Rico Dowdle acted as Carolina’s workhorse just as Dave Canales promised last week, and the running back continued to impress. He finished as fantasy’s RB2 against a tough Packers’ run defense and with the Panthers big underdogs on the road. Dowdle somehow ranks third in the league in rushing yards despite starting only three games. He’s locked in as an RB1 the rest of the season and will be a borderline top-five fantasy back this week if health cooperates. Dowdle missed Wednesday’s practice with a quad injury he played through last week, and it sounds precautionary. Dowdle’s health is one of many key questions entering Week 10.

Has Kyler Murray been replaced in Arizona?

Murray has been placed on the injured reserve list with a foot injury, but Jonathan Gannon said Jacoby Brissett would be the starter regardless of Murray’s health. Brissett undoubtedly benefitted from facing the Cowboys last week, but he also played well against the Colts and Packers. He gets a tough matchup in Seattle and belongs on fantasy benches in Week 10, but Trey McBride and Marvin Harrison will continue to benefit greatly from the quarterback swap.

The Trey McBride experience, by quarterback:

– Kyler Murray: 259 targets, 5 TDs
– Jacoby Brissett: 33 targets, 4 TDs

— scott pianowski (@scott_pianowski) November 5, 2025

McBride has caught just one fewer touchdown (4) from Brissett than Murray on 226 fewer targets. Harrison had twice as many catches (4) during an opening drive Monday night as his previous career high. Harrison had never recorded more than six receptions in a game before last week! Murray has one of the league’s worst catchable throw rates to the intermediary part of the field (10-19 yards),

Harrison has seen his yards per route run jump 25% with Brissett, and his PPR production has spiked 27%; and that includes a game in which MHJ exited in the second quarter with a concussion. Arizona’s pass rate over expected has been the second-highest in the league with Brissett, as Gannon appears to trust his new signal caller. Murray obviously brings a running element that Brissett doesn’t, but fantasy managers of Arizona’s pass catchers are hoping the move is permanent.

McBride will battle a healthy Brock Bowers for fantasy’s No. 1 tight end with Brissett’s aid, and Harrison becomes a borderline top-15 WR. The Cardinals have an incredibly difficult upcoming schedule, so there may be calls for Murray’s return when he’s eventually healthy. Arizona gets a dream matchup with the Bengals during fantasy’s championship week, and who starts at QB will matter.

What does Chicago’s backfield look like?

Kyle Monangai led the league with 176 rushing yards last week, which were the fourth most in any game this season. His performance came against a Bengals defense hemorrhaging the most schedule-adjusted fantasy points to running backs this season, but Monangai looked terrific. He gained more rushing yards over expected last week (58) than D’Andre Swift has gained all season (41).

The Bears get another highly-favorable matchup this week versus a Giants defense yielding the third-most schedule-adjusted RB fantasy points. New York has been gashed for an NFL-high 5.8 yards per carry to running backs and might have the worst run defense in the league. Monangai would be right there with Dowdle as another borderline top-five fantasy RB this week if he had Chicago’s backfield to himself again. However, Swift was back at practice on Wednesday, and he was playing well before getting injured — fantasy’s RB6 over Weeks 6-8 following the Bears’ bye.

Still, Monangai’s workload had been increasing before Swift’s injury, as it was a 45% vs. 50% snap share during their last game together. Something like a 60/40 split in Swift’s favor seems like a reasonable expectation (assuming Swift returns), but guessing what coaches will do can be risky (see Tyrone Tracy last week). Both Monangai and Swift can be started in fantasy leagues this week, given the matchup and lack of alternatives, but managers would prefer Chicago’s backfield not become a full-blown committee.

Can a wide receiver emerge in Jacksonville?

Brian Thomas’ Week 10 status is in question after he suffered an ankle injury at the end of a long catch last week. BTJ was quiet before the play, and he’s a candidate for fantasy’s bust of the year. Thomas was an early second-round pick on average, but he’s been the WR44 despite Travis Hunter doing very little. In a 25-game sample, Thomas produced far worse stats with Trevor Lawrence (12.7 fantasy points) when compared to Mac Jones (19.3). Thomas is the WR78 in QB rating when targeted and the WR77 in fantasy points per target.

Brian Thomas Jr in his Career:

With Mac Jones (8 Games)
– 6.5 Catches
– 85.9 Yards
– 19.3 Fantasy Points

With Trevor Lawerence (17 Games)
– 3.9 Catches
– 59.7 Yards
– 12.7 Fantasy Points pic.twitter.com/AGxuXxgdJU

— Bryce DeGroat (@NFL_Convo) November 3, 2025

Parker Washington has moved into a full-time role with Hunter sidelined, and he saw seven of his nine targets before Thomas and Dyami Brown exited with injuries last week. Washington finished with a 35% first-read target rate coming out of Jacksonville’s bye, but he’ll now have more competition for targets after the Jaguars traded for Jakobi Meyers. While Lawrence has his issues, Jacksonville has provided the fourth-most catchable targets per game and ranks first in WR fantasy usage over the past month. There’s fantasy upside if someone emerges from an otherwise depleted Jacksonville WR group.

Washington and Meyers have both played mostly out of the slot, which is key to avoiding Houston corner Derek Stingley this week.

Who’s the goal-line back in Seattle?

