Quarterback
Daniel Jones, Giants (Rostered in 10% of Yahoo leagues)
Jones has been a middle-of-the-pack QB2 this year. He rose above the ranks in Week 9 with two passing touchdowns, 54 rushing yards, and another touchdown on the ground. Jones has done most of his damage against subpar defenses. He has faced six opponents that are below league average in EPA per dropbacks allowed and scored multiple touchdowns against four of them. That’s all four of his multi-touchdown games. He gets a Carolina defense in Week 10 that is 31st in EPA per dropback allowed and has given up the fourth-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks.
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Justin Herbert, Broncos (44%)
The Chargers have fully unleashed Herbert since their Week 6 bye. After taking a week to recalibrate, Herbert is attempting 33 passes for 287 yards over his past four games. The Chargers have a +3% pass rate over expected during that stretch.
His touchdown numbers were lagging in his first two games of LA’s pass-first era but have since rebounded. He threw four touchdowns in Weeks 8 and 9 combined.
Aaron Rodgers, Jets (43%)
Rodgers’ efficiency numbers have all gotten a boost since the Jets acquired Davante Adams. He is up to 7.6 adjusted yards per attempt with a 64 percent completion rate over the past three weeks compared to a 6.2 AY/A and a 62 percent completion rate pre-Adams. His fantasy output is up by 1.7 points per game. Rodgers isn’t a QB1 anymore, but all of the good options at quarterback have been picked over or have nightmare matchups this week.
Others receiving votes: Bo Nix, Drake Maye, and Jameis Winston
Running Back
Trey Benson, Cardinals (16%)
Benson logged eight carries for 37 yards and a score versus the Bears and caught one pass for an additional 18 yards. It was his first game over five touches since Week 4 and only his second since then with more than one opportunity. The Cardinals won by 20 in Week 9 and got Benson four carries in the fourth quarter, but Kyler Murray was on the field for all of them. Emari Demercado got the final three carries once Clayton Tune took over. Benson isn’t in the FLEX mix just yet, but he’s a Day Two rookie coming off an uptick in usage.
Jaylen Warren, Steelers (42%)
Warren is your best bet if you need to start a running back this week. He is one of three running backs available in over half of Yahoo leagues who saw 10+ touches in their most recent game. The others are Isaac Guerendo and Chris Rodriguez. Christian McCaffrey is expected to return in Week 10 and Jordan Mason may also be available, making Guerendo only worth adding in deep leagues. Rodriguez is a practice squad call-up who saw just under 30 percent of the Commanders’ carries with Brian Robinson sidelined. Washington used him to grind out the clock versus New York. All of his carries came in the second half and he will likely be left on the bench once Robinson is healthy.
Warren, on the other hand, is averaging 11.3 touches per game since returning to the Steelers’ lineup in Week 6. He has a 12 percent target share over that stretch and has taken the field on 41 percent of Pittsburgh’s offensive snaps. His role is stable enough to bet on him as a low-end RB3.
Ray Davis, Bills (21%)
Like Benson, Davis is a rookie who doesn’t see enough work to be a reliable fantasy option. However, he has done so much with his limited touches that it will be hard for the Bills to keep him on the bench going forward. Davis turned six touches into 90 yards and a touchdown in Week 9. The bulk of that came on a 63-yard catch-and-run.
Davis leads all running backs with 3.6 yards per route run (min. 30 routes). He is also out-pacing James Cook in yards after contact per carry and missed tackles forced per attempt. Davis is at best an RB5 for Week 10, but he has already proven to be a phenomenal stash in the event of a Cook injury and could see more work down the road.
Tyler Allgeier, Falcons (39%)
Allgeier is a plug-and-pray touchdown bet. He has 17 red zone attempts this year—Bijan Robinson has 23–and the Falcons are 3.5-point favorites over the “crashing out” Saints. Allgeier would see all of the work if Robinson misses time and is marginally useful as a standalone fantasy option in a pinch.
