Week 10 is proof of the old fantasy adage that fantasy leagues aren't won on draft day. Because between a four-team by week and the injuries that swept through IDP leagues last week, there are a lot of rosters that have holes in them this week.
Make no mistake—how fantasy managers go about plugging those holes is one of the biggest IDP storylines of Week 10. Maybe the biggest storyline. Teams that plug those holes well will emerge with a victory this week. Those that don't won't. And the later we get into the season, the more important each week becomes.
It's not just a matter of the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, New England Patriots, and New York Jets being off this week—a bye that leaves IDP managers short Roquan Smith, Logan Wilson, and C.J. Mosley at linebacker alone. But the injury bug landed smack in the middle of IDP leagues over the weekend and seemingly bit everyone.
Buffalo Bills edge-rusher Greg Rousseau, who was 11th in fantasy points among defensive linemen entering Week 9, injured his ankle. Las Vegas Raiders linebacker Divine Deablo, who was 20th in fantasy points per game at his position, injured his forearm. Longtime stalwart safety Budda Baker of the Arizona Cardinals suffered a high-ankle sprain.
All are expected to be multi-week injuries, and that's hardly an exhaustive list—New York Giants safety Xavier McKinney will miss at least a month after getting hurt—and I kid you not—riding an ATV in Cabo over the bye week.
You can't make stuff like that up.
However, the time for grumbling and grousing and lamenting and swearing and drinking over the week that was. Now it's time to deal with the week that is. To show that these obstacles can be overcome. To patch holes with players who will contribute in Week 10.
Now is the time to show when (and how) IDP leagues are won.
DE Jerry Hughes, Houston (at New York Giants)
When the Texans signed Jerry Hughes in the offseason, he was supposed to be a role player. A veteran presence that younger players like Jonathan Greenard and Rasheem Green could learn from. After all, Hughes was a 34-year-old who hadn't logged even five sacks in a season since all the way back in 2018.
He's been quite a bit more than that.
After sacking Jalen Hurts twice in last week's loss to the Eagles, Hughes is up to seven sacks on the season—tied for fifth most in the NFL. It's the most sacks that Hughes has tallied in a full season since that 2018 campaign, and he hasn't logged more than seven sacks since posting 10 on the way to a top-10 fantasy finish in 2014.
Week 9 was the third time this season that Hughes has logged multiple sacks. He's a top-15 defensive end for the season. And he's playing 60 percent or more of Houston's defensive snaps on a weekly basis. We need to stop calling this a fluke season. Wondering when Hughes will revert to irrelevance. And start treating him like an excellent plug-and-play DL2.
DE Chandler Jones, Las Vegas (vs. Indianapolis)
Chandler Jones is one of the most consistent and productive pass-rushers of his generation—he has amassed 108 career sacks and owns seven separate seasons with more than 10—including last year. Jones has managed just half a sack in his first season with the Raiders, but the 32-year-old insisted to Vic Tafur of the Athletic that a breakthrough performance looms on the horizon.
“I understand that as of right now, my numbers aren’t the best,” he said. “I don’t have any of the sexy numbers, but what matters the most to me are the coaches’ grades at the end of the games. And every game that we have played this season, I have graded out extremely high — my assignments, my alignment, doing my job — so that makes me happy, doing my job. Do I want the stats? Of course. I would like to have more stats, and hopefully, they come. The season is not over yet.”
It's entirely fair to wonder if Jones' best days are behind him. But he's also a player who showed last season with the Cardinals that he can tally sacks in bunches. No team in the league has allowed more sacks this season than the 35 the reeling Colts have given up. If there was ever a week for Jones to break out of his funk, this is it.
DE J.J. Watt, Arizona (at Los Angeles Rams)
There was a time when the notion of Justin James Watt as a streaming play would be considered IDP heresy. But Watt's days as an elite fantasy option are over—he barely ranks among the top-25 defensive linemen for the year, and it took a two-sack effort against the Vikings in Week 8 to get him inside the top-40. However, Cardinals defensive coordinator Vance Joseph told reporters he believes Watt can still be a game-wrecker.
"J.J. still, one on one, he can win," Joseph said. "He still gets respect from offensive line as far as the protection sliding or him being doubled team. When he is rushing on guards and centers, he is still dominant. He's strong, he's long, he's explosive. He's not what he was in Houston when I was with him 10 years ago, but he's still a guy you have to account for, or he can wreck the game."
Sunday the Cardinals head west to face a Rams team that has had all kinds of problems along the offensive line—the Rams have surrendered the fifth-most sacks in the league and the most fantasy points per game to defensive ends. Look for Watt to turn back the clock in Week 9—and remind us all a bit just how dominant he once was.
LB Derrick Barnes, Detroit (at Chicago)
Before Malcolm Rodriguez was supposed to be the next star linebacker for the Detroit Lions, Derrick Barnes was tabbed by some as the next big thing. There was a flash or two, but Barnes was eventually relegated to reserve duty. When Rodriguez went down last week against Green Bay, Barnes was thrust back into the lineup—and after responding with arguably the best game of his career, the second-year pro was all smiles while speaking to reporters after a Lions win.
“It feels better when you have a performance like that and also win, and I was telling myself no matter what happens, I want to win a game because if we had that type of performance and you lose none of that matters, Barnes said. “And I would have told myself I could have did something better to help my team win. But we won, and that’s what’s important. For sure, it’s just time to buckle up."
