Looking for some lineup advice? You've come to the right place. With six teams on bye in Week 10, and injuries taking their toll, you're undoubtedly looking at some tough start and sit questions. There are plenty of Fantasy-relevant names that can't be started this week, and all your leaguemates are looking to the waiver wire for short-term help, too.
Luckily, you can go through every game on the schedule right here to find out who Dave is starting and sitting for all 26 teams on the Week 10 schedule.
Baltimore (6-2) at Cincinnati (0-8)
1 p.m. ET (CBS)
Point spread: Ravens -10
Sit Them
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After Brown showed up on the Ravens injury report on Friday with ankle and thigh issues, there's no way he should be trusted unless you're out of other options. Baltimore should be able to run its way to an easy victory here -- only the Lions allow more Fantasy points per game to opposing running backs. And after coach John Harbaugh said this week that Brown is "nowhere near where he's going to be" in terms of playmaking ability before Friday's injury update, it sure seems obvious why the Ravens are hesitant with him. He has exactly zero deep targets (15-plus yards) in his past three games. By comparison, tight end Mark Andrews has three in the past three they've played together. You could find examples of Brown being wide open as recently as last week against the Patriots but he's not getting the ball from Lamar Jackson. It feels like it's by design, not happenstance, because the Ravens haven't tried him on a bomb since he sprained his ankle. That'll eventually change, but expecting it this week is risky.
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Sitting Boyd in non-PPR is pretty easy -- he's been above six points twice all season in that format. It's PPR scoring that typically helps Boyd because of his high target volume. But everything is up for grabs with rookie quarterback Ryan Finley taking over. Finley is a lot like Andy Dalton -- a good short- and mid-range passer. You'd think that would be good for Boyd, but we have no idea what kind of rapport he has with the rookie, nor do we know how effective Finley will be behind a bad offensive line. At least we knew Dalton would lean on Boyd as a bail-out option. Maybe Finley will too since he did lean on his slot receiver at N.C. State, but A.J. Green's return is sure to take some targets away. I haven't even brought up the matchup against the Ravens, which isn't easy. It's not like he's been great anyway with 12 or fewer PPR points in 5 of his past 6 outings -- and single digits in half.
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Buffalo (6-2) at Cleveland (2-6)
1 p.m. ET (CBS)
Point spread: Browns -3
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It's impossible to sit him given the matchup. Of the eight quarterbacks to play the Browns this season, seven have thrown multiple touchdowns and five have posted at least 20 Fantasy points (including four of the last five). Allen hasn't been explosive -- he's been around 19 or 20 Fantasy points four times in his past six games -- but he has been running just enough to help cement his Fantasy floor. The gist in this matchup is that the Browns should compete enough with the Bills to force Allen to throw, opening the door for him to do better than 20 Fantasy points. I like the idea of trading a bench player for Allen if you're streaming quarterbacks since his next two matchups are dandies. He's also very affordable in DFS (6,300 on DraftKings, 7,500 on FanDuel).
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Sit Him
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By now, you should have the guts to bench Beckham. He has only two games this season with 15-plus PPR Fantasy points (10-plus in non-PPR) and he's venting about not getting the ball. Five drops in his past four games don't help his cause, but this is just as much about the quarterback as it is the overall scheme the Browns are running. Two huge problems face Beckham this week -- the matchup and the return of Kareem Hunt. Buffalo's pass defense has been outstanding as no wideout has notched 100 yards on them this season and only three have gotten to 80 yards. The Bills have also given up just two touchdowns to receivers this year. And the return of Hunt means the Browns could try leaning on the ground game more with him and Nick Chubb, taking pressure off of Baker Mayfield and thus lowering the target volume for Beckham. I've been benching Beckham in my favorite league for the past two weeks and I've done just fine. Please consider all of your options before settling on Beckham on Sunday.
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Sneaky Sleeper
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It was never my intention to draft and stash Kareem Hunt in seasonal leagues, but a lot of you did exactly that. He could pay off right away. All we know for sure is that the Browns will have a role for Hunt. What makes the most sense is Cleveland leaning on Hunt and Chubb in a favorable matchup. Buffalo's run defense has softened, giving up 6.0 yards per carry to Adrian Peterson last week. Actually, the Bills have allowed 10-plus non-PPR points to at least one running back in three of their past four. Hunt has fresh legs and, unless we hear differently, is in good enough shape to play. He's a good running back to turn to if you're in a pinch this week, and his DFS prices aren't prohibitive either (3,000 on DraftKings, 4,500 on FanDuel).
