Fantasy Football Today: Starts and sits, sleepers and busts; Week 10 injuries; TNF preview

Thursday's newsletter is all about trying to help you catch up with everything you need to know about for Week 10, and there's a lot you need to know about, especially at the running back position. I have a full breakdown of the injuries you need to know about for this week below, but let's start with the latest three situations that are going to be of real significance for Fantasy lineups:

Alvin Kamara missed practice Wednesday with a knee injury. I wrote about whispers that Kamara may have suffered an injury in yesterday's newsletter, and it looks like his status for Week 10 against the Titans is very much in doubt. The Saints signed Josh Adams to their practice squad, but Mark Ingram is likely to be the lead back, with Ty Montgomery potentially positioned to take on much of Kamara's passing game role. Ingram would probably be around a top-25 RB if Kamara were out.
Kareem Hunt has been ruled out for Week 10 against the Patriots. With Nick Chubb on the reserve/COVID-19 list, it's all shaping up for D'Ernest Johnson to be in line for a significant role. He seems like a safe bet for 20-plus touches given the team's running back absences, and that makes him RB15 for me for the week.
Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson both missed practice Wednesday with what the Patriots finally revealed were concussions. Harris suffered his first Sunday and Stevenson exited the game not long after. Both will have to go through the league's concussion protocol to be cleared. If they can't play, J.J. Taylor and Brandon Bolden would see bigger roles for the Patriots. My assumption is Bolden would be the primary beneficiary of any absences, though the Patriots might prefer him in the pass-catching role, with Taylor potentially taking on the lead back role. Bolden would be an RB3 for PPR, while Taylor would be in the 35-40 range.

So we've got those issues to worry about, and they certainly aren't alone. Dave Richard answered a bunch of your questions for this week in his Starts and Sits, Sleepers and Busts column as he goes through every game on the schedule trying to help you figure out who should be in your lineup. We'll take a look at some of his calls in today's newsletter before getting to all of the injury news you need to know about and a preview of tonight's game.

And, in case you missed it, Jamey Eisenberg's Start 'Em & Sit 'Em column came out Wednesday with all of his favorite picks to start and players to avoid. If you still have questions after all that, make sure to subscribe to the Fantasy Football Today YouTube channel and join Adam Aizer and I plus our good friend Tera Roberts from at 2 p.m. ET today for our start/sit live stream, where we'll be answering as many of your questions as we can for Week 10. And, if you have any other questions, make sure you send them to me at Chris.Towers@ViacomCBS.com with the subject line "#AskFFT" to be included in Sunday morning's mailbag.

Get ready for Week 10 with our other preview content here:

Week 10 Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: QB | RB | WR
Starts, sits and sleepers for every game
Week 10 Position Previews: QB | RB | WR | TE
My Week 10 Rankings: Flex Top 150 | QB | RB | WR | TE

Keep an eye out for tomorrow's newsletter, where I'll preview every game this week, including full injury report updates from around the league. Here's what else today's newsletter will cover:

🔟Dave Richard's Week 10 Preview
🚑Week 10 Injury Watch
🆚TNF Preview: Ravens at Dolphins

🔟Dave Richard's Week 10 Preview

There are the obvious calls, and then there are the ones you need help with. Dave Richard goes through each game to identify the most interesting matchups and biggest lineup dilemmas for Week 9. Here are some of his top picks for this week. You can find the rest of his advice for Week 10 here.

Starts

Jaylen Waddle -- "With 10-plus targets in three of his last four games (and at least eight targets in all but three games this year), Waddle's an easy PPR start based on opportunity. His downfall is that he remains a short-area target in the passing game -- 17.5% of his routes go beyond 10 yards on the year (23% did last week, though), and only seven of his 56 catches have gone for more than 15 yards. The Ravens have struggled with wideouts to a degree -- they allow the fourth-most yards after catch per reception to receivers (5.49) and tend to let up a higher catch rate to slot guys (64%) than outside guys (58%). However, wideouts have totaled just seven scores on them this season and only one receiver has over 90 yards against them in 2021. Waddle's a safe, reliable No. 2 receiver in PPR formats but is more of a flex play in non- or half-PPR."
D'Ernest Johnson -- "I liked Johnson for his spot start against the Broncos and like him again here as a No. 2 running back. Expected to handle a very heavy workload with Cleveland's other running backs on the Covid-19 shelf, Johnson will see a Patriots run defense that's given up over 100 total yards to a running back in six of its past seven games. Combine that with the likelihood that Johnson will touch the ball at least 15 times and he should be good. Where Johnson impressed me in that Week 7 game was as a yards creator, ranking eighth-best that week in yards after contact per carry with 3.41. The Patriots come into Week 10 ranked fourth-worst in yards after contact per carry allowed with 3.07 on the season. That means anytime Johnson's O-line creates room for him, expect some good gains."

