One Thing We Learned From Every Week 10 Game: Matthew Stafford Continues His MVP Quest
Fantasy

One Thing We Learned From Every Week 10 Game: Matthew Stafford Continues His MVP Quest

Adam Ronis recaps the Week 10 Sunday fantasy football slate ...

There was a stretch in August where we didn’t know if Matthew Stafford would be ready for the start of the season due to a back injury. After 10 weeks, Stafford is in the Most Valuable Player conversation. Stafford is one of the few quarterbacks who contribute nothing on the ground, but has become an every-week start. 

Stafford passed for 280 yards and four TDs to lead the Rams in a 42-26 win over the 49ers. The 37-year-old Stafford has thrown four TDs in three straight games. He has 20 TDs and no INTs over the last six games and 25 TDs and two INTs on the season. He is the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for four or more TDs and zero INTs in three consecutive games. The addition of Davante Adams as a red zone target has helped. Adams, who left the game with an oblique injury, scored his ninth TD of the season. Puka Nacua returned after missing a game with an injury and caught five passes for 64 yards with a TD.

Let's dive into who else joined the Rams and led the Sunday fantasy football slate in Week 10 ...

RELATED: Get a head start on Week 11 with Kendall's Week 11 Waiver Wire Pickups.

Patriots 28, Buccaneers 23

Patience is often needed with rookies, and it’s tough to have them when a player is selected in rounds 3-4 of a fantasy draft. That's the case with TreVeyon Henderson, who has needed multiple injuries in the backfield before getting a chance. To be fair, Henderson wasn’t doing much with his limited chances early in the season, but with Rhamondre Stevenson out for the second straight game and Terrell Jennings leaving early with a knee injury, Henderson got the chance to shine. He rushed for 147 yards on 14 carries with two TDs, including a 69-yard run and caught a three-yard pass. The Patriots host the Jets on Thursday, so there’s a chance Henderson gets another chance to have the backfield to himself in a good matchup. When Stevenson returns, Henderson has shown he deserves the chance to be a part of the mix.

Colts 31, Falcons 25

Alec Pierce has become a bigger part of the offense each week. He’s consistently been targeted downfield and finally scored his first TD of the season. Pierce was second on the team with seven targets and caught four passes for 84 yards. He’s a WR3 the rest of the way. Daniel Jones has struggled with turnovers and sacks in the last two games. Jones has thrown four interceptions, lost three fumbles and taken 12 sacks. Jones was sacked nine times in the first eight games. Jones went 19-for-26 with 255 yards, one TD and one INT and rushed for 53 yards on seven carries.  

Saints 17, Panthers 7

Tyler Shough was solid in his second NFL start. He favored Rashid Shaheed last week and with him being traded to Seattle, Chris Olave went back to leading the team in targets with eight, catching five passes for 104 yards with a TD. Olave is an every-week starter. Juwan Johnson had four targets and caught four passes for 92 yards with a TD, making him a borderline TE1. Alvin Kamara had his best game in a while, but didn’t score. Kamara had 25 touches for 115 yards, but the game script won’t be this favorable most weeks.

Bears 24, Giants 20

Jaxson Dart has been one of the best waiver wire adds of the season. The one issue we were all concerned about is his aggressive play. While the rushing yards and TDs are great, he puts his body at risk. Dart left the game early with a concussion and it puts his status next week in question. The Giants host the Packers on Sunday. Dart passed for 242 yards and rushed for 66 yards with two TDs. Dart has seven rushing scores in seven starts. He’s a QB1 whenever he starts, but his style is a concern for the future.

Dolphins 30, Bills 13

It’s simple when it comes to the Dolphins: Start De’Von Achane and Jaylen Waddle every week. As bad as the season has gone, those two are reliable. Achane rushed for 174 yards on 22 carries with two TDs and caught all six targets for 51 yards. Waddle is a borderline WR1 getting most of the volume in the passing game. He had five catches for 84 yards with a TD on seven targets.

Ravens 27, Vikings 19

After not letting J.J. McCarthy throw much in his first three starts with 25 pass attempts or fewer. The Vikings averaged 6.7 yards per carry, yet McCarthy attempted 42 passes compared to 18 runs. McCarthy was inaccurate and struggled with 248 passing yards, one TD, two INTs and rushed for 48 yards on five carries. McCarthy will have ups and downs, but he’s going to run and if he can get on the same page with Justin Jefferson, he can be a QB2. Jefferson was targeted 12 times and had four catches for 37 yards. Jordan Addison had 11 targets and caught three passes for 35 yards.

Jets 27, Browns 20

This is a real line over a full four quarters for a quarterback and it’s not from a high school game. This was in the NFL. Justin Fields went 6-for-11 for 54 yards with a TD and an INT and he rushed for 28 yards on seven carries. The Jets had a kickoff and punt return for a TD, and the Jets only ran 47 plays, but it’s clear Fields isn’t going to be asked to do much. He’s not even running like he has throughout his career. The Jets won’t play from ahead most weeks, but Fields is very risky since he can be benched at any time. It didn’t help that Garrett Wilson left the game early with a knee injury. If he misses time again, Breece Hall is the lone Jets player to start. Hall had 22 touches for 125 yards with a TD.