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Detroit (3-4-1) at Chicago (3-5)
1 p.m. ET (CBS)
Point spread: Bears -2.5
Sit Them: Bears D/ST
The Bears are supposed to have one of the best DSTs around, right? Well, it has cracked double-digit Fantasy points once in its past four games. The Lions have created just nine quarterback pressures or less in three straight games, according to Sports Info Solutions, so even the presence of Jeff Driskel as the starter for the Lions may not make them a must-start. Where's that dominant pass rush been?
N.Y. Giants (2-7) at N.Y. Jets (1-7)
1 p.m. ET (Fox)
Point spread: Giants -2.5
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No one can tell you that this is a tough matchup for Jones. The Jets rank 24th in passing yards allowed and have given up three passing touchdowns in each of their past two games to Gardner Minshew and Ryan Fitzpatrick. They allow a 65% completion rate and rank 23rd in quarterback pressures per Sports Info Solutions. But this is about Jones' depleted receiving corps and his inability to play clean, productive football. We know he'll play without tight end Evan Engram and wideout Sterling Shepard, both big losses. And in eight games, he's fumbled 10 times and thrown eight picks. Those numbers meshed with the sudden surge of pressure he's been facing (16 sacks in his last three) and a track record of minimal yardage (under 250 yards with one touchdown in five of his last six) keep him from being a great Fantasy play. Ryan Tannehill and Ryan Fitzpatrick both have more appeal to me this week.
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Kansas City (6-3) at Tennessee (4-5)
1 p.m. ET (CBS)
Point spread: Chiefs -3.5
Flex Starter
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Williams' 91-yard touchdown run last week against the Vikings was his first carry over 10 yards on the season. No one should rush to lock him into lineups, but some other factors stood out. He played 73% of the snaps last week, most of any Chiefs running back this season. LeSean McCoy didn't sniff the field after the first quarter. Williams' lateral agility looked as good as it did last year, and he created a handful of yards while playing through contact. Williams was especially good on edge runs. If/when he starts getting involved in the Chiefs passing game again, he'll have some nice upside. There's enough evidence on film and in the snap counts to suggest Williams will be the Chiefs' leading back in playing time at Tennessee, but even Andy Reid said this week that they'll keep using multiple backs. For now it's best to keep Williams at flex status with the hope he can string together another good game and become a reliable Fantasy starter.
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Arizona (3-5-1) at Tampa Bay (2-6)
1 p.m. ET (Fox)
Point spread: Buccaneers -4.5
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Six straight quarterbacks against the Bucs have hoisted 21-plus Fantasy points. Five of them hit at least 24 points and three got as high as 37 points! The Buccaneers' aggressive blitzing defense has left its secondary in tough spots, so the hunch is that Murray beats the blitz with his arms and his legs to produce big numbers. Best of all, the Buccaneers' run defense remains among the toughest in football, meaning the Cardinals won't be able to saunter their way downfield on handoffs and tosses. Murray's sky-high ceiling makes him a must-play. Expect him to be popular in DFS (6,500 on DraftKings, 7,700 on FanDuel).
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Start Him in PPR
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Two key stats stand out on Kirk for this week. One, he's tied or led the Cardinals in targets in his last four games and has had seven-plus targets in all but two games. Two, there have been 11 receivers who have seen at least seven targets against the Bucs this season and they've all had a minimum of 7 non-PPR points or 13 PPR points, and all but two have had at least 89 yards. This pass defense is bad, and the Cardinals should have to throw a bunch against them. Kirk should benefit. He's not so bad as a flex in non-PPR.
