Week 8 Waiver-Wire Pickups: Available Sleepers in Most ESPN, Yahoo Leagues

Let's be honest: There probably aren't any season-changing players available on waivers in Week 8 of the 2016 NFL season. There isn't that solid running back taking over the full-time role for an injured veteran on a run-first offense, aka waiver-wire gold.

But there are good players to be had if you know where to look. So let's point them out below, using ESPN and Yahoo's ownership percentages to unearth some players still likely available in your league.

Ty Montgomery, RB/WR, Green Bay Packers

Ty Montgomery is owned in just 20.4 percent of ESPN leagues, though he has a 63 percent ownership rate in Yahoo leagues. That will likely change shortly, however.

Montgomery has continued to establish himself as a valuable contributor for the Green Bay Packers. He has 10 catches in each of his last two games, but more interestingly, he led the team with nine rushes in Week 7.

And he'll likely continue to be utilized as a running back with Eddie Lacy on injured reserve, James Starks out of action with a torn meniscus and Don Jackson's status still uncertain after he suffered a hand injury on Thursday night.

Yes, the team has Knile Davis, who couldn't carve out a role for himself in Kansas City even with Jamaal Charles injured. But Montgomery has handled his role well.

"(Montgomery) has been given two primary roles (in games), Dallas (last Sunday) and (Thursday night) against the Bears," head coach Mike McCarthy told Jason Wilde of the Wisconsin State Journal on Friday. "And he's delivered. I thought he played excellent last night."

"I think he's a running back now," quarterback Aaron Rodgers added before going into more detail on how Montgomery has handled his unique role, per Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com:

"

He's been doing this for a while, actually. He's been running the ball from the backfield. We just extended his package in the four-receiver set where he's the back, where we allowed him to run some more routes from the backfield and also from the slot, kind of expanding on what we did against Dallas. He has a very good feel. Obviously, he's played receiver for a while, but he's got a good feel on the routes out of the backfield as well. I'm proud of Ty. He had a great focus this week.

"

Look, at some point, a player like Jackson or Davis will garner the majority of the carries out of the backfield. Certainly, when Starks returns from injury, he'll be the featured back. But until then, Montgomery is going to have a huge role, and the Packers will find unique ways to get him the ball moving forward.

Plus, he has a RB/WR designation in ESPN leagues, giving you extra positional versatility. For those reasons, he's absolutely a player you should have on your team.

Davante Adams, WR, Green Bay Packers

We stay in Green Bay, where Davante Adams is owned in just 17.2 percent of ESPN leagues and 21 percent of Yahoo leagues. But you'll probably have to act fast to get him following his 13-catch, 132-yard and two-touchdown performance on Thursday night.

Sure, that was just one game, but Adams has now registered eight or more fantasy points in four of Green Bay's six games. He's third on the Packers in targets in an offense that once supported the fantasy values of three wideouts—Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and James Jones. 

Is Adams likely to register many more 25-point games? No. But with more bye weeks ahead, Adams is a nice player to have on your bench, especially as his rapport with Rodgers continues to grow and the Packers continue to have issues at running back.

Devontae Booker, RB, Denver Broncos

Justin Edmonds/Getty Images

A committee is forming in Denver, much to the chagrin of C.J. Anderson owners everywhere. 

On Monday night, Booker rushed more times than Anderson (17 to 16) and played more snaps (35-29), notching 14 fantasy points. He's averaging an impressive 4.8 yards per carry and leading many to question whether a timeshare might be developing.

"Hopefully we can have that many touches in a course of a game, but I saw two guys competing," head coach Gary Kubiak said regarding the team's run-heavy, running back-by-committee approach to Monday's win over the Houston Texans, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. "I saw fresh guys on the field, and I think that was good for us, but we were also getting more room to run. Those things go hand-in-hand."

In other words, we may be seeing a lot more of Booker as the season progresses, making him a high-upside stash and, in the process, making Anderson's status as an RB2 even more volatile.

Matt Asiata, RB, Minnesota Vikings

Rich Schultz/Getty Images

Matt Asiata is owned in just 25.9 percent of ESPN leagues and 22 percent of Yahoo leagues, and that makes sense: Jerick McKinnon sits atop the depth chart.

But in the past three games, you can make a strong argument that Asiata has in fact been the better player.

Player	Rushes	Yards	Receptions	Yards	TD	Fantasy Points
Matt Asiata	32	116	11	83	2	29
Jerick McKinnon	49	164	5	25	1	23

If you take out McKinnon's 15-point fantasy performance in Week 4, Asiata has outscored him 22-8 in the Vikings' past two games. And in three straight weeks, Asiata has posted at least seven fantasy points.

Both of these players will likely get touches throughout the season, and both will probably siphon fantasy value from the other. But since Week 4, Asiata has not only proved to be worthy of ownership in all fantasy formats, he's also suggested with his play that he might ultimately be the more valuable of the two running backs to roster.

At the least, he should be stashed.  

Jamison Crowder, WR, Washington

Leon Halip/Getty Images

Despite scoring nine or more fantasy points in five of Washington's last six games, Jamison Crowder is owned in just 39.5 percent of ESPN leagues and 38 percent of Yahoo leagues.

Surely, a player posting such consistent numbers is worthy of your flex spot. Plus, Crowder's production is likely to continue.

As John Keim of ESPN.com wrote: "Vernon Davis and Jamison Crowder keep getting open, and the plays are being run a lot for them. Crowder has done a terrific job creating separation underneath, and Davis can still run."

Davis' production will largely disappear once Jordan Reed is healthy, but Crowder has carved himself a nice niche in Washington's offense in the slot, which is something that should continue going forward.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter. All points-against, ownership percentages (from Tuesday evening) and fantasy stats via ESPN.com or Yahoo standard-scoring leagues.