Week 12 Fantasy Football Rankings: Top 10 Players Available on the Waiver Wire

We're rounding the corner and hitting the home stretch of the fantasy season.

So, of course we had multiple studs go down over the weekend. We also had a few lingering concerns which didn't go away and may not before the end of the season.

Adrian Peterson. Jay Cutler. Mike Vick. Matt Stafford. Matt Cassel. Matt Hasselbeck.

OK, Hasselbeck isn't exactly earth shattering, nor was Matt Cassel.

Add those last three to Matt Schaub from last week and you get an important tip for parents of unborn NFL hopefuls—don't name your future quarterbacks Matt.

As we react and adjust based on the injuries that mount up throughout the season, it's important to remember that you cannot overreact. While it's bad to remain stagnant and not do anything, it's equally bad to freak out and make moves just to be doing something.

As always, the first place you should head to is the waiver wire. Sure, it's getting thinner and thinner, but there are still some players here and there worth a look even for just pure upside.

Let's see who they are.

Matt Moore, QB, Miami Dolphins

Matt Moore is quite the riddle.

He showed some flashes in Carolina as a backup, but when he won the starting gig outright, he fell on his face. So he then ends up in Miami where he struggles...and then suddenly plays well.

I'm not sure I'm back on board the "Moore for starter" train, I still feel the burn from when I was on it in Carolina. However, he's begun to click with what passes for an offense on the Dolphins and has become productive.

Would I start him over Brady or Brees? No and I wouldn't start him over Cam Newton either.

However, I certainly would have him on my bench as an emergency filler or if I was jammed up, a replacement for another backup like Matt Cassel or Matt Hasselbeck.

Moore's schedule is a tad dicey with Dallas, Oakland, Philadelphia, New England and the Jets on the docket, but if he can protect the ball, he can put up some garbage time points at least against those teams.

Kevin Smith, RB, Detroit Lions

When a guy gains 201 total yards and three touchdowns, he gets on this list even if we've talked about him before.

Kevin Smith is back from his "career near death experience," and the time off has lit a fire in him.

Smith ran like a man on fire, showing a tremendous amount of hunger with every carry. He ran with low pad level and a determination which was surprising. Smith has always been talented, he's just always been hurt as well.

So the recommendation comes with a caveat of sorts—Smith is as injury-prone as he is talented.

Still, you don't see a guy tear up an NFL defense the way he did and not come away impressed.

Smith has some tough games ahead, beginning with the Packers on Thanksgiving and against Oakland in Week 15. He's also got some choice cuts like Minnesota in Week 14 and the Chargers in Week 16 (also known as Championship Week).

There is also the threat of Jahvid Best returning. We don't know when that will happen, but we know the Lions are optimistic he will play by season's end. That could mean playoffs or that could mean in the next month.

So if you grab Smith, do so with the knowledge that he could find himself in the backseat again

Jake Locker, QB, Tennessee Titans

It seems as though Matt Hasselbeck will be back under center soon, but it's worth noting that Jake Locker looked OK in relief this past Sunday.

I certainly feel strongly that Locker would benefit most from being the backup for a whole year, but he took good care of the ball and moved the chains. For a rookie who still has some growing to do, it was a decent showing, against Atlanta no less. Sure, they aren't the best in the league or anything, but they aren't awful either.

Coming in with little or no practice time with the first team and yet performing well anyway is notable.

If the Titans continue to struggle, it wouldn't shock me to see Locker get a full-time shot. So it's definitely worth finding room on your bench just in case.

Toby Gerhart, RB, Minnesota Vikings

There's still some confusion about what exactly is going on with Adrian Peterson's ankle and how long he'll be sidelined. Of course, Peterson is a gamer and will do what he can to get on the field. A high ankle sprain (what the last reports stated his injury was) can linger though and for a running back, it can be a killer.

The Vikings drafted Toby Gerhart in 2010 with an eye towards securing their backfield in case of just this sort of situation. Granted, he's no Adrian Peterson, and there will be a slip in statistics, especially in an offense as inconsistent as this one. He's going to see a lot of stacked fronts, and it's going to make it tough as it did this past week against Oakland.

Still, Gerhart is talented—even if he's not an elite back like Peterson. He won't get you the top five points Peterson got you but should do pretty well on his own.

The biggest negative (aside from the Vikings' offensive struggles in general) is his propensity to fumble. If he can control that and keep his legs moving, he should be a great add to your fantasy team for at least a few weeks, perhaps longer.

Jerome Simpson, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

Cincinnati has been patiently waiting for Jerome Simpson to finally put all the pieces together, and he did this past weekend. With rookie AJ Green out, Simpson stepped into the lead slot and more than held his own.

The only thing he didn't do was find the end zone, but otherwise his eight catches for 152 yards was a tremendous day for any owner with the foresight to start him.

That was against Baltimore, by the way. Pretty nice.

As long as AJ Green is out, Simpson should put up some impressive numbers, though I would keep my expectations for him reasonable and dependent on who he's facing.

On the positive side, he does see the Browns, Rams and Cardinals, which should balance out the Steelers and Texans coming up.

Every catch Simpson makes will only make quarterback Andy Dalton a bigger fan so that he has a chance to compete for the ball even when Green returns.

