Now that Aaron Rodgers in week 9 has thrown for another three touchdowns, it should quiet the fantasy football critics for at least another week. Rodgers has 10 touchdowns compared to one interception in the last three weeks.
There may be a problem with the Packers overall, but there’s no denying Rodgers’ fantasy value. He’s a top-three quarterback on a weekly basis, and if it wasn’t for Matt Ryan’s ascension this season, Rodgers would be the best option to start.
He has a salivating start again in week 10 against a beat-up Tennessee secondary, which allowed Philip Rivers to go for 18 fantasy points in week 9. Ignore the talk by the pundits about Green Bay being down. That only works in Rodgers’ favor, especially if they trail early as was the case in week 9.
Here’s the best week 10 quarterbacks start ’em, sit ’em for fantasy football.
Start
Dak Prescott vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
I’ve been slow to ride the Prescott bandwagon (maybe because Tony Romo is sitting on my fantasy team’s bench), but he’s proving to be more than just a game manager.
Prescott went for the fifth-most fantasy points in week 9 against a bad Cleveland defense, throwing for three touchdowns on 22-of-26 passing. He’s showing a great knack for being efficient and taking care of the football, going for eight touchdowns and two interceptions in the last three weeks.
Defenses have to pick their poison against Dallas. Stop the run and allow Prescott to beat you, or stop Prescott and get gashed by the running game. Most defenses attempt to stop the run and Prescott has made them pay in recent weeks.
He’s been a consistent fantasy scorer, producing at least 17 points in every game since his career’s first start in week 1. This week’s matchup sets up nicely against Pittsburgh, with the Steelers entering week 10 with the ninth-worst passing defense.
The Steelers allow 276 yards per game through the air and just haven’t done enough in recent weeks to generate much optimism on either side of the ball.
Marcus Mariota vs. Green Bay Packers
I know it was a slow start for Mariota, but is there really 11 quarterbacks who are more trustworthy at this point of the season in fantasy football?
Mariota’s ability to run already makes him have more value than marginal quarterbacks. Now, though, he’s starting to throw more with teams attempting to stop DeMarco Murray. That led to Mariota’s first 300-yard passing game of the season in week 9, and that likely won’t stop against in week 10.
Mariota has gone for 25 or more fantasy points in three of the last five weeks. And those other two weeks weren’t bad, with 16 and 19 points, respectively.
He’s doing most of his work through scoring touchdowns, netting at least three touchdowns in three of the previous five weeks. Green Bay doesn’t do a ton in passing defense and can usually do a decent job against the run. The Packers rank pretty much in the lower half of every statistical category in passing defense, so the Titans should be able to expose that secondary.
Mariota will have plenty of chances to score fantasy points, and these last few weeks have proven he’s more than capable of being a top-tier fantasy performer.
Carson Wentz vs. Atlanta Falcons
If you’re battling the bye-week blues, then Wentz offers an OK option at salvaging your week.
If you can’t pick up Prescott, who I value more than Wentz, the Philadelphia quarterback offers a decent matchup for fantasy production.
The Falcons are good, but they’re flawed, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Part of that problem is a downgrade in talent in the secondary and part of it is game flow. The Falcons score a lot of points, as evidenced by week 9 against Tampa Bay. Sometimes that allows the opposing quarterback to rack up garbage time points, or as I like to deem it, Blake Bortles time.
The Falcons have allowed the most passing touchdowns in the NFL at 23 this season. Opposing quarterbacks are averaging a 102 QBR and a 68 percent completion rate. That’s just what the doctor ordered for the struggling rookie.
Wentz hasn’t been very good in recent weeks, struggling mightily since having a breakout game against Pittsburgh in week 3. But he did go for over 300 yards in a game he trailed in week 9 against the New York Giants, which is a promising sign for this week’s home game against Atlanta.
Being at home should be important for the Eagles and for Wentz. Philadelphia has played five of its eight games on the road, including four of the last five. Wentz has been much better at home, with the one exception against Minnesota, which owns a top-five passing defense.
Wentz is a sneaky play, but he could pay big dividends if Philadelphia can pick it up at home.
Sit
Joe Flacco vs. Cleveland Browns
It’s tempting to give Flacco the green light. The volume is always there and he’s coming off a decent performance in week 9 against a below-average Pittsburgh defense. He managed 241 passing yards and two touchdowns.
Those aren’t bad considering what Flacco has done this season. And with bye weeks upon us, it makes sense to take him against the hapless Browns on a Thursday night.
But don’t be fooled.
Those 241 passing yards in week 9 was aided by a miraculous 95-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace, which started out as a short slant route, and a missed tackle later, was the longest pass play of the season for the Ravens.
Flacco was pretty much himself for the entire game. He threw short passes, completed most of them and didn’t do anything spectacular. That’s what he’ll do in week 10 against the Browns. And even though Cleveland is a bottom-five defense, I can’t trust Flacco will put up major fantasy points.
The running game also should get plenty of work for the Ravens, so I’m expecting maybe an eight to 12 point performance from Flacco. That’s not enough production for your fantasy team.
Blake Bortles vs. Houston Texans
These are the games in which the Texans thrive.
I’ve said it before. Houston can’t beat the upper echelon. But it feasts on the lower tier teams in the NFL. And against sub-par quarterbacks, Houston is a suffocating defense.
The Texans have allowed only six passing touchdowns this season and are limiting quarterbacks to 190.5 passing yards per game. Opposing quarterbacks are completing less than 60 percent of their passes and that’s a bad omen for a quarterback who hasn’t even reached 60 percent completion rate in three of the previous five games.
Bortles is the ultimate garbage-time guy and he won’t be able to muster that magic against Houston. The Texans rarely are leading by enough to allow opposing quarterbacks to make a dramatic fantasy comeback in the fourth quarter. And I expect this to be a long day for Bortles. Don’t get carried away with Bortles’ past two performances this season, going for more than 20 points.
That’s not going to happen in week 10.
Colin Kaepernick vs. Arizona Cardinals
I’ve been pretty rough on the Cardinals this season and for good reason. There was just something about them that didn’t register much confidence heading into this season, and they’ve proven me right.
Whatever it is, there’s just something missing.
No matter what that missing piece is, it won’t matter against San Francisco. The 49ers are the worst team in the NFL. I know the Browns own a worse record, but San Francisco can’t stop anybody and doesn’t do a good enough job of moving the ball.
And after last week, you may get a wild idea to start Kaepernick. He went for the sixth-most fantasy points among quarterbacks in week 9, throwing for more than 300 yards in the first half against New Orleans. The only problem was that it happened against the Saints, which has one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL.
And he couldn’t get it going for more than a half.
Even after that torrid start, he still finished with less than 400 yards passing. Most of his passes gained yardage after the catch, and that won’t be a possibility in week 10 against Arizona. The Cardinals defend the pass as well as any team in the NFL, limiting the opposition to five touchdowns against nine interceptions and a QBR of less than 70 this season.
It’s a bad matchup for Kaepernick and the Cardinals shouldn’t have any issues stopping the 49ers offense.
