While it isn’t quite Byenado, Part 1 (that’s next week), this week still sees numerous talents across different positions take their rest break this week, selfishly leaving us to fend for ourselves. Luckily, we are here to help, with players that you can spot-start this weekend. To make it in this list, a player must be available in at least 50% of Yahoo! leagues. For you folks who love to smugly assert that every player is rostered in your league, we have someone available in at least 90% of leagues.
Quarterbacks
Russell Wilson versus Baltimore (46% rostered)
Through three games, Russell Wilson has seven total touchdowns and is averaging exactly 250 total yards per game. He’s been a huge spark for the Steelers offense, with a corresponding resurgence coming from George Pickens (5 catches for 92 yards per game with Russ under center), and he hasn’t even played a bottom-ten passing defense yet. That all goes out the window this week, as the Ravens allow the second-most fantasy points to quarterbacks, and they allow a lot of production on moderate-to-deep passes. They allow the most passing yards per game on passes 10+ yards downfield (171 yards per game) while allowing the sixth-highest yards per attempt on those passes. Wilson is fifth in the league on yards per game on passes 10+ yards downfield, and he is first in yards per attempt on such passes. It’s a matchup made in heaven.
Bo Nix versus Atlanta (45% rostered)
Call us Bolievers. Call us Witnixes. Just call us ready for Arkadelphia’s Finest to once again take advantage of a nice matchup this week. Nix failed to reach 6 fantasy points outside of rushing for the first time in well over a month last week, but he still managed to put up 16 fantasy points last week against the Chiefs, who are a neutral matchup for quarterbacks at this juncture. This week, things will get a lot better for Nix. He gets the Falcons and their porous pass defense, who have allowed multiple touchdowns in six-straight games, and eight-of-ten games on the season. They’ve also allowed 20+ fantasy points to quarterbacks in three straight.
Jameis Winston at New Orleans
On paper, this is a bad matchup for Winston, as the Saints allow the ninth-fewest fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks. Unfortunately for that paper, the Saints’ defense is a shell of its former self, especially since they’ve traded Marcus Lattimore to Washington. NOLA allowed 306 yards passing last week in the first post-Lattimore game, but Cousins did not throw any touchdowns, so he stopped short of having a useful fantasy day. Winston’s matchups don’t scare me, as he showed last week when he still managed 13 fantasy points against a strong Chargers defense. Why is he matchup-proof? 87 pass attempts in two games. It’s pretty easy to overcome a bad matchup when you never stop throwing the football.
Wide Receivers
Ricky Pearsall versus San Francisco (45% rostered)
The 49ers made it clear last week that their passing game will run primarily through Jauan Jennings, and secondarily through a combination of the other passing game weapons there. With three career games under his belt, Pearsall has 15 targets and 11 receptions, and his receiving yards have increased in each game so far, topping off with a 4-catch, 73-yard, one-touchdown effort. The Seahawks are a mess in all aspects. They’re one of the worst defenses against wide receivers lately, allowing 20+ PPR points to six different receivers in the last four games.
Mike Williams versus Baltimore (20% rostered)
Call me a sucker for his long touchdown last week, in his first game as a Steeler. The reasons for Williams are the same as the reasons for Russell Wilson, above: the Ravens allow a high volume of successful downfield shots, and that’s where the Russell Wilson to Mike Williams connection is likely to succeed.
Elijah Moore at New Orleans (8% rostered)
Elijah Moore is tied with Puka Nacua, Jakobi Meyers, and Chris Godwin, with 9 targets per game over the last four weeks. While week nine saw Moore finish with just 3 catches for 28 yards, that had more to do with the matchup than the opportunity afforded to him. In the two weeks prior, he finished with 6/41 and 8/85. He’s a target machine for the new-look Browns, and he gets the Saints, who have a decimated secondary. They’ve allowed five wide receivers at least 9 PPR points in their last three games, and two of those games were the Panthers & Chargers… not exactly world-beating passing games.
Running Backs
With this week being an abject disaster for fantasy football running back matchups, at least in the streaming ranks, I am going back to an old faithful. No, not Tyler Allgeier. Although… No, I can’t do it. Walker Kelly evangelized me on pass-catching running backs. So, I am going to highlight three backs that are going to get that cheap, sweet PPR bump in week eleven.
Zach Charbonnet at San Francisco (41% rostered)
The 49ers allow 5.1 receptions per game, tied with the Ravens for seventh in the NFL. While the receptions went to Kenneth Walker in a valiant comeback effort, the 49ers will have Christian McCaffrey and a fully operational YAC Miller/Third and Jauan passing game, meaning that this one likely ends in a blowout for the Niners. That means that those valiant passes at the end of the game go to Zach Charbonnet instead of Kenneth Walker. This is a pure “let’s pray for garbage time sooner rather than later” play for a cheap 10 PPR points. Of note: the 49ers allowed 17+ PPR points to two running backs last week, so there’s a lot to be had here for the Seahawks backfield.
Justice Hill versus Pittsburgh (18% rostered)
This game carries the highest over-under of the week (48.5), and I’ve already twice outlined that the Steelers can best exploit the Ravens’ biggest defensive weakness. This game likely soars past the O/U and ends with a lot of folks getting a lot of fantasy points. I’m pegging this as a Justice Hill week, as the Ravens won’t be salting away much of anything in this game, so there will be a lot of throwing. That means more Justice Hill than usual, and he will be a cheap source of PPR points.
Samaje Perine at Buffalo (4% rostered)
Did someone say “cheap PPR points?” This game has a weird sneaky shootout written all over it, and Samaje Perine (not Kareem Hunt) should prosper in this one. The Bills have a passing run defense, allowing 4.7 yards per carry, slightly worse than the league average. However, you can throw to the running back against the Bills. They allow 6.6 receptions and 54.5 receiving yards to running backs per game, which both lead the league. Kareem Hunt, his weird eight-target game last week notwithstanding, is not the Chiefs running back to take advantage of that opportunity. That honor falls to Samaje Perine.
Tight Ends
Jonnu Smith versus Las Vegas (40% rostered)
Smith had four targets last week, and at least 6 targets in the four-straight games before that. The Dolphins have modified their offense to make Jonnu Smith—a tight end, heaven forbid—a major part of their game plan. Smith should feast, as they take on the Raiders and their subpar tight end defense. The last time we saw Las Vegas, they were giving up double-digit fantasy days to both Drew Sample and Mike Gesicki.
Will Dissly versus Cincinnati (11% rostered)
Dissly is tied for eighth in targets per game (6.8) over the last four weeks and is tied for ninth (5 receptions per game) in the same span. The Chargers opened up the passing game and gave more opportunity to Dissly. He has at least six targets in three out of his last four games, and at least five targets in four out of his last five. The Bengals are a porous pass defense, and they’ve given up 15+ PPR points to five different tight ends on the season… and three of them are all on the Ravens! The Chargers will give Dissly at least 5 targets, and he should return with low-double-digit PPR fantasy points.
Dawson Knox versus Kansas City (5% rostered)
The Kansas City Chiefs Tight End Theory marches on. This time, Dawson Knox will reap the rewards. Dalton Kincaid still isn’t practicing with a knee injury, Keon Coleman is already ruled out, and it’s down to Dawson Knox, Amari Cooper (hopefully), and Khalil Shakir to make this passing game hum. The Chiefs are the worst team in the NFL at stopping opposing tight ends, which means beaucoup fantasy points for Knox. The Bills are eighth in tight end targets, they just split them between Knox and Kincaid. If there’s no Kincaid this weekend, then it is all Knox in the second-best tight end matchup possible (the Panthers are worse).
