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Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Sleepers for Week 13

By Max Staley

Denzel Mims fantasy outlook makes him an elite sleeper option in Week 13.
Denzel Mims fantasy outlook makes him an elite sleeper option in Week 13. / Elsa/Getty Images
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Week 12 of the NFL season brought fans more of the same, with tons of injury news and breakout performances that could shake up the fantasy football landscape. But if you're running out of FAB or sitting low in waiver priority, you may need to find some less-expensive alternatives.

Thankfully, there are plenty of under-the-radar names that should be available on the waiver wire. That's where these three fantasy football sleepers come into play.

Fantasy Football Sleepers Week 13

3. Ito Smith, RB, Atlanta Falcons (1% Rostered)

With Todd Gurley out on Sunday, Week 12 was supposed to be the Brian Hill breakout game. Hill was fine, but Ito Smith looked like the better back. Despite playing fewer snaps than Hill, Smith out-gained Hill on the ground, tallying 12 carries for 65 yards and a TD. That's a decent improvement on the 13 carries for 55 yards Hill put up. And it was no contest in the passing game, with Smith catching 4 passes on 5 targets compared to 0 receptions on 1 target for Hill. If Gurley can't suit up in Week 13, Smith might be the preferred play – particularly in PPR formats. This is definitely a situation to monitor.

2. Keke Coutee, WR, Houston Texans (2% Rostered)

Houston Texans' premier wideout Will Fuller has been ruled out for the remainder of the year, due to a PED suspension. This obviously leaves a gaping void atop the Texans' passing game. Keke Coutee isn't going to be the one to fill that role (as that will likely be Brandin Cooks), but he should be looking at a sizable uptick in volume. The team also parted ways with wide receiver Kenny Stills this week, and that means Coutee should slot in as the Deshaun Watson's No. 3 target the rest of the way. Though he's struggled to stay on the field, Coutee has flashed big-time potential in the past. He turned 15 targets into 11 receptions for 109 yards in his NFL debut back in 2018. Working as the No. 3 option in an explosive passing game, Coutee has some mini-breakout potential down the stretch.

1. Denzel Mims, WR, New York Jets (7% Rostered)

Denzel Mims has been featured on this list before, but he's still only rostered in 7% of Yahoo! leagues. That's way too low. Since making his NFL debut in Week 7, Mims has recorded at least 40 receiving yards in all five of his appearances. And he's only getting better as time goes on. He's gone over 60 receiving yards in three straight games, turning 7.7 targets into 3.7 catches for 66.7 receiving yards per game in that time. The eye test suggests he's the New York Jets' best, most explosive receiver. His usage is starting to reflect that. His 8 targets in Week 12 were a career best and tied him for the team lead. With the Jets likely to be trailing every step of the way going forward, Mims should see a ton of targets down the stretch. That's a recipe for a true breakout given his natural talent.

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Max Staley is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Max Staley also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username mstaley1212. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.