The Rookie Report: Week 10
In Fantasy Football, rookies are often the most confusing players to evaluate. Due to their inexperience and lack of sample size in the NFL, they are susceptible to inconsistency and volatility, creating chaos for your fantasy team. To help get a better understanding of how to deal with rookies, each week, I’ll be writing a column breaking down some of the most important rookies for fantasy and helping you decide how to value these players moving forward. Welcome to the Rookie Report.
Notes: Touches for running backs are calculated by adding carries and targets. An asterisk (*) next to a player indicates that they were on bye in Week 10.
Quarterbacks
| Player | Attempts | Pass. Yards | Touchdowns | Interceptions | Fantasy Points | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trevor Lawrence | 35 (36.8) | 162 (220.33) | 0 (1.11) | 0 (1) | 9.78 (12.91) | QB18 |
| Mac Jones | 23 (32.3) | 198 (233.3) | 3 (1.3) | 0 (0.7) | 19.92 (13.72) | QB4 |
Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars
Lawrence—one of just two rookie quarterbacks to play this week—had an inefficient performance versus the Colts. He completed fewer than 50% of his passes and did not have any touchdowns in the Jaguars’ loss. I’d stay away from Lawrence in fantasy with tough matchups versus the 49ers and Rams coming up in the next few weeks.
Zach Wilson, Jets
Wilson was once again inactive for the Jets as he continues to rehab his knee injury. Even if he becomes the Jets starter at QB, he isn’t even worth considering rostering in fantasy.
Trey Lance, 49ers
Lance continues to be the backup quarterback for the 49ers, and will not be fantasy-relevant as long as that remains.
Justin Fields*, Bears
Fields was on a bye this week and could not build off his strong performances in weeks 8 and 9. I wouldn’t roster Fields quite yet because of his inconsistencies, but definitely keep a lookout on how he performs in the coming weeks—if he starts to pick things up, he’s certainly a streaming caliber QB.
Mac Jones, Patriots
Somehow, Mac was the QB4 on the week despite having under 20 fantasy points. Even in a game where the Patriots scored six touchdowns and had 45 points, Mac was unspectacular for fantasy, proving why he likely should be left on waivers unless in dire circumstances.
Running Backs
| Player | Touches | Rush. Yards | Touchdowns | Fantasy Points | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Najee Harris | 30 (19.6) | 105 (71.78) | 0 (0.67) | 15.3 (19.3) | RB14 |
| Javonte Williams | 11 (10.3) | 48 (51.4) | 0 (0.2) | 5.9 (9.7) | RB38 |
| Michael Carter | 22 (11.3) | 39 (40.78) | 1 (0.44) | 16.2 (13.1) | RB13 |
| Kenneth Gainwell | 3 (4.3) | 5 (15.5) | 0 (0.4) | 1.9 (7.4) | RB53 |
| Chuba Hubbard | 9 (12) | 27 (42.1) | 1 (0.3) | 8.7 (9.2) | RB27 |
| Rhamondre Stevenson | 25 (9.17) | 100 (39.33) | 2 (0.5) | 25.4 (11.2) | RB2 |
Note: 49ers running back Elijah Mitchell was not included in the initial publishing of this article as he played on Monday Night.
Najee Harris, Steelers
Najee was yet again an incredibly solid fantasy option this week, running for over 100 yards en route to a top-15 finish at the position. Continue to confidently start him each week as an RB1.
Javonte Williams, Broncos
Javonte had a relatively down week, totaling just 48 yards on eight carries. However, his fantasy value remains essentially the same—he’s a consistent FLEX option that likely will not see enough volume to be a top-10 option.
Michael Carter, Jets
Carter continued to be in a featured role in the Jets offense, amassing 22 touches and finishing as a top-15 option. Even though it might not be pretty to watch, Carter sees enough volume to be a FLEX-able player in fantasy football, especially in PPR leagues. With this being said, it will be important to keep an eye out for how he is used once Zach Wilson returns from injury.
Kenneth Gainwell, Eagles
Gainwell was once again a nonfactor for fantasy, and can safely be dropped in all fantasy formats.
Chuba Hubbard, Panthers
Hubbard got into the end zone as Christian McCaffrey temporarily left Sunday’s game, but was irrelevant for fantasy beyond that. He’s nothing more than a handcuff as long as CMC is healthy.
