Fantasy Football Week 10 Rankings: Updated Overview for All Positions

With the NFL barreling toward Week 10, the 2018 fantasy football playoffs are fast approaching.

Without trying to sound too hyperbolic, the difference between a right and wrong guess now could mean celebrating a league title or missing out on the postseason entirely.

We'll try to put your rosters in the best position possible by examining the top 10 offensive players at each position, analyzing a must-start option and offering a sleeper—available in at least 50 percent of Yahoo Sports leagues—at every spot.

Quarterbacks

1. Patrick Mahomes, KC (vs. ARI)

2. Drew Brees, NO (at CIN)

3. Cam Newton, CAR (at PIT)

4. Aaron Rodgers, GB (vs. MIA)

5. Tom Brady, NE (at TEN)

6. Matt Ryan, ATL (at CLE)

7. Philip Rivers, LAC (at OAK)

8. Andy Dalton, CIN (vs. NO)

9. Ben Roethlisberger, PIT (vs. CAR)

10. Carson Wentz, PHI (vs. DAL)

Must-Start: Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints, at Cincinnati Bengals

On Sunday, Drew Brees had more passing yards (346) than his past two games combined (332). He toppled his two-week touchdown total, too (4-3), and didn't throw an interception for the seventh time in eight contests.

Impressively, he did his Week 9 damage against a Los Angeles Rams unit allowing the fourth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks. Brees has a much easier task on paper this week with a Cincinnati Bengals defense allowing the fourth-most points to the position and having ceded 470 yards and three scores the last time out against—wait for it—Jameis Winston and Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Only two quarterbacks to play full games against the Bengals this year haven't topped the 300-yard mark. One was Cam Newton, who had two passing touchdowns and two rushing scores in the contest. The other was Ryan Tannehill, who hasn't played since due to a nagging shoulder ailment.

Brees hasn't always been an elite option in his 18th NFL season, but if you were going to put money on a player to lead the league in fantasy points this week, he'd be as good a bet as any.

Sleeper: Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns, vs. Atlanta Falcons

Running Backs

1. Todd Gurley, LAR (vs. SEA)

2. Kareem Hunt, KC (vs. ARI)

3. Saquon Barkley, NYG (at SF)

4. Alvin Kamara, NO (at CIN)

5. Melvin Gordon, LAC (at OAK)

6. David Johnson, ARI (at KC)

7. Christian McCaffrey, CAR (at PIT)

8. James Conner, PIT (vs. CAR)

9. Ezekiel Elliott, DAL (at PHI)

10. James White, NE (at TEN)

Must-Start: David Johnson, Arizona Cardinals, at Kansas City Chiefs

While fantasy owners might be lamenting the massive cost to draft David Johnson (average draft position of 3.9 on Yahoo), he should look the part of fantasy stud this weekend.

For starters, he's getting the most favorable matchup running backs can find. Kansas City yields a league-worst 5.2 yards per carry and has already allowed 11 rushing touchdowns (29th). It also surrenders the most fantasy points to running backs, with seven different rushers topping 100 scrimmage yards against Kansas City already.

But Johnson looks good for more than his matchup. He's also coming off an encouraging performance under new offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich. During Leftwich's first game at the controls, Johnson reached 100 scrimmage yards for only the second time this season, totaling 59 on the ground and 41 through the air.

"I liked the way we used David tonight in a number of ways—in the screen game and getting him out to the perimeter," coach Steve Wilks told reporters afterward. "Byron did a great job of just trying to utilize his talents."

Sleeper: Ito Smith, Atlanta Falcons, at Cleveland Browns

Wide Receivers

1. Michael Thomas, NO (at CIN)

2. Odell Beckham Jr., NYG (at SF)

3. Julio Jones, ATL (at CLE)

4. Antonio Brown, PIT (vs. CAR)

5. Davante Adams, GB (vs. MIA)

6. Mike Evans, TB (vs. WAS)

7. Keenan Allen, LAC (at OAK)

8. Tyler Boyd, CIN (vs. NO)

9. Jarvis Landry, CLE (vs. ATL)

10. Tyreek Hill, KC (vs. ARI)

Must-Start: Tyler Boyd, Cincinnati Bengals, vs. New Orleans Saints

Tyler Boyd's own performances were already moving him into must-start range. A.J. Green's injury just cemented that status.

Five of Boyd's last seven outings have been dominant. His least productive performance of the five—i.e., the only one without a score—featured 15 targets, 11 catches and 100 receiving yards. In the other four, he's tallied 28 receptions on 35 targets for 423 yards and five touchdowns.

"Boyd, with just one drop this season, has caught 74.2 percent of his targets and [Andy] Dalton has a passer rating of 136.3 when throwing in his direction," The Athletic's Joe Goodberry noted. "The Bengals could have two receivers top 1,200 yards in 2018 at this pace—a feat that even Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh never accomplished."

While this season already qualifies as a breakout for Boyd, he could raise his own bar this weekend. He's not only expected to work without Green, Boyd also draws a Saints defense that's easily allowing the most fantasy points to wide receivers.

Sleeper: Maurice Harris, Washington Redskins, at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tight Ends

1. Travis Kelce, KC (vs. ARI)

2. Zach Ertz, PHI (vs. DAL)

3. Rob Gronkowski, NE (at TEN)

4. George Kittle, SF (vs. NYG)

5. Greg Olsen, CAR (at PIT)

6. Trey Burton, CHI (vs. DET)

7. Jimmy Graham, GB (vs. MIA)

8. O.J. Howard, TB (vs. WAS)

9. David Njoku, CLE (vs. ATL)

10. Evan Engram, NYG (at SF)

Must-Start: Greg Olsen, Carolina Panthers, at Pittsburgh Steelers

We'll let Cam Newton start the sales pitch for his tight end, Greg Olsen.

"Mr. Reliable...I just know when that ball goes in the air, he's coming down with it a high percentage of the time," Newton told reporters.

With opportunity so critical to fantasy success, pass-catchers getting that level of trust from their quarterbacks can be invaluable.

The stat sheet shows it, too. Olsen appears all the way back from the foot injury that cost him three games, as he's taking a three-game touchdown streak into Week 10. It's easy to envision him staying on a roll against a Pittsburgh Steelers defense ranked 27th in fantasy points and tied for 30th in receptions allowed to tight ends.                 

Sleeper: Ricky Seals-Jones, Arizona Cardinals, at Kansas City Chiefs

Statistics used courtesy of NFL.com and ESPN.com. Fantasy scoring information obtained via Yahoo Sports.