RADIO
Navigating the bye weeks was probably a nightmare for fantasy managers. Thankfully, we finally got some explosive offensive performances from the teams that were playing. However, offensive line play continued to be inconsistent despite the uptick in offensive production.
Thankfully, there weren’t many significant injuries across offensive line units in the NFL in Week 9. However, several players were benched, including Colts right guard Matt Pryor and Patriots 2022 first-round pick Cole Strange.
Four more teams will be on bye this week, including fantasy-relevant players from the Bengals, Ravens, Patriots, and Jets. What players should you target on the waiver wire to supplement their scoring? Check out the offensive line matchups to consider below.
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Champ of the Week
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons' offensive line continues to roll through opponents, this time grinding down the Chargers' injury-riddled defensive front. The Falcons rushed for 201 yards (5.7 yards per carry) before ultimately losing by a last-second field goal.
The Falcons surrendered just one sack and three total pressures in the passing game, but the obvious story was their continued success on the ground. All five of Atlanta’s offensive linemen finished the game with run blocking grades above 62.0 and PFF grades above 69.0.
The Falcons are still in the running in an abysmal NFC South this season and have turned a corner with their highly-drafted offensive line. As long as the unit stays healthy, Atlanta should have plenty of chances to continue imposing its will on the ground.
Chump of the Week
Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals continued to struggle on offense against the Seattle Seahawks thanks to a banged-up offensive line. The team continues to struggle with Rodney Hudson out of the game and also lost right guard Will Hernandez to a pectoral injury after just nine snaps.
Billy Price continues to struggle both snapping the ball and blocking, as evidenced by his two sacks surrendered and 27.8 PFF grade. But the rest of the line didn’t fair much better. Only left tackle D.J. Humphries finished with a PFF grade above 60.0 this week and even he gave up three pressures on the day.
Arizona’s offense has struggled to get into a flow this season, but this week the issues stemmed from subpar blocking.
Week 10 Matchups to Target
New York Giants vs. Houston Texans
The last time we saw the Giants' offensive line, they put together a solid effort against the Seattle Seahawks despite missing rookie right tackle Evan Neal. They’ve had some extra time to get Tyre Phillips acclimated on the right side and find themselves in a solid matchup against the Houston Texans.
The Texans feature PFF’s worst-graded run defense (29.6) and the sixth-worst pass rush (64.9) in the NFL this season. Even a Giants offensive line missing a big part still features above-average blockers in left tackle Andrew Thomas, center Jon Feliciano, and right guard Mark Glowinski.
Expect Saquon Barkley (and potentially Daniel Jones) to have ample running lanes this week.
San Francisco 49ers vs. Los Angeles Chargers
This seems like an unstoppable force meeting up against a very moveable object. The 49ers' offensive line is collectively top-10 in PFF’s run blocking, pass blocking, and overall grades. The Chargers, on the other hand, are surrendering 6.0 yards per carry this season.
The 49ers' offense will be coming off a bye week with a chance to get Deebo Samuel healthy and Christian McCaffrey integrated into the offense. The Chargers' pass rush is severely missing the pressure generated by Joey Bosa, making all of the 49ers' offensive weapons viable fantasy plays this week.
Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions
The Chicago Bears offensive line still has their struggles as pass blockers, but that is mostly negated thanks to the exceptional rushing ability of Justin Fields.
The Bears allowed just eight pressures and a sack against a revamped Dolphins pass rush now featuring Bradley Chubb. The Bears' collective offensive line continued their dominance on the ground and collectively rank as PFF’s sixth-best run-blocking unit.
The Bears will face a much weaker defensive front this week with the Detroit Lions coming into town. The Lions have just three players who have generated double-digit pressures and only one player (rookie Aidan Hutchinson) with more than 2.0 sacks.
Justin Fields remains a QB1 and David Montgomery and Khalil Herbert maintain their fantasy upside. Darnell Mooney and Cole Kmet have seen their value rise with the team passing the ball more and Chase Claypool could also see a bigger role in the offense against a defensive line that won’t get to the quarterback consistently.
Week 10 Matchups to Avoid
Buffalo Bills vs. Minnesota Vikings
The Buffalo Bills could be in trouble with Josh Allen navigating an ambiguous (at this point) elbow injury. The Bills' offensive line struggled against the Jets, surrendering two sacks and 12 pressures, including this potentially season-altering one.
Unfortunately for Buffalo, their struggling offensive line will face off against Minnesota’s daunting pass rush. Five different pass rushers have double-digit pressures, including 46 from Za’Darius Smith. Smith also leads the way with 8.0 sacks, followed by Danielle Hunter (5.0) and D.J. Wonnum (4.0).
The Bills' offense may struggle with a limited (or missing) Josh Allen, which is bad news for their running back group and pass catchers.
Tennessee Titans vs. Denver Broncos
The Titans' offensive line has had some inconsistent showings since losing left tackle Taylor Lewan. The Titans are fresh off a game against the Kansas City Chiefs where their collective offensive line averaged a 46.2 pass-blocking grade, according to PFF.
People will look down at the Broncos' defense after they moved Bradley Chubb, but they still have an extremely deep core of explosive pass rushers. Four different defensive linemen on the team have double-digit pressures, including Chubb’s direct replacement, Baron Browning.
Browning has generated 19 pressures and 3.0 sacks on just 256 defensive snaps. Derrick Henry remains a must-start thanks to his massive role in the offense, but all other Titans should be avoided.
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