Early waiver wire targets and biggest risers/fallers in fantasy football following NFL Week 10

Only Monday Night Football remains on the 2021 NFL Week 10 slate, so most fantasy football managers will now be turning their gaze to Week 11 to try to gain an advantage in their fantasy leagues.

It’s important not to overreact to individual stat lines. For example, some players scored two touchdowns this week yet probably won’t do that again this season, while other players saw the field for most of their team's snaps but couldn't quite make it to the end zone.

Remember: chase the usage, not the box score.

Here are some early waiver wire targets and the biggest risers and fallers from NFL Week 10. For a more detailed 32-team view of the week, including snap counts, check out the Complete Week 10 Fantasy Football Recap.

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Waiver Wire Targets

RB D’Onta Foreman, Tennessee Titans: Foreman was the most effective back for Tennessee for the second straight week as he and Adrian Peterson continued to split carries. Foreman logged a few more rush attempts and was also effective as a receiver out of the backfield. He gained 48 yards on two catches and 30 yards on 11 carries. If he continues to play this well, he should continue to lead this backfield in snaps.

RB Rhamondre Stevenson, New England Patriots: Stevenson took over from Damien Harris, who is still dealing with a concussion. The rookie back put together a dominant performance on the ground, with 100 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. His five targets in the passing game are also an encouraging development: Harris has never seen that many targets in a game, and New England rarely gives its early-down backs that many.

The chances are that this is a three-man backfield as early as next week, but Stevenson is still worth having on rosters in case Harris ends up missing more time.

WR Marcus Johnson, Tennessee Titans: Johnson was the fifth man on the depth chart for Tennessee one week ago, but Julio Jones' trip to the injured reserve moved him back into the starting lineup.

Johnson was the most impressive Titan on offense in Week 10, recording a 100-yard game. His success is somewhat because of the good matchup against the Saints, but he will have an even better matchup next week against the Texans. He could be a potential fantasy starter in deeper leagues next week.

TE Dan Arnold, Jacksonville Jaguars: If you’ve read any of my articles in the past month, you’ve heard that fantasy managers should not only be adding Arnold off the waiver wire, but they should also be slotting him into starting lineups. He’s still available in 74% of ESPN leagues, and he keeps producing. He caught five passes for 67 yards, while no other Jaguars receiver recorded more than 35 yards. This was his third straight game with 60 or more yards. He doesn’t have as much touchdown upside as other tight ends, but his floor is higher than most.

Biggest Risers

RB Christian McCaffrey, Carolina Panthers: McCaffrey played a limited role in his return last week, but he was closer to his usual self in Week 10, handling double-digit carries and receptions. He was one of the top fantasy running backs of the week, but there is still room to grow.

Carolina had multiple opportunities within the 5-yard line on Sunday, yet a different Panther scored each time. And while he played close to 100% of offensive snaps when he was at his peak, he only played two-thirds of snaps before leaving this Week 10 game.

The star back went to the medical tent in the fourth quarter but seemed OK, though he remained on the sidelines with the game out of reach. He is the top running back option the rest of the season as long as he can stay healthy.

RB Antonio Gibson, Washington Football Team: After dealing with a shin injury for weeks, Gibson returned to his usual role in Week 10. He was limited in the first quarter but saw most first- and second-down snaps the rest of the game. This led to a career-high in carries and his fourth game with multiple rushing touchdowns. He can be trusted a lot more going forward.

WR T.Y. Hilton, Indianapolis Colts: The veteran wide receiver has missed most of the season with various injuries. When he’s been healthy, he’s split playing time with another wide receiver in three-receiver sets. He took nearly all of the snaps in such sets in this game, leading to his first outing with over 50% of offensive snaps. This didn’t lead to much production, with just one catch for five yards, but he did see five targets. The increased usage could lead to good games out of Hilton in the future.

Biggest Fallers

RB Mike Davis, Atlanta Falcons: Starting running back Cordarrelle Patterson suffered what is believed to be a mild high-ankle sprain. He returned to the game briefly but didn’t end up playing in the second half. Wayne Gallman took over as the primary rusher, while Davis saw a slightly increased role on passing downs. Davis ended up running four times for 18 yards and didn’t catch his only target.

If Patterson ends up missing any time, then Gallman would be a waiver wire target. Regardless of his health, Davis can be released. He hasn’t been a top-24 fantasy running back since Week 2, and it would require multiple injuries for him to handle a significant number of carries.

WR Courtland Sutton, Denver Broncos: The Broncos' starter has looked great at times this season, but he’s consistently been a non-factor with Jerry Jeudy in the lineup. In four games with Jeudy, Sutton has caught six passes, which includes the two catches for 29 yards on three targets yesterday. Hopefully Denver can find a better way to balance their star receivers at some point. Until then, fantasy managers just can't trust Sutton.

TE Pat Freiermuth, Pittsburgh Steelers: The rookie tight end has been excellent for fantasy managers recently, with three touchdowns in his previous two games. It was Eric Ebron‘s absence that opened up the opportunity for the rookie, but Ebron returned for their game against the Lions and took a number of the passing routes.

Freiermuth gained only 31 yards on five catches, and it took 50 pass attempts to reach that point. He ran a route on 31 pass plays, giving him just 1.00 yards per route run. He should be more effective once Ben Roethlisberger is back, but his opportunities will still be limited as long as he has to share time.