Sits

Dalton Schultz -- "Schultz's target rate has begun sliding over the past three weeks -- 13.8% of the Cowboys throws have gone his way. And as his target rate has slid, so too has his Fantasy production with 12 or fewer PPR points in those three games. If that's not enough to discourage, Michael Gallup is expected back on the field for Dallas as soon as this week. If it happens, Fantasy managers should be reminded that he had a 19% target share in the first half of their first game while Schultz had two targets (6%). It wasn't until Gallup got hurt that Schultz began to see more targets (15% in the second half of Week 1, and 23.3% in Weeks 2 through 5). I would expect Schultz to block more and catch less, making him a touchdown-needy tight end moving forward. Atlanta's held five of the past six tight ends it has faced to eight or fewer half-PPR points anyway."
Adrian Peterson -- "You could make the argument that both Jeremy McNichols and D'Onta Foreman looked better than Peterson last Sunday. Peterson looked every bit like a 36-year-old running back, slow to diagnose his blocking and really unimpressive on getting moving after slowing/stopping his feet. Peterson had one carry go for more than 3 yards; McNichols had two gains go for at least 6 yards and Foreman had four runs (out of five!) land 4-plus yards. So why would the Titans stick with Peterson? Maybe just to eat up carries and keep the other two backs fresh. In a matchup against the Saints' stiff run defense, it seems unwise to count on any Titans back in Fantasy, but certainly not the one who needed a six-point score to rack up eight Fantasy points last week ... and whose ceiling is probably exactly the same this week. FYI, I spent this week adding McNichols in my PPR leagues and Foreman in my deep 14-plus team leagues. I can't say I feel good about Peterson being relevant if he keeps playing like this."

Sleepers

Marvin Jones -- "Jones' best games have understandably come with good target volume, at least five catches and usually a touchdown. This week Jones is taking on a Colts defense that's allowed the most receiving touchdowns to wideouts who line up outside (11). They also rank in the bottom-10 against outside wide receivers in yards per catch (14.3) and yards after the catch per reception (4.57). Indianapolis' pass-rush pressure rate has started to improve lately, but it's not considered dangerous enough to completely flummox Trevor Lawrence. Jones is the perfect under-the-radar DFS pivot and a risk worth taking as a flex or No. 3 receiver in PPR."
Le'Veon Bell -- "Bell (finally) showed signs of having some burst last week (4.36 rushing average was a season high) and delivered a 11-48-1 rushing stat line. Since Week 6, Devonta Freeman has had a slight edge in snaps played 10 yards or closer to the goal line (seven to Bell's four) and on third and fourth downs (19 to Bell's 15). Not only has Miami allowed a touchdown to a running back in six of its last eight games, but the run defense currently sits third-worst in missed tackles on rushes (49) -- and that's after missing just one tackle last week against the Texans running backs. Freeman's good enough to trust on a short week as a No. 2 running back, but if you're in a serious pinch and need a running back who should get 10 touches, Bell is in play as a waivers-to-lineup emergency choice. "

Bust Candidate

Matt Ryan -- "There's a pretty consistent trend of former defensive coaches succeeding against their former teams. It's what Matt Ryan and the Falcons have to deal with in this game against a Cowboys defense coached up by ex-Atlanta head coach Dan Quinn. I imagine Quinn will dial up the pass rush pressure to knock Ryan out of rhythm and hope for some turnovers. It's what other teams have done -- Atlanta has given up a pass rush pressure on 30.3% of its dropbacks, the seventh-worst mark -- but Ryan's numbers haven't suffered too much. He has multiple scores in six of his past seven games and 20-plus Fantasy points in five of those seven. He strikes me as a solid starter, but not a top-12 guy. Carson Wentz, Jalen Hurts and Kirk Cousins are still worth starting ahead of him this week, but Ryan has a good shot to outperform Teddy Bridgewater and Ryan Tannehill."
Emmanuel Sanders -- "Sanders is weird. He's third-worst among qualifying receivers in yards after catch per reception (1.61) but actually ranks first in the league in average target depth (17.4) and end-zone targets (nine). You'd think someone with that kind of deep-ball explosiveness, especially in the Bills offense, would be a Fantasy must-start, but his bad games far outweigh his good. The Jets have allowed 38 pass plays of 20-plus yards -- only Miami has given up more. That seems perfect, but it was Miami that shut Sanders out two weeks ago and held him to a meek 2-48-0 line in Week 2, so that may not really matter. Sporting a 16.6% target rate, Sanders is a full-on gamblerooski in a matchup where the Bills may not have to throw it 35-plus times."

