Week 10 Flex Rankings for Fantasy Football

What a nice, pleasant week we had in the NFL last week. Everything on the field went exactly according to plan, and there were no off-field distractions or drama to draw attention away from the action. Oh wait, that’s not how things went down AT ALL. Last week was one of the strangest I can recall, both from an on-field and off-field perspective. For this column, let’s stick to what took place on the field. My favorite nugget from last week was that the combination of quarterback Josh Johnson and wide receiver Malik Turner outscored Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Tyreek Hill, and Stefon Diggs put together. That summed up Week 9 in a nutshell for me. To paraphrase from Bill Belichick, we’re onto Week 10. More specifically, my Week 10 Flex rankings.

More fantasy football fun for Week 10: Waiver Wire | FAAB Guide | Start & Sit | Loves & Hates | Stock Watch | Sleepers & Streamers | D/ST Streamers

Running Back Notes

There is a lot to get to on the running back front. And continuing with last week’s theme, not all of the news is confined to the gridiron. The Cleveland Browns had several positive Covid tests this week, including leading rusher Nick Chubb. Week 7 hero D’Ernest Johnson should get his second career start on Sunday against the New England Patriots. Johnson etched his name into fantasy lore when he put up 23.8 fantasy points for an overall RB4 in a spot start against the Denver Broncos. The Browns signed Brian Hill to their practice squad on Tuesday, and he is likely to be Johnson’s primary matchup on Sunday. Johnson should be in line for all the work he can handle against a middle-of-the-road Patriots run defense and is shaping up as a must-start based on his projected volume.

Alvin Kamara has handled at least 20 opportunities in seven of eight games this year, including six straight. However, the Saints star is now dealing with a knee injury that has his Week 10 status in doubt. The team’s recent acquisition of Mark Ingram indicated that they were cognizant of easing Kamara’s workload a bit, but this injury may force their hand sooner than they had anticipated. New Orleans brought in a trio of running backs on Tuesday, including Kerryon Johnson. This is an indication to me that they plan on being without Kamara this week. If he does sit out Week 10, Mark Ingram could be in line for upwards of 20 touches on Sunday. That would bump the veteran up into the RB2 range against a Tennessee Titans squad allowing a healthy 4.52 yards per carry to the running back position.

Speaking of the Titans, Adrian Peterson and Jeremy McNichols formed an underwhelming committee as Tennessee attempts to replace the irreplaceable Derrick Henry. Neither fill-in finished as a top-30 back in half-PPR leagues. That is worrisome when you consider that Adrian Peterson found the end zone late in the game. It is difficult to have much confidence in either Titans running back heading into Week 10. I am a bit higher on McNichols based on last week’s efforts. The Titans unexpectedly led for most of the contest, yet the pair split opportunities evenly. And McNichols was given two goal-line chances before Peterson ultimately punched it in. Had McNichols been successful on either attempt, I think we would be viewing this backfield a bit differently than we are. For what it’s worth, the Saints allow 10.2 yards per reception to running backs, the second-highest number in the league.

The Baltimore Ravens listed running back Latavius Murray as doubtful on their final Week 10 injury report. This designation is not a surprise with Baltimore playing on a short week. With Murray unlikely to play, Devonta Freeman should be the lead back once again for the Ravens. Freeman has been a top-24 fantasy running back in three consecutive weeks, including last week’s overall RB9 finish. The 29-year old has shown some spring in his step in Baltimore’s run-friendly scheme. Freeman is averaging 5.7 yards per carry so far this season. His Week 10 matchup against the Dolphins is not one to shy away from. Miami is an average defense against the run. I ranked Freeman as more of a Flex than a true RB2, but either way, he should be in most starting lineups this week.

Bills running back Zack Moss left last week’s game with a concussion. That will be something for fantasy managers to monitor throughout the week. His Week 10 matchup against the New York Jets is the best possible matchup for a running back by a wide margin. The Jets allow 20 percent more fantasy points per game to opposing backs than any other team in the league. Needless to say, this is a matchup to exploit. Based on his concussion, however, I kept Moss outside the range where I would start him. That could change if we get some more encouraging news throughout the week. Devin Singletary would be a strong start if Moss were forced to miss this game. If Moss does play, I would have no issue starting both Bills’ backs in what should be a bounce-back game for their offense after last week’s surprising clunker.

Wide Receiver Notes

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are dealing with multiple injuries to their wide receivers. Chris Godwin has yet to practice this week due to a foot injury, and Antonio Brown is still recovering from an injury that has cost him the last two games. Godwin posted consecutive top-six fantasy weeks with Brown out of the lineup before Tampa Bay’s bye. Both Bucs receivers are questionable to play on Sunday against the Washington Football Team. For now, I ranked them as if Godwin will play and Brown will not. That is subject to change, of course. Stay on top of the latest news over the next couple of days and stay tuned for a rankings update from me on Sunday morning. The matchup against the Washington Football Team is a highly favorable one for opposing wideouts, so hopefully, both Bucs will be good to go come Sunday.

DeAndre Hopkins missed just the third game of his nine-year NFL career last week. Hopkins is dealing with a hamstring injury and is questionable for this week. Fellow Cardinal A.J. Green sat out last week’s win after being placed on the reserve/Covid list. Even without their quarterback and top two receivers (plus losing running back Chase Edmonds on his first carry), the Cardinals scored 31 points en route to an easy victory. As we look towards Week 10, the situation is not yet clear. I ranked both Hopkins and Green lower than I normally would if they were at full health. Christian Kirk would be the primary beneficiary if either or both veteran wideouts were to miss this game. That was the case last week, as Kirk was the overall WR16 a week ago.

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver and primary deep threat Chase Claypool is questionable for Week 10 after suffering a toe injury in Pittsburgh’s victory on Monday night. Claypool only has one touchdown on the year after scoring a total of 11 times in his rookie season a year ago. I think aside from touchdown regression, his main issue seems to be the inability of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to stretch the field. This week Pittsburgh takes on the winless Detroit Lions. Though the Lions are generally considered the league’s worst team, they have not allowed a ton of production in the passing game. Between the expected game script and his injury, I am not encouraged about starting Claypool this week. If he were to miss Week 10, it would only benefit those Steelers who are already top-10 options at their respective positions, such as…

Tight End Notes

…Pat Freiermuth. The Steelers’ rookie tight end has been on fire of late. He was last week’s top fantasy tight end, and he has now orchestrated three straight top-12 finishes. Freiermuth has helped fill the void in the passing game left by the season-ending injury to Juju Smith-Schuster. And now with Claypool’s health a question mark, Freiermuth could see even more work in the passing game. It should be noted that former Lion Eric Ebron has been out since Week 6 and is expected to return this week. He may take a bit of the shine off Freiermuth, especially given the “revenge game” narrative. However, I would be hard-pressed to bench Freiermuth based on his recent output. I currently have him ranked as a top-10 tight end for Week 10.

Rob Gronkowski, Logan Thomas, and Dawson Knox are still on the road to recovery. Gronkowski has been dealing with back issues for the better part of the season. Thomas has been out with a hamstring injury since Week 4, and Knox suffered a broken hand in Week 6. I currently have all three tight ends outside my top-20 at the position. That may change later in the week, but I generally try to be conservative projecting injured players. I would be surprised to see any of these players get a full complement of reps this week. At the same time, they all have elite upside and favorable Week 10 matchups. The decision on whether to start any or all of them is likely situation-dependent based on your other options. Hopefully, the next few days will provide further clarity on the health of this trio of talented tight ends.

Week 10 Flex Rankings

More Week 10 Rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE | Kicker | D/ST | PPR | Flex

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