If you're consistently a step ahead of the competition in your fantasy football league, it can help you win a title, and this weekly piece will aim to help you stay ahead of the pack.

The goal here is to help you identify players who could be hot waiver adds down the road as well as to point out week-ahead pickups who could prove useful.

Here are some players to consider adding now and stashing on your bench for the future.

All NFL projections via our numbers at FanDuel Research, and NFL odds references are to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Fantasy Football Stash Candidates for Week 13

Noah Brown, WR, Commanders

The Washington Commanders have hit a bit of a rut, losing three straight games after starting the season with a stellar 7-2 record. The offense hasn't been nearly efficient as it was earlier in the year, but there's still reason to buy into Washington's aerial attack turning things around soon.

While I expect the Commanders to make a concerted effort to get Terry McLaurin more involved again, Noah Brown has been the go-to wideout for rookie Jayden Daniels in the last month or so. Over the last five weeks, Brown has the second-highest target share (21.9%), highest air yards share (34.5%), and downfield targets (targets of 10-plus yards) per game (3.6) on the Commanders, via NextGenStats.

Brown is on the field plenty with the second-highest snap rate (75.4%) and highest route rate (76.0%) in the same five-game sample from above. Dyami Brown, Luke McCaffrey, and Olamide Zaccheaus haven't done anything to earn an expanded role in Washington's offense, so Brown's usage shouldn't drastically change anytime soon.

With the Commanders needing to get back on track to remain in the NFC playoff race, they should put the ball in Daniels' hands with McLaurin and Brown being the primary receivers.

Devaughn Vele, WR, Broncos

Ever since Courtland Sutton finished with zero stats back in Week 7, he's separated himself as the clear No. 1 receiver on the Denver Broncos. Across the last five weeks, Sutton is pacing the Broncos in target share (28.6%), air yards share (45.0%), downfield targets per game (4.8), and yards per route run (2.78).

At the same time, rookie Devaughn Vele has proven that he's capable of earning the No. 2 spot at wide receiver moving forward. Amid the same five-game sample, Vele has the second-highest target share (14.3%), third-highest air yards share (16.1%), and a modest 1.95 yards per route run while producing an impressive +15.0% catch rate over expected during that span.

With more playing time, Vele now has 4-plus receptions and 39-plus receiving yards in three straight contests. Before the Broncos defeated the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 12, head coach Sean Payton spoke highly of Vele, admitting that the coaching staff was part of what was holding him back.

Even with Josh Reynolds nearing a return to action, Vele hasn't done anything to be relegated to a bench role, and Denver's passing game has taken massive leaps forward as Bo Nix develops in Payton's offense. After the Broncos take on the Cleveland Browns on Monday Night Football in Week 13, they have a bye week in Week 14, so Vele could see a bump in usage in the final weeks for those in deeper leagues who need help at the receiver position.

Jermaine Burton, WR, Bengals

Jermaine Burton has been the most common name to appear in this article, but time is likely running out for everyone to pick him up before his role in the offense changes. The Cincinnati Bengals are coming out of their bye week in Week 13, and they haven't got valuable production from Andrei Iosivas despite the fact he's been on the field plenty amid injuries.

On the season, Iosivas is posting just 1.8 receptions and 24.9 receiving yards per game on a 9.7% target share and a forgettable 0.79 yards per route run. Even if you were to look at Iosivas' numbers in the five games Tee Higgins has missed, he's registering only 1.6 receptions per game, 14.4 receiving yards per game, an 11.1% target share, and 0.39 yards per route run.

Considering that Iosivas has been largely ineffective, Burton could benefit from a post-bye rookie bump, beginning in Week 13 versus the Pittsburgh Steelers. In the two weeks before Cincy's bye week, Burton logged a 34.6% snap rate and 39.1% route rate while he got 3 downfield targets per game on an 18.3-yard average depth of target.

Burton flashed plenty of downfield success in college, and his ability to stretch the field could make things a bit easier for Ja'Marr Chase and Higgins. With Joe Burrow playing out of his mind and looking to lead the Bengals to an improbable playoff push, Burton should begin seeing more playing time than Iosivas sooner rather than later.

Theo Johnson, TE, Giants

Catching passes from Tommy DeVito or Drew Lock doesn't exactly make Theo Johnson an overly enticing option, but the New York Giants are incentivized to get their young tight end playing time to end the season. Over the last six games for the Giants, Johnson is recording an 88.0% snap rate and 67.4% route rate.

During that same six-game span, Johnson has earned a 13.3% target share and 1.5 downfield targets per game. Even though he hasn't shown much upside yet, Johnson has caught 3-plus passes for 30-plus yards in 6 consecutive outings, so Brian Daboll is making somewhat of an effort to get him involved.

In Week 12 with DeVito making his first start, Johnson hauled in 3 of his 6 targets for 39 yards while finishing with the second-highest target share (20.0%) on the Giants. New York's offense needs to do a better job prioritizing Malik Nabers, but there is room for other players to get work -- especially with the Giants expected to be in negative game scripts down the stretch.

Four of the final six teams New York faces the rest of the way are 17th or worse in terms of fantasy points allowed per game to the tight end position. Considering that the tight end position is tough to predict this season, Johnson could be a viable stash candidate in deeper leagues.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.