Week 10 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Fantasy Football Stars to Play and Bench
Fantasy football owners know a thing or two about making tough decisions, which seems to be an overarching theme in Week 10.
As usual, hindsight provides a great example of how to treat star players. In Week 9, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan led all scorers at the position with 27 points in a juicy matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
On the other end of the spectrum, Derek Carr of the Oakland Raiders predictably scored nine against the Denver Broncos.
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The sooner that owners are willing to look past big names and instead analyze matchups and scenarios, the better. Here's a look at how to handle some of the stars in tricky situations in Week 10.
Quarterback
| Matt Ryan (at PHI) vs. Aaron Rodgers (at TEN) | Matt Ryan |
| Marcus Mariota (vs. GB) vs. Dak Prescott (at PIT) | Dak Prescott |
| Drew Brees (vs. DEN) vs. Philip Rivers (vs. MIA) | Philip Rivers |
| Eli Manning (vs. CIN) vs. Ben Roethlisberger (vs. DAL) | Eli Manning |
| Cam Newton (vs. KC) vs. Russell Wilson (at NE) | Russell Wilson |
Star to Know: Marcus Mariota, TEN (vs. GB)
Believe it or not, Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota sits seventh in scoring at the position, ahead of stars such as Tom Brady and Cam Newton.
Incredibly, he's owned in only 69.7 percent of leagues. Mariota has 25 or more points in three games this year, all falling over his last five outings. It seems simple enough to suggest a fourth is on the way when the Green Bay Packers visit in Week 10.
The Green Bay pass defense has allowed 14 passing scores over eight games. Not only will Mariota have an avenue to production through the air, but he's a threat as a runner with two scores on the ground this year.
Likely chasing points and trying to keep pace with Aaron Rodgers, Mariota looks poised to have one of his biggest games of the year.
Star to Sit: Kirk Cousins, WAS (vs. MIN)
Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins sits on a similar ownership percentage as Mariota at 68.1, yet he has breached the 20-point barrier just twice and has never scored more than 24 points.
To be fair, Cousins hits Week 10 coming out of a bye, and the two 20-plus outings came in the prior weeks. Still, it's expecting a lot for him to make the same kind of noise against the Minnesota Vikings.
Owners know the drill—the Vikings allow the third-fewest points to quarterbacks on average this year. They have given up more than one passing touchdown in a game just twice and never more than 16 points.
At such a stream-friendly position, Cousins is one to avoid.
Running Back
| Melvin Gordon (vs. MIA) vs. Ezekiel Elliott (at PIT) | Ezekiel Elliott |
| Mark Ingram (vs. DEN) vs. Jay Ajayi (at SD) | Jay Ajayi |
| Matt Forte (vs. LA) vs. Devonta Freeman (at PHI) | Matt Forte |
| Le'Veon Bell (vs. DAL) vs. Charcandrick West (at CAR) | Le'Veon Bell |
| Todd Gurley (at NYJ) vs. Devontae Booker (at NO) | Devontae Booker |
Star to Know: David Johnson, ARI (vs. SF)
Fantasy's second highest-scoring back gets to encounter the defense that is allowing the most points on average to the position in Week 10.
This refers to Arizona Cardinals lead man David Johnson, who is lining up against the rival San Francisco 49ers. He has scored 18 or more points four times and never failed to hit double digits, even with fellow backfield members such as Andre Ellington seeing some run.
Owners have seen this show before. In Week 5, Johnson torched the 49ers for 157 yards and two scores, good for 29 points.
It wasn't even his highest output of the season.
Over their last four outings, the 49ers have allowed 30, 44, 33 and 43 points to opposing backfields while surrendering nine rushing scores. Johnson's big day writes itself.
Star to Sit: Christine Michael, SEA (at NE)
Seattle Seahawks running back Christine Michael was a fun story, a guy who finally assumed a starting role and showed plenty of flashes.
Michael has struggled as of late, though, hitting six or fewer points in two of his last three games. In Week 9, he had only five carries and managed to come away with six points because of a touchdown.
