DOLPHINS 22 RAVENS 10
Tua Tagovailoa came off the bench in relief and helped propel the Miami Dolphins to an upset victory over the Baltimore Ravens 22-10. Tua completed 8 of 13 for 158 yards in the second half. I would expect Tagovailoa to be back under center for the Dolphins next week. The Miami Dolphins offense was a bit of a mess on Thursday night with Albert Wilson and Isaiah Ford leading the team in receiving. There is not a running back on this roster you can trust. The Miami Dolphins defense was all over Lamar Jackson all night long. Jackson completed 26 of 43 for 238 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. The ground game was nowhere as DeVonta Freeman ran for 35 yards on ten carries. Marquise Brown was limited all night long as he caught six of thirteen for 37 yards. Mark Andrews is Mr. Reliable with six catches for 63 yards and a touchdown. We wanted to note that Rashod Bateman continues to be more and more involved with every passing week. Bateman hauled in six of eight for 80 yards in this one.
COWBOYS 43 FALCONS 3
The Dallas Cowboys rebounded following their destruction at the hands of the Denver Broncos with a resounding 40-point victory over the Atlanta Falcons. Dak Prescott led the charge as he completed 24 of 31 for 296 yards and three touchdowns. CeeDee Lamb continues to emerge as the alpha in the Cowboys’ passing game as he hauled in six passes for 94 yards and two touchdowns. Lamb is a back-end WR1 from here on out. Amari Cooper took a backseat in this one catching five passes for 51 yards. We mentioned that with the return of Michael Gallup, the Cowboys’ offense was going to transition, and it did. Dalton Schultz saw regression catching one catch for 14 yards. Schultz’s role will likely diminish moving forward. The Cowboys were up big all game long, so both Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard had 17 touches in this one. Matt Ryan was horrendous in this one completing nine of 21 passes for 117 yards and two interceptions. Ryan benched for Josh Rosen–that’s how bad it was. Wayne Gallman was the team-leading rusher–not ideal. For the first time all season, Cordarrelle Patterson did nothing–expect a bounce-back performance in Week #11. Kyle Pitts led the team with four catches on seven targets for 60 yards and is a top-five tight end option moving forward.
TITANS 23 SAINTS 21
The Tennessee Titans, minus Derrick Henry and Julio Jones, continue to find a way to win football games as they defeated the New Orleans Saints 23-21. Ryan Tannehill completed 19 of 27 for 213 yards and two touchdowns. A.J. Brown was taken out of this game catching only one pass for 16 yards. A squeaky-wheel game for AJB is in order. Marcus Johnson had himself a day hauling in five passes for 100 yards. You will not see another performance from Johnson like this again in 2021. Development in the Titans’ backfield is D’onta Foreman rising to the top of the depth chart. Foreman totaled 78 yards on 13 touches against a tough Saints run defense. Keep an eye on this situation as there is a sneaky upside here that remains untapped. The Saints’ offense, minus Alvin Kamara, was subdued all afternoon long. Mark Ingram II subbed in with 108 yards and a touchdown on 18 touches. Ingram’s involvement in the offense will keep him on the flex radar when Kamara returns. Trevor Siemian completed 19 of 34 for 298 yards and two touchdowns. Whether the Saints move to Taysom Hill or not will be bantered around league circles this week.
COLTS 23 JAGUARS 17
Carson Wentz led the Colts to an uninspired effort, yet a victory over the hapless Jacksonville Jaguars 23-17. Wentz completed 22 of 34 for 180 yards. Jonathan Taylor kept the Colts’ offense on schedule with 116 rushing yards and a touchdown on 21 carries– making his case for the top fantasy back this season. Michael Pittman Jr. continues to operate as the de facto WR1 with five catches for 71 yards–Pittman Jr. remains a low-end WR2. There is not much to say about the abysmal Jaguars’ offense as Trevor Lawrence completed 16 of 35 for 162 yards. James Robinson operates as the lead back with 84 total yards and a touchdown on 16 touches. Robinson is a mid-tier RB2. Dan Arnold is the most consistent pass-catcher in the Jaguars’ offense with five receptions for 67 yards.
