Adam Strangis NFL Waiver Wire Week 10
On the surface, it doesn’t look like the best waiver period of the year. There’s certainly targets for teams in need, but I’m not sure there’s a slam dunk option that must be chased. It’s still crazy to think we’re only about a month from playoffs in the fantasy world. We’ll do the same thing we always do and that’s sort through the NFL Waiver Wire Week 10 to find the gems!
*Note* The ownership referenced will be based on Yahoo and if this needs updated after Monday Night Football, it certainly will be before your waivers run.
Teams on a Bye – Chiefs, Jets, Cowboys, Falcons
Quarterback
Drew Lock, Denver Broncos – 20% rostered
There’s two quality starting quarterbacks on bye this week, so folks need a replacement. Lock was in this spot last week and he smashed for fantasy en route to 313 passing yards and two scores. As an added bonus, he rushed for a touchdown and kicked in 37 rushing yards total. Lock isn’t a player that I would want to trust yet but the offense is getting a bit healthier. Noah Fant and Tim Patrick played on Sunday, while rookie receiver Jerry Jeudy had a breakout game. Lock does have some weapons at his disposal and goes against the Raiders passing defense this week. They ranked 27th in DVOA against the pass before Justin Herbert added another 300+ yard game this past week.
Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins – 24% rostered
Tua moved to 2-0 as a starter but we actually saw him have to play a bit more in this game. He already has a fourth quarter game winning drive under his belt and he looked like the Tua folks expected coming out of college before his injury.
Not only did he throw for 248 yards and two touchdowns, but added 35 rushing yards. He’s been an exciting prospect for almost his entire starting career at Alabama and appears to be healthy. Miami faces the Chargers this week. Now, the Chargers are 12th in DVOA against the pass but Tua should still be able to provide a line like he just did. Getting 250 yards and two touchdowns is the goal from a streamer, and that’s what Tua should be considered this week. I prefer Lock if you gave the option.
Honorable Mention
Teddy Bridgewater, Panthers – The seasonal numbers look excellent for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense. However, they’ve given up 20, 23 and 38 points the past three weeks. Bridgewater just provided 310 passing yards and two touchdowns in Kansas City. The Chiefs are inside the top five in DVOA against the pass, just like the Bucs.
Alex Smith, Washington – I want to be clear that Smith is only for truly desperate squads. He threw for 325 yards in relief of an injured Kyle Allen on Sunday but it was marred with three interceptions.
Running Back
*NOTE* If anyone let Mike Davis of the Panthers go, pick him right back up. Christian McCaffrey is “day-to-day” with a shoulder injury sustained on Sunday. If he can’t play, Davis is in line for workhorse usage. Even the not-so-great matchup against the Bucs that looms means he should be on the wire.
Duke Johnson, Houston Texans – 16% rostered
David Johnson left this past week with a concussion, and it’s no guarantee that he’ll be back. In his stead, Duke played 52-64 snaps and had 20 total touches. He wasn’t super efficient as he averaged under 3.0 YPC but that’s not overly concerning to me. If he’s going to get that workload, that’s all that matters. David Johnson is 15th in carries among backs and 25th in targets. That workload is near impossible to find at this stage of the season. Duke Johnson is among my highest-priority targets as we sit on Monday night.
Kallen Ballage, Chargers – 1% rostered
I feel compelled to write up Ballage but I’m not real sure I’m interested in him. Some of that depends on the severity of Justin Jackson’s knee injury. He did not record a touch on Sunday, and Ballage and Joshua Kelley took over. Kelley played more snaps but Ballage got more touches, 17-14. Justin Herbert is slinging the ball all over, but the backfield is a mess. I’m not sure I can say Ballage is here to stay with any type of confidence. Adding to the uncertainty was Troymaine Pope was out this past week as well. I do prefer to let someone else fall on this grenade.
Ryan Nall, Bears – 0% rostered
Starter David Montgomery suffered a concussion and is in the NFL protocol. Just like David Johnson, there’s no real way to tell if Montgomery will play this week. Also like Montgomery, All could inherit a significant workload. Monty has been a horse since Week 3. Not only does he have 88 rushing attempts but he has 32 targets as well. If Nall gets even 80% of that workload, he’s going to be worth it to roster. He didn’t receive a carry, but the Bears were playing catchup football and he did catch all four of his targets and found the end zone.
