Week 10 Fantasy Avengers

     Hey everyone, I am back again for your week 10 fantasy avengers. I apologize for missing last week and for posting so late this week. I was out of town and didn’t have time to get this done. In my return I am looking to hit on all 4 avengers. I have hit on about 45% of my calls which isn’t to bad for my first season.

    It’s week 10 and the fantasy playoffs are drawing near. For some managers you’re staring down a 3-6 start and view each week as a must win, or is that just me? For most leagues the trade deadline has come and gone so you’re stuck with the team you have minus a couple of waivers. This week is a do or die and so you need to hit on every player in your lineup and I intend to do the same with this article. That’s enough talk for me this week, lets get right to it and build a team worthy of taking down the Thanos in your league. 

Drew Lock (FantasyPros Rank #16)     

Drew Lock may not fit the mold of Captain America on a weekly basis, but going into his Sunday match up versus the Raiders he will do his best to pick up the shield and lead your team to victory. The Raiders are in the bottom 10th of the league when it comes to passing yards allowed and have only picked off opposing quarterbacks three times in 8 weeks. Drew Lock is coming off his best game of the season and appears to be hitting his stride now that he has all of his offensive weapons back. The Broncos are teetering on the edge of missing the playoffs and need to do everything in their power to get the win this week. On the other side of the ball, the Raiders are looking to gain more ground on the Chiefs in hopes of ruining their chances at a first round bye. With so much on the line in a game with a high over/under look to Drew Lock to rise up and become the Captain America for your team.

    

Jerick Mckinnon

Jerick Mckinnon seems to be the lead back for the Niners, at least for this week. With Mostert and Coleman out and Hasty not quite ready to take on the role, Mckinnon is primed for a big Sunday afternoon. Mckinnon received the bulk of the carries in week nines loss to the Packers However, in that loss he still managed to the find endzone in the last seconds of the game to make his fantasy owners happy. This week the Niners will be looking to bounce back after the shellacking they took, and the key to their success might be through the running game. The match up is not there for Jerick this week, the Saints are the second rated defense when it comes to stopping the run, as they allow a meager 3.5 yards per carry and have only given up 5 touchdowns on the year. I know I am not really making a great case for Mckinnon, but in a must win game for the Niners, I can see them force feeding Mckinnon in order to manage the clock and not allow the Saints to jump out to a big lead, much like what happened versus the Packers. We all know that Kyle Shanahan is an excellent coach who can scheme some of the best runs in football. He will have his work cut out for him this week, but if he can make Mckinnon look like lightning on the field and drop the thunder into the endzone, your fantasy lineup could be looking really good with him in it.

Brandin Cooks (FantasyPros Rank #16)

Cooks has been on a tear since Bill O'briens not so surprising departure. Since week 5, Cooks has seen no less than 9 targets and has had 60 yards or more in each of those outings. Cooks has also done well when it comes to scoring touchdowns as he has landed in the end zone in 3 out of 4 weeks. While many people had written Cooks off to the start the year (myself included) it seems that the only thing holding him back was poor play calling. On the other side of the ball, the Browns are in the bottom half of the league in terms of completion percentage and have allowed 14 receivers to finish inside of the top 36. Cooks has a lot going for him this week and I would expect him and Watson to keep their strong connection going into week 10. Look to Cooks to soar over the Browns and contribute to a week 10 victory for your fantasy team. 

Kalen Ballage (FantasyPros Rank #36) 

Ballage has been Bruce Banner for the majority of his career. Ballage had spent the first two years of his young NFL career under the misguided direction of Adam Gase. For those of you that have read my previous articles, you know that Gase is not a great coach and that any player who escapes his clutches instantly start playing like a real NFL player. We may have another example of this with Ballage. In his first game receiving the bulk of the carries, Ballage rushed the ball 15 times for 69 yards, had 3 targets, and found his way into the end zone. This stat line left Ballage as the number 4 running back on the week. Ballage looks to be another smash play this week, as he takes on his old team, the Miami Dolphins. With sweet revenge paired with a banged up Chargers backfield, Ballage looks to Hulk out on his former team. 

Shield Agents

DJ Chark (Fantasy Pros Rank #17) With the top 2 corners out for the Packers, Chark could take advantage of lighter coverage, especially with the target share he is receiving with new quarterback Jake Luton. 

Joe Burrow (FantasyPros Rank #17) It is a tough match up with bad weather, however if the Bengals go down early, they may have to rely on Burrow to pass them back into the game. 

Zach Moss (FantasyPros Rank #21) The Bills backfield is still very questionable, but it appears that Moss is carving out a nice role in the passing game and is receiving most of the work at the goal line where it matters. In a possible super bowl preview Zach Moss could play a huge role against a struggling Arizona defense.

Sources:

FantasyPros

The Fantasy Footballer

Pro Football Reference