Week 10 is setting up to be a brutal week – not brutal in terms of fielding teams, but just a brutally boring schedule to glance at.
Deebo Samuel is excited to be back in action this week... but with which team?
Looking at the five match-ups this week, none of them jump out as a “must-see” game of the week. In fact, we have three candidates for “Dog of the Week.” Yawn. The most exciting part of the week was Bob begging to trade for players. Even after he was offered some.
Packers are 1st team to top 900 points
I love checking in on the points-for and points-against standings once a month or so. And, congrats to Jeff and his Packers for being the first team to top 900 points (903) in the league. The hard-luck Spread Beaters are sitting one game under .500 at 4-5 and are one point shy of the 900 mark. Talk about brutal luck.
The only thing Chuck is leading the league in is the dubious “points-against” category with a whopping 879 points, 50 points more than the 826 the Tirades have coughed up. With that points-against bum luck, it is not hard to figure out who are the No. 1 and 2 teams in the running for the first pick in the 2024 Draft.
Mini Byemageddon
There are only four teams on bye this week, but those four – Philadelphia, Miami, Kansas City and the Los Angeles Rams – are loaded with fantasy-relevant pieces. Half of the Spread Beater and Band Aids starting lineups – Tua Tagovailoa, D’Andre Swift, Isiah Pacheco, A.J. Brown and Tyreek Hill for Matt and Darren Henderson Jr., Puka Nacua and Patrick Mahomes for Bob – are off doing early holiday shopping. Gulp. Come on down Justin Fields (most likely Tyson Bagent on Thursday night), Chris Olave, DeAndre Hopkins and, woof, Jerry Jeudy for Matt. Bob is in better shape with his bench, but not by much.
Help is on the Way
Keep watching those injured reserve lists as several stars are expected to return to action in the next two weeks. Topping the list Is Rangers WR and pending free agent Justin Jefferson. It was rumored he might just stay on the sidelines if the Minnesota Vikings tanked after Kirk Cousins’ season-ending injury in Week 8. But Josh Dobbs came off the sidelines last week, introduced himself to his new teammates, drew up plays in the dirt, rallied for a late win, and may give hope to an earlier return for Jefferson. Speculation is it might not be Week 10, but maybe in Week 11. Stay tuned.
Blazing Saddles QB Kyler Murray is taking first-team reps this week and is expected to be activated for his first action of the year. And, next week, Invaiders RB De’Von Achane is expected to be reactivated since his trade from the Beaters. And the practice window opens this week for Gerbils RB James Conner. Last but not least, the Pack dived into the free-agent pool Tuesday to snag Chicago RB Khalil Herbert, fresh off injured reserve, as insurance down the stretch.
Game of the Week
Packers vs. Rangers, Pack favored by 14: The Brothers Lambert will tangle once more this season. Back in Week 1, The Pack prevailed, 73-49. The Rangers come into this one handcuffed with the Eagles on bye as Jalen Hurts sits and Saints QB Derek Carr gets the start. With the Rangers backup QB getting the call, The Pack gets a heavy advantage with Josh Allen taking on the porous Denver defense at home. Jeff also gets the advantage with Travis Etienne Jr. at RB1 and Ja’Marr Chase and Mike Evans at WR. The chance of Justin Jefferson getting to play this week will keep us riveted. Take the Pack and 10
Best of the Rest
Spread Beaters vs. WTNE, WTNE favored by 2: This is the best-looking matchup of the week and was shaping up to be a potential battle for first place in the Silent Division a few weeks ago before the Beaters took a few surprising losses. WNTE comes into the game tied for first in the division with the Rangers at 6-3 and the Beaters lurk two games back at 4-5. The Beaters are looking for revenge after being handed a 126-98 loss by WTNE in Week 3.
With nearly half of his team on bye this week, Matt may have to go back to the Justin Fields/Tyson Bagent well this week. We will get a clear decision on the Bears starting QB against Carolina early Thursday. The Beaters will need a bundle from his QB as WTNE rolls out Justin Herbert against a tough Detroit Lions defense. WTNE is heavily favored at RB with Chirstian McCaffrey coming off of his bye with a game at Jacksonville and Rachaad White expects some tough sledding against Tennessee. The Beaters counter with Derrick Henry and Brian Robinson. Despite his two starting WRs being on bye, the Beaters are still favored at WR with Olave and Hopkins as WTNE answers with Michael Pittman Jr. and Jordan Addison. The flex position, WTNE’s Calvin Ridley, could be the difference in this one.
This smells like an upset in the making. Take the Beaters in a must-win game by 1
Dogs of the Week
Band Aids vs. Tirades, Band Aids favored by 2: We’re not sure if this is a more interesting game than it appears to be. ESPN has this as a nail-biter for Bob, but he is actively shopping for trades and the players currently in his lineup may not be the ones suiting up Sunday. Despite half of his team being on bye (Chiefs QB, Miami RB Raheem Mostert, Rams Puka Nacua, Darrell Henderson Jr. and Tyler Higbee), he still comes into this slightly favored over Ron. We don’t think Ron wants anything to do with another win this season – tanking for Caleb Williams or a stud RB? There are only positional advantages at a couple of spots in this one, meaning it could be a pick ‘em game or a blowout in the making. Two players (Bob’s Amon-Ra St. Brown and Ron’s Deebo Samuel) come off a bye this week – it will be Samuel’s first start in more than a month – if he is not traded between now and Sunday. Ron got a lot of points from his three RBs last week – Alexander Mattison, Gus Edwards and Rhamondre Stevenson. If he gets a repeat of those performances this week, it could be an upset of the division leader. Most likely, all three are trade bait. “You score, you’re gone,” Hender muttered in the locker room last week. We think trades will happen and Bob will win by a bunch. The phone and email lines between Marietta and San Clemente are burning up. Take the (likely refurbished) Band Aids and 10.
Gerbils vs. Blazing Saddles, Saddles favored by 6: After logging his first win of the season in Week 9, the Gerbils could be on the treadmill for another win this week. The Saddles won their previous meeting in Week 8, 102-85. The Gerbils have the edge at QB (Joe Burrows over Dak Prescott) and the Saddles get the nod at both RB spots (Jonathan Taylor and Joe Mixon over Austin Ekeler and Najee Harris – why Is he still starting?). Maybe Chuck inserts James Conner this week to get some much-needed punch. With Conner starting, the line drops from 6 to 5. And having Philly on a bye (Devonta Smith) means the Gerbils might actually get some scoring out of his WR spot this week. Calmer heads and better athletes should prevail in this one. Take the Saddles and 4.
Invaiders vs. Recliners, Invaiders favored by 21: The Invaiders are looking for their fourth-straight win this week and might have the Recliners cornered in the couch with backup at tight end. Travis Kelce is on bye. Chris spent a high draft pick on Darren Waller but waived him this week while Waller is on injured reserve to pick up utility knife Taysom Hill of New Orleans. Hill scored more than 20 points a week ago and Chris may need a repeat performance to make this one close. The Invaiders have the positional advantage at nearly every starting spot. There are pushes at QB (Chris sends out CJ Stroud of Houston against Invaider Lamar Jackson), RB1 (the Recliners stretch out with Tony Pollard) and tight end. We like the Invaders chance to get that fourth-straight victory, but fear they will make this much closer than it needs to be. Take the Invaiders and 10.
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