The Fantasy Football Angst in Week 10: Will Kenneth Walker III Leap to RB2?
In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Xfinity, Week 10 fantasy football angst, WR/CB Matchups, the Mismatch Report and players to stash.
In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Xfinity:
I have a confession. I didn’t watch Thursday Night Football this week. Instead, I attended something called “Emo Night Karaoke,” where a room full of thirtysomethings sang their favorite angst-ridden alternative songs with a live band.
Which of those events was more enjoyable? Well, not to take away from a 17-point game with more penalties than first downs and a 2:1 turnover to touchdown ratio …but it was definitely the karaoke thing.
In case you’re wondering, yes, I sang. I dedicated “I’m Not Okay (I Promise)” by My Chemical Romance to all my fellow Tucker Kraft enthusiasts. Well, at least I did in my head. I’m not sure if the crowd got that subtext or not.
And maybe it’s just my borderline unhealthy obsession with this game, but so many of the lyrics people belted out that night perfectly captured the vibes of fantasy football right now.
Don’t believe me? Well then explain this …
“If I could find you now, things would get better.” - Yellowcard, “Ocean Avenue”
See, they’re clearly singing about trying to decipher the RB1 in Arizona. Did you know that since James Conner got injured, four different Cardinals running backs have scored double digit PPR points? But none of them have done it more than once!? Let’s hope Trey Benson returns soon and bucks that trend.
“I don’t blame you for being you, but you can’t blame me for hating it.” - Fall Out Boy, “A Little Less Sixteen Candles…”
Speaking of frustrating NFC West backfields, Mike Macdonald has pretty much ruined two perfectly good fantasy assets for us. Since Zach Charbonnet returned from injury in Week 4, both he and Kenneth Walker are outside the top 24 running backs in points per game. The coaches continue to split everything (snaps, rush attempts, targets) right down the middle, regardless of which back is performing better.
Yet ... the Seahawks are 6-2 and wield a top five scoring offense. So I get it. But that doesn’t mean I have to like it.
“You were the last good thing about this part of town.” - Fall Out Boy, “Grand Theft Autumn”
Ahh, we’re clearly listening to some miserable Jets fans now. Though we all expected this team to be active before the trade deadline, I don’t think any of us expected them to randomly ship off their best young defensive assets in Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams. These moves took the Jets defense from a fine enough fantasy matchup to a must-start situation for all your opposing offensive players, though. So at least we got some good out of this.
“The worst is over, you can have the best of me.” - The Starting Line, “Best of Me”
This is obviously referring to Marvin Harrison Jr’s fantasy value now that Jacoby Brissett has taken the reins at quarterback. Fun fact: In his starts this year, Brissett is averaging nearly 100 more passing yards per game than Kyler Murray. And removing the game where Harrison got a concussion, his Targets Per Route Run and overall Target Share both jumped up by 5% with the new QB.
And with that bit of hope…
“I always believed in futures. I hope for better in November.” - Jimmy Eat World, “Futures”
True story: Last winter we worked around the clock to improve the beloved start/sit tool, with designs of putting it into our premium Tier 2 package. Then Xfinity asked if they could make it FREE for everyone. So now you can enjoy our excellent start/sit column AND the accompanying tool all at the low price of $0.00, thank you to Xfinity. Go now! Run some players through! Enjoy the tool! And get that win!!
Imagine all your football, all in one place. Easy. Xfinity. Imagine That.
So you slept in on a Saturday. Great! Get rested because tomorrow is an early wakeup with the Berlin game. So today we grind and we’re at the ready with the Week 10 research for you. Enjoy!
Because we’re having another international game this week—featuring the Colts and Falcons—Chris Allen provided a European angle when he says (Drake) London could come calling in Berlin:
I’m not usually a “correlation equals causation” kind of guy, but roll with me for a second. Michael Penix Jr. has finished as a top-12 QB in three weeks. One of his WRs has stood out in each of them.
Week 1: 36% (target rate), 34% (air yard share)
Week 4: 38%, 44%
Week 9: 44%, 56%
Chris has even more wide receivers with advantages for Week 10, and has one player to avoid. Unfortunately, not all of them have an international flair. Though one does have a name that leans somewhat Shakespearean. ⤵️
Week 10 Mismatch Report: Kyren Williams, Still The One
So through all that preseason chatter that Blake Corum was going to siphon touches away from workhorse Kyren Williams, the Rams’ lead back is on pace for 323 yards. Last we checked that was pretty good. And while Davante Adams has perfected a mind meld with Matthew Stafford to the tune of a league-high 8 receiving TDs, Williams still has hit the painted area six times in eight games. Williams now faces a matchup with the 49ers’ depleted defense that Ian Hartitz highlighted in his Week 10 Mismatch Report:
“Williams might be able to flirt with high enough efficiency to not have to worry about goal-line touches against this injury-ravaged 49ers defense. A myriad of key parties are out across the front-seven; Kyren is Fantasy Life's consensus RB11 and that feels low.”
What other mismatches are we ready to exploit in Week 10? Ian runs through several, including the rest of the best RB matchups, QBs and WRs prepared to go off and a tasty MNF matchup. ⤵️
Before he recommended for fantasy managers to snatch up Brian Robinson off the waiver wire, Jake Trowbridge wanted to make one thing very clear:
“First things first: Let’s form a positive energy sphere around Christian McCaffrey, who has somehow defied the odds to become one of the few 49ers to abstain from the injury report. But let’s also be realists. As of this writing, McCaffrey is leading the NFL in rushing attempts and is on track for the heftiest workload of his career. This might be a wild take, but I’m not sure you want a guy at his age and with his injury history touching the ball more than every urologist in the Bay Area combined.”
Leaky urologist references aside, B-Rob should still very much be a target for fantasy managers, even the ones who have CMC. Jake has even more recommendations for your fantasy benches, in case they become starters in the weeks ahead. ⤵️