Rhamondre Stevenson, Patriots
Wow. With Damien Harris out with a concussion, Stevenson saw a career-high 25 touches and finished as the overall RB2 on the week despite not practicing all week. Given the prowess of the Pats running game, Stevenson should definitely be rostered if he isn’t already and is a valuable backup. If the injury-prone Harris misses any more time with injury, Stevenson can be plugged in as a top-20 running back option.
Wide Receivers
| Player | Targets | Rec. Yards | Touchdowns | Fantasy Points | Rank | Target Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DeVonta Smith | 6 (6.8) | 66 (60.3) | 2 (0.4) | 20.6 (11.7) | WR5 | 27.2% |
| Jaylen Waddle | 6 (8.4) | 61 (55.7) | 0 (0.3) | 8.1 (10.2) | WR38 | 17.6% |
| Rashod Bateman | 8 (7) | 80 (60.25) | 0 (0) | 11.0 (8.3) | WR22 | 19.5% |
| Rondale Moore | 4 (4.4) | 10 (36.2) | 0 (0.1) | 2.1 (7.2) | WR78 | 13.8% |
| Amon-Ra St. Brown | 6 (5.5) | 61 (38.88) | 0 (0) | 8.1 (6.1) | WR37 | 25.0% |
| Elijah Moore | 6 (5.75) | 44 (34.25) | 1 (0.5) | 11.9 (9.5) | WR19 | 13.0% |
Ja’Marr Chase*, Bengals
Chase was on bye this week but can continue to be treated as an elite WR1 for fantasy moving forward.
DeVonta Smith, Eagles
Smitty made the most of his six targets on Sunday, catching two touchdowns in the Eagles’ blowout victory.
DeVonta Smith OVER SURTAIN.
Bama rookies going at it 🔥
📺: #PHIvsDEN on CBS
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/0RciJTD75I— NFL (@NFL) November 14, 2021
Smith has established a strong connection with Jalen Hurts in the last few weeks (two straight 20+ fantasy point performances), and can be safely FLEX-ed in all fantasy formats.
Jaylen Waddle, Dolphins
Waddle wasn’t anything special in the Dolphins Thursday Night upset victory over the Ravens, registering six targets for 61 yards. I’d continue to treat him as a borderline FLEX play in fantasy, with a bump in PPR formats.
Rondale Moore, Cardinals
Sunday was a bad day for most things Cardinals related, and Moore was no exception. The former Purdue receiver had just 10 receiving yards despite DeAndre Hopkins not playing, and can safely be dropped in fantasy.
Rashod Bateman, Ravens
Bateman had another solid fantasy performance on Thursday night, racking up 80 receiving yards in the Ravens loss. Bateman has gotten at least six targets in every single game of his career to date, and should be picked up in fantasy if he isn’t already rostered. For now, he’s a dependable backup option.
Kadarius Toney*, Giants
The Giants were on a bye this week, which hopefully allowed Toney to fully recover from his hand injury that he suffered in Week 8. If Toney is fully healthy, he is a FLEX-able fantasy option as he proved how high his ceiling was in the first few weeks of the season.
Elijah Moore, Jets
The Mike White effect benefitted Moore once again, as while the Jets didn’t play great, Moore caught a touchdown and had a decent fantasy performance. He shouldn’t be started in fantasy but can be picked up from the waiver wire. I’d spend about 5% of a FAAB budget on him.
Tight End(s)
| Player | Targets | Rec. Yards | Touchdowns | Fantasy Points | Rank | Target Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyle Pitts | 7 (7.11) | 60 (67.33) | 0 (0.11) | 8.0 (10.8) | TE10 | 25.9% |
| Pat Freiermuth | 9 (4.67) | 31 (30.67) | 0 (0.44) | 3.6 (8.2) | TE24 | 18.4% |
Kyle Pitts, Falcons
Pitts was rather disappointing for fantasy again, finishing with just eight fantasy points. He’s one of the few tight ends that sees consistent volume and should therefore be started every week, but fantasy managers can’t help but feel a bit let down by the superstar draft prospect.
Pat Freiermuth, Steelers
Freiermuth fell back down to Earth on Sunday, accumulating just 31 receiving yards in the “football game” versus the Lions. However, he saw a season-high nine targets and can be treated as one of the premier streaming options for fantasy.
