Tony Cutillo
Wow, what a week! Sunday went from good to great as we quite possibly witnessed two of the greatest games of the year. Zeke continues to show he is the ROY and a MVP candidate, all while his teammate has kept a former Pro Bowler from putting down his Gatorade. Drew Brees has showed his critics he can still perform and DeMarco is finally back to running on premium fuel.
Did you ever wonder how these players performed based on their preseason draft status? Well that is an article for the end of year, but for now we focus on the present. The trophy is always won on the waiver wire, in the late rounds and during the season after all the dust settles. Who did you miss out on? Who did you overlook? Who did you hang onto for too long? Don’t worry, my list is long, too!
We have now entered the part of the season where the risks should be at a minimum and your weekly starters should be locked in. Let’s take a look at the recap for Week 10 below to see how some of the old reliables fared and how the rest of the “Big Name” guys disappointed again.
STANDOUT STARS
- Marcus Mariota.…295 yds 4 TD
- Ben Roethlisberger……408 yds 3 TD
- Russell Wilson……348 yds 3 TD
RB
- Ezekiel Elliot….114 yds…2 TD…..2 rec, 95 yds 1 TD
- Le’Veon Bell…….57 yds…1 TD…..9 rec, 77 yds 1 TD
- Ryan Matthews…..109 yds…2 TD….2 rec, 30 yds
WR/TE
- Antonio Brown…..14 rec, 154 yds, 1 TD
- Jordy Nelson.…..12 rec, 126 yds, 1 TD
- Doug Baldwin…..6 rec, 59 yds, 3 TD
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SUBSTANDARD STIFFS
QB
- Alex Smith….178 yds 1 INT
- Jay Cutler…..182 yds 1 TD/2 INT
- Tom Brady….. 316 yds 1 INT
RB
- Jonathan Stewart …..39 yds
- Giovani Bernard……17 yds…..3 rec, 19 yds
- James White…..5 yds……4 rec, 32 yds
WR/TE
- Corey Coleman.…..3 rec, 17 yds
- Brandon Marshall…..4 rec, 15 yds
- Randall Cobb……4 rec, 31 yds
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SURPRISE PERFORMERS
Ryan Matthews – After a 2 week hiatus due to ball security issues, Ryan Matthews stormed back onto the field and played the running back position the way we all expected. Setting injuries aside, when healthy Ryan can be a Top 10 back in the league. If the Eagles plan to make a playoff run, they will need to ride the back of Matthews in order to keep their franchise Quarterback from getting killed.
C.J. Prosise – This year has been full of pleasant surprises and CJ is just another one to add to the list. A converted WR who amassed over 1,000 yards and 11 touchdowns in his first season at Notre Dame, Prosise quietly waited his time and now he has arrived for a team that is clicking on all cylinders. With Russell Wilson healthy and looking like the stud that ended the season last year, CJ will find plenty of holes in every defense as they won’t have enough players on the field to contain him. He is smaller and lighter than most backs, but if used the right way with Rawls (when he comes back) he will be a pass catching beast!
Tyreek Hill – On a team desperately looking for a spark on offense, Tyreek Hill continues to be a focal point on the team while Jeremy Maclin is out. Over the last 3 games he has seen 24 targets and has been used in more offensive sets as the game goes on. He has the speed, size and hands to be a constant contributor to an offense that can even make an 8 year old hopped up on pixy sticks fall asleep. Get him now!
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STATISTICAL BUSTS
Alshon Jeffery – Just like Barack, it looks like the ride for Alshon in Chicago is over. Not only has he underperformed this season, but now a 4 game PED suspension in a contract year spells trouble. Look at the stats below..
2015 through 9 games…….95 Targets, 54 Receptions
2016 through 9 games…….72 Targets, 40 Receptions
Looks like Meredith will be the man for the rest of the year!
Randall Cobb – Cobb is another guy who has found his face on the back of a milk carton plenty of times over the course of this season. He has battled injuries sure, but nothing to keep him from catching the ball. He refused to take over for Jordy last year when he went down and now he can’t even play second fiddle.
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TOP 3 THOUGHTS AND THEORIES FROM WEEK 10
The Tennessee Titans are a GREAT fantasy team – The Titans are that team who, beyond wins and losses, will go out swinging every week. Mariota, Murray, and Walker (plus the emergence of Matthews) are making live scoring engines search for another gear.
CJ Prosise leads the Hawks – Michael is done, Rawls is working his way back, and Prosise is leading the way. Prosise is an undersized, converted wide receiver who will be used down the stretch like Dion Lewis. This will equal points for fantasy owners and headaches for opposing defenses. Well done Pete!
Cleveland could go winless – Is this what Hue Jackson bargained for? Did he expect to be this bad? There are some bright spots in Kessler and Pryor, but the frustration keeps mounting week to week as they search for their first win.
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MY SKINNY POST FOR WEEK 10
Stefon Diggs has become a dump off machine without a TD in sight … The fake spike by way of Roethlisberger still wasn’t enough … Rob Kelley keeps Matt Jones on the bench … Dak places Tony at the podium with no remorse … AROB returns while DHOP still is searching for a pair of run flats … Matty Ice was frozen in Philly … Doug P’s visor looks to be too tight as he almost went for it on 4th down again … Gronk not cleared to fly … Brady showed his age with a slow scramble and unauthorized fling that even Jay Cutler wouldn’t of thrown … C Mike is gone because he couldn’t follow right from left … Chip is now sending out college letters … Alshon is the latest victim of the PED wars … Doug Martin makes a return, while Peyton Barber proves to be nothing more than a guy who shares a famous first name … Bring on Week 11!
As always, you can stop by my Facebook page (Fantasy Sports Addiction) or tweet me (@TCutillo23) for questions or some nice fantasy debates. I can also be heard weekly via the internet stream live at WENG RADIO every Monday at 4:00 P.M. ET for a weekend sports wrap. But most importantly, you can catch me here at Pi!
For fantasy purposes, all my articles are predicated upon a PPR-based system.