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Atlanta (1-7) at New Orleans (7-1)
1 p.m. ET (Fox)
Point spread: Saints -13
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Nothing has changed with Ridley -- he's still a big-play dependent Fantasy receiver who doesn't get as many targets as we'd like. But the good news this week is that there's hope for a spike in targets since the Falcons figure to play from behind at New Orleans. And it's true, the Saints pass defense is a toughie -- it allows the sixth-lowest catch rate in the league (61.4%) and has yielded just nine touchdowns to receivers on the season (mostly to No. 1 receivers, not No. 1a or No. 2 types like Ridley). But point-chasing should help Ridley keep up his streak of getting at least 13 PPR points (nine non-PPR points) in three of his last four. And it certainly doesn't hurt that he throttled the Saints for at least 93 yards and one touchdown in each of two games in 2018.
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Miami (1-7) at Indianapolis (5-3)
4:05 p.m. ET (CBS)
Point spread: Colts -10.5
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Believe it: Parker is one of the most consistent receivers in Fantasy Football, posting 10-plus PPR points in five of his past six games. Now he's moving into the bona fide No. 1 receiver role with the Dolphins following Preston Williams' season-ending knee injury. That could mean he'll start seeing some coverage shaded his way, but it's unlikely the Colts will flat-out double-team him on every play. Indianapolis allows the fifth-highest catch rate (69.3%) and should give up some stats to Parker just on target volume alone. Parker has caught 69% of his targets over his past five games (most of which with Ryan Fitzpatrick) for 12.2 yards per catch and four touchdowns. We've rarely trusted Parker with our Fantasy teams in the past, but this should be a time where he can help.
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Could the second-year tight end become the second option in the Dolphins passing game? He's already taken steps toward that role, but now we should see his playing time peak in the wake of Preston Williams' injury. Gesicki's been running routes on 75% of his snaps and has earned at least eight PPR points in three of his past four games. He's done a solid job of getting open versus zone and man coverage and has just enough speed to challenge defenses. The Colts gave up a touchdown to Vance McDonald last week but have been pretty good against tight ends. Regardless, Gesicki should continue to be fed a steady enough dose of targets as the Dolphins play from behind to deliver some good numbers. He's the rare tight end you're starting for his catches and yardage totals, not his potential to score since he's never done that in his NFL career.
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L.A. Rams (5-3) at Pittsburgh (4-4)
4:25 p.m. ET (Fox)
Point spread: Rams -3.5
Risky Starters
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Honestly, Goff profiles as more of a sit this week than anything else, but it's tough to bench him when there are six teams on bye and another handful of teams with untrustworthy signal-callers starting for them. It's all about the matchup -- the past three quarterbacks to face the Steelers each threw multiple touchdowns, but none had more than 20 Fantasy points. In fact, in the six games since Pittsburgh acquired safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, the Steelers have held every opposing quarterback to 20 or fewer Fantasy points and have 11 interceptions versus nine passing touchdowns allowed. We've already seen Goff struggle when facing a tough pass rush this season (at Carolina, versus New Orleans, versus San Francisco). Now he'll be challenged by a Steelers unit that ranks eighth in quarterback pressures and fifth in sacks. You shouldn't have high expectations for Goff.
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The only way you should start Woods is if you think he'll see a huge target spike with Brandin Cooks on the shelf. That didn't happen in his last game when Cooks left with a concussion (two targets), nor did he see more looks last month when Cooks missed a chunk of a game at Seattle. While it's true that the Steelers have allowed four touchdowns to receivers over their past two games, only one of those receivers managed more than 10 points in non-PPR (or 12 in PPR!). Woods has struggled mightily all year -- no receiving touchdowns, one game with more than 10 non-PPR points and two with 15-plus in PPR (and none in his past four).
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Carolina (5-3) at Green Bay (7-2)
4:25 p.m. ET (Fox)
Point spread: Packers -5
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I don't like how Olsen's target share has been halved by Kyle Allen (4.5 per game with the undrafted quarterback, 9.0 per game with Cam Newton in Weeks 1 and 2). But the matchup is pretty good and Olsen is due to take advantage. Only three teams have allowed more touchdowns to tight ends than Green Bay, and frankly the Packers are lucky to have given up just that many (T.J. Hockenson nearly had two against them in Week 6). Here's the stat to know: a tight end has had at least 15 PPR points (8 in non-PPR) in each of the Packers' last three. That might be just enough to trust Olsen in your Fantasy lineup this week.
