13 Fantasy Football Stash Candidates Ahead of Week 12

Stash time is dwindling down as we careen toward the fantasy playoffs. With the number of games left to play countable on one hand, it’s imperative to look forward and create the best rosters possible.

Clear out those benches (check out my Dead Weight Report on who to drop) and make room for this week’s crop of stash candidates.

Editor's Note: Check out the Week 12 Waiver Wire Watch

Kenny Pickett, QB - Steelers

While Kenny Pickett’s numbers are of a QB2 over the last four weeks, he’s a viable streaming option for the remainder of the season, so if you need help now due to injury or byes, he could be your guy. From Week 13 on, the rookie will see defenses that rank 15th or below in QB aFPA, including two contests against a Ravens unit that’s yielding 16.3 fantasy points per tilt to enemy signal callers.

Only 11% of Yahoo managers currently have Pickett on their rosters, and he pairs fantastically with rising star Goerge Pickens down the stretch, so grab him too if you're lucky enough to be in one of the 35% of leagues where he’s available.

Kendall Hinton, WR - Broncos

There are not many reliable options in the Denver offense, and Kendall Hinton is certainly not one of them. However, with Jerry Jeudy and K.J Hamler on the shelf and an appealing schedule looming, he could be a nice bye-week fill-in.

The next three weeks feature the Panthers, Ravens, and Chiefs, who sit 25th, 17th, and 30th, respectively, in WR aFPA. In Hinton’s last two outings, he posted a combined seven catches for 119 yards and could be called upon in the weeks ahead.

Richie James, WR - Giants

Sadly, the Giants lost another WR to injury as Wan’Dale Robinson is done for 2022 with a torn ACL. While most will run to grab Darius Slayton off the waiver wire, and he is a great pickup, Richie James will be less sought after. New York has a drool-worthy bout with the Commanders in Week 13 after they face Dallas on Thanksgiving, and James is coming off a contest where he caught all three of his targets for 48 yards and a score.

We could see an uptick for the 27-year-old as the season comes to a close and the Giants fight for a postseason berth, so grabbing him now could put you a step ahead of your league mates.

Trestan Ebner, RB - Bears

The rookie RB is now one injury away from lead-back duties for Chicago and is a desirable stash moving forward. With David Montgomery the clear RB1 for the Bears, Trestan Ebner still saw six carries and one target in Week 11 and should continue to receive 8-10 touches weekly for those truly desperate during the remaining bye weeks.

Isaiah Spiller, RB - Chargers

Last week I had Alexander Mattison in here, and Isaiah Spiller is a stash along the same vein. The rookie has seen four carries in each of the past two weeks and was thrown to twice in Week 11, to which he caught both for 11 total yards. Spiller has leapfrogged Sony Michel as LA’s RB2 with Joshua Kelley sidelined and has the potential to be more involved as rookies tend to be in the latter part of the season.

It also doesn’t hurt that the Chargers' schedule is very RB-friendly in the coming weeks, as they face the Cardinals, Raiders, and Rams, defensive units with an average ranking of 21st in aFPA to enemy backs.

Elijah Moore, WR - Jets

Who’s ready to go down the Elijah Moore road again this season? Before you keep scrolling, hear me out. Zach Wilson has been terrible (putting it mildly), and a QB switch is something Jets HC Robert Saleh is non-committal on at the moment, but chances are it will happen. In Weeks 1-3 with Joe Flacco at the helm, Moore averaged seven targets per game which he turned into 46 yards a contest.

Jets’ HC Robert Saleh told reporters that he’s not committing to QB Zach Wilson as his starting QB for Sunday’s game vs. the Bears.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 21, 2022

A QB change to either Flacco or Mike White doesn’t really solve the coach’s doghouse problem, but Moore did see four balls last week so he’s working his way out via the slot. With eight teams yet to sit out on byes and so many injuries to WRs around the league, Moore could surge at the right time to help your roster down the stretch.

Trenton Irwin, WR - Bengals

This is a deep cut, but those of you in larger leagues need some stash love, too. The Bengals waived WR Mike Thomas on Monday, and it was Trenton Irwin who served as the team’s WR3 in Week 11 and put up the second-highest fantasy points among the corps behind Tee Higgins on his four targets (11.7 half-PPR). He caught 3-of-4 balls on the day for 42 yards and a score in the Bengals victory over Pittsburgh.

Irwin's relevancy will certainly take a hit when Ja’Marr Chase returns, but the Bengals schedule for WRs is so juicy moving forward that he’s worth a look. Cincy gets the Titans, Chiefs, and Browns in their next three outings, defensive squads that rank 31st, 30th, and 14th in WR aFPA.

Kickers with Good Matchups in Weeks 13 & 14

*Numbers in parentheses are ranking in kicker aFPA

• Cade York (Browns) - HOU (25th), CIN (30th)
• Jason Myers (Seahawks) - LAR (27th)), CAR (15th)
• Ka'imi Fairbairn (Texans) - CLE (28th), DAL(17th)

Defenses with Good Matchups in Weeks 13 & 14

*Numbers in parentheses are ranking in kicker aFPA

• Seahawks - LAR (26th), CAR (25th)
• Buccaneers - NO (31st), SF (20th)
• Raiders - LAC (14th). LAR (26th)

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone; I hope you all have a wonderful day filled with family, friends, friends that are family, tons of food, and of course, football!