PATRIOTS 45 BROWNS 7
The Cleveland Browns opened up the game with a touchdown drive. After that, it was all New England Patriots as the Pats scored 45 straight points en route to the blowout victory. Mac Jones cut up the Browns defense completing 19 of 23 for 198 yards, and three touchdown passes. The Patriots backfield led by Rhamondre Stevenson with 100 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Stevenson has earned a role in this backfield even when Damien Harris returns and remains a flex-worthy play. Hunter Henry continues to catch touchdowns at an obscene rate, hauling in two more on Sunday. Henry is a top-ten option at the position every week. Kendrick Bourne and Jakobi Meyers got in on the action as both caught their four targets and found the end zone. I would play Meyers as a low-end flex in PPR leagues only and leave Bourne on your bench. Baker Mayfield was rendered ineffective as he completed 11 of 21 for 73 yards, a touchdown, and an interception–being replaced by Case Keenum. D’Ernest Johnson was the only Browns player who showed up in this one. Johnson totaled 157 yards on 26 touches. Unfortunately for Johnson fantasy managers, we would anticipate Nick Chubb back next week.
BILLS 45 JETS 17
Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills offense got back on track with a 45-17 victory over the New York Jets. Allen completed 21 of 28 for 366 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. We have been patiently waiting for the Stefon Diggs blow-up game, and it finally arrived. Diggs hauled in eight of 13 for 162 yards and a touchdown. Diggs reclaims his mid-WR1 status. Gabriel Davis caught three passes for 105 yards and needs more targets moving forward. Devin Singletary and Zack Moss found the end zone each, and Matt Breida found the end zone TWICE! Stay away from this unpredictable backfield for the time being. The Mike White hype train came to a screeching halt as he completed 24 of 44 for 251 yards and four interceptions, relieved by Joe Flacco. Through all the muck, Corey Davis and Elijah Moore posted respectable numbers for your fantasy team. Michael Carter dominates the backfield once again with 82 yards and a touchdown on 20 touches.
STEELERS 16 LIONS 16
The Mason Rudolph vs. Jared Goff battle ended as it should have, in a 16-16 tie. Both players were predictably horrible, and you should never consider playing either in any form of fantasy football ever. Now that that is out of my system, the Lions had a good day on the ground. D’Andre Swift ran for 130 yards on 33 carries and is still a low-end WR1/high-end WR2. Amon-Ra St. Brown and Khalif Raymond had four catches. It is tough to get excited about an offense throwing for 114 passing yards in an OVERTIME game! Najee Harris totaled 133 yards on 30 touches and is a weekly locked-in RB1. Diontae Johnson caught seven of 13 for 83 yards. Oddly enough, Ray-Ray McCloud caught nine of twelve targets for 63 yards–and I’m not sure what to do with that.
FRANCHISE TEAM 29 BUCCANEERS 19
Taylor Heinicke and the Washington ground game pulled off the upset of the defending Super Bowl champion Buccaneers 29-19. Heinicke completed 26 of 32 for 256 yards and a touchdown. Antonio Gibson totaled 78 yards and two touchdowns on 26 touches–Gibson is back in the mid-RB2 range with usage like this. Terry McLaurin was the most involved pass-catcher with six catches for 59 yards. In the absence of Dyami Brown and Curtis Samuel, DeAndre Carter is making the most of his opportunities with three catches for 56 yards and a touchdown. The Buccaneers’ offense was stuck in a rut all afternoon long as Tom Brady completed 23 of 34 for 220 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. Mike Evans caught a 40-yard touchdown but did little else. Chris Godwin was nursing a foot injury all week long but showed well in this one as he caught seven of eight for 57 yards. I’m guessing that Bruce Arians, Tom Brady, and company go back to the drawing board and get things figured out for next week.
PANTHERS 34 CARDINALS 10
The P.J. Walker/Colt McCoy extravaganza was everything that we thought it would be and MORE, as the Panthers defeated the Cardinals 34-10 in what shaped up as a glorified exhibition. Cam Newton will take over the Panthers’ quarterback position beginning next week and offers streaming appeal. Christian McCaffrey, if healthy, will dominate work no matter who is under center. McCaffrey ran for 95 yards on 13 carries while catching ten passes for 66 yards. With Cam under center, I would expect an uptick in the volume for DJ Moore. With no Kyler Murray and no DeAndre Hopkins, the Cardinals offense was non-existent. James Conner will operate as the lead back for a few more weeks as Chase Edmonds remains out. Conner is a low-end RB1 when Kyler Murray returns.