Owners can't afford to bank on him doing so again. The New England Patriots enter Week 10 after allowing 26 points to backs their last time out, but it was the only time the defense had allowed an opposing backfield to break the 20-point barrier.
With Michael's carry totals decreasing each week, a bad matchup and his team likely playing from behind, he's the top big name to avoid.
Wide Receiver
| Mike Evans (vs. CHI) vs. Julio Jones (at PHI) | Mike Evans |
| Mike Wallace (vs. CLE) vs. Allen Robinson (vs. HOU) | Mike Wallace |
| Odell Beckham Jr. (vs. CIN) vs. Jordy Nelson (at TEN) | Odell Beckham Jr. |
| Antonio Brown (vs. DAL) vs. Terrelle Pryor Sr. (at BAL) | Antonio Brown |
| Doug Baldwin (at NE) vs. Demaryius Thomas (at NO) | Demaryius Thomas |
Star to Know: Alshon Jeffery, CHI (at TB)
Chicago Bears star wideout Alshon Jeffery is finally back to fantasy relevancy.
In a perfect world, he should have never left, but starting quarterback Jay Cutler went down with an injury, and Brian Hoyer turned to yard-inflating options underneath while Jeffery didn't get in the end zone.
Cutler returned in Week 8 before a bye, though, and Jeffery scored his first touchdown of the year while recording 12 points. Now he gets the Buccaneers, who allow the second-most points to wideouts on average.
Tampa Bay has surrendered 45 and 37 points to opposing receivers over its past two outings, so Jeffery should announce his return with a big day.
Star to Sit: Julian Edelman, NE (vs. SEA)
On the other side of the Seahawks-Patriots encounter is another fading star that owners should avoid.
Though he has only 38 points on the year, Patriots wideout Julian Edelman continues to be owned in 94.5 percent of leagues.
The return of Brady didn't help Edelman. He scored his first touchdown of the year in Week 8 before a bye, but it was more fluky than anything after coming off four catches and still not hitting 10 points.
The New England offense just doesn't need big plays from Edelman anymore. While he sits first on the team in targets, three teammates, including Chris Hogan, boast more receiving yards. Four Patriots have more receiving touchdowns.
Edelman now has to deal with Richard Sherman and the Seattle secondary, which speaks for itself.
Tight End
| Jason Witten (at PIT) vs. Vance McDonald (at ARI) | Jason Witten |
| Antonio Gates (vs. MIA) vs. Greg Olsen (vs. KC) | Greg Olsen |
| Delanie Walker (vs. GB) vs. Jimmy Graham (at NE) | Delanie Walker |
| Cameron Brate (vs. CHI) vs. Dominique Jones (at SD) | Dominique Jones |
| Zach Ertz (vs. ATL) vs. Kyle Rudolph (at WAS) | Zach Ertz |
Star to Know: Antonio Gates, SD (vs. MIA)
Owners should never jump off a player with incredible momentum until it is clear the ride will stop.
Such is the case with San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates. Rumors of his demise in favor of Hunter Henry were greatly exaggerated—Gates has nine or more points in each of his past two outings with a touchdown in each game.
More importantly, Gates has seen nine or more targets three games in a row. This is great news going into a matchup against the Miami Dolphins. While they haven't faced the toughest slate of tight ends, they have coughed up touchdowns to teams with great ones, namely New England and Tennessee.
Gates still classifies as a great one.
Star to Sit: Julius Thomas, JAC (vs. HOU)
The glory days of Julius Thomas shredding the league with the Broncos are gone.
Now mired with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Thomas has hit double digits only once this year even though he has three touchdowns.
Thomas enters Week 10 off one of his worst performances of the year, a two-point showing in Week 9. Now he has to deal with the Houston Texans, who allow the fourth-fewest points to opposing tight ends on average.
Houston has allowed just one touchdown to the position this year, and six opposing sets of tight ends out of eight didn't score more than three points.
All scoring info and statistics courtesy of ESPN.com standard leagues, as are points-against info and ownership stats.
Follow Chris Roling (@Chris_Roling) on Twitter.
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