Others receiving votes: Braelon Allen, Jaylen Wright, Audric Estime, and Kimani Vidal
Wide Receiver
Ricky Pearsall, 49ers (28%)
Pearsall has a 77 percent route rate and a 17 percent target share in his two games this year. The 49ers have made it a point to get him involved with seven first-read targets which amounts to a 21 first-read target share. He gets a Seattle defense this week that has allowed the 10th-most fantasy points to opposing receivers. Pearsall went unclaimed on a lot of waivers because he was stuck on bye in Week 9 but should be the top priority this time around. If no one scooped him up a week ago, I’d spend at least half of my FAAB budget to get Pearsall.
Quentin Johnston, Chargers (16%)
Johnston missed two weeks with an ankle injury but was back with a vengeance in Week 9. He earned a 19 percent target share and saw 29 percent of the team’s air yards. The bulk of his air yards came on a 66-yard bomb from Justin Herbert.
It was his fourth receiving touchdown of the year. Johnston has at least a 29 percent air yards share in every game he has finished this season. Ladd McConkey still paced the team in targets on Sunday, but Johnston’s role as the team’s deep threat will keep him on the WR4 radar for Week 10.
Jerry Jeudy, Browns (48%)
Jeudy paced the Browns in targets last week with 11 looks. It was the first time he has done so since Amari Cooper was traded, though Cedric Tillman tied him in targets and went for two more yards (75). He also scored the team’s lone touchdown. Jeudy has 25 targets in three games sans Cooper and has topped 70 receiving yards in back-to-back contests. He’s probably not the best receiver on his team, but the Browns are throwing enough to keep him on the WR3/4 border.
Xavier Legette, Panthers (27%)
Diontae Johnson missed Week 8 with an injury and was sent to Baltimore before Week 9, giving us two games of data on the Panthers without him in the lineup. Legette leads the team with a 22 percent target share and a 34 percent air yards share. Both of Bryce Young’s end zone passes were aimed at and caught by Legette. The potential return of Adam Thielen could hurt Legette’s fantasy output, so I would limit my FAAB bidding to 10-15 percent.
Mack Hollins, Bills (0%)
The Bills were without Amari Cooper in Week 9 and Keon Coleman left the game late with an injury of his own. Both players’ statuses for Week 10 are up in the air. Hollins ran a route on 75 percent of Josh Allen’s dropbacks last week. He caught five passes for 30 yards and his third touchdown of the year. Hollins is a true desperation play for Week 10 and is only on the fantasy radar if at least one of the Bills’ receivers remains sidelined.
Demarcus Robinson, Rams (12%)
Robinson has two touchdowns in each of his past two games. I wouldn’t count on him reproducing those numbers a third time. He only saw two targets in his first multi-score game. Robinson upped that number to seven last week, but that came in the context of Puka Nacua getting ejected just before halftime. With Nacua not likely to get ejected again, Robinson is in the Mack Hollins tier of $1 bid waiver wire adds.
Others receiving votes: Christian Watson, Noah Brown, and Demario Douglas
Tight End
Mike Gesicki, Bengals (13%)
Gesicki has been the Bengals’ surprising replacement for Tee Higgins when the young receiver has been out of the lineup. In four games without Higgins, Gesicki has a 20 percent target share and a 26 percent air yards share. The veteran tight end broke out with five catches for 100 yards and two touchdowns versus the Raiders. He is now averaging 15.6 fantasy points per game in four Higgins absences.
Taysom Hill, Saints (37%)
Be sure to check if Hill is eligible as a tight end on your fantasy site of choice. Call your local representative if he is not. Hill ran a route on 47 percent of the Saints’ dropbacks on Sunday and earned a 19 percent target share. That is the highest target share of his career. He also ran five times and scored a seven-yard rushing touchdown. The Saints are without their WR1, WR2, RB2, and RB3. Their remaining receivers are Day Three picks, UDFAs, or cheap free agent additions. The Saints will lean on Hill as a pass-catcher more than ever in the coming weeks and he has value as the team’s de facto RB2.
Hunter Henry, Patriots (36%)
Henry has three top-seven fantasy finishes in the past four weeks and has topped a 20 percent target share in all but one of those games. He is top-10 in target share among tight ends and top-five in air yards share.
Others receiving votes: Ja’Tavion Sanders, Jonnu Smith, and Theo Johnson
