Jaylen Samuels’ TE Eligibility in Yahoo Fantasy Football Impacts Outlook

Jaylen Samuels Waiver Wire

Getty Jaylen Samuels is worth a waiver wire pickup.

Following the news that Pittsburgh Steelers starting running back James Conner will miss Week 14, there are plenty of reasons to be intrigued by his backup. After all, Jaylen Samuels has shown the potential to be a strong pass-catching option out of the backfield while flashing a fair amount of upside. The rookie has also yet to have the opportunity to showcase his overall skillset since Conner has been holding a workhorse back role.

But for fantasy football players trying to decide how to approach the backfield situation with the Steelers in Week 14, Samuels makes for a great addition. He draws a good matchup and should handle a fair amount of the work with his teammate sidelined due to a leg injury.

Even going beyond that, Samuels’ value in one specific spot stands out more than others. For Yahoo fantasy football players, it’s essentially a no-brainer to add the former North Carolina State playmaker.


Jaylen Samuels’ Eligibility in Yahoo Fantasy Football

If you don’t have a need for a running back or even a flex play currently in your league, maybe you could use some help tight end. Yahoo has Samuels with eligibility as both a running back and tight end, making his fantasy value higher than any other spot. He becomes an elite one-week add, considering he can cover multiple bases.

It’s rare to find a situation like this, but it’s similar to when former Green Bay Packers wide receiver Ty Montgomery was moved to running back. He gained eligibility as a running back, but could also be used as a wide receiver as well. The big difference in this instance is that tight end is widely considered as one of the toughest positions to find high-upside options in fantasy football.


Jaylen Samuels’ Week 14 Fantasy Outlook

Although Samuels could wind up seeing some of the backfield work go elsewhere, he should do a fair amount of the heavy lifting. At the very least, there’s a reason to believe the rookie will see his most targets of the season, providing a high fantasy floor and potentially a big ceiling in the process. Over the past four games, Samuels has seven receptions and two touchdowns, all the while trying to carve out touches behind Conner.

For good measure, the Steelers backfield draws a nice matchup in Week 14 against the Oakland Raiders as well, who have allowed 12 total touchdowns to opposing running backs. They’ve also given up 1,566 yards on 307 carries to the position on the year with 40 receptions for 413 receiving yards.

You could do far worse than Samuels on waivers in most leagues, but in Yahoo fantasy leagues he’s the closest thing to a must-add you’ll see down the stretch of this season.

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