Top 2023 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Additions + 2024 Outlooks (Part Two)

In part one of this mini-series, I looked at some 2023 waiver wire heroes who will be draft day targets in 2024. This week, I’m featuring players who had flashes throughout the season and could see their hype train grow throughout the offseason.

Let’s get into it!

Top 2023 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Additions & 2024 Outlooks

Nico Collins & Tank Dell (WRs, Houston Texans) 

I featured C.J. Stroud in part one of this mini-series as a prime candidate to be a tremendous mid-to-late-round quarterback option for 2024. Part of why Stroud has that opportunity is because of his wide receiver corps of Nico Collins and Tank Dell. 

The two pass-catchers are entirely different, giving the Texans an exceptional dynamic across the field. Collins stands at 6-foot-4 and weighs in at 215 pounds, while Dell is 5-foot-8 and weighs 170 pounds soaking wet. Both players finished among the top 24 WRs this season in Yards Per Reception (YPR) and earned over a 20% target share. Finding players where the target share is consolidated helps to have reliable production week in and week out. 

Both players also finished inside the top 20 wide receivers in Points Per Reception (PPR) fantasy points per game in 2023. Solid production this year, plus the fact that they’re tied to C.J. Stroud, means 2024 could see Collins and Dell become the league’s next relentless duo, as well as fixtures in your fantasy lineup. 

De’Von Achane (RB, Miami Dolphins) 

There may not be anyone more electric with the ball than Miami Dolphins rookie running back De’Von Achane. He ran a blistering 4.3-second time on his 40-yard dash and found himself in one of the most innovative offenses in the NFL. Achane had 936 total yards on 129 opportunities and 10 total touchdowns. Achane was a PPR RB1 in five of his 10 games, including Week 2, where he only saw one carry and one target, and Week 11, where he re-aggravated a previous knee injury. All of his efficiency metrics look like video game numbers. 

The only things that held Achane back from being a fantasy superstar were his injuries and 31-year-old Raheem Mostert having a historic 21-touchdown season. Mostert will be 32 before the start of the 2024 NFL campaign, and the Dolphins could easily move on at only $650,000 in dead cap. Achane was already a 2023 waiver wire darling when he wasn’t injured and finished fifth in PPR fantasy points per game among all RBs. He could break fantasy football if he sees the lion’s share of backfield opportunities in Miami. 

Tyjae Spears (RB, Tennessee Titans) 

Rookie RB Tyjae Spears garnered a lot of attention in preseason with several dazzling runs, and rightfully so. While he was on the field for over half of the Titans’ snaps in 2023, he was ultimately still second fiddle to Derrick Henry. Even though Spears was shy of 100 carries, he was still seventh among running backs in targets (67) and 11th in receptions (49) on a 15% target share. 

With Henry turning 30 this past week and set to become a Unrestricted Free Agent (UFA) at season’s end, the Titans could usher Spears into the lead-back role. Receptions are more valuable than carries in many fantasy football leagues, and Spears has already proven that he’s more than capable of catching the football. We could be looking at the early stage of Austin Ekeler-type production, especially with the Titans’ lack of explosive playmakers. If I’m a dynasty manager and didn’t snag Spears in rookie drafts, I’m checking to see if I can get Spears before he’s swindled away to the competition’s roster. 

Rashee Rice (WR, Kansas City Chiefs) 

Since the departure of wide receiver Tyreek Hill before the 2022 season, the Kansas City Chiefs have struggled to find a consistent go-to option for Patrick Mahomes, who is not named Travis Kelce. They drafted Skyy Moore, tried to make fetch happen with Mecole Hardman and Marquez Valdes-Scantling and let JuJu Smith-Schuster walk after last year’s Super Bowl. 

In the second round of the 2023 NFL draft, the Chiefs selected 6-foot, 200-pound WR Rashee Rice out of Southern Methodist University (SMU). Some in the fantasy community were skeptical of Rice, especially after Skyy Moore hadn’t panned out just a season earlier. However, Rice has taken the torch and become a reliable target for QB Mahomes and a dynamic playmaker. 

Through Week 17, Rashee had 102 targets, 79 receptions, 938 yards and seven touchdowns. This line is formidable when you consider that Rice didn’t have a snap share over 70% until Week 13. Even with that, he was a top-24 wide receiver in seven weeks. Rice also led all WRs in Yards After the Catch (YAC). Good things happen for the Chiefs and your fantasy football team when Rice has the ball.

Thanks for reading my favorite fantasy football waiver wire additions from 2023 and their outlooks for 2024. Looking for more fantasy football advice? Follow me on Twitter @ThatMattKelley.

*Photo Credit: Jim Dedmon- USA TODAY Sports*