RADIO
Week 10 was a welcome reprieve. There was little disappointment around fantasy circles when it comes to studs coming up short. After all, it's hard to be disappointed when you've lost all confidence to begin with. Just look at the tight end position. There was no stud who came up short in Week 10 because no stud tight end took the field. Travis Kelce was off on bye; George Kittle is on IR. The rest of the positional group failed to have a single player reach 12 fantasy points in non-PPR.
On the running back side of things, it was nice to not be let down by Ezekiel Elliott as the Dallas Cowboys were on bye. The rest of the RBs were again without a number of the biggest names in the sport due to injury. No studs disappointed, but the list is short regardless. It would be a stretch to deem someone like James Conner or Melvin Gordon a stud. Likewise, it wouldn't be fair to say Derrick Henry put up a dud. He got his standard 100 yards rushing and nothing in the passing game. It was actually a solid showing against the best defense in the league.
That leaves us with just wide receivers and one other big name coming up short this week. Those managers hardly take solace though in the fact that it was an okay, albeit low-scoring week for the rest of us. When a dud performance comes from a stud player, it is supremely disheartening. Just remember that not all duds are created equal. Some disastrous performances are signs of more to come. Here are Week 10's studs turned duds.
Michael Thomas, New Orleans Saints
The season from hell continues for Michael Thomas. The stud wide receiver couldn't even get on the field for most of the season. He finally returned to underwhelming results in Week 9, and Week 10 was as bad as things get. Thomas caught two passes for 27 yards. When a top draft pick is injured, it is hard to hold it against him. But once he returns to the lineup, managers expect a return to excellence, and that simply hasn't happened for Thomas. He did garner seven targets, which was his season-high. That didn't generate production. And now that Drew Brees may hit the bench with multiple core injuries, Thomas has to rely on Jameis Winston to consistently hit him with accurate passes. It is a scary proposition. On the plus side, Winston will likely takes more chances down the field than Brees, which could open up bigger and better opportunities for Thomas.
Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
It took 10 weeks, but Wilson finally had his first bad fantasy game of the year. He completed 59.5 percent of his passes for 248 yards, no touchdowns, and two picks. He added a fumble, his third in two games. 60 yards on the ground saved Wilson from a truly debilitating week, but his fantasy total was bad nonetheless. The fact that this performance came against the Los Angeles Rams makes some sense. They are one of the best defenses Seattle has faced this year. But against the other elite defenses thus far, Wilson went off. (360 yards on 70.6 percent complete against Miami; four touchdowns, no turnovers against San Francisco.) Seattle hadn't been stopped by anyone yet. LAR was the first.
A big-time divisional matchup against Arizona is up next before a straight month of games against the worst teams in the league. Wilson threw for 388 yards and three scores in his first game against the Cardinals. He remains a stud quarterback for the rest of the season.
DK Metcalf, Seattle Seahawks
Metcalf bounced back in a major way from his worst game of the season in Week 7. After two great showings, though, Week 10 was another dud. Coinciding with Wilson's struggles, Metcalf saw a season-low four targets, catching two for 28 yards. The fact that his first dud (that Week 7 contest) came against Arizona doesn't mean a ton for this pending rematch. It is more a case of the entire Seattle offense getting back on track. And Metcalf will have the edge over Tyler Lockett. The latter has a knee sprain that could hamper or sideline him for the short week.
A.J. Brown, Tennessee Titans
The young receiver was cementing his stud-when-healthy status until this week. He had seen at least seven targets and scored at least one touchdown in all five of his games since returning from injury. This sixth game was where the floor fell out. Brown collected one catch for 21 yards against the league-leading Indianapolis defense. The outcome makes a little bit of sense when looking at the splits. Tennessee threw only 27 passes as it attempted to grind Indy with 32 carries on the ground. The Titans also held a halftime lead, perhaps invigorating them to keep with the game plan.
Corey Davis and Jonnu Smith both saw more targets than Brown, which is more worrisome. But that is not a trend that has developed. For the year, Brown leads the team in targets despite not playing from Week 2 through Week 4 (with Tennessee having a bye in Week 4). He is also number two in the NFL in YAC above expectation and tops among anyone with at least 15 catches.
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