Week 10 Fantasy Football FAAB Suggestions: Drake Maye, Ja'Tavion Sanders, Rico Dowdle and More
Reasonable FAAB bids for some of the hottest name on the waiver wire heading into Week 10.
Week 9 can be looked at as a turning of the page in the NFL season. We passed the halfway point on the schedule; that’s simple enough. We also had the first games in November. Things have moved past Halloween and into Thanksgiving season, a big NFL time.
In the fantasy world, that means things are quickly ending, as most leagues will start their playoffs in Week 15. That’s five weeks of regular season fantasy football. As quick as it starts, it fades away.
Let’s look at some of the hottest names on the waiver wire and what reasonable FAAB bids might look like. Your remaining budget might push your numbers a little higher or lower, but this is a good middle ground.
Most stats referenced are from NFL.com. The fantasy ranking information is from our FantasySP defensive fantasy rankings.
Quarterback
Daniel Jones, New York Giants
Jones isn’t a terrible fantasy player. His real-life reputation is poor, and that leaks into fantasy land, but Jones runs the ball and puts up some decent stats at times, especially throwing to rookie star Malik Nabers.
The matchup lines up for Jones in Week 10, as New York plays the pitiful Panthers in Munich. (With all the concerns of World War III starting at any moment, can placing a game between the Giants and Panthers in Germany be considered an act of war?) Carolina is in the top five in most yards per pass attempt allowed and fantasy points per game allowed to quarterbacks.
With a great matchup, Jones might be worth an extra dollar if you need a streamer; Jordan Love and Geno Smith are on bye this week.
Conservative Bid: $0-1
Aggressive Bid: $2
Desperation Bid: $3
Drake Maye, New England Patriots
This would be more about the rest of the season than just Week 10: Maye has one of the worst quarterback matchups this week against the Bears. Entering Week 9, Chicago had allowed the second-fewest fantasy points per game to QBs. The Bears just got beat up a little by the Cardinals, but more of that damage was done on the ground than through the air.
Maye’s rushing has been a big part of his fantasy production. Despite playing only minimal snaps in two of his five games, Maye has averaged more than 40 rushing yards per game. He has also thrown six touchdown passes, which is diminished a little by four interceptions.
Maye will be a decent fantasy player, some weeks excelling and other times failing. The matchup will probably play the biggest role in his fantasy value; that makes him an interesting name but not someone to stress about adding.
Conservative Bid: $0
Aggressive Bid: $1
Desperation Bid: $2
Running Back
Trey Benson, Arizona Cardinals
It’s really tough to find running backs who are free agents and worth bidding on this late in the season. Injuries have trimmed the herd, and we have half a season of information telling us who is best and worst.
Benson had maybe the best game of his rookie season, turning eight carries into 37 yards and a touchdown (the first of his career) and adding a reception for 18 yards. Arizona was beating up on the Bears, so Benson maybe got a bit of an extended run. James Conner dominates the backfield, and Benson won’t have fantasy value while the veteran is healthy.
If Conner were to miss extended time, though Benson would be stepping into one of the best situations for a running back. The Cardinals are averaging the second-most yards per rush attempt, behind only the insane Ravens. Some of that is surely due to Conner, but he has plenty of help.
Arizona’s offensive line is 10th in run blocking (according to ESPN), and Kyler Murray’s own rushing ability helps open lanes for his running backs. The Cardinals have been surprisingly effective on offense, and Benson would join that group with one injury.
Conservative Bid: $0
Aggressive Bid: $1
Desperation Bid: $2
Rico Dowdle, Dallas Cowboys
Dowdle is owned in more leagues than any of the other guys listed here, but he’s still available in over 30% of leagues and is a clear starting running back. There are rumors around the Cowboys adding a running back before the trade deadline, and that would change the equation. Barring an addition, though, Dowdle will be the guy.
He will always lose some carries to Ezekiel Elliott and/or Dalvin Cook, but Dowdle will get the most touches. He’s a flex-level fantasy guy, not a weekly starter. At the most important fantasy position, a team’s starting running back is worth a fantasy roster spot heading into the home stretch of the fantasy season.
Conservative Bid: $2
Aggressive Bid: $3-4
Desperation Bid: $6
Wide Receiver
Jerry Jeudy, Cleveland Browns
Cedric Tillman, Cleveland Browns
These guys both got a bump in fantasy value when Deshaun Watson went down for the season, pushing Jameis Winston into the starting lineup. After Watson averaged 164 passing yards per game in his seven weeks as the starter, Winston has gone for 334 and 235 in his two games.
Jeudy and Tillman both had two of their best games of the season:
- Week 8: Jeudy 5 catches, 79 yards; Tillman 7 catches, 99 yards, 2 touchdowns
- Week 9: Jeudy 7 catches, 73 yards; Tillman 6 catches, 75 yards, 1 touchdown
It’s not a coincidence. These guys are now WR3/4/flex types who can be considered against the matchup each week. Cleveland has a bye in Week 10, so you might be able to get them cheap if you don’t mind wasting a bench spot for a week.