🚑Week 10 Injury Watch

I'll have a full breakdown of the injury report in Friday's newsletter along with my preview of each game, but here's a quick look at the notable injuries we'll be watching this week based on Wednesday's practice participation reports.

Injuries to watch for Week 10

It's not clear what these injuries mean quite yet.

Russell Wilson (finger, IR) -- Wilson has been cleared to return following surgery, which is a great thing for the Seahawks offense as a whole, but especially DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. They're both back to being top-20 WRs.
Aaron Rodgers (reserve/COVID-19) -- Rodgers has said he anticipates returning this week, but it's worth noting that really isn't up to him, as he'll have to be asymptomatic, pass a three-day conditioning test, and return two negative tests at least 24 hours apart before being cleared. We'll know by Saturday, but probably not definitively until then.
Kyler Murray (ankle) -- Did not practice. Not a great start to the week for Murray, who missed last week with this issue. At this point, I would say we hope he returns, but prepare for Colt McCoy starting against the Panthers.
Sam Darnold (shoulder) -- Likely headed to IR, with the expectation he will miss 4-6 weeks. P.J. Walker will make his second NFL start with Darnold out, and unfortunately, it's hard to expect he'll be too much better. Then again, given how Darnold has played lately, it would be hard to be worse.
Ben Roethlisberger (pectoral/hip/shoulder) -- Did not practice. Roethlisberger has been beat up all season long and has managed to play through, so I'm assuming he'll do the same for this cake matchup against the Lions. For what it's worth, the Steelers didn't actually have a practice Wednesday, just a walkthrough, so this doesn't tell us much.
Trevor Lawrence (ankle) -- Limited practice. We already knew Lawrence was going to be limited this week because of the injury, but it seems like he's aiming to play at this point. We'll see if the injury cooperates.
Ezekiel Elliott (knee) -- Limited practice. Elliott briefly left Week 9's game and has been dealing with this injury for a while, so maybe that explains his somewhat lackluster play of late. At this point, it seems like he's going to keep playing through it.
James Robinson (ankle) -- Did not practice. Urban Meyer expressed optimism about Robinson's chances of playing in Week 10, but we'll need to see him on the practice field. Hopefully that'll come Thursday.
Chris Carson (neck, IR) -- Carson was designated to return from the IR and made his return to practice, though that doesn't necessarily mean he'll be back in time for Sunday's game against the Packers. This sounds like a tricky issue that may linger, so don't just drop Alex Collins yet.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire (knee, IR) -- Edwards-Helaire was also cleared to return to practice, though it's also not yet clear if he's likely to return for this week's game against the Raiders. The Chiefs could probably use a boost from the running game with how opposing defenses have focused on taking away the deep ball, so Edwards-Helaire could still make a big impact.
Antonio Gibson (shin) -- Limited practice. Gibson was off the injury report for Week 8 and then saw a limited role, and coming out of the bye, it's clearly still an issue. Likely not enough of one to keep him off the field, but enough to keep us concerned about starting him, especially in a week where they will likely have to go pass-heavy to keep up with the Buccaneers.
Keenan Allen (knee) -- Did not practice. We didn't really get any details on this one, so hopefully it's more of a maintenance day than anything else, but it's worth noting and keeping an eye on, obviously.
Chris Godwin (foot) -- Did not practice. When asked whether Godwin's injury may keep him out of Week 10 against Washington, Bruce Arians said, "We have to wait and see." So ... we'll wait and see. Thanks, Bruce!
DeAndre Hopkins (hamstring) -- Did not practice. Neither did Rondale Moore (neck/concussion), so that's something to watch. The Cardinals are awfully beat up at the skill positions.
Jarvis Landry (knee) -- Did not practice. This is likely going to be the way things work for Landry moving forward most weeks. Hopefully he didn't suffer any kind of setback.
T.Y. Hilton (concussion) -- Limited practice. This is a good sign for Hilton, who looks to be on track to return for Week 10. He has been limited to just two games so far this season, both of which he left early with an injury. I'd love to see him stay healthy, but I'm not making him a priority for Fantasy until he does.
Tim Patrick (knee) -- Did not practice. This is one to watch, because Patrick has actually been the most productive Broncos receiver in the two games since Jerry Jeudy made his return.
Noah Fant (reserve/COVID-19) -- Still isn't cleared to return, and Albert Okwuegbunam (knee) also missed practice.
Dawson Knox (hand) -- Limited practice. Knox is expected to make his return this week, so hopefully we'll see him get a full practice session in by Friday.
Logan Thomas (hamstring, IR) -- Another player designated for return from IR, it sounds like Thomas has a chance to play, but his status won't be determined until Friday. He would have a chance for a big game against the Buccaneers if he returns, but it sounds like he may not quite be at 100% yet.

