Week 13 Fantasy Football Projections: Top Streaming Options for Notable Injuries

If one thing has been consistent so far in the 2017 NFL season, it's that week after week, players continue to suffer injuries.

This late in the year, your fantasy season often comes down to your ability to work the waiver wire, streaming in the highest-scoring potential options for injured players.

Sometimes this is as simple as handcuffing two players on the same team at the same position, such as Atlanta Falcons running backs Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman. Fantasy managers who had Coleman on their bench have simply promoted him to the active lineup in Freeman's absence and watched the points pile up. 

Other times, however, you have to get creative and look for emerging players around the league to fill the holes on your roster left by injuries. To that end, here is some advice for the top players to pick up ahead of Week 13. 

To ensure there's at least a speck of a chance these players will be available in your leagues, players are only included below if they were owned in less than 60 percent of Yahoo fantasy leagues.

Quarterbacks

Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers (9 percent owned)

It was unclear whether the 49ers had a plan in place for when they would start quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, for whom they traded in early November, over incumbent C.J. Beathard. 

Unfortunately for Beathard, that decision was made for the organization on Sunday when Beathard went down with a leg injury and Garoppolo took the field for his new team for the first time. 

Garoppolo delighted San Francisco fans in his debut, going 2-of-2 for 18 yards and a touchdown on his only drive of the game against the Seattle Seahawks. 

According to NFL Network's Omar Ruiz, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said Beathard has a has a bruised lower left leg, but the coach hasn't made a decision on his starting quarterback for Week 13:

But if Garoppolo is available in your league, submit a claim. You don't want to be on the outside looking in if he starts racking up touchdowns for the 49ers in the last few weeks of the season. 

Brett Hundley, Green Bay Packers (7 percent owned) 

Keith Srakocic/Associated Press

Fantasy is about analyzing the facts at hand, not predicting the future. 

Since he took over for Aaron Rodgers in Week 6, Brett Hundley has been fantasy poison. Take Week 11 against the Baltimore Ravens, for instance: Hundley threw three interceptions to no touchdowns and the Ravens shut out the Packers 23-0. 

But there was Hundley on Sunday Night Football throwing for 245 yards, three touchdowns and, crucially, zero picks against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Will he do that again against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 13? Who knows, but if you're in desperate need of a quarterback, he's almost sure to be available. 

Running Backs

Jamaal Williams, Green Bay Packers (58 percent owned)

Speaking of the Packers' fantasy stock rising, another new face on the team demonstrated an upward trajectory Sunday night. 

Rookie Jamaal Williams has become the guy in Green Bay's backfield as Ty Montgomery and Aaron Jones have missed time with injuries.

Against Pittsburgh, Williams carried the ball 21 times for 66 yards and found the end zone once. He also caught four passes for an additional 69 yards and another score. 

But if this report from Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is any indication, Jones' return doesn't rule out future production for Williams:

Therefore, run, don't walk, to pick him up if he happens to be available. 

Kenyan Drake, Miami Dolphins (56 percent owned) 

If you had running back Jay Ajayi on your roster after the Miami Dolphins traded him to the Philadelphia Eagles, hopefully you had Damien Williams on your bench.

And if you had Damien Williams on your bench when he injured his shoulder against the New England Patriots, hopefully you also had Kenyan Drake waiting in the wings.

If you hadn't been handcuffing two to three Dolphins running backs this season, however, never fear; it's possible that Drake is still available in your league, and if he is, you need to submit a waiver claim right away. 

Stepping in for Williams against New England in Week 12, Drake rushed for 20 yards on nine carries and caught three passes for 27 yards and a touchdown. 

Wide Receivers

Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams (59 percent owned)

Bruce Kluckhohn/Associated Press

While second-year Rams quarterback Jared Goff's favorite weapon this season has undoubtedly been receiver Robert Woods, rookie Cooper Kupp has also enjoyed a productive year. 

Kupp has already caught 46 passes for 597 yards and three touchdowns this season. 

But now that Woods has been sidelined with a shoulder injury, Kupp is in line for a much bigger role.

We saw evidence of that on Sunday when the Rams took on the New Orleans Saints. Kupp set career highs in receptions (eight) and yards (116).

With Woods out indefinitely, per ESPN's Adam Schefter, Kupp is a terrific start as a WR2 or flex.

Martavis Bryant, Pittsburgh Steelers (54 percent owned) 

When the Steelers faced the Packers on Sunday Night Football, they did so without rookie JuJu Smith-Schuster, who has been a not-so-secret weapon for Pittsburgh this season since he was drafted in April.

Smith-Schuster is sidelined with a hamstring injury and the Steelers won't know his status for Week 13 until later in the week, per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports. 

That means Bryant, who had 40 yards and a touchdown against the Packers, could once again see an increase in usage and production in Week 13 when the Steelers take on the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football. 

Tight Ends

Tyler Kroft, Cincinnati Bengals (47 percent owned)

Frank Victores/Associated Press

Some starting-caliber tight ends in fantasy this season, such as Washington's Jordan Reed, Seattle's Jimmy Graham and Buffalo's Charles Clay, have appeared on the injury report in recent weeks. 

If you're in need of a player to start in Week 13, Cincinnati's Tyler Kroft, who has stepped in for Tyler Eifert this season, is trending upward. 

Kroft is a fantastic start for owners when he finds the end zone. In Week 12 against the Cleveland Browns, he scored 10.4 points, and he notched 9.2 in Week 11 against the Denver Broncos.

However, Kroft rarely catches more than three or four passes in any given game, so he's a risky option in points-per-reception leagues. 

Eric Ebron, Detroit Lions (31 percent owned) 

Similar to Kroft, Eric Ebron has proved to be a worthy start in most formats if he has found the end zone. 

In Week 2 against the New York Giants, Ebron put up 15.2 points, and in Week 10 against Cleveland, he scored 11.9.

In the weeks he hasn't scored a touchdown, however, Ebron's production has wavered. But the last two weeks, he's scored more than seven points without a touchdown, so if you're desperate for a streaming tight end, his floor is looking higher.  

Ownership percentage and player stats via Yahoo Fantasy.