J.D. McKissic, Washington – 24% rostered
Alex Smith likes to check down and the proof is in the pudding so far. Smith has thrown 49 passes this season and 18 of those attempts have gone to McKissic. The receiving back also ran 31 routes this past Sunday, a season-high. They were in a negative game script, but still. McKissic has 47 total targets to just 26 for Antonio Gibson on the year. It’s quite evident that he’s a significant part of the offense and worth a flex start in PPR leagues moving forward.
Honorable Mention
Wayne Gallman, Giants – He’s been the lead back with Devonta Freeman out and when he left mid-game in Philly. Since that point, Gallman has racked up 36 carries for 146 yards and three scores. He’s not exciting but has hit at least 13 PPR points in those three contests.
Wide Receiver
Jalen Reagor, Eagles – 24% rostered
In Yahoo leagues, you can actually add Reagor right now since he didn’t play a game last week if your league rules allow it. That’s right, it’s like a cheat code. Reagor came back from a thumb injury and accumulated six targets last game. He scored a touchdown and a two-point conversion, good for over 13 PPR points. Reagor has a 21.2% air yards share in this offense and with DeSean Jackson and Zach Ertz out, he has the opening to make a big impact. Philly didn’t draft him in Round 1 to not create chances for him. Reagor is a flex/low-end WR2 the rest of the way in my eyes and I’ve picked him up everywhere I can.
Jakobi Meyers, Patriots – 12% rostered
We really can’t ignore Meyers at this point. The Patriots offense lacks weapons at about every level and they’ve been down receivers N’Keal Harry and Julian Edelman for a couple weeks now. Meyers has stepped up in a major way, with 20 receptions and 287 yards. He hasn’t even scored yet but has at least 10 PPR points in three weeks. For comparison’s sake, Meyers had 169 yards on Monday night. Edelman leads the team with 315 yards.
Curtis Samuel, Panthers – 30% rostered
I sort of assumed that with CMC back in the fold, Curtis Samuel wouldn’t see a ton of work this past week. Um, whoops. Samuel saw a season-high nine targets and he hauled in all of them on his way to a massive day. He’s earned 19 targets the past three weeks and caught 18 of them. That’s six more than D.J. Moore and that’s to say nothing of the seven rushing attempts on top of it. The floor is still low for Samuel, but the Panthers offense is creative and better than we thought. His ceiling is evident after the past two weeks.
Honorable Mention
Danny Amendola, Lions – With Kenny Golladay out, Amendola saw 10 targets this past week. He’s the definition of PPR player only at this point in his career, but he’s also a safe bet for double-digit points if he’s seeing 8-10 targets without Golladay.
K.J. Hamler, Broncos – If Amendola is a floor play, Hamler is the boom or bust play. He’s seen his targets ramp up over his three games back from a hammy injury. Hamler has gone for three to three to 10 this past week. Now, the Broncos were down early but we’ve yet to see a true explosion game from Hamler. He can absolutely burn and have a huge day on few targets. Stash him in deeper leagues to see how the involvement goes.
Tight End
Austin Hooper, Browns – 40% rostered
Are you missing Travis Kelce this week? Maybe you’re tired of watching Mark Andrews produce nothing? Austin Hooper is here to help solve the problem. Before his appendectomy, Hooper was on a bit of a hot streak for three games. He had a combined 23 targets and at least five receptions in all three. Hooper also either scored or cleared 50 yards receiving in those games and he comes back to an offense down Odell Beckham Jr., who owned a 21.9% target share. Just like Reagor, you have the ability to pick up Hooper for free on Yahoo before waivers run.
Honorable Mention
Jordan Reed, 49ers – He flopped last game but I expect him to be more involved as he gets further away from injury. He is still more talented than teammate Ross Dwelley. There’s not a lot of options to offer in NFL Waiver Wire Week 10, but that’s the state of the tight end position.
D/ST
Eagles – 48% rostered
They are a freebie defense to pick up before Wednesday and draw the New York Giants. These teams just squared off two weeks ago and Philly had three sacks and three turnovers. Coming off a bye, they should be fully prepared.
Giants – 42% rostered
This side of the ball doesn’t get a ton of credit, but they are stout against the run and 18th in overall DVOA. That’s not spectacular, but Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz leads the NFL in turnovers. That alone puts Philly in the streaming category.
Thanks for reading the NFL Waiver Wire Week 10 and make sure you follow me on Twitter at @bucn4life and be sure to sign up for an ALL ACCESS GOLD ACCOUNT account here at Win Daily Sports. Gain access to our Projection Models and jump into our Discord where we will have our experts talking plays across every sport and slate!
