Fantasy Football: Week 10 Streamers to Consider
As the fantasy year enters the back stretch of the regular season, navigating the maze of bye weeks and injuries gets more difficult by the week. Finding a player who can slide into a lineup to provide a much-needed boost can be the difference between getting a step closer to the fantasy postseason or walking the plank to the Toilet Bowl with the rest of the losers.
Let’s dive into a few streaming options to consider heading into Week 10!
Quarterbacks
Tyler Shough
QB • NO
After a super hot start, Tyler Shough got back on track last week with this fifth top-10 QB finish of the season. Shough probably made fantasy managers a little nervous over the last month with a little bit of a rough streak when he averaged just 14.1 fantasy points per game and only finished as the QB15 or better once. That bump in the road dropped Shough’s roster percentage to a very nice 69%, so he could very well be out there for fantasy managers to add and play. A matchup against the Panthers puts Shough in a game environment that has the fifth-highest expected point total of the week, and should be a good shot at paying off for fantasy yet again.
Patrick Mahomes
QB • KC
It is always strange to think that one of the best real-life QBs in the NFL isn’t an every-week starter for fantasy, but Patrick Mahomes is still one of those fringe QBs who are matchup-dependent. After a month of finishing outside of the top 12 and scoring an average of 12.4 fantasy points per week, Mahomes has been solid in back-to-back weeks, finishing as a top-12 QB twice in a row for the second time this season. Mahomes’ matchup against the Falcons may be a little misleading when you look at the season-long numbers, since the Atlanta defense has really only been great against opposing QBs twice this season, and one of those came in a monsoon where Baker Mayfield didn’t complete a single pass. While fantasy managers are unlikely to find Mahomes on waivers to just add (rostered in 93% of leagues), it is possible he is sitting on fantasy benches but could be a real option to play with six teams on bye this week.
Bryce Young
QB • CAR
Just when we thought that Bryce Young had turned back into a fantasy pumpkin, he goes and surprises us with a QB7 finish against a tough Denver defense. Young started the season red hot, finishing as a top-10 QB in four of his first five games and throwing 11 TDs during that stretch. The hot start means little to fantasy managers when it is followed up by a stinky couple of weeks, but the hope should be restored after his third three-TD performance of the year in Week 9. A juicy matchup against a Saints defense that just allowed the QB5 finish to the likes of Shedeur Sanders should be enough for fantasy managers to slide Young back into their starting lineups for Week 10.
Tight Ends
Pat Freiermuth
TE • PIT
The absence of Pat Freiermuth during the Steelers Bye Week this past week may have allowed managers to forget his TE10 finish the last time he was playing, so he could be an easy addition to fantasy rosters. Freiermuth is currently the TE12 on the fantasy season, mainly due to the five total TDs he has gotten, which ties him for fourth in the league at the position with the likes of Trey McBride and George Kittle. A matchup against the Bengals in Week 10 should give Freiermuth plenty of opportunity to get back into the green for fantasy managers. Cincinnati’s defense has allowed 10+ fantasy points to opposing teams’ TEs in back-to-back games, so the Muth should have a decent chance of getting loose again this week.
Greg Dulcich
TE • MIA
We are going back to the Greg Dulcich well again this week based purely on matchup. Dulcich couldn’t take advantage of a great matchup against the Lions in Week 9, putting up a measly 2.4 fantasy points on just four targets – his lowest since Week 5. While it wasn’t the result we wanted, the process of finding a streaming TE relies heavily on finding a matchup fantasy managers can believe in, and Dulcich has another strong matchup this week against the Colts. Indianapolis’ defense has allowed 12+ fantasy points to opposing teams’ TEs in four of their last five games, which has turned into four top-12 TE finishes and five TDs allowed to those players. If Dulcich cannot deliver this week, it may be his last shot at being a predictably relevant player for fantasy lineups.
Hunter Henry
TE • NE
Another purely matchup-based fantasy play at TE this week is Hunter Henry. Henry has struggled over the last two weeks, seeing just six combined targets and finishing outside of the top 25 at TE in each week. A rough two weeks may make it hard for fantasy managers to remember that in Weeks 5-7 Henry was a top-12 TE each week, so there is still some fantasy meat on the bone to be had. Week 10 provides a much better outlook for the Pats TE, with a matchup against the Lions defense on the road. Detroit’s defense is allowing 8.8 fantasy points above expectation to the TE position, so there should be every opportunity for Henry to slide back into fantasy lineups and provide real value again this week.
Defenses
Washington Commanders
D • WAS
Maybe an underrated fantasy defense that fantasy managers haven’t taken note of this season has been the improvements that the Commanders have made. Washington’s defense is one of the toughest matchups for running games in the league, where they have allowed the ninth-fewest rushing yards so far this season. While the Commanders ran into a tough offense last week against the Rams, Washington’s defense has shown they are able to take advantage of good matchups and turn them into fantasy goodness, which is what they will likely get this week against the Giants. New York has allowed the fifth-most sacks this season, and the Commanders are just a week removed from recording five sacks in Week 8. Washington is likely a one-week fantasy option, but they are only rostered in 16% of leagues and could be a decent spot start this week.
Los Angeles Rams
D • LAR
The likelihood that the Rams defense was dropped in fantasy leagues during their poor stretch from Weeks 5-7, where they scored a total of six fantasy points, means they could be an easy pickup and play for the rest of the season in many leagues. LA’s defense got their dynamic duo of Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald on the field together in Week 9, and it resulted in finishing as the fourth-best fantasy defense of the week with four sacks and four forced fumbles. A matchup against a depleted Arizona offense this week should have fantasy managers confidently playing the Rams in their lineups again.
Green Bay Packers
D • GB
It is strange to think that the Packers are only rostered in 20% of fantasy leagues after what they have been able to do over the last two weeks. In Weeks 8 and 9, Green Bay’s defense combined for 10 total sacks and scored 25 combined fantasy points against decent offenses in Carolina and New England. A juicy matchup in Week 10 against a Vikings offense that seems completely incapable of threatening any defense should make for a top-3 outcome for fantasy and should cement this Packers defense on fantasy rosters for the remainder of the season.
Boom Boom Kicker
Jason Sanders
K • NYJ
Thinking about finding a kicker to talk about hurts my brain each week, but I will power through yet again. When fantasy managers are looking for a decent start in their Kicker position, finding an offense that is just good enough to move the ball but not good enough to consistently score TDs is the ideal situation, and that sounds like the Jets to a tee. Jason Sanders has made 8 FGs over the last two weeks and gets a strong matchup in Week 10 against a Buffalo defense that should allow New York to move the ball. With Sanders only rostered in 2% of fantasy leagues, he should be an easy plug-and-play ahead of Week 10.