Waiver Wire Rankings: Expert Pickups for Week 10

With Arian Foster’s groin injury, Alfred Blue should be on your radar

Week 9 brought little news for waiver wire hopefuls as the league decided to host a party for staying healthy (sans Nick Foles and Arian Foster) and players played to mostly their norms. That however, doesn’t mean there weren’t any standouts or players worthy of a waiver claim. Anytime even the slightest injury takes place, we are reminded of the handcuff players that have been forgotten all season long.

It’s that time though and when Monday night is over, we are officially waiver surfing for Week 10. To assist with those decisions, we’ve asked our featured experts to once again rank this week’s top readily available players (rest of season value). Read on to view the pundits’ consensus advice as well as their thoughts on Mark Sanchez’s (PHI) Week 10 outlook and comparable QBs at his position.

Featured Pros

James Hatfield (Hatty Waiver Wire Guru)
Jason Willan (Gridiron Experts)
Jon Collins (Fantasy Sports LR)
Kyle Wachtel (Footballguys)
Ryan Rufe (RotoBaller)

Waiver Wire Rankings (STD Scoring)

Week 10 Waiver Wire Advice

Each expert was asked to share advice about a target or two they like this week along with any other waiver wire suggestions they have. Here’s what the experts had to say.

Q1: Give us your thoughts on a waiver wire target (or two) you especially like as a pickup.

Kyle Wachtel – Footballguys
Although many of the other waiver wire targets have the potential to seize starting jobs for the long-term, Alfred Blue still ranks among the premier pickups as a handcuff to Arian Foster. Benches in fantasy are best filled with potential and even if the Week 9 bye saves Foster from missing any time from this groin injury, he is constantly living on the edge near a multi-week absence. If Foster is sidelined at any point, Blue becomes a strong RB2 and can be started across all leagues, whereas many of the other available running backs top out at a low-end RB3 and would likely rot on benches even while they’re starting for their team.

If you’re in need of a wide receiver, Allen Robinson should top your list. After becoming a starter in Week 3, his per game averages over the next seven games would project to 87 receptions, 944 receiving yards, and 4.6 receiving touchdowns over a full, sixteen-game season. Cecil Shorts III has played in all but one of those seven games as well, indicating that Robinson carries fantasy value even with a full cupboard of wide receivers. Despite Blake Bortles, Robinson has a great shot to hold WR3 value through the remainder of the season.

Jason Willan – Gridiron Experts
Allen Robinson has become the clear-cut number-one receiver on a Jacksonville team that figures to be throwing the ball a lot in the second half of games. He ranked in the top 10 of the league for targets in the month of October and continues to get a lot of attention from Blake Bortles. Robinson leads the Jaguars in receptions and receiving yards and has had at least seven targets in each of the last seven games. He is coming off a four-catch, 35-yard effort on Sunday, but hauled in 17 catches for 210 yards and two touchdowns over the previous three weeks.

With Arian Foster suffering another soft-tissue injury in his legs, Alfred Blue will be a hot pickup this week. Foster went down untouched in the third quarter of Houston’s Week 9 game against the Eagles with a groin injury. He slammed his helmet in frustration on the sideline and there are already rumors that the Texans are concerned about the severity of the injury. Foster has been hampered by groin, hamstring, and calf injuries over the last several years. Filling in for an injured Foster in Week 3, Blue rushed 13 times for 78 yards (6.0 YPC), and the rookie could inherit a starting role on a top 5 rushing offense if Foster misses time. Houston has a bye in Week 10, but faces a very favorable schedule for running backs in the foreseeable future, with games against Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Tennessee through the end of the fantasy regular season.

Jon Collins – Fantasy Sports LR
I’m interested in Terrance West (and Isaiah Crowell) as waiver wire options this week, but I’m not picking either of them to revolutionize my team. It isn’t as if Ben Tate has disappeared, he’s just been ineffective along with the rest of the Cleveland run game in the wake of Alex Mack’s injury which seems to have significantly thrown off the zone blocking scheme employed by the Browns. It is going to be hard to trust any one of them in a given week, noting that we’re looking at a ‘hot hand’ situation here and the potential for all parties to ‘Deangelo Williams/Jonathan Stewart’ each other’s value. That’s why I’m turning to Alfred Blue. I know that we don’t have complete details yet on Arian Foster’s injury, and that the Texans are on a bye in Week 10, but if I’m looking for a player who I can trust as a high-volume back and a worthy RB2 when in the lineup, it’s Blue. Whichever Ryan is starting for Houston at QB, the scheme will be designed to limit their exposure and focus on the run. Blue should see enough volume if Foster misses significant time to work as a high-floor RB2.

