Blind-bid recommendation: 50-100%
David Johnson is no better than 50/50 to get cleared from his concussion for Week 10. If he’s out, Duke should dominate backfield touches with only Buddy Howell and Scottie Phillips behind him on the depth chart.
The Texans get a Browns defense next weekend that ranks 16th in adjusted fantasy points allowed to RBs.
Blind-bid recommendation: 40-75%
He out-carried Jonathan Taylor Sunday for the 2nd straight game. Neither guy had much success vs. a tough Ravens run defense, with Wilkins turning 11 carries into 39 yards and Taylor taking it 6 times for 27 yards and a score.
Week 10 brings a much easier matchup, though, vs. Tennessee’s 25th-ranked RB defense. Wilkins figures to find himself inside the top 30 RBs in our rankings for that one.
Blind-bid recommendation: 25-30%
The rookie racked up a 7-125-1 receiving line against Atlanta’s poor CB group in Sunday’s loss, drawing a game-high 14 targets. That beat his nearest teammate by 4 and marked Jeudy’s 2nd straight game of 10+ targets. Next comes another favorable matchup against a soft Raiders pass defense.
Blind-bid recommendation: 20-25%
Patrick returned from a hamstring injury for a limited 4-29 receiving line against the Falcons on Sunday. But he did draw 9 targets (18.8% of Drew Lock’s 48 pass attempts) and score a TD. Patrick reached 100 receiving yards in his past 2 healthy games and next faces a weak Raiders pass defense in Week 10.
Blind-bid recommendation: 10-20%
You might have expected to see Marquez Valdes-Scantling here after his 2-TD outing on Thursday night. But we’ve seen him pop up for a big game and then disappear again too many times. The shark move is to grab Lazard, who’s close to returning from his core-muscle surgery.
He racked up 13 catches for 254 yards and 2 scores over the first 3 weeks of the season and should return as Green Bay’s #2 WR.
Blind-bid recommendation: 10-15%
He saw a team-high 11 targets Sunday and is now averaging 7.2 per game in QB Nick Foles’ 6 starts. Mooney also ranks among the top 20 WRs in air yards over that stretch. He’ll be in the WR3 mix in a plus Week 10 matchup vs. the Vikings.
Blind-bid recommendation: 10-15%
Samuel scored for the 4th time in his last 3 games in Sunday’s loss to the Chiefs. More importantly, he saw 9 targets. That ranked 3rd on the team, behind Robby Anderson and Christian McCaffrey but notably 6 ahead of D.J. Moore. Samuel also carried 3 times in this one, giving him 22 total on the season.
He gets a tough Bucs defense next Sunday but will be usable the following 2 weeks vs. the Lions and Vikings.
Blind-bid recommendation: 10-20%
He was limited to just 13 snaps and 2 targets in his return on Thursday night. But we’re expecting Reed to emerge as San Francisco’s lead TE as he puts that knee injury further behind him. In 2 games without George Kittle earlier this season, Reed totaled 9 catches, 73 yards and 2 TDs on 14 targets.
Blind-bid recommendation: 5-10%
He’ll be easier to trust in fantasy lineups if Jack Doyle misses time with the concussion he sustained on Sunday. Alie-Cox caught all 3 of his targets for 43 yards vs. Baltimore and is now averaging 16.1 yards per catch on the season.
Next Sunday brings a Titans defense that entered this week ranked 30th in adjusted fantasy points allowed to TEs.
Blind-bid recommendation: 20-30%
We’d rather not include Ballage. He has proved -- with multiple teams -- that he’s not very good. But Ballage stepped in after Justin Jackson went down Sunday to lead the Chargers with 15 carries for 69 yards and a TD, adding 2 catches for 15 yards on 3 targets. Of course, Ballage also benefited from Pope being out with a concussion.
If Jackson remains out for Week 10 but Pope returns, we’d bet on him taking over the committee. Pope passed Joshua Kelley in usage in Week 8 (behind Jackson). Ballage out-carried Kelley against the Raiders but trailed him by 2 targets.
Blind-bid recommendation: 10-15%
He tied for the team lead with 7 targets on Sunday in just his 2nd game back from injury. Pittman caught 4 of them for a team-high 56 yards. The rookie’s role figures to continue to grow in a Colts passing game desperate for playmakers.
Blind-bid recommendation: 5-10%
His 9-184-1 blowup on Thursday night earns him a mention here. WRs Brandon Aiyuk and Kendrick Bourne will be back this coming week, though. And Deebo Samuel isn’t too far behind. So James might find himself buried on the depth chart again soon. Or maybe his Week 9 performance earned him a role going forward. He’s worth stashing if you have a roster spot to burn.