Three Running Back to Pickup off the Waiver Wire in Week 16 for Deep Leagues

These three running backs are widely available in deep fantasy leagues and can make a big impact in Week 16.

Nov 3, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Arizona Cardinals running back Emari Demercado (31) runs with the ball during the game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Arizona Cardinals at AT&T | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

If you are in a deeper fantasy football league, it could be harder to find options if you lose a player at this point in the season. However, you may be left with no choice in the matter. We are here to help and have found a few stashes who could give you more fantasy value than expected in the 2025 fantasy football playoffs. These are the top deep league sleepers that can give you value in the fantasy football playoffs. 

Emari Demercado, Arizona Cardinals

Trey Benson and Bam Knight have both been ruled out for the remainder of the season. That leaves a huge void in the Cardinals' backfield. While Michael Carter is the presumed top option in Arizona, Demercado could easily be the most valuable fantasy asset. He has by far the most big-play upside of the two and is more than capable of handling both rushing and pass-catching duties if called upon. We have seen him have big games this season on the back of a long touchdown. If you are in need of a running back, it's no lock that Carter is the better option for the Cardinals.  

Audric Estime, New Orleans Saints

Dec 14, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints running back Audric Estime (30) is tackled by Carolina Panthers linebacker Trevin Wallace (32) and linebacker Christian Rozeboom (56) during the second quarter at Caesars Superdome. | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

It's looking like the Saints could be without both Alvin Kamara and Devin Neal in Week 16 and possibly beyond. That leaves a huge opportunity for someone to step up at running back in New Orleans. Based on what we saw in Week 15, that back should be Estime. With Neal exiting with an injury, Estime carried the ball three times and, more importantly, saw three targets. He rushed for 11 yards and caught all three targets for 39 yards. However, Evan Hull could also be in the mix. Hull carried the ball four times last week for 12 yards, but did not get any work in the passing attack. Of course, we must always beware of Taysom Hill spoiling things for both of them.   

Ameer Abdullah, Indianapolis Colts

Dec 14, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Indianapolis Colts running back Ameer Abdullah (26) returns a punt against the Seattle Seahawks during the third quarter at Lumen Field. | Kevin Ng-Imagn Images

This could be nothing, but it could also be something. Philip Rivers has started one game for the Colts, and Abdullah led the team in receiving. He caught five passes for 32 yards, both of which were team highs. Only Tyler Warren had more targets with six. Abdullah also carried the ball four times for 15 yards, but any value he has is going to come from the passing game. Jonathan Taylor was targeted four times in Week 15 and caught three passes for 15 yards. This could be an interesting development for fantasy purposes.