Fantasy Football: Free Agent Targets for Week 10

We’ve officially hit the home stretch of the fantasy regular season.

With a little over a month to go before the playoffs, it’s really do-or-die time for your squad. No matter if you’re in first place or a fringe contender, or even in dead last, the waiver wire remains a critical piece of your strategy to set yourself up for a postseason run.

With that, let’s get into the Week 9 recap!

Recap

Rico Dowdle had his best game of the season when the Cowboys took on Atlanta over the weekend, logging 12 carries for 75 yards and 5 catches for 32 yards, including a score. That was good for an impressive 21.7 fantasy points, which seemingly came out of nowhere. His volume hasn’t been overly consistent since the start of the year, and the fact that Dallas is continuously playing from behind has limited him to under ten carries in four of his seven starts. Yet, there’s reason to believe that figure could improve.

Yesterday, Dallas announced that Dak Prescott is expected to miss multiple weeks with a hamstring injury sustained against the Falcons. That, combined with the fact that the passing game had been struggling in Big D could encourage the Cowboys to switch to a more run-heavy offensive approach. And, if that does indeed happen, Dowdle will obviously be the primary benefactor. Despite his volume dropping, he’s exhibited growth from week to week, resulting an in overall increase in efficiency. Even if Dallas doesn’t look to keep it on the ground more, Dowdle’s work in the receiving game could tick up while the relatively inexperienced Trey Lance is under center. It’s clear that the Cowboys view him as an increasingly viable pass-catching option; Dowdle’s hauled in ten balls in his last two contests. Nothing’s certain, but I believe the arrow’s pointing upwards for him as the NFL heads into the second half of the season. He looks to be a low-risk, high-reward addition in the trade market.

Who else should you be looking to bring in this week?

Justin Herbert – QB, LAC (43.3% rostered)

After a slower start to his season, Justin Herbert appears to be a fantasy-relevant quarterback again.

The Los Angeles quarterback followed up an impressive 24-point performance against the Saints in Week 8 with a solid 19.5-point showing in Cleveland this past Sunday. He’s tossed four touchdowns over his last pair of starts, two apiece, while hovering around 280 passing yards in each. Sure, Herbert will probably struggle against a very good Titans secondary when the Chargers take on Tennessee in Week 10, but his rest-of-season outlook is pretty exciting.

At worst, he’s a serviceable QB2 going forward, but Herbert has a shot at becoming a lower-end starter by the end of the year and is a viable option for managers electing to stream at the position. I’m not confident that he’ll produce next week against the league’s top-ranked secondary, but bringing him in figures to play dividends long-term.

Add Herbert with confidence.

Taysom Hill – TE, NO (26.8% rostered)

Ah, yes. It’s once again the part of the fantasy season where we’re collectively asking, “is Taysom Hill really someone who can contribute to my team?”

The short answer is that I don’t know. But I’m encouraged from what I’ve seen from the TE/RB/QB hybrid over the past two weeks.

Hill has been targeted a total of nine times since his return from injury, a significant step up from earlier in the year. He’s also logged nine carries over that same span, taking one for a touchdown in Week 9. With Chris Olave likely out next week with a concussion, there’s room for the tight end to take another step forward in the passing game against Atlanta.

Due to the variability of his role and the unreliability of the New Orleans offense, Hill is once again the definition of a boom-or-bust play in Week 10. He’ll always be a bit of a fantasy wildcard, but his single-game ceiling is incredibly high. Unless you’re really thin at tight end, I wouldn’t advise starting Hill this week. Stashing him on your bench, however, could pay dividends down the road or in the trade market if he has another good showing.

Mike Gesicki – TE, CIN (10.8% rostered)

Sticking with tight ends, Gesicki has really come into his own over the last two weeks. He’s been one of the biggest benefactors of Tee Higgins’ absence from the team, putting up nearly 40 fantasy points in that span. If the wide receiver is held out again when the Bengals visit Baltimore on Thursday Night, Gesicki could be in line for another solid game. Last week against Las Vegas, he caught five passes (six targets) for 100 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Obviously, no one’s expecting a repeat performance, but his expanded role coupled with the Ravens’ struggles against the pass could mean another 12-to-15-point week. If you’re desperate for a tight end, Gesicki slots in as a decent starting option… barring the return of Higgins.

Good luck with your matchups this week!

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