Late Week 16 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Adds: Audric Estime, J.J. McCarthy, Ricky Pearsall and More

Week 15 of the NFL regular season is underway after the Seahawks edged the Rams in overtime on Thursday night. With a big weekend of games coming, here's a look at some of the top waiver wire fantasy football options.

We will look at quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and tight ends.

Fantasy football waiver options can be found daily on FantasySP!

Running Backs

New Orleans' Audric Estime is the biggest add of the day. He's up 3.78% and sits at 25% overall now.

Estime is on the rise after Devin Neal was put on injured reserve and with Alvin Kamara trending toward not playing again in week 16.

That could leave Estime as a lead backfield option against the Jets, which is a very favorable matchup. With Kamara out and Neal getting injured in week 15, Evan Hull led the backfield with 12 offensive snaps played, while Estime played 11 - Estime had six touches to just four for Hull though.

I understand adding Estime, but I'd only consider him a fantasy starting option in deeper leagues. He's just too risky to try in standard leagues in such a big week, even if Kamara is ruled out.

Arizona's Emari Demercado has been added in 1.71% of leagues and is owned in 17.09% overall.

Demercado could take on a bit more this week after Bam Knight hit IR for the Cardinals. Last week, Michael Carter was the backfield leader, and I'd expect more of the same in week 16.

Carter is the Arizona back I'd most want on my fantasy roster. Demercado is just a deep-league starting option for week 16 in a matchup against the Falcons, who are a slightly above-average matchup.

Tampa Bay's Rachaad White is up 1.15% and is rostered in 58.84% overall.

I'm not exactly sure why White is on the rise today. Maybe it's because Carolina is a pretty favorable matchup for running backs?

White is coming off a game in which he had just two touches though, so it'd be really hard for me to justify starting him in more than a really deep fantasy setup. Bucky Irving should power the backfield, and Sean Tucker might be the second-best option.

White is more a desperation fantasy starting option in really deep leagues. Look elsewhere for help in a standard league, like with either of the two backs I've already discussed.

Wide Receivers

San Francisco's Ricky Pearsall, Carolina's Jalen Coker, Kansas City's Xavier Worthy and Los Angeles Chargers' Quentin Johnston are the wide receivers on the rise today.

Pearsall is up 2.07% and is now owned in 75.36% of leagues overall.

Pearsall is battling knee and ankle injuries, so his status needs to be watched as we inch closer to his game on Monday night. That extra day could help Pearsall suit up in week 16.

He finally got rolling again in week 15, so it was a bummer to see him get injured in that contest. Pearsall's matchup against the Colts this week is very favorable, so he could shine if he's active.

I like the idea of adding him after what he did last week, but unless you have a couple options on Monday that you are considering for a single starting spot, it might be risky to start Pearsall. If he's a game-time decision, you could be left scrambling if he's eventually ruled out.

Proceed cautiously with Pearsall.

Coker has been added in 1.59% of leagues, bringing his overall mark up to 22.83%.

Coker has turned things up the past two weeks, so I'm surprised his own percentage isn't quite a bit higher. A pretty average matchup against the Buccaneers this week shouldn't be working against him at all.

Coker is a sneaky good option in deeper leagues, and really could be worth considering in a pinch in a standard league for week 16. I'd prefer to start him in deeper leagues only, but coming off two nice showings and going into an average matchup, I'd be fine starting him in a lot more leagues than he's currently rostered in.

Worthy is rostered in 91.67% of leagues after a 1.12% increase today.

Worthy has been underwhelming as a fantasy asset since Rashee Rice returned, and things are probably worse now that Patrick Mahomes is also out of the picture.

Rice is dealing with a concussion though, and doesn't seem likely to play in week 16. That means that Worthy could be back as WR1 in Kansas City.

A favorable matchup against the Titans is on deck, so Worthy is getting a nice boost as the week winds down and the weekend games approach. If Rice is indeed out this week, Worthy has standard league upside.

At the very least, Worthy should be starting in all deeper leagues. Those who have held him in standard leagues might be able to start him again this week too.

Johnston is up 1% today, which brings his new overall mark to 75.36%.

Johnston is working through a groin injury, so his status needs to be watched as his game approaches. He has the best fantasy matchup a receiver could have against the Cowboys.

Unfortunately, Johnston hasn't done very much over the past several weeks, so I'd only be comfortable starting him in deeper leagues this week, even if he seems like a standard option.

Quarterbacks

Pittsburgh's Aaron Rodgers, Minnesota's J.J. McCarthy, Green Bay's Jordan Love, Chicago's Caleb Williams, San Francisco's Brock Purdy and New Orleans' Tyler Shough are all on the rise today.

Rodgers has been added in 1.73% of leagues, and he's now owned in 34.42% of leagues overall.

Rodgers has been good over the past two weeks, and has a good matchup coming against the Lions, so it makes sense to see him on the rise.

He has top-10 upside, but is definitely a safer starting option in deeper fantasy leagues. I like him in DFS formats, and included him in a lineup for Sunday.

McCarthy is up 1.66%, which brings his overall mark to 44.93%.

McCarthy is in a similar boat to Rodgers. He's been good the past two weeks and has a great matchup coming against the Giants.

He has a chance to be a top-10 fantasy QB as well, but I also like him more in deeper leagues. McCarthy could be another solid DFS option this week.

Love is rostered in 90.22% of leagues after a 1.44% increase.

He has been pretty solid in three straight games, and even was last week against a tough Denver defense. Love gets the Bears, who he nearly scored 20 fantasy points against just two weeks ago.

I like the idea of starting Love in any fantasy league type this week. He's a great option in deeper leagues, and I have him in the top 10 this week at QB, so he's a standard league option too.

Williams is up to 84.42% owned after a 1.36% increase.

Williams has been a level or so below Love of late, so it means sense to see his own percentage a little lower. He scored about 15 fantasy points against Green Bay in the first meeting.

Williams is capable of more, but in what's a below-average matchup, I see him as just a deep-league starting option this week. I think you can find better in standard leagues.

Purdy has been added in 1.1% of leagues and he sits at 93.09% overall now.

Purdy is coming off a big game, and has been above average in three of the past four. The only thing slowing him this week could be a below-average test against the Colts.

Shough is rostered in 20.29% of leagues after a 1.06% increase.

Shough has pretty quietly been an average-or-better fantasy asset in four of the past five weeks. The Jets are a favorable matchup for him again this week, but I'd still only want to start him in deeper fantasy setups, as others are more trustworthy.

Tight Ends

The only tight end on the waiver list today is Chicago's Colston Loveland. He's up 1.23% and sits at 50.9% overall.

He's been steadily involved over the past several weeks, and has a chance to shine in week 16. Luther Burden and Rome Odunze are already out for the Bears, and Cole Kmet could miss the game too, which would boost Loveland's stock some more.

Regardless of Kmet's status, I still only see Loveland as a deep-league starting option for week 16. He could be in the standard league conversation, but I think his ceiling is too low in a tougher test against the Packers to try.

Fire him up confidently in deeper leagues, but look elsewhere for standard league help.