Trending up for Week 10

This doesn't mean they will play, but we got good news about them Wednesday.

CeeDee Lamb (ankle) -- Full practice. That's a good sign. Amari Cooper (hamstring) was also limited, but both should be able to play Sunday against the Falcons, and we'd sure love to see them get back on track after a bad game from the Cowboys offense in Week 9.

Trending down for Week 10

This doesn't mean they won't play, but they aren't moving in the right direction yet.

Zach Wilson (knee) -- Limited practice. Mike White has already been named the starter for Week 10 against the Bills, and it's an open question as to whether Wilson will even be the starter when he is 100%.
Chase Edmonds (ankle) -- Edmonds didn't practice and is expected to go on IR with an injury that may cost him four weeks or more.
Zack Moss (concussion) -- Did not practice. Moss will have to clear the concussion protocol in order to play in Week 10 against the Jets, so we should know well before game time whether that's likely to happen. Devin Singletary would be a top-24 RB without Moss.
Jamaal Williams (thigh) -- Did not practice. The bye wasn't enough to get Williams back to full health, it seems.
Antonio Brown (ankle) -- Did not practice. At this point, it seems more like a question of how many more weeks Brown is going to miss than anything else.
Chase Claypool (toe) -- Did not practice. Claypool had an MRI on the injury this week which apparently did not reveal a season-ending injury, but does put his status for Week 10 in doubt. He's "week to week."
Rob Gronkowski (back) -- Did not practice. There isn't really a timetable for Gronkowski's return, and I suspect the Bucs will be very careful with him after he couldn't even make it through one game after coming back from his previous injury.

🆚TNF Preview: Ravens at Dolphins

All lines from Caesars Sportsbook

Line: Ravens -7.5; 46.5 O/U
Implied totals: Ravens 27-Dolphins 19.5

Even if Tua Tagovailoa plays, it's hard to see Miami keeping this one close. Lamar Jackson threw five touchdowns on 20 pass attempts the last time he faced Brian Flores' team, and they've struggled to contain rushing quarterbacks like Josh Allen for years.

Key injuries: Tua Tagovailoa (finger) -- Tagovailoa is officially questionable with his fractured middle finger, an injury that cost him Week 9 already, and it sounds like Miami expected Jacoby Brissett to start. That's bad news for Miami's offense. Brissett is averaging just 5.6 yards per attempt with a 2.5% touchdown rate this season ... Marquise Brown (back) -- Brown was removed from the injury report after being limited Monday, so he's good to go and isn't expected to have any limitations ... Sammy Watkins (thigh) -- Watkins progressed to a full practice participation Wednesday and is officially questionable for tonight's game. It'll be interesting to see if he plays and how he is used, because we haven't seen the Ravens with both Watkins and Rashod Bateman active. They've largely concentrated their targets between three players, so will Watkins and Bateman take from each other, or will they hurt Brown and Mark Andrews' value?
What to watch for: The key thing to watch on Baltimore's side will be that WR hierarchy, because while the Ravens are throwing more this season, Brown's and Andrews' values could take a hit if they decide to spread targets around. It will also be very interesting to see whether Devonta Freeman plays 58% of the snaps as he did last week. I'm not particularly interested in him, but if he's going to have that kind of role, he'll probably be a weekly flex option. On the Dolphins side, I want to see them continue to funnel targets to Jaylen Waddle and Mike Gesicki, and I'm also curious as to whether they keep giving Myles Gaskin as much work as they have given how ineffective he's been. I wouldn't mind seeing Salvon Ahmed get an extended look.

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