Week 9 of the NFL season is officially in the books! The NFL landscape has been riddled with injuries and unexpected twists. If you’re facing tough lineup decisions, I’ve got you covered.
Let’s break down my start/sit fantasy football picks for Week 10.
Quarterback
Start ‘Em: Brock Purdy (49ers) at Buccaneers
After failing to score 16 fantasy points in four of his first five outings, Purdy has flipped a switch as of late.
The former Mr. Irrelevant has been anything but that from a fantasy perspective, racking up at least 20 points in three straight outings before San Francisco’s bye last weekend. In his return to action, not only will Purdy likely be getting Christian McCaffrey back at his disposal, but he’s also facing a Bucs defense that allows the second-most fantasy points to quarterbacks per contest.
All signs are pointing up for the Niners’ QB.
Sit ‘Em: Caleb Williams (Bears) vs. Patriots
It appeared that Williams had turned a corner heading into Chicago’s bye a few weeks ago, as the rookie had turned in back-to-back stellar outings. Unfortunately, the Bears have come out of their week off as flat as possible.
Chicago managed to score just a combined 24 points over their last two matchups, and as expected, Williams’ fantasy production suffered as a result. The No. 1 overall pick failed to hit the double-digit point mark in either contest, inspiring little confidence in his prospects this week against a decent Patriots secondary. Leave Williams on your bench until he figures things out (or doesn’t).
Check out my full Week 10 quarterback start/sit picks here!
Running Back
Start ‘Em: Chase Brown (Bengals) at Ravens — THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
It’ll be a quick turnaround for Brown after suffering a bruised rib last Sunday, so monitor his progress through practice.
Assuming the second-year back is ready to go and Zack Moss remains sidelined, he’s a virtual must-start this week. Brown exploded as the featured back against Las Vegas, racking up 26.7 PPR points on a whopping 32 touches. When you see that type of workload in a high-powered offense, the matchup doesn’t matter. Get the versatile back in your starting lineups on Thursday.
Sit ‘Em: Tony Pollard (Titans) at Chargers
It’s not often you sit a player who received 31 touches in the prior week. As I mentioned above, typically you want to get those guys in your lineup after that type of performance, but Pollard is an exception.
First of all, he’s not in a high-powered offense like Chase Brown. Mason Rudolph and the Titans don’t exactly instill fear into the hearts of opponents. It’s worth noting that Brian Callahan explicitly stated that he wants to reduce Pollard’s workload moving forward. With Tyjae Spears’ return on the horizon, that should be the case next week. The veteran back also draws an atrocious matchup, as the Chargers allow the second-fewest fantasy points to opposing backfields per game.
Check out my full Week 10 running back start/sit picks here!
Wide Receiver
Start ‘Em: Courtland Sutton (Broncos) at Chiefs
After a bizarre no-show in Week 7, Bo Nix seems to have gotten the memo: get the ball to your best playmaker.
Sutton has since been targeted 21 times in Denver’s last two games, hauling in 15 of those balls for 222 yards. While he’s found the end zone just twice this season, it doesn’t matter if he continues to see that type of volume. The Chiefs are a tough matchup for the veteran receiver, but game script could actually work in his favor, as the Broncos will likely be down early and forced to throw the ball.
I expect Sutton to be heavily featured once again.
Sit ‘Em: DJ Moore (Bears) vs. Patriots
Outside of a Week 5 explosion, it’s been a frustrating year for Chicago’s top wideout. Caleb Williams is my sit of the week at quarterback, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that his No. 1 receiver also earns that title.
Moore has failed to score eight fantasy points in three straight outings, and his lack of involvement has been particularly concerning. He’ll see a lot of lockdown corner Christian Gonzalez in this contest, so it’s best the leave DJ on your bench until he proves his value.
Check out my full Week 10 wide receiver start/sit picks here!
Tight End
Start ‘Em: Mike Gesicki (Bengals) at Ravens — THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
Gesicki put up monstrous numbers in Cincinnati’s last outing against the Raiders, catching five balls for 100 yards and a pair of touchdowns. A journeyman his last few years, the 29-year-old may just have the most underrated hands in the league, as it seems like he hauls in at least one absurd catch every couple of weeks.
Gesicki has now been heavily involved in back-to-back weeks and will no longer have to contend with Erick All Jr. for targets, as the rookie unfortunately tore his ACL last Sunday. Even if Tee Higgins returns to action, I expect Joe Burrow to look his tight end’s way early and often against Baltimore.
Sit ‘Em: Sam LaPorta (Lions) at Texans
It’s been a year to forget for LaPorta, who is coming off yet another underwhelming performance. The star tight end has seen only 12 targets over his last four contests, officially entering touchdown-or-bust territory.
That’s not a game I want to play against the Texans, who allow the fewest fantasy points to this position. It’s hard to justify outright dropping LaPorta, but he should be benched for the forseeable future.
Check out my full Week 10 tight end start/sit picks here!
Those are my start ’em, sit ’em Week 10 fantasy football picks! Stay tuned for more fantasy advice next week.
All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
