more fantasy points on seven separate occasions this year. And yet he came into Sunday’s matchup with the Los Angeles Chargers owned by just three percent of players in Yahoo leagues. So very few benefited from his big day.

But he finished with 15 fantasy points which were second among kickers in Week 13 behind only Wil Lutz of the Saints. It included two field goals of 50+ yards, one of which went through the uprights as time expired to give the Chargers the latest of their many heartbreaking losses in recent years. He could’ve had another right before halftime, but Broncos head coach Vic Fangio didn’t let him attempt a potential NFL-record 65-yard field goal. Let’s just say he wasn’t really happy about it. Denver plays the Houston Texans in Week 14 who don’t concede very many points to kickers. So don’t expect his ownership rate to skyrocket.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defense

Three defense/special teams finished Week 13 with 20+ fantasy points. Two of them, the Kansas City Chiefs and Tennessee Titans, were owned by at least a quarter of players in Yahoo leagues. So it’s certain that they played a part in clinching a playoff berth for quite a few. That wasn’t the case with the Bucs, though, as only two percent of Yahoo owners had them on their roster. But they ran roughshod over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. They forced Nick Foles into three turnovers, one of which was returned for a touchdown by Devin White. It led to the $88 million man being benched in favor of rookie sixth-round pick Gardner Minshew.

In the end, Tampa finished with 23 fantasy points in the 28-11 victory, the highest mark among NFL teams in Week 13. They’re an intriguing stream this coming week against the Indianapolis Colts with quarterback Jacoby Brissett proving mistake-prone in last week’s loss to the Titans.

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John Bava

John Bava

Managing Editor, LastWordOnProFootball.com, LastWordOnSoccer.com Columbus Crew SC staff writer and credentialed media member. Also cover the NFL Draft. Resident of Hamburg, NY. Fitness fanatic, avid fly fisherman and obsessed homebrewer.

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