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Here we find ourselves, just a couple of weeks out from the fantasy playoffs in most leagues. Now is the time to pick up the players that could help you down the stretch and focus all of your energy on making the right lineup decisions in the coming weeks. We're joined on this podcast by waiver wire expert Jim Hutchins and enjoyed some delicious Space Dust IPA from Elysian Brewing Company. Yum!

Listen to the Fantasy Football Podcast, 11/23/16: Week 12 Preview & Picks

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The start of week 5 means we are nearly a third of the way through the fantasy regular season for most leagues. Hopefully, your team is sitting in a good position, but if it's not that just means you have higher priority on the waiver wire to use my advice try and turn things around! Four teams are on bye this week; Saints, Seahawks, Jaguars and Chiefs.

Note: all waiver picks listed here will have only been owned in 50% or less of Yahoo leagues at the time of publication.

Quarterback

Carson Wentz (PHI) - 38% owned - Coming off a bye-week Wentz gets an amazing matchup against a Detroit defense giving up the most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. He's a great fill-in if your QB is on bye and even if your QB isn't you should still consider him as a plus streaming option.

Honorable mention: Joe Flacco (BAL) - 34% owned

Running Back

Terrance West (BAL) - 29% owned - West ended up being named the starting running back for the Ravens in week 4 after they surprisingly announced Justin Forsett as a healthy scratch. He made the most of the opportunity by putting up 113 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries. He will have some competition for the starting position coming with Kenneth Dixon returning from injury, but has the first opportunity to separate himself in week 5 against a Redskins defense giving up an awful 133 rushing yards per game.

James White (NE) - 28% owned - White has thus far underwhelmed after taking over for the injured Dion Lewis but he's definitely worth a speculative add this week to see if the return of Tom Brady impacts his fantasy value.

Honorable mention: Kenneth Dixon (BAL) - 25% owned

Wide Receiver

Robert Woods (BUF) - 23% owned - With Sammy Watkins being placed on injured reserve Woods is now the number 1 receiver in Buffalo. While I don't see him as a great talent, I do consider him to be great depth and for your team as an every-week WR3 strictly based on the volume of targets.

Eddie Royal (CHI) - 13% owned - Royal has a long time history of being fantasy fool's gold, but it did look as though he and Hoyer had a connection last week against the Lions after he caught 7 of 7 targets for 111 yards and a touchdown. There are talks of Hoyer keeping the starting QB position in Chicago long term if he continues to play well which might mean more upside for the speedy Royal.

Honorable mention: Quincy Enunwa (NYJ) - 37% owned

Tight End

Cameron Brate (MIN) - 10% owned - Brate has looked to take on a big role in the Bucs offense since Austin Seferian-Jenkins was cut, catching 10 of 18 targets for 113 yards and two touchdowns. The volume of targets should make him a high floor play if you need a TE fill in.

Honorable mention: Jacob Tamme (ATL) - 45% owned

Defense/Special Teams

Buffalo Bills (BUF) - 44% owned - The Buffalo defense is quietly is tied for the second most fantasy points through four weeks and they have a plus matchup against the LA Rams this week. They are my streaming defense of the week.

Week 5 was kind in regards to not many fantasy relevant injuries occurring which is usually the life blood of waiver wire action. Despite the lack of injuries there are still some players out on the wire you should consider picking up to play in week 6 and others that are worth a bench stash. Two teams are on bye this week; Buccaneers and Vikings. Good luck!

Note: all waiver picks listed here will have only been owned in 50% or less of Yahoo leagues at the time of publication.

Quarterback

Alex Smith (KC) - 18% owned - The Chiefs are coming off a bye-week and return to action against a Raiders defense giving up a league-worst 331 yards per game to opposing quarterbacks. This means Smith should be a great streaming option if you're in need.

Running Back

James White (NE) - 46% owned - White has made the list two weeks in a row which means you're missing out if you haven't added him yet. With Brady returning White put up his best fantasy performance of the season with 26 yards on 5 carries and added another 63 yards on 4 catches. Most of his damage came in the first half so It's reasonable to assume his numbers would've been higher if the Patriots hadn't been dominating the entire game.

