Tyrone Tracy gets the golden matchup! 🏆

Tune in to the latest episode of the Upper Hand Fantasy Podcast! Faraz and Zach covered the best and worst QB & RB matchups on yesterday’s episode, followed by the WRs and TEs episode today!

Also, make sure to check out the Upper Hand Fantasy Discord server if you haven’t already! Get your start sit questions answered, talk smack, and become part of a great community as we push into the stretch run of the fantasy season!

• Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence considered ‘unlikely’ to play in Week 10 vs Vikings with shoulder injury

  • Well, that went from zero to a hundred in the blink of an eye. Reports early in the day Wednesday from Ian Rapoport indicated that the Jacksonville quarterback was dealing with a shoulder injury and that he is officially trending towards missing the Jaguars’ week 10 tilt vs the Vikings. As you might recall, the Jaguars prepared themselves this offseason for this exact situation: they swung a trade for former Patriots QB and first round pick Mac Jones this past March. Of course, Jones offers little to excite fantasy managers about the Jaguars offense, which was already struggling with Lawrence – a first-round draft classmate of Jones’. With the switch under center, the entire Jacksonville offense receives a downgrade – particularly star rookie WR Brian Thomas and TE Evan Engram. Despite a solid matchup on paper for WRs and QBs against the Vikings, DC Brian Flores of Minnesota has had many a QB’s head spinning in response to his exotic blitz packages and defensive play calling. Jones has been prone to mistakes in his career and is unlikely to pick up the Jags’ offense by its bootstraps, making both himself and the rest of the Jaguars offense almost radioactive in start/sit decisions this week.

• Bills WR Amari Cooper gets second limited practice in on Thursday; Keon Coleman remains sidelined

  • It’s good news for Cooper after being a surprise inactive last week against the Dolphins. He’s not out of the woods yet, of course, especially seeing as he’s been limited so far this week and was able to get some limited practices in last week and ultimately ended up being inactive. However, a week further removed from the injury suffered back in Week 8 against the Seahawks should have done him some good, and the expectation should be that he’ll play this week against the Colts. Cooper has yet to play a full complement of snaps in a Bills uniform, running a sub-50% route participation in both of his games this year. That number should go up this week if he suits up, especially with rookie WR Keon Coleman facing a multi-week absence with a wrist injury of his own. He’ll be a low-WR2 start with some upside in the matchup against Indianapolis, but it remains to be seen what his actual role will be in just his third game with the team. The floor is very low, and he still has to contend with the likes of Dalton Kincaid and Khalil Shakir in the Bills WR corps.

• Colts WR Michael Pittman Jr. misses practice for second-straight day with back and finger injuries, status for Week 10 up in the air

  • This is a deviation from Pittman’s normal veteran’s practice schedule, as he had been consistently missing Wednesdays for maintenance on a back issue he picked up a handful of games ago. His absence Thursday for the second time this week is likely a result of his finger injury, and his availability for this weekend’s game against the Bills suddenly bears monitoring. With Joe Flacco reportedly set to remain as the Colts’ starter the rest of the way, the arrow is still pointing up for Pittman relative to where it was with Anthony Richardson under center; however, a growing list of injuries doesn’t bode well for his status heading into the weekend. Josh Downs remains as the team’s top target earner, and in a generally tough matchup against Buffalo’s secondary, Pittman would be an upside flex play at best this week. Fantasy managers can likely find a better option elsewhere on their bench or off the waiver wire, but his practice status will be important to monitor later today for those who intend to rely on Pittman anyway.

RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. vs Carolina Panthers

• Tyrone Tracy draws the golden matchup this week agains the Panthers, who are allowing the most rush yards and rush touchdowns per game this season, the 8th-highest yards per carry, and the most fantasy points per game this season. Tracy has locked down the lead role in this backfield over Devin Singletary, and if there’s any team in the NFL the Giants have a shot at playing in a positive game script against, it’s Carolina. They’re 5.5-point favorites in Munich Sunday morning, which could lend itself to some late game emphasis on the ground game. He’s a fringe RB1.

RB Aaron Jones vs Jacksonville Jaguars

• Jacksonville has been getting slow roasted by just about everyone they’ve faced this year on the ground, allowing the 2nd-most receptions and 3rd-most receiving yards per game to running backs so far this season. Aaron Jones’ role has been that of a high-end RB1 over the past few weeks, but the production hasn’t caught up to that elite utilization. The chickens should come home to roost this week against a Jags defense allowing the 3rd-most fantasy points per game to running backs this year.

RB D’Andre Swift vs New England Patriots

• D’Andre Swift’s generational run continues with another favorable matchup against the Patriots. New England is allowing the 2nd-most rush yards, 4th-most rush touchdowns, and 7th-most yards per carry to running backs this season, on top of the sixth-most fantasy points per game. Swift has had at least 18 opportunities in five straight games, so the good times should keep rolling here. He’s a low-RB1 for me this week.

RB Christian McCaffrey vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers

• Christian McCaffrey is walking back into a fantastic matchup against the Buccaneers, who are allowing the 6th-highest yards per carry, 2nd-most receptions and 2nd-most receiving yards to running backs this season. There’s a chance that they take it relatively easy this week on McCaffrey when it comes to giving him a full workload, but CMC can be trusted regardless in this matchup if he’s active – even if he hangs around at 65-70% snap share.

RB Chuba Hubbard vs New York Giants

• The latest running back to get paid was one who absolutely deserved it, especially considering the high level of play he’s maintained on a terrible Panthers offense. The Giants have been middle of the pack when it comes to fantasy points allowed to running backs this year, but they’re giving up the league’s second-highest yards per carry (5.13) and rush yards per game (112.3) to running backs this season. Jonathon Brooks is back, but he shouldn’t bite too far into Hubbard’s workload with the Panthers likely to leave the bubble wrap on for at least a week or two yet with the former 2nd-round pick.

RB Tony Pollard vs Los Angeles Chargers

• The matchup for Pollard is one of the worst in the league, with the Chargers allowing the 2nd-fewest fantasy points per game to running backs on top of the fewest rush touchdowns per game, as well. Fortunately for Pollard, he has one of the best roles in the NFL among running backs – he’s earned 20 or more touches in every game but one this season. The upside isn’t astronomical for Pollard given the matchup and the low quality of Tennessee’s offense, but he’s come through in tough matchups before and can do it again this week as an RB2.

RB Javonte Williams vs Kansas City Chiefs

• Javonte’s role isn’t as bad as it was to begin the season, but it’s come down over the past few weeks since he put himself back on the fantasy radar with his two-TD performance in Week 7. His snap share dropped to 54% last week –down from 68% just three weeks ago. His opponent this week, the Chiefs, also happen to be the worst matchup on paper for RBs, allowing the fewest rush yards, yards per carry, and fantasy points per game to running backs. Let him ride the bench this week.