Week 12 Waiver Wire: C.J. Anderson, Jonas Gray Highlight Pickups to Know

Do whatever it takes to get in front of the sprint to the Week 12 waiver wire. 

It would normally behoove owners to hang back a bit, get the lay of the land and perhaps nab a few deep sleepers.

Not Week 12. Not a week that saw a minimum of three running backs emerge as serious starters right in time for the playoff stretch. Not at a time when undervalued wideouts continue to be ignored and sit on the wire despite proven production.

For those serious about having as many quality options as possible come playoff time, get to the wire. 

C.J. Anderson, RB, Denver Broncos (77.8 percent owned)

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Normally, lists such as this refrain from listing any player above 50 percent ownership, but there is an exception when it comes to C.J. Anderson of the Denver Broncos.

Anderson was soon to be dropped in plenty of leagues thanks to the impending returns of Ronnie Hillman and Montee Ball, but the latter suffered an injury Sunday, as did wideout Emmanuel Sanders and tight end Julius Thomas, per Mike Klis of The Denver Post.

The third option on the depth chart had already made a strong case as the best back on said depth chart with 22 points in Week 10. He tallied another 10 against St. Louis on Sunday.

How Anderson got those 10 is impressive, though. He made little headway on the ground, instead morphing into one of Peyton Manning's favorite targets with eight catches for 86 yards.

As a result of his skill and those who continue to fall around him, Anderson is the top target in every league. No excuses.

Jonas Gray, RB, New England Patriots (8.4 percent owned)

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Then again, New England Patriots back Jonas Gray could claim that same title.

Gray stormed back on the scene in Week 8 with eight points and has since been a bit of a non-factor as the Patriots searched for answers in the backfield.

The team got a resounding answer Sunday when Gray carried the ball 38 times and turned it into an eye-popping 199 yards and four scores, good for 43 fantasy points to lead all backs by the end of Sunday night.

As ESPN Stats & Info reveals, Gray made plenty of history in the process:

Gray is the type of player who ends the playoff bids of owners on his own, apparently. With that in mind, it behooves any and all owners to scoop him up and let him run wild, as one has to imagine the lion's share of the work in New England now belongs to him.

So long as Gray continues to play like an ideal back for the New England system, he is a matchup-proof option in all leagues. More than 90 percent of leagues have a great consolation prize if owners miss out on Anderson.

Tre Mason, RB, St. Louis Rams (41.3 percent owned)

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Tre Mason finally got another breakout performance Sunday, further reinforcing the whispers that he needs to be owned in all leagues. 

Any lingering doubt about Mason's status in the St. Louis Rams offense was squashed Sunday against Denver when he was given 29 carries which turned into 113 yards and 11 points.

It was the highest carry total for any player in St. Louis this season, a trend that is not likely to go away now that Mason has seized the starting gig. That said, Mason does not sound like he values fantasy too highly, based on comments captured by ESPN.com's Nick Wagoner:

"

That’s just the way football is. Sometimes you have got to grind them out. It might not be a big play every play, but you’ve got to grind them out sometimes. That extra one or two [yards] means a lot when you’re on the goal line, so if you’re on the goal line, it can be the difference between a score and a first down.

"

The scary part about Mason's performance is that the numbers came against the Broncos, a team that entered the weekend allowing the fifth-fewest points to backs this season.

It should encourage owners, then, that Mason's schedule lightens in a major way over the course of the next two weeks with matchups against the San Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders, the latter of which allows the third-most points to backs.

The production for Mason is not going anywhere as a 4-6 team continues to fight for survival and sees what some of its younger players have to offer.

Kenny Britt, WR, St. Louis Rams (12.4 percent owned)

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Keep in mind those Rams, as any team that continues to undergo serious changes as a season goes on becomes a hotbed for the wire. 

Look at Kenny Britt, who entering Sunday had just one trip to double digits and two scores on the season. His season-high reception output was five but no more than three after that.

Sunday with Shaun Hill under center, Britt caught four passes for 128 yards and a score for 18 points, placing him in the top five at his position before Monday's action.

Britt was targeted a team-high seven times and is clearly the No. 1 receiver in St. Louis. He is good for that neighborhood of targets each game moving forward, so it is also good news for those owners in need of a spot start that he gets the Chargers and Raiders in the coming weeks.

The pickings at wideout are somewhat slim this week, but a No. 1 wideout is a No. 1 wideout.

Jordan Matthews, WR, Philadelphia Eagles (41.7 percent owned)

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Mark Sanchez really has a way of scaring owners. 

Look, Sanchez under center seems bad. It makes sense. But this is not the New York Jets; it is Chip Kelly's Philadelphia Eagles. It is a budding talent in Jordan Matthews who is easily becoming the top target in a potent passing attack.

Matthews did what he has done for three weeks and running now, scoring touchdowns in reliable fashion and soaking up most passes thrown in his direction:

WK	OPP	REC	YDS	TD	PTS
9	@Hou	3	40	1	10
10	Car	7	138	2	25
11	@GB	5	107	1	16

Call it the scheme. Credit it to the rapport established between quarterback and receiver as second-teamers all offseason. It does not really matter at this point, but what does is that owners get Matthews and take advantage of his breakout performance.

It will not just stop, either, as Matthews gets a pair of juicy matchups against the Tennessee Titans and Dallas Cowboys in the coming weeks. The Vanderbilt product gets open with ease out of the slot and turns routine grabs over the middle into big gains.

In this offense with his talent, there is little excuse to not grab and start Matthews, especially for those owners in need.

Honorable Mentions

Player	Pos.	Team	Percent Owned
Josh McCown	QB	TB	8.1
Drew Stanton	QB	ARI	5.1
Roy Helu	RB	WAS	14.6
Isaiah Crowell	RB	CLE	23.7
Bryce Brown	RB	BUF	9.5
Andrew Hawkins	WR	CLE	47.0
Rueben Randle	WR	NYG	35.0
Malcom Floyd	WR	SD	31.2
Jermaine Gresham	TE	CIN	6.2
Coby Fleener	TE	IND	26.1

All scoring info courtesy of ESPN standard leagues, as is points-against info and ownership stats as of 1 a.m. ET on Nov. 16. Statistics courtesy of ESPN.