Waiver Wire Workout: Week 15

Because league formats vary, one size doesn't fit all when it comes to your waiver wire. That's why I break possible free agent adds into three categories. Follow me on Twitter for the latest on possible additions to your fantasy roster.

Addable In All Leagues

Tim Hightower, RB, Saints (owned in 42% of Yahoo leagues). Mark Ingram is on IR with a shoulder injury, and Hightower was his clear and primary replacement Sunday. He played 55 snaps compared to 14 for C.J. Spiller. Spiller was on the field in a few goal-line situations and actually got a carry from the Tampa Bay 3, but Hightower converted a bunny TD and looked like a reasonable facsimile of Ingram: powerful, punishing and with decent acceleration. Once upon a time, he also caught 63 passes in a season. He's a playoff fantasy starter.

Denard Robinson, RB, Jaguars (6% owned). T.J. Yeldon seemed to injure his knee in a non-contact fashion while faking a play-action handoff Sunday, crumpled to the turf, and didn't return. It might not be a season-ending injury, but it might be. And if Yeldon is gone, Robinson will take over, as Toby Gerhart is on IR. Robinson mopped up effectively in a fourth-quarter blowout against the Colts and he's not a great NFL back, but he's got quickness to burn and the Jags have the Falcons and Saints the next two weeks. If Yeldon is out, at minimum that schedule makes Shoelace a flex.

DuJuan Harris and Bryce Brown, RBs, Seahawks (5% and 1% owned, respectively). Waiver darling Thomas Rawls is out for the season with a broken ankle, and it doesn't sound like Marshawn Lynch is ready to return from his abdominal surgery. That leaves castoffs Harris and Brown as candidates for early-down work for Seattle this week against a shaky Browns run defense. The problem is: we're not sure which guy will take the lead. Harris is awfully small and not overly quick, but Brown is a workout wonder who doesn't use his size and bounces everything outside. Brown would be the more exciting playing-time winner, but Harris was ahead of him on the depth chart in Week 14.

Brandon Bolden, RB, NE (10% owned). LeGarrette Blount suffered a mysterious hip injury Sunday night on what also looked like a non-contact play, and didn't return to the Patriots' win. In his stead, Bolden performed well on early downs, though the game was pretty well decided in the fourth quarter. James White may be earning Tom Brady's trust as a pass receiver, but he doesn't look like a great from-scrimmage runner. Perhaps the Blount role falls to Bolden on Sunday against the Titans.

Zach Miller, TE, Bears (20% owned). Martellus Bennett is out for the year with fractured ribs, and Miller has taken over as basically an every-down player. Long ago, he was considered an athletic marvel, though he was out of the NFL for three seasons before this year. But he's got five touchdowns in his past six games. If you're scrounging for solutions to replace Tyler Eifert, Miller is your best bet.

Buccaneers Defense (15% owned). It's not a great week for streaming defenses, but I'll try the Bucs Thursday night against the Rams. I had the Lions defense going against the Rams last week, and they disappointed, only scoring three defensive fantasy points, but having watched the game film I think that's misleading. Matthew Stafford gave up a pick-six, the Lions pass rushers were so close to more sacks of Case Keenum, and they really only gave up a couple big Todd Gurley runs. Tampa has been okay defensively, and they still play that deep shell a lot of the time, which could—emphasis on could—limit Gurley's huge plays.

Players listed in previous weeks who are still addable in all leagues: James White, RB, NE (49%); Charles Sims, RB, TB (30%); Duke Johnson, RB, CLE (45%); Theo Riddick, RB, DET (28%); Willie Snead, WR, NO (46%); DeVante Parker, WR, MIA (44%); Dorial Green-Beckham, WR, TEN (26%).

Speculative Adds

Peyton Manning, QB, Broncos (49% owned). I know. But that's why we call it speculative! My assumption is that Brock Osweiler will stay Denver's starter against the Steelers in Week 15. But Osweiler didn't play particularly well in a shocking home loss to the Raiders last week, particularly in the way he dealt with the pass rush. True, his outcome would've been better if guys like Demaryius Thomas and Vernon Davis hadn't dropped passes, but I wouldn't be stunned to see Denver go back to Peyton if he's healthy. And I may be in the minority—check that, I'm definitely in the minority—but I still think Peyton has good games left in him, if he's healthy.

Fozzy Whittaker, RB, Panthers (0% owned). Jonathan Stewart was reportedly in a walking boot after Sunday's win against the Falcons, and while the Panthers have said they expect Stew Beef to be okay, it's worth wondering who his backup is. During garbage time Sunday, it was the well-travelled Whittaker, who's nothing special, but is a competent major-league reserve. Rookie Cameron Artis-Payne (2% owned) could also be a factor if Stewart misses time, and he's more talented than Whittaker, but he's also relatively inexperienced in a pro-style offense.

Ted Ginn, Jr., WR, Panthers (40% owned). Ginn caught two balls for two touchdowns Sunday. It doesn't get much more speculative than that! Listen, I'm almost certain your fantasy playoff squad can do better than a guy with eight touchdowns on 37 catches. That kind of ratio just isn't usually week-to-week sustainable. But if your team is on an underdog run and can use some boom-or-bust, Ginn might be your guy. Here's just hoping he doesn't drop the phone when you call him up to your squad.

Players listed in previous weeks who are still speculative adds: Jay Cutler, QB, CHI (41%); Jameis Winston, QB, TB (47%); Brock Osweiler, QB, Broncos (21%); Jay Ajayi, RB, Dolphins (14%); Joique Bell, RB, DET (24%); Robert Turbin, RB, DAL (5%); Tyler Lockett, WR, Seahawks (37%); Cecil Shorts, WR, HOU (14%); Nate Washington, WR, HOU (21%); Keshawn Martin, WR, Patriots (6%); Rueben Randle, WR, NYG (35%); Malcom Floyd, WR, SD (21%); Jacob Tamme, TE, ATL (36%); Heath Miller, TE, PIT (28%).

Deep-League Adds

Fred Jackson, RB, Seahawks (5% owned). Pete Carroll must know something about the 34-year-old Jackson, because with both Marshawn Lynch and Thomas Rawls out, a veteran like F-Jax would seem to be the perfect steadying hand to keep the Seattle running game on the rails. But Carroll has already said the Jackson's role won't change: he'll still be a change-of-pace and receiving back, and Bryce Brown and/or DuJuan Harris will carry it on early downs. Probably that means Jackson doesn't have much juice left in his legs. But who knows!

A.J. McCarron, QB, Bengals (1% owned). Andy Dalton is out for the foreseeable future, and possibly for the entire rest of the season. I wasn't impressed with McCarron in a relief effort Sunday, but now he'll get a full week to practice as the starter. He certainly has great weapons.

Players listed in previous weeks who are still addable in deep leagues: Jonathan Grimes, RB, HOU (2%); Chris Polk, RB, HOU (4%); Fitzgerald Toussaint, RB, PIT (0%); Jordan Todman, RB, PIT (1%); Dan Herron, RB, IND (6%); Javontee Herndon, WR, SD (2%); Jamison Crowder, WR, WAS (11%); Dwayne Harris, WR, NYG (19%); Luke Willson, TE, SEA (3%); Will Tye, TE, NYG (9%); Blake Bell, TE, SF (0%).

Christopher Harris (@HarrisFootball) is a six-time Fantasy Sports Writing Association award winner. He hosts the Harris Football Podcast every weekday. Find it on iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and most other podcast apps, as well as at www.HarrisFootball.com.