Jaleel McLaughlin waiver wire fantasy outlook: Is Broncos RB a good pickup for Week 15?

Jaleel McLaughlin has been serving as part of a committee of running backs for the Denver Broncos in the 2024 fantasy football season. Following their 41-32 win over the Cleveland Browns before their bye week, he may have moved himself into the leading spot in their backfield as he led the group in touches and yardage. This makes him an interesting waiver wire target with Week 15 approaching.

Jaleel McLaughlin waiver wire fantasy outlook for Week 15

Jaleel McLaughlin (image credit: getty)

The Denver Broncos have mostly utilized Javonte Williams as the primary RB in their committee approach this year, but they have also been willing to switch things up. Audric Estime was given the opportunity at the featured role earlier this year, but in Week 13, it was Jaleel McLaughlin who received the bulk of the backfield workload.

Despite playing in just 36% of the offensive snaps against the Browns, McLaughlin set season-highs with 14 carries for 84 yards. He also finished as the weekly RB27, making this the fifth time that he has finished as the RB33 or better. This has made him a potential flex option for fantasy lineups in favorable weekly situations for the Broncos, despite him not playing in more than 40% of the snaps in a game.

What McLaughlin offers that Williams and Estime lacks is explosiveness and a threat as a receiver out of the backfield. He has exceeded six yards per carry in three of his past four games and has 17 receptions with two receiving touchdowns this season. With the Broncos competing for a wild card spot in the NFL Playoffs, they may give him more opportunities down the stretch considering his recent success relative to their other RBs.

This situation makes McLaughlin an intriguing target on the Week 15 waiver wire with the fantasy playoffs starting. He could be a spark to many fantasy lineups for the postseason, especially if the Broncos ride the hot hand and feature him in favor of Estime and Williams going forward. He has been the most efficient of the trio and has a more dynamic skillset, so it will be interesting to see how they deploy their committee coming out of their bye week.

What makes McLaughlin potentially even more valuable for the fantasy playoffs is a relatively favorable schedule. He will play against the Indianapolis Colts and Cincinnati Bengals, two of the worst defenses in the NFL, in the next three weeks. This makes him one of the better speculative RBs to add from the Week 15 waiver wire.