Devontae Booker (DEN) - 9% owned - The fourth round rookie ended up receiving only 4 fewer touches than the recently underperforming C.J. Anderson in week 5 which indicates the Denver backfield could be headed into a timeshare if Anderson continues to struggle. If you have the bench space available, Booker is worth an add and stash for a couple weeks to see how the situation shakes out.

Honorable mention: Kenneth Dixon (BAL) - 38% owned

Wide Receiver

Cameron Meredith (CHI) - 4% owned - Last week I thought Eddie Royal would see an uptick in production but instead it was the second year Meredith that exploded for 130 yards and a touchdown catching 9 of 12 targets. He should be locked in as the number 2 receiver behind Alshon Jeffery after this performance.

Jeremy Kerley (SF) - 9% owned - Kerley has put up back to back big games now catching 14 of 22 targets for 190 yards and two touchdowns over that span. What's most interesting is he is averaging 9 targets per game throughout the season which means he should have a decent floor week to week.

Honorable mention: Robert Woods (BUF) - 29% owned

Tight End

Jesse James (PIT) - 23% owned - James has now found the end zone in 3 of the last 4 games after scoring in week 5 on top of catching 6 of 8 for 43 yards. If you need a fill in for tight end this week look to James for a decent chance for a touchdown.

Honorable mention: Cameron Brate (TB) - 41% owned

Defense/Special Teams

Tennessee Titans (TEN) - 6% owned - The Titans defense has been consistently average for fantasy purposes all season, but I knock them up a few pegs this week since they play against Cleveland.

It's time for the fantasy semi-finals which means if you've made it this far then congrats to you, just one more win away from making it to a championship matchup. Even though you've made it this far it's not time to skip out on adding depth to your team off the wire or to consider streaming players with favorable matchups over others on your team with unfavorable matchups. Good Luck!

Note: %owned is based on Yahoo! leagues at the time of publication.

Quarterback

Colin Kaepernick (SF) - 36% owned - Kaepernick should rebound nicely this week with a matchup against a Falcons team allowing the most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks this season.  Look his way if you need a streamer.

Running Back

Kenneth Farrow (SD) - 4% owned - After Melvin Gordon was injured early in the Chargers matchup against the Panthers, Farrow became the go-to running back rushing 16 times for 55 yards and catching 6 passes for another 23 yards.   It's looking likely that Gordon will miss at least one week which means Farrow should be a volume RB2 play.

Kenneth Dixon (BAL) - 44% owned - It looks as though Dixon has finally broken away as the clear lead back in Baltimore after getting 19 touches compared to Terrence West's 6 against the Patriots. He put up a solid fantasy performance with the touches as well rushing for 39 yards and catching 8 of 11 passes for another 42 yards and a touchdown.

Honorable mentions: Matt Asiata (MIN) - 44% owned, Adrian Peterson (MIN) - 45% owned

Wide Receiver

Dontrelle Inman (NE) - 23% owned - Inman has passed up Travis Benjamin as the number two receiving option behind Tyrell Williams and has played well recently getting 239 yards and 3 touchdowns over his past three games. The Chargers have a great matchup this week against a poor Raiders pass defense where I expect Inman to be an upside WR3.

Adam Thielen (MIN) - 19% owned - Thielen has been putting up consistent WR3 numbers this season and draws a nice matchup this week against a Colts team that the Vikings should need to air the ball out more than usual.

Honorable mention: Ty Montgomery (GB) - 37% owned

Tight End

A bit of a cluster of possibly available tight ends this week so I'll list a few in order of how I like them;

Ladarius Green (PIT) - 56% owned

Jermaine Gresham (ARZ) - 4% owned

Dennis Pitta (BAL) - 37% owned

Defense/Special Teams

Similar to Tight Ends I'll list a few defenses I like to stream this week in order;

Buffalo Bills (BUF) - 61% owned

Miami Dolphins (MIA) - 55% owned

Houston Texans (HOU) - 44% owned