Courtesy of: AZCardinals.com
This week’s article comes to you from Ross Dunham of I Hate JJ Redick.
First of all, I’d like to tip my cap to Jim for having an excellent season in the fantasy pickem, I’ve stopped keeping track of the wins and losses because I’m just way too far behind. It’s been a rough year for me but that’s just how fantasy goes sometimes. Jim has been on point almost every week and I’m sure it’s no fluke, the guy is dedicated. So congrats to you, Jim, for winning the pickem this year (barring a phenomenal comeback by myself). Let’s get to the week 10 picks.
Jim: QB – Ryan Tannehill (@ TB) – The model of a consistent backup fantasy QB, Tannehill has scored in double digits in every game but one this year. Coming off his most efficient game of the year where he completed over 70% of his passes without throwing a pick, he now gets a Bucs defense that is somewhat overrated in my opinion. Tampa Bay has actually allowed the 6th most points to fantasy QBs this year and has been very poor at forcing turnovers lately. I don’t expect a top 5 performance from Tannehill this week, but I do expect somewhere around top 12.
Ross: QB – Joe Flacco (vs. CIN) – You can have Tannehill who’s submerged in all of the negativity in Miami, I’ll take Flacco. The Raven’s quarterback has been anything but a viable fantasy option this year, but going up against a banged up division rival Bengals team, I’m looking for a breakout game to get his team back on track. Cinci will be without Leon Hall in the secondary and Geno Atkins in the pass rush, which both will comfort Joe tremendously I’m sure.
Ross: RB – Andre Ellington (vs. HOU) – My guy. Being a Cardinals fan, it was great to see Ellington finally get a shot to carry the load in Mendenhall’s absence. Now I know Bruce Arians is a stubborn man but with the amount of production that Ellington gave to the Cards two weeks ago against the Falcons, there’s no way we shouldn’t see an even bigger role this week against the Texans. He’s a dynamic playmaker who’s been compared to Darren Sproles far too much. He’s more than Sproles, he’s a dynamic pass catcher, but he has great vision between the tackles and is a threat for a home run on any play.
Jim: RB – Mike James (vs. MIA) – While his jump pass TD was a fluke last week against Seattle, his 158 rushing yards were not. This guys has played three games as the starter since taking over for Doug Martin and has actually ran well in all of them. It took a strong game against a strong DEF though for people to take notice. He’s a hard runner who is gaining the second most yards after contact in the league and this week takes on a team that gives up a ton of yards after contact. If you had to pick one particular weakness of this Miami Dolphins team, it’s their run defense so I expect James to have another big outing.
Jim: WR – Kenny Stills (vs. DAL) – This pick is the definition of boom or bust. The rookie has caught no more than 4 passes in any game this year and has caught exactly 3 in each of the past 3 games. The plus side is that in that stretch, 3 of the receptions have gone for long TDs. The kid is a burner and Brees is one of the more accurate deep ball passers in the league. This week against a porous Dallas secondary, I expect another big game from everyone in the Saints passing attack and my feeling is that Jimmy Graham will divert enough attention away from Stills for him to get open over the top and take another long pass to the house.
Ross: WR – Kendall Wright (vs. JAX) – Wright has been Mr. Consistent this year, and that’s in a good, but definitely not great way. He’s constantly been around the 6-9 point range in almost every game this year, but has certainly been Jake Locker’s favorite target among his receiving corps. Wright has only scored one touchdown all season and has yet to top a 100-yard game, but with this week’s game coming against the Jags, I could see both of those jumping up a notch.
Ross: TE – Tim Wright (vs. MIA) – Wright has found the end zone in the last two games and I’m starting to believe that the young wide receiver turned tight end is no joke. Wright and Mike Glennon have developed quite the rapport, and he’s had 13 targets in the last two weeks resulting in nine receptions for 106 yards and two touchdowns. On top of that, the Bucs are going up against the Dolphins this week who are ranked third amongst all teams with most points allowed to opposing tight ends.
Jim: TE – Garrett Graham (@ ARI) – A couple of factors at play here make me like Graham this week. First, despite an overall solid defensive unit, the Cardinals are actually not very good against opposing TEs. Second, after a monster game from Andre Johnson last week, you have to assume the Cards will focus their attention on stopping AJ, leaving other options to get open. And this is where Graham needs to step up and provide a reliable over the middle option for his young QB. I think Case Keenum will look for his TE in this game and Graham will come up with some big plays.
Jim: DEF – Bills (@PIT) – It’s not a great week for fringe defenses but I actually like the Bills this week against the Steelers. Last week notwithstanding, the Steelers haven’t shown me much on offense this year to make me think they’ll do much in this game. The Bills have a solid front seven that can get after the QB and Big Ben, while elusive from time to time, isn’t exactly the most mobile signal caller. I’m not expecting a big week, just a solid performance.
Ross: DEF – Raiders (@ NYG) – I feel you on the short selection of defenses. Why in the world would I be picking the Raiders after they were just killed by the Nick Foles led Eagles? Well, they are facing one of the most turnover-prone teams in the NFL in the Giants. We all know how much Eli likes to throw interceptions, so I’m taking Oakland in a gut call to go on the road and steal a game from the Giants.