Jeudy probably has the higher floor as a veteran, but Tillman is a young prospect with a bigger ceiling. I prefer Tillman.
Conservative Bid: $1-4
Aggressive Bid: $6
Desperation Bid: $8-11
Quentin Johnston, Los Angeles Chargers
Many were ready to bury Johnston after an anonymous rookie season. He was probably part of the reason that LA was willing to trade Keenan Allen and let Mike Williams leave in free agency, as the Chargers had a first-round pick waiting to step in. When the team took Ladd McConkey 34th overall this year, they had a new set of top receivers (for better and worse).
Johnston had a few good games early in the season, combining for 10 receptions, 133 yards, and three touchdowns over the first three weeks. He had been injured and ineffective in the weeks since; then he turned four catches into 118 yards and a touchdown in Week 9.
This is a theoretical top receiver playing with a good quarterback, so it’s not a surprise to see Johnston have good games. There’s still inconsistency in his performance, but it’s only Johnston’s second season; we have to give guys more than 20 games to prove they are superstars.
In the fantasy world, Johnston is a streamer who is OK to consider some weeks. That status might improve in the future, but performances like Week 9 aren’t going to be normal.
Conservative Bid: $0
Aggressive Bid: $1
Desperation Bid: $2
Demarcus Robinson, Los Angeles Rams
Robinson has been on the fantasy radar most of the season because Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua have missed tons of time. He had some OK games, but Robinson only hit 50 yards once and only topped 40 one other time.
The past two weeks, with both Kupp and Nacua back in the lineup, Robinson has caught four touchdowns, and he’s coming off a six-catch, 94-yard Week 9. Things worked out in his favor: on top of Matthew Stafford attempting 44 passes, Nacua was ejected early in the game after throwing a punch at an opponent.
This was more of a blip than a trend. The touchdowns are cool, but he’s not going to continue the rate of a touchdown every two receptions moving forward. With Kupp (who had 11 receptions and 104 yards last week) and Nacua in the lineup, Robinson will be a low-level fantasy option in deep leagues only.
Conservative Bid: $0
Aggressive Bid: $1
Desperation Bid: $2
Tight End
Mike Gesicki, Cincinnati Bengals
I recently mentioned once or twice that Gesicki was essentially off the fantasy radar because he was playing the third-most snaps among Cincinnati tight ends. From Weeks 4-7, he combined for four receptions and 24 yards; that seemed more important than his seven-catch, 91-yard Week 2.
Gesicki had seven catches and 73 yards in Week 8 before turning five receptions into 100 yards and his first two touchdowns of the season in Week 9. He has burst back onto the fantasy radar.
The most likely outcome is that Gesicki falls somewhere between the two extremes, turning into a middling fantasy option. The matchup will play a big role in his fantasy value, and he has one of the best in Week 10.
Baltimore was in the top five in both yards per pass attempt allowed and fantasy points per game allowed to tight ends heading into Week 9. With the matchup in his favor, Gesicki might be worth an extra dollar as a streamer, but he is unlikely to turn into a weekly fantasy starter.
Conservative Bid: $0-1
Aggressive Bid: $2
Desperation Bid: $3
Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints
I talked about Hill as a last-minute streamer in Week 9, mostly built around the idea that he was going to touch the ball against one of the worst teams in the league: Carolina. Sure enough, Hill threw a pass, had five carries, caught four passes, and scored a rushing touchdown.
The appeal with Hill is that he will be involved in the offense with plays designed specifically for him. He’s a good runner around the goal line, the most valuable fantasy area.
There will also be weeks in which he produces almost nothing, either because of how the game progresses or just a bad matchup. Hill is a reasonable fantasy option most weeks because of the upside, especially at the toughest position to find production.
There’s nothing wrong with having Hill on your fantasy team, but he’s not a must-roster player.
Conservative Bid: $0
Aggressive Bid: $1
Desperation Bid: $2
Ja'Tavion Sanders, Carolina Panthers
Sanders has had ups and downs, as would be expected from any rookie. As a fourth rounder, he has probably exceeded expectations by hitting at least 49 yards in three of nine games. Week 9 might have been his best, as Sanders had four catches for 87 yards.
Those games are likely to be more periodic than consistent. Sanders has a tough matchup with the Giants this week before a bye in Week 11, so his current value isn’t too high. Once Carolina returns from the bye, though, Sanders will get two of the best tight end matchups in fantasy this year: Kansas City and Tampa Bay.
Coming into Week 9, both the Chiefs and Bucs were in the top five in most fantasy points per game allowed to tight ends. Sanders will be a sneaky pickup heading into Week 12, as he will probably be off most owners’ radars but has a great outlook.
