KEONI'S WAIVER WIRE PICKUP - WEEK 12
Kirk Cousins- Minnesota Vikings QB
As we approach the waning weeks of the fantasy football season, the once thick fog that shrouded the playoff picture is beginning to lift. It is time to solidify your push for one of those first week byes or if you’re not in such a fortunate position, time to trim the fat in order to try and slide into the playoff picture, leaving the crowded field of your fellow competitors in the consolation bracket.
One of the beneficial moves you can make this week is to pick up a decent to good quarterback off of the waiver wire. The quarterback position has been taken a few hits these past few weeks with Joe Burrow inevitably suffering a brutal knee injury predominantly due to his mismanagement by the Bengals organization. Drew Brees is also banged up for much longer than the overly optimistic two-three weeks timeline given, in my opinion, and even players like Teddy Dripwater and Matt Stafford concern me even if they might be able to go. That is the bad news, but the good news is that the waiver wire has plenty of viable quarterbacks to give your team a jolt of life for the much-needed burst of energy and momentum for these last few weeks.
This being the case, my waiver wire pick for this week is Kirk Cousins. I know Cousins hasn’t played well for periods of time during this season, but as of late, he is playing as well as anyone can ask for. He is also on an incredibly well-rounded offense that is starting to balance out with less pressure being put on Dalvin Cook by spreading the ball around to the rookie Justin Jefferson, who is acting as the yardage wide receiver and Adam Thielen, who is acting as the main touchdown guy in that passing game. To show you what I mean, Jefferson has the most receiving yards out of any of the rookies this year and is seventh overall with 848 yards, and Adam Thielen has the most touchdowns of any receiver this year with eleven. They are quickly emerging as one of the scariest duos in the league, and in the past few weeks, Cousins has been playing just as well.
In his past four games, Cousins has thrown nine touchdowns to just one interception, and in his past three games, he has thrown for 826 yards, with two of those games having 290 or more yards. His completion percentage has gone up in each of those three games, and his opponent this week is the Carolina Panthers. They are a mid-range defense, having allowed 2,700 yards to the position and only have five interceptions total on the season.
Cousins might also help in week 13, especially if you have Tom Brady who is on a bye that week, because the Minnesota Vikings go against the Jacksonville Jaguars which are ranked 30th against quarterbacks. Cousins is 28.3% owned, so if you need the help, you can get him, and he is an increasingly viable streaming option for the next two weeks. Another player you could pick up is Derek Carr who has better matchups with the Atlanta Falcons and New York Jets, but he is 50% owned in ESPN leagues. Both are possibilities, but Cousins will be easier to get and is trending upward.
