Week 10 is a weekend of new faces. Fernando Mendoza and Carson Beck make their first NFL regular-season starts, injuries have cleared a path for Corey Kiner in New England, and Breece Hall gets his first full week of practice after returning from a five-game absence. Before any of that, Saturday’s college slate puts most of the CFP top 10 on the field, several of them on the road against ranked teams. Here is what fantasy managers need to know for both days.
College Football Saturday: The CFP Board Gets Tested
The committee’s second rankings came out Tuesday with Georgia at No. 1, followed by Utah, Alabama and UCLA. Plenty of them have real tests this week. Rankings below are CFP; times are Eastern.
No. 22 Missouri at No. 1 Georgia (3:30, ABC)
Georgia moved up to the top spot after Miami fell from No. 1 to No. 7. Missouri sits at No. 22 and needs a road upset to get back into the at-large conversation. In CFB DFS, Georgia skill players are the safer pieces of this game in a home spot.
No. 18 USC at No. 9 Indiana (3:30, CBS)
This is the most fantasy-relevant game of the afternoon, and also the most uncertain. Curt Cignetti has declined to say whether Josh Hoover, the TCU transfer who has not been fully healthy lately, will start for Indiana. USC’s Jayden Maiava runs one of the best passing offenses in the country, which makes the Trojans the easier side to build around. Do not lock in Indiana passing stacks until the Hoosiers name a starter.
No. 8 Tennessee at Texas A&M (3:00, ESPN)
Tennessee jumped from No. 13 to No. 8 in a week and now plays at Kyle Field. The Vols hold a projected first-round home game in the current bracket, and a loss here would put that at risk.
No. 2 Utah at No. 23 Arizona (7:30, FOX)
Unbeaten Utah comes off a win over BYU and gets a second straight ranked opponent, this time on the road in Tucson. It is the best night game of the Big 12 slate, followed by No. 12 Texas Tech at No. 25 Oklahoma State (9:30, ESPN), where the Red Raiders are the first team out of the projected bracket.
No. 6 Texas at No. 21 LSU (7:30, ABC)
New Orleans native Arch Manning plays in Tiger Stadium in prime time, and he has said his focus is on winning the game, not his family’s history. Texas needs this one to protect a projected home playoff game.
Also worth your attention
- Michigan at No. 16 Oregon (3:30, FS1): the Ducks have three losses and can’t afford a fourth.
- No. 3 Alabama at Vanderbilt (12:45, SECN) and Duke at No. 7 Miami (noon, ABC): early games for two teams protecting high seeds.
- Boston College at No. 5 Notre Dame (3:30, NBC): the Irish jumped from No. 11 to No. 5 and should control this one at home.
NFL Sunday: Week 10
Chicago, Denver, Philadelphia and Tampa Bay are on bye, so D’Andre Swift, Saquon Barkley and Bucky Irving are out of lineups this week. That bye-week crunch puts more weight on the following situations.
Patriots at Lions (Munich, Sunday morning)
Rhamondre Stevenson is expected to miss the next few weeks with a plantaris tendon injury in his knee, and TreVeyon Henderson has been ruled out with an illness. That leaves Corey Kiner as the lead back, with Lan Larison behind him. Kiner has 244 rushing yards on 50 carries this season, a team-best 4.9 yards per carry, and he should see 15 or more carries. The matchup is the catch: Detroit allows the second-fewest fantasy points per game to running backs. Treat Kiner as a volume-based RB2/flex, not a ceiling play. On the Detroit side, Jared Goff (chest) was limited this week and Amon-Ra St. Brown (rib) is questionable. This game kicks off hours before the main slate, so set lineups and DFS rosters Saturday night.
Seahawks at Raiders
Fernando Mendoza makes his first NFL start, against the Seahawks, whose defense head coach Klint Kubiak knows well from his time as Seattle’s offensive coordinator. Rookie quarterbacks tend to rely on short, safe throws early on, and that favors Brock Bowers, who stays a must-start tight end. Seattle is also starting a backup: Sam Darnold is out with rib and quad injuries, and Drew Lock starts after tests on his oblique came back clean. Lower your expectations for the Seattle passing game, not the running game. In Week 9, Zach Charbonnet ran 16 times for 77 yards on 37 snaps, while Jadarian Price had nine carries for 24 yards and four catches for 54 yards on 24 snaps. Charbonnet handles early downs and Price is the receiving back, and both are flex-worthy against Las Vegas.
Rams at Cardinals
Puka Nacua (knee/toe) faces a multi-week absence and Davante Adams is out with a hamstring injury, so the Rams are without both of their top receivers. Expect more of the offense to run through the backfield. Kyren Williams is a must-start, and Blake Corum, who ran 11 times for 58 yards and a touchdown against Washington in Week 9, is a viable flex in a game the Rams should control. On the other side, Gardner Minshew’s arm injury moves rookie Carson Beck into his first career start against a pass rush that may get Myles Garrett back. Keep Arizona pass-catchers outside of must-start players on your bench. Zonovan Knight (concussion) was limited in practice; if he can’t go, Tyler Allgeier gets the work.
Bills at Jets
Breece Hall had 18 touches for 87 yards in his first game back (15 carries for 61 yards, three catches for 26), while Braelon Allen had 10 touches. That is a clear lead role, and Hall is an RB2 against Buffalo. Garrett Wilson (concussion) was limited this week and Aaron Glenn is confident he will play; if he clears, he returns to WR2 range.
Vikings at Packers
Minnesota’s quarterback situation is unsettled. Kyler Murray (hamstring) did not practice Wednesday or Thursday, and Carson Wentz (ankle) was limited. T.J. Hockenson (wrist/chest) and Jauan Jennings (calf) also sat. Justin Jefferson stays in lineups no matter who starts, but hold off on secondary Vikings pieces until Sunday’s inactives.
Texans at Browns
Cleveland goes back to Deshaun Watson after he cleared concussion protocol, ending Shedeur Sanders’ fill-in run. Receiver Denzel Boston (toe) missed practice early in the week, so check his status before you start any Browns receiver.
Players in Good and Bad Spots
- Good spot: Kyren Williams. A thin receiving group means more touches for the backfield.
- Good spot: Brock Bowers. A rookie quarterback’s first start usually means short, quick throws.
- Good spot: Breece Hall. His workload in Week 9 confirmed the lead role.
- Volume, tough matchup: Corey Kiner. The carries are there, but Detroit limits running backs.
- Bad spot: Cardinals and Raiders pass-catchers other than Bowers. Both offenses have rookie quarterbacks making their first starts.
- Wait for news: Indiana’s quarterback, the Vikings’ quarterback and Garrett Wilson.
Monday Night Note
Jacoby Brissett makes his Ravens debut against the Chargers with Lamar Jackson (thumb) out. With a quarterback acquired at midseason still learning the offense, expect Baltimore to lean on Derrick Henry and the run game. Treat Baltimore’s receivers as flex options until Brissett shows he can support them.
See today's NCAA FB lines on DFS Lines, each one set against the player's last ten games.