Randall Cobb, WR, Green Bay Packers

Here's a bit of a "deep sleeper" for you guys in leagues with big rosters and very thin waiver wires.

I've been a big fan of Cobb's since before the 2011 NFL draft, and my enthusiasm hasn't let up yet. Now, you might look at his stats and wonder why the fuss, and that's a fair question.

Most of where I continue to see what Cobb is capable of is when he is returning kicks. Cobb is a very dangerous runner, and he's shown tremendous speed, vision and instincts when he's gets the ball in his hand.

Right now, Greg Jennings is a bit banged up, and while I do expect Jennings to play this Thursday or barring that, within the next two games, it's possible he might be fighting that knee bruise for a while.

Jordy Nelson is most definitely the No. 2, but Cobb could see some more opportunity, especially if Jennings misses any time.

Again, this is a Mariana Trench pick, pretty deep. Sometimes, those deep sleepers can emerge from their slumber and carry you to championships. Cobb is worth having on your roster for just such an occasion.

Riley Cooper, WR, Philadelphia Eagles

There was probably a point during Sunday night's Eagles/Giants fistfight that you heard the words "Riley Cooper" and thought to yourself...

"Who the hell is THAT?"

Understandable because unless you are a hard core Eagles fans, why would you recognize the second-year player out of Florida?

With Jeremy Maclin out, Cooper got to start in his spot, and he put on quite the show.

It's worth noting that he was being thrown to by the backup quarterback, whom he probably gets quite a bit of second team work with. So as long as Vince Young is in charge, Cooper will probably get more than expected targets.

Note, I didn't say "better than expected" because as long as Vince Young is throwing the ball, the quality of those passes are sometimes rather dubious.

While he did get 12 targets—more than any other Eagle—some of those passes were horrifically thrown balls. Still, they were thrown in his direction often enough to where you should have a good idea who young looks for most.

Cooper may only have value for the next few weeks, but he could be a very sneaky play for the stretch run in fantasy leagues, and if he does enough, maybe beyond.

As a dynasty side note, with DeSean Jackson acting like a tool in regards to his contract (or lack thereof), Cooper could earn a spot for himself going into 2012.

Damian Williams, WR, Tennessee Titans

I didn't have Williams on the list last week because I figured that like in many of my own leagues, he was long gone. One of the commentators posted some percentages showing how many people owned several players, and Williams was pretty low.

So I figured I would look this week. Sure Williams had an off game, but he'd just had two solid outings and his targets were on the rise.

However, in looking at the charts at ESPN, he's only owned in 9.5 percent of leagues. I take a lot of the league stats at ESPN with a healthy dose of salt, but that's way too low.

Again, I know he struggled this week, but he also had a season-high 11 targets. That's an indication that, regardless of who is in at quarterback, he will get looks. While he did poorly this week, most of the time, he will haul those in.

If you're looking for wide receiver depth which can pay off sooner than later, it appears Williams is likely on your waiver wire.

Time to rectify that.

Andre Caldwell, WR, Cincinatti Bengals

Odd as it seems, Caldwell and Simpson have both been heavily targeted the last three weeks. From Week 9 to Week 11, Simpson has been targeted 27 times and Caldwell has seen 26 passes.

They could both be catching a higher percentage of them, but still, it's a great sign if you are looking for someone who might be ready to really heat up.

If Simpson is unavailable or if you just prefer the speedy Caldwell, he's definitely worth the pick up.

While he isn't getting tremendous yards yet, he has scored twice in the last three games and has been targeted in the red zone five times in that span.

Caldwell might complement AJ Green a little better when he returns, so he's definitely a guy to watch in the coming weeks.

Jeremy Kerley, WR, New York Jets

I'll start right off with the caveat that Kerley is currently dealing with a knee injury. I do expect him to return soon, especially with a 10-day layoff between games.

I said this on Twitter Monday night, but when Kerley comes back, you better not sleep on him.

Over the last four games he played, he was tied for the second-most targets with tight end Dustin Keller with 24. That's three more than Santonio Holmes (21) and one less than Plaxico Burress (25).

People get caught up in looking at the year-long numbers, but that's a huge mistake. As I have said several times in this piece, there are just some guys who are ready to pop, and one of the ways you see that is in how often they see the ball.

Does Kerley have less targets than nearly anyone on the team for the whole season? Yes. However if you look closer, you will see he didn't play the first couple of games and wasn't targeted the third game.

Only when Derrick Mason was shown the door did the Jets really start getting Kerley involved, and since then, he's been a big factor.

It's not just the targets—he's catching a lot of them as well. Kerley has the best percentage over that four-game span of any wide receiver, catching 60 percent of the passes thrown his way. The only place he isn't as involved is in the red zone, though he's still seen more opportunities than Holmes, and really, Mark Sanchez has started locking onto Plaxico Burress once he hits the 20-yard line.

Kerley is a dynamic playmaker who can create big plays in space and has great hands. When he comes back, I expect to see him targeted frequently. As the Jets will continue to run a lot, his ceiling isn't as high as some others on this list.

Mark my words though, despite that—and at times despite Sanchez—Kerley will be a heating up when he returns and could very well carry you into the playoffs and beyond.

Andrew Garda is a staff writer at Footballguys.com. Check them out for rankings, projections and player analyses. More than 50,000 pages of content every year to lead you to the championship.