VIKINGS 27 CHARGERS 20
The Minnesota Vikings got a much-needed road victory 27-20 over the Los Angeles Chargers. Kirk Cousins kept the Vikings offense on schedule while completing 25 of 37 for 294 yards and two touchdowns. Dalvin Cook was our favorite play, regardless of position this weekend, and he paid off handsomely. Cook totaled 118 yards and a touchdown on 27 touches and is a top-five fantasy running back moving forward. Justin Jefferson continues to go wild with nine catches for 143 yards and is a top ten fantasy wide receiver every week. Adam Thielen continued to play the role of the 2nd banana as he hauled in five catches for 65 yards. The Chargers’ offense looks clumsy and needs to figure it out. Justin Herbert completed 20 of 34 for 195 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. Herbert is not the same without a productive Mike Williams. Williams continues to struggle lately with four catches for 33 yards. The knee injury would appear to be setting Williams back. Keenan Allen continues to be the top pass-catcher in the Chargers offense as he hauled in eight catches for 98 yards–Allen is a low-end WR1. It wasn’t pretty for Austin Ekeler, but he got it done. Ekeler totaled 59 yards and a touchdown on 14 touches. Better days are ahead for Austin Ekeler and the Chargers offense as a whole.
EAGLES 30 BRONCOS 13
The Philadelphia Eagles are on a roll with their dominant rushing attack once again as they pulled away from the Denver Broncos 30-13. Jalen Hurts may have played his best game as a pro as he completed 16 of 23 for 178 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception while giving you 50 yards on the ground. Jordan Howard and Boston Scott continue to assault would-be defenses with 83 and 81 rushing yards each. How this backfield plays out when Miles Sanders returns is anyone’s guess. DeVonta Smith continues to emerge as the Eagles’ top receiving threat with 66 yards and two touchdowns on four catches. Teddy Bridgewater and the Broncos’ passing game looked rough all game long. Jerry Jeudy is the top pass-catcher on the Broncos as he hauled in six passes for 68 yards. The Eagles are awful against the TE position, and it showed this week as Albert Okwuegbunam and Noah Fant combined for eight catches and 136 yards receiving. The Broncos will be on a bye in week eleven. It will be fascinating to see if Javonte Williams can FINALLY take over this backfield and begin to win people fantasy weeks down the stretch.
PACKERS 17 SEAHAWKS 0
Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson combined for all fireworks we had hoped…or not. Both quarterbacks looked a bit shaky in their respective returns. Aaron Rodgers played a bit better as he completed 23 of 37 for 292 yards and an interception. Davante Adams was once again the dominant receiving force hauling in seven of eleven targets for 78 yards. The storyline following this one is the injury to Aaron Jones. The early reports are a ‘minor’ knee sprain will cost Jones a week or two of action. AJ Dillon will act as every-down running back for the Packers and should go off. I would expect Dillon to produce as a borderline top-five fantasy running back with Jones out. Russell Wilson was rusty all game completing 20 of 40 for 161 yards and two interceptions. Wilson targeted DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and Gerald Everett every eight times. Everett was the only one to produce with eight catches for 63 yards. I would anticipate a bounce-back from the Seahawks’ premier playmakers next week.
CHIEFS 41 RAIDERS 14
Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs got their groove back as they defeated the Las Vegas Raiders 41-14. Mahomes reminded us all how dominant he can be by completing 35 of 50 for 406 yards and five touchdowns. Mahomes had it working with Travis Kelce all game long to the tune of eight catches for 119 yards–remaining the top fantasy tight end by a wide margin. Tyreek Hill also dominated with 83 yards and two touchdowns. Darrel Williams had the best game of his career as he totaled 144 yards and a touchdown on 20 touches. It will be fascinating to see how the Chiefs backfield plays out as Clyde Edwards-Helaire returns next week. The Las Vegas Raiders were in an offensive funk all night long. Derek Carr completed 25 of 35 for 261 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. Derek Carr led the Raiders with 18 yards–so not good. Darren Waller had a night to forget with four catches and 24 yards. A Darren Waller bounce-back performance is coming in week eleven. Bryan Edwards looked explosive with three catches for 88 yards and a touchdown. Hunter Renfrow led the team in targets with nine–turning them into seven catches for 46 yards and a touchdown.
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