While speaking to reporters Monday, Lions head coach Dam Campbell admitted to being unsure whether the hyperextended elbow Rodriguez suffered in the game will cause him to miss time. If the rookie does sit this week against the Chicago Bears, Branes should see a sizable snap share against a Bears team that has allowed the sixth-most fantasy points per game to linebackers in 2022.
LB Devin Bush, Pittsburgh (vs. New Orleans)
When the Steelers traded up to draft Devin Bush 10th overall in 2019, it was with the belief that he would be an impact player of the highest order. A true difference-maker. But after three lackluster and injury-marred seasons, the Steelers passed on Bush's fifth-year option. However, inside linebackers coach Jerry Olsavsky told Mark Kaboly of The Athletic that he still believes that star the Steelers thought they were drafting is still in there somewhere.
“I am a big fan of Devin’s,” Olsavsky said. “Last year was an anomaly. It was a tough season, and he is the type of kid who is going to claw and scratch and stuff like that. I just want to keep pushing him. If I can push him for him to go harder, then I am going to do that."
To his credit, Bush has played better in 2022 than the past couple of seasons. In recent weeks his snaps have ticked up as well—he's not playing as much as Myles Jack, but he's topped a 70 percent snap share each of the last two weeks. Sunday the Steelers take on a Saints team surrendering the fourth-most fantasy points per game to linebackers—Bush isn't a week-winner, but he should have a decent day tackles-wise in a plus matchup.
LB Blake Martinez, Las Vegas (vs. Indianapolis)
Losing Divine Deablo was a major blow for the Raiders—he was the team's defensive play-caller and leading tackler. But it's also an opportunity for Martinez to get back on the field after surprisingly being cut by the New York Giants just before the season. After the team's loss to the Jaguars, Vegas defensive coordinator Patrick Graham expressed confidence that Martinez can help bridge the gap while Deablo is on injured reserve.
"Blake is an experienced linebacker in this league," he said. "Over his years, he's done a good job of tackling the ball carrier, getting people down. Those are positives right there. And then the leadership, in terms of just being able to be vocal. And what I mean by leadership, it doesn't necessarily mean you're the captain or you got to be vocal. Just in terms of being out there on the field, he's seen a lot. Being able to communicate, that's a big part of leadership. And then leading by example, and he's the guy that's in early, works hard."
Martinez has long been a productive IDP asset—he topped 140 total tackles in four straight seasons with the Packers and Giants from 2017 to 2020. If last week was any indication, Martinez will assume an every-down role. And as last week's 11 total tackles plainly demonstrate, that makes Martinez a must-add in Week 10 anywhere he's available.
S Duron Harmon, Las Vegas (at Indianapolis)
The Raiders defense has been more bad than good in 2022, and the team made a big move Tuesday by releasing former first-round pick Johnathan Abram. That move means that veteran Duron Harmon will be the team's box safety moving forward. While it's the last thing Raiders fans want to hear, Harmon echoed Jones' refrain that the Vegas defense is making more progress than it appears at first glance.
"We always talk about it, the thing about being a really good defense is never being satisfied and always striving to grow and get better," Harmon told Tafur. "That’s the mindset that we have taken, and that’s the mindset we’re gonna continue to have going forward.”
To be clear, Harmon is what he is—a 31-year-old journeyman who has never had 75 total tackles in a season. But as Harmon showed with a season-high eight total tackles last week, he's still capable of posting IDP-relevant stat lines—and as it happens, this week, he faces a Colts team that leads the league in fantasy points per game allowed to safeties.
S Eric Rowe, Miami (vs. Cleveland)
The Miami Dolphins are rolling right now, but the team has had to overcome some adversity on defense when box safety Brandon Jones landed on injured reserve. When Jones was knocked out of the lineup, there was some question about who would replace him, but that job eventually fell to eighth-year veteran Eric Rowe.
Rowe an interesting case—a converted cornerback who won two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots who converted to safety after joining the Dolphins. He doesn't have the physicality of Jones and certainly doesn't have Jones' pass-rushing chops. But he's arguably a better player in coverage than Jones, and his versatility on the back end should serve the Dolphins well.
Rowe's first start of the season last week against the Chicago Bears was neither great nor terrible—he tallied seven total tackles while playing 77 percent of the snaps against the Chicago Bears. With a Cleveland Browns team allowing the fifth-most fantasy points per game to safeties next up, betting those numbers is a real possibility.
CB Paulson Adebo, New Orleans (at Pittsburgh)
The Saints have been hit hard by injuries on both sides of the ball in 2022. That includes at cornerback, where Marshon Lattimore has spent a sizable chunk of the season as a spectator. That injury has essentially made second-year pro Paulson Adebo the Saints' No. 1 cornerback, but he told John DeShazier of the team's website that he isn't about to shy away from that or any other challenge.
"I think the confidence comes with putting in the work, seeing it on tape, seeing it translate," Adebo said. "So naturally, the more you do, the more experience you get, the confidence comes more and more. But I came in confident, I'm still confident. I felt like last year was kind of flashes here and there, but just trying to put a whole year together and really be a complete player."
That confidence has taken a bit of a beating over the first half of Adebo's second season—he has been targeted with regularity in coverage and has a gaudy passer rating against of almost 150. But those targets are opportunities for fantasy production—in three of six games this season, Adebo has logged at least eight tackles. Add in the best fantasy matchup for cornerbacks so far this season, and Adebo's a prime option for fantasy managers who prefer to stream that position.