Texans 36, Jaguars 29

It finally looks like Woody Marks is taking over the backfield. Marks played 78% of the snaps and Nick Chubb only 15%. The Texans trailed 29-10 after three quarters. Marks rushed for 63 yards on 14 carries with a TD and caught two of three passes for 18 yards. Chubb rushed five times for 47 yards and caught a five-yard pass.

Seahawks 44, Cardinals 22

The Seahawks defense scored two TDs and Seattle led 38-7 at the half. There’s not much to take away from Seattle’s usage. Sam Darnold attempted eight passes in the first quarter and attempted 12 for the game. Rashid Shaheed rushed two times for 20 yards and caught his lone target for three yards, so we don’t have any idea how he will be used in the offense.

Lions 44, Commanders 22

The Lions offense bounced back in an obvious spot. Jameson Williams had his second consecutive strong game with six catches for 119 yards with a TD on seven targets. There are going to be low-floor weeks with him, but they are focusing on getting him more involved. In most instances, he’s a start every week in order to make sure the games like this count.

Chargers 25, Steelers 10

Kimani Vidal had an awful game last week in a juicy matchup against the Titans and Jarrett Patterson had three fewer carries. The backfield was all Vidal’s against the Steelers. He rushed for 91 yards on 23 carries with a TD and caught a 13-yard pass. It was a great sign, especially with the Chargers offensive line injuries. Vidal is the back to play until Omarion Hampton returns, which is Week 13 following the Chargers bye week at the earliest.

RONIS BONUS

  • Is there anything more demoralizing than looking at your opponent and seeing Jonathan Taylor on their roster? Taylor scored three TDs for the fifth time this season. Taylor rushed for 244 yards on 32 carries and caught three passes for 42 yards. He has rushed for 1,139 yards with 15 TDs and is averaging six yards per carry and has caught 30 of 32 passes for 260 yards and two TDs. Pray you are facing the Taylor team next week since the Colts have a bye.
     
  • Tyler Allgeier is a good running back. He could start on many teams, but with the game on the line in the fourth quarter, he shouldn’t be in the game while Bijan Robinson is on the sideline. Robinson had 17 carries for 84 yards and only two catches for four yards. Robinson came into the week third at RB in PPR formats in points per game. The difference between him and Taylor was shown in this game. Taylor had 35 touches. Robinson has four total TDs on the season with only two rushing TDs. Allgeier has five rushing scores. Allgeier has more than twice as many carries inside the 10-yard line as Robinson. It makes no sense and is frustrating for those with Robinson. 
     
  • For the second straight week, Aaron Jones got the bulk of the snaps and work when he was in the game. Jones played 72% of the snaps compared to 23% for Jordan Mason. Jones is the pass-catching back while Mason is TD-dependent, making him an RB3 and a desperate play if these roles continue.
     
  • Caleb Williams led his team to a comeback win, but he needs to get better. He dances in the pocket too much and struggles to run plays in structure. Williams came into this game with seven of his 12 passing TDs against the Bengals and Cowboys. While wind was a factor, Williams passed for 220 yards with a TD and rushed for 63 yards on eight carries with a TD. The schedule is tough the next several weeks with the Vikings, Steelers, Eagles, Packers, Browns and Packers.
     
  • One of the big questions of the week was the Bears running backs distribution after Kyle Monangai totaled 194 yards last week against the Bengals with D’Andre Swift out with a groin injury. Ben Johnson said it could be a hot hand situation and it was Swift who remained the lead back. Swift played 61% of the snaps compared to 39% for Monangai. Swift had 13 carries for 80 yards and caught five of his eight targets for 18 yards. Monangai had seven carries for 28 yards with a TD and had one target. Swift is an RB2, and Monangai is a risky start.
     
  • After Rome Odunze played every snap last week and didn’t record a catch in a game where the Bears scored 47 points, he bounced back as expected. Odunze had 10 targets and caught six passes for 86 yards with a TD, his first since Week 4. Odunze is the top target in the offense.
     
  • Jacoby Brissett has turned Trey McBride into the TE1. McBride had 13 targets and caught nine passes for 127 yards with a TD. In four starts with Brissett, McBride has been targeted 46 times and caught 32 passes for 328 yards and five TDs. McBride had one TD in five games with Kyler Murray.
     
  • Chris Rodriguez was the lead back for Washington to start the game and he left with a shoulder injury. He had six carries for 16 yards with a TD. Jacory Croskey-Merritt rushed for 30 yards on 11 carries and has seen his stock plummet.

Players Mentioned in this Article

  1. Matthew Stafford
    MatthewStafford
    QBLARLAR
    PPG
    13.10
    Proj
    16.48
  2. Rashid Shaheed
    RashidShaheed
    WRSEASEA
    PPG
    5.23
    Proj
    4.52
  3. Davante Adams
    DavanteAdams
    WRLARLAR
    PPG
    10.70
    Proj
    9.54
  4. Puka Nacua
    PukaNacua
    WRLARLAR
    PPG
    15.03
    Proj
    16.76