When I think of my favorite Halloween costumes, I think I was 7 and my Mom got me a Superman costume. I didn’t care that it was plastic – even the cape. I was going to be my favorite superhero. I even tried to fashion that little curl down the middle of the forehead. That’ll make me chuckle next time I shave my head.

For some reason that costume had a red mask that covered the eyes, similar to Robin. Superman didn’t hide from anyone, and neither would I. What I’d give to be 7 again, begging my parents to go out trick-or-treating the second the sun had gone down. Then coming home to see what my haul was. 

Here we are in the fantasy season, and after monster weeks from Alvin Kamara, A.J. Brown, Christian McCaffrey, Derrick Henry and D’Onta Foreman – one of these is not like the others – fantasy players are either in the hunt or gasping for air. Since you’re here, I know you’ve got a shot, so let’s get into some picks that aren’t too scary. Let’s see what kind of haul is awaiting you after the sun goes down on Tuesday night. Salud!

QUARTERBACK

JUSTIN FIELDS (41%) vs MIA
It’s starting to look like the Bears have their QB of the future. It’s not going to be pretty all the time, but Fields is the QB11 on the season and is second in QB rushing with 424 yards. Fields has only surpassed 200 passing yards once this season, so he has some growing to do there. I keep seeing 2021 Jalen Hurts when I see Fields playing, and Bears fans can hope that the front office gives the kid some help on the O-line and in the receiving corps. The game against Miami’s generous secondary that is #26 against QBs and is allowing 272.6 passing YPG is pretty enticing. 

P.J. WALKER (6%) @ CIN
Oh, that throw was so beautiful to seemingly close out the game against the Falcons. No other than Patrick Mahomes tweeted that was the best throw by anyone this year. That’s some high praise, though we won’t talk about what happened after the TD. Walker is in that QB2 in a super flex league discussion. He’s finding D.J. Moore repeatedly (21 targets last 2 weeks), though we’d like to see him run more than the one time he did against the Falcons. Speaking of the Falcons, after going to Cincinnati in Week 9 the Panthers host a rematch with the Falcons on Thursday Night Football a few days later. Let’s see what they do for an encore.

RUNNING BACK

CALEB HUNTLEY (4%) vs LAC
Yes, he’s sharing carries with Tyler Allgeier, but Huntley does have 10+ carries in 3 of his last 5 games. He put up a 16-91 rushing line against the Panthers, and now gets the Chargers and their defense that’s giving up 128.1 rushing YPG. That’s #31 in the league. If you need a bye-week fill-in, Huntley is an option. 

CAM AKERS (42%) TBD
I put TBD next to Akers’ name because by the time you hit the waiver wire, we should all know if Akers has a new location to where he’s taking his talents. If you need RB depth, he’s worth the flier for the remainder of the season. Repeat after me: You can never have too many running backs.

ISIAH PACHECO (34%) & JERICK MCKINNON (7%) vs TEN
These Chiefs are prime examples of the credo above. They’re both bench plays, and occasional flex options on bye weeks or with attrition. This is the dreaded timeshare in the backfield, and the snaps were distributed pretty evenly between McKinnon (28), Pacheco (19) and Clyde Edwards-Helaire (17) in their Week 7 game against the 49ers. This will probably remain this way the rest of the season, but if you need a dart throw for a player who could score a TD, grabbing a Chief is always a good idea. 

WIDE RECEIVER

ROMEO DOUBS (47%) @ DET
You have to like it when a rookie has a rough game, gets nationally called out by a future HOF QB (though not by name), and when the WR corps for his team is decimated by injuries, the kid came through with a TD on national TV. Christian Watson is going into the concussion protocol, so it’s going to be Doubs as the primary WR target going against a Lion secondary that just got its position coach fired and is averaging 276.7 YPG allowed and has been beat for 12 TD passes total. They’re fresh off getting torched by the Dolphins, so it could be a further confidence booster for Doubs.

ALEC PIERCE (41%) @ NE
This is a pickup not for this week, but for games coming up against the Raiders and Steelers. Those defenses are #32 and #28, respectively, against the pass. Pierce is an option against those teams, and not against the Patriots this week. With a rookie QB in Sam Ehlinger, even with target volume Pierce is very much boom-bust.

MECOLE HARDMAN (35%) vs TEN
Are the 4 carries for 32 yards and a score a mirage or a sign of things to come? Well, they might be the sign of the times, because Hardman had 7 carries for 115 yards and 1 TD combined in the previous two games. It’s a good idea for the Chiefs to get the ball into the hands of their fastest player’s hands, and the Titans have been getting beat through the air.

JOSHUA PALMER (27%) @ ATL
He’s coming off missing Week 7 with a concussion, and going to take some of the almost 9 targets per game that Mike Williams is leaving behind due to his ankle injury. The Chargers get Keenan Allen back, so Palmer is going into that WR2 role in Justin Herbert’s pass-happy offense. The Falcons just got wrecked by D.J. Moore and is averaging 318.1 passing YPG allowed. There will be plenty for Palmer to eat this week, and for weeks ahead until Williams returns.

RONDALE MOORE (35%) vs SEA
After worrying his owners with just 2 targets upon DeAndre Hopkins’ return, Moore got 8 targets to Nuk’s 13 yesterday. He turned that into a line of 7-92-1. Until Marquise Brown is back – if he comes back at all – Moore is going to run as the #2 in this passing attack. Seattle is #4 defending WRs, and the Cardinals do face some good secondaries after that, but with Hopkins back the defensive attention is going to focus first on the all-world WR before Moore. 

TIGHT END

EVAN ENGRAM (43%) vs LV
In watching that game against the Broncos, I was surprised at how much Trevor lawrence looked for Engram in crucial situations. When I saw he was targeted 6 times, it felt more like 10. He caught 4 balls for 55 yards and a TD. The memory of Travis Kelce’s incredible 7-25-4 line is still vivid with fantasy players, so Engram is very much in play this week.

WILL DISSLY (13%) @ AZ
This is largely because the Cardinals are #31 against the TE and allowing an average of 7 catches for 71 YPG. Dissly hasn’t gotten more than 4 targets in any game, so this is just a YOLO play or a bye-week fill-in. Both teams can score, so there could be some important targets coming Dissly’s way.

ISAIAH LIKELY (5%) @ NO
With Mark Andrews running just 9 routes before he went out with a shoulder injury, and Rashod Bateman succumbing to a foot injury, the Ravens needed someone to catch passes. Enter Likely, who ran a team-high 35 routes and caught 6 of 7 targets for 77 yards and 1 TD. This is a TE-centric offense, so even when Andrews is healthy, until Bateman is back there will be targets available for Likely. Even with the Saints being #3 and allowing just 30.5 receiving YPG to the position, this is a move for weeks ahead at a position that’s just so shallow.

GREG DULCICH (41%) BYE
Another down-the-road peekup. Dulcich has become a primary target in the Denver passing game, catching 4 of 5 targets for 87 yards. He also ran 32 routes, which was a couple behind Courtland Sutton and Jerry Jeudy. The Broncos will need all the offensive weapons they can get. And with the TE position in the state it’s in, Dulcich is at least a backup TE for your team and possibly a starter. 

STREAMING DEFENSE OF WEEK 9

MIAMI (43%) @ CHICAGO
The Dolphins like to dial up the pressure, and pressured Jared Goff 14 times and sacked him once. As good as Fields has been, and the Bears have been to get him moving in the pocket, he’s still running for his life against teams with good pass rushes. That will happen again this week. 

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