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Start Him in PPR
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It's impossible to sit to Moore in PPR formats -- he's been below 12 points twice all season (and at or above 15 in 3 of his last 4). Samuel's been more boom-or-bust in PPR, coming through with double-digits in half of his games thanks to three red-zone touchdowns from Kyle Allen (Moore's only score was a catch-and-run from 52 yards out). The story is different in non-PPR, where Moore notched the first 100-yard game for a Panthers receiver last week. He also recorded the only 100-yard game among Carolina's wideouts last year. Both guys are pretty touchdown dependent if catches don't count. That's bad news against a Packers pass defense that's allowed just five touchdowns to receivers this year. Even worse, only one wideout has scored in Green Bay's past four. Part of the reason for this lack of scoring is because the Packers have become susceptible to the run and have struggled containing tight ends. I wouldn't expect much to change. Moore gets the official nod since he's managed a higher catch rate with Kyle Allen (66%) than Samuel (51%) and simply is safer.
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Minnesota (6-3) at Dallas (5-3)
8:20 p.m. ET (NBC)
Point spread: Cowboys -3
Sit Him
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Cousins deserves some serious props for playing well -- in his past five games he's averaged 296.4 passing yards, thrown one interception and scored 13 touchdowns. If not for a bad-luck-for-Fantasy-managers game versus Washington on a Thursday night, he'd have a studly streak of monster numbers. But games like the one he'll walk into on Sunday night are typically when he struggles. It's prime-time, it's a matchup against a good team with a strong pass rush, and he's without his top receiver. We've just seen this too many times to believe Cousins can come through. It definitely doesn't help his cause that only one quarterback has exceeded 20 Fantasy points against Dallas all season.
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Seattle (7-2) at San Francisco (8-0)
Monday, 8:15 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Point spread: 49ers -6
Sneaky Sleeper
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Before last week, the 49ers made it pretty clear they preferred a balanced, if not run-leaning, approach on offense. They still might, but the Seahawks have a lot of firepower on offense and figure to push the Niners to at least be even with the run and pass. I think the matchup isn't bad at all for Garoppolo to toss a couple of touchdowns, and each of the past two quarterbacks Seattle's faced -- Matt Schaub and Jameis Winston -- have thrown for over 325 yards (Schaub had 460!). Don't be shocked to see Garoppolo have plenty of time to throw, especially with left tackle Joe Staley back and the Seahawks pass rush regressing.
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L.A. Chargers (4-5) at Oakland (4-4)
Thursday, 8:20 p.m. ET (NFL Network)
Point spread: Chargers -1
Start Them
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Though there is a little concern that the Chargers could easily run their way to victory, the matchup for Rivers is irresistible. Oakland fields the league's worst-ranked pass defense, allowing 297.5 pass yards per game with 22 touchdowns thrown against them through eight games. Its pass rush also isn't special and will be down key reserve Arden Key, who broke his foot. Rivers' offensive line has improved thanks to the return of left tackle Russell Okung, and it should give him time to attack downfield. Rivers also has at least two touchdowns in five of his past six against the Raiders.
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This seems like a good matchup for Williams to finally find the end zone. He's already doing plenty of everything else with 19 deep targets on the year along with 11 looks in the red zone (but just two catches - yuck). The Raiders have allowed 43 pass plays of 20-plus yards (most in football) and 10 pass plays of 40-plus yards (third-most). Moreover, they've given up 10 non-PPR points to five receivers in their last three games (12 total on the year). He's worth chancing as a No. 2 receiver.
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Risky Starter
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Derek Carr was fantastic last week when the Lions' weak pass rush couldn't disrupt his timing. While his O-line is good, the Chargers pass rush should find its way to get into Carr's face. That hurts his ability to throw downfield, which is an obvious part of Williams' game. The other obvious part of Williams' game is his touchdown production -- Week 9 was the first time he didn't score this season. The Chargers have only yielded two touchdowns to wideouts in their last four games, and only two receivers have had 80-plus yards against the Bolts since Week 4 (and none over 100). We're also seeing more receivers step up for the Raiders -- Hunter Renfrow in particular has 11 targets in his last two games. Williams feels more like a flex option than a must-start.
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