Ryan Rufe – RotoBaller
I’m a Browns fan who has watched every game this season and nothing about rookie running back Terrance West would have led me to believe he’d lead the team in carries during Sunday’s win against Tampa Bay. He had a nice Week 1 against Pittsburgh, but since then he has basically danced behind Cleveland’s offensive line to a measly 3.1 YPC clip. If anything, I thought fellow rookie Isaiah Crowell would’ve seen the bulk of the carries against the Buccaneers in lieu of Ben Tate’s recent struggles, but West has apparently been the most impressive of the three backs in practice and has earned his touches, according to Mike Pettine. I’m still skeptical of West due to the presence of Tate and Crowell (who are both better RBs in my opinion), but West still merits waiver attention, at least in the short-term as a potential bye week fill-in.

James Hatfield – Hatty Waiver Wire Guru
The Texans are on bye next week, but the seriousness of the injury to Foster is in doubt, so Alfred Blue’s upside can’t be ignored. He has the ability to catch out of the backfield for PPR owners and has TD upside. He is an all-around back with upside that must be rostered.

If you are in need of a TE in a PPR league then Owen Daniels is the TE to target this week on waivers. He is averaging 3.6 catches per game for the season, but has recorded six catches in each of the last two games. He is averaging .33 TDs for the season as well, so TD only leagues will want to consider other options as his upside is a bit limited in that regard.
Q2. Mark Sanchez will be a popular bye week fill-in with Nick Foles on the shelf (broken collarbone). Tell us what you think of his week 10 outlook (vs. CAR), including what comparable QBs you’d rate him above.

Jon Collins – Fantasy Sports LR
I think that Mark Sanchez has utility in Week 10 and beyond. Playing in a scheme that emphasizes not just throwing the ball, but taking shots when doing so, should allow for some solid fantasy production. Sanchez was his typical up and down self on Sunday, but, he didn’t show us anything to suggest that he can’t keep the offense moving and prevent fantasy points from going on the board. In Week 10 against Carolina’s 9th most generous QB defense, I see a big week in store. This defense did a nice enough job against Russell Wilson in Week 8 and Drew Brees in Week 9, but have struggled particularly when away from home. In three of four games on the road this season, the opposing QB has posted 20+ fantasy points and the lone exception, Josh McCown in Week 1, still notched multiple touchdown passes. I’m comfortable with Sanchez as a back end QB1 for Week 10, using him ahead of Andy Dalton, Eli Manning and likely Matt Ryan as well.

Jason Willan – Gridiron Experts
Mark Sanchez completed 15-of-22 passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns in relief of Nick Foles on Sunday. With Foles out at least 4-6 weeks with a broken collarbone, Sanchez takes the reins of a high-powered Eagles offense that ranks in the top five in passing yards per game and scoring. Chip Kelly demonstrated his confidence in Sanchez by calling a play-action deep ball on the first play after he replaced Foles, but the Eagles focused on the running game in the second half against Houston, with 21 carries verses 16 pass attempts. Still, with a juicy matchup in Week 10 against a Panthers team that allowed over 270 yards per game and nine touchdowns to opposing quarterbacks in October, Sanchez should be a QB1 in a week that has another six teams on bye. I will likely rank him ahead of an inconsistent Colin Kaepernick, a potentially-returning-from-injury Tony Romo, and a quarterback in Matthew Stafford that faces a particularly-stingy Dolphins pass defense.

Kyle Wachtel – Footballguys
Those that have been streaming quarterbacks got an early Christmas present and should run to put in a claim for Sanchez. Chip Kelly will begin to receive even more credit for his coaching prowess once Sanchez begins to put up equally prolific production as Nick Foles. From an athletic standpoint, Sanchez is even a much better fit for this offense and it’s possible that Sanchez finishes the year out as Philadelphia’s starter. With confidence, Sanchez will rank just inside the top-12 quarterbacks this week and can be penciled in as a low-end QB1 during his time as the starter.

Ryan Rufe – RotoBaller
If I were the Eagles, I’d play it safe and run the ball down the throats of the Panthers, who rank among the worst defenses in the NFL against the run this season. As such, I think I’m being generous by pegging Mark Sanchez for roughly 230 passing yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions next week. I’ll probably rank him in the 15-18 range among QBs, in Alex Smith, Joe Flacco and Michael Vick territory. I probably wouldn’t start Sanchez over any of those guys, but I would take him over Eli Manning (at Seattle) and Kyle Orton (vs. Kansas City) in Week 10.

James Hatfield – Hatty Waiver Wire Guru
The Panthers have been in the top 10 easiest matchups for QBs, giving up an average 1.7 TDs a game with .88 interceptions per game. Sanchez will be throwing interceptions for sure, but he does manage to find the end-zone as well. The Panthers are giving up 229 yards a game in the air, so expect Sanchez to throw around 250 yards, 2 TDs and an interception in Week 10.

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Thanks to this week’s Featured Pros for sharing their advice! You can check out more picks from the pundits as their weekly rankings are unveiled soon.