Neither Kenneth Walker’s workload nor fantasy production spiked coming out of Seattle’s bye, but a role change could be terrific news for his value moving forward. Zach Charbonnet saw 68.4% of Seattle’s goal-line carries (compared to 23.8% for Walker) before last week, when Walker was given both RB goal-line rush attempts. Walker failed to score (TE AJ Barner punched in a score), so the role could remain fluid.

The Seahawks rank second-to-last in EPA per rush this season and rarely target their running backs, but fantasy potential remains thanks to scoring opportunities. Sam Darnold is a dark horse MVP candidate while throwing for a staggering 9.6 yards per attempt — the second-highest mark in the modern era. Darnold is attacking downfield, and Seattle just added Rashid Shaheed, so defenses will need to adjust. Walker is explosive enough to break a touchdown run from anywhere on the field, but the goal-line role is especially crucial to his fantasy value down the stretch.

How will Seattle use Rashid Shaheed?

Shaheed had the fifth-most targets (36) in the league over the past four weeks, but he was only WR47 over that span. Shaheed will see fewer targets after being traded to Seattle, but his fantasy value rises after leaving Spencer Rattler and Tyler Shough. Sam Darnold ranks first in deep throw completion rate. Reuniting with Klint Kubiak seems like a perfect fit for the downfield speedster Shaheed, who will also benefit from more play action.

The Seahawks have options beyond Jaxon Smith-Njigba, but Shaheed should emerge as the No. 2 WR in Seattle. He’s the proverbial “better in best ball” player, but Shaheed gets a fantasy boost moving from New Orleans to Seattle.

Who’s Buffalo’s RB1 if James Cook sits?

Cook leads the NFL in rushing yards per game (108.4) by a wide margin, and last week he became the first RB to run for 100 yards against Kansas City since 2023. Cook looked like a smash against a vulnerable Miami run defense this week — he’s seen his fantasy production jump 43% during wins since last season, and Buffalo is nearly double-digit favorites. Unfortunately, Cook is dealing with ankle and foot injuries and missed Wednesday’s practice.

If James Cook III misses a week, I don’t think Ray Davis would have as dominant of a role as some would like.

Ignoring 3rd downs, 2 minute drills and garbage time, Ty Johnson has 52 snaps to 38 by Ray Davis this year.

At this point last year, it was Ray Davis 90, Ty Johnson 26

— Nathan Jahnke (@PFF_NateJahnke) November 5, 2025

Ray Davis acted as Buffalo’s lead back when Cook sat out last season, but Ty Johnson has out-snapped him this year, even when removing passing situations. The Bills’ backfield could be an unsatisfying committee if Buffalo plays it safe and sits Cook.

Can Garrett Wilson return?

Wilson hasn’t played since Week 6, but he returned to a limited practice on Wednesday. The Jets never placed Wilson on IR, so there’s a real chance he comes back in Week 10. Wilson was fantasy’s WR6 over the season’s first five weeks before getting injured, somehow overcoming an inept New York passing offense. Wilson leads the NFL in first-read target share at a whopping 48.3%. He gets a pass-funnel Cleveland defense this week if health cooperates.

Moreover, Wilson ranks second among 126 WRs in fantasy points per route run versus man coverage, which the Browns have used at the league’s highest rate (42.5%). Wilson would shoot to ~WR5 this week if he’s good to go, regardless of who starts at quarterback for the Jets (it would be a shock if it’s not Justin Fields).

Has the Rams’ backfield become a committee?

There’s been some concern within the fantasy community after the Rams rotated their running backs drive-by-drive coming out of their bye. However, Kyren Williams still easily led in snap share (68% vs. 29%) and finished with 25 carries, including both of L.A.’s attempts at the goal line. He saw 81% of the snaps and 12-of-15 RB opportunities in the first half. Williams’ rush share has dropped to 62.7% over his past three games, but that matters less when the volume is high — Blake Corum “stole” 13 carries last week, but Williams’ 25 were the fourth most in the league. Rush share is a rate stat that can be misleading.

Corum will remain more involved than before, but Williams is on pace for 323 touches this season. The Rams have scored 81% of their touchdowns via the pass this year (the league’s second-highest rate), so Williams is due for more scores moving forward. He’s the RB11 in expert consensus ranks this week, so there doesn’t appear to be much fear about the Rams’ new backfield rotation.

How healthy is Puka Nacua?

Nacua was able to return to a limited practice on Wednesday after exiting last week’s game with a rib/chest injury. Sean McVay told reporters the star WR should be good to play Sunday, which is exactly what fantasy managers had hoped to hear. Nacua remains on pace to record 130 catches this season despite missing eight quarters of action thanks to various injuries. His style invites contact, and mid-game injuries have been a theme, but Nacua is tough and typically performs through them. Many DFS lineups will be counting on a healthy Nacua this week, with Ja’Marr Chase, CeeDee Lamb and Rashee Rice on bye (and without Jonathan Taylor and Bijan Robinson on the main slate).

Is Quinshon Judkins an RB1 this week?

Judkins left Cleveland’s last game with a shoulder injury, but he’s not listed on the Browns’ injury report coming out of the team’s bye. Judkins has finished as fantasy’s RB49, RB4 and RB45, respectively, over his past three games, as he’s game-script dependent. He most recently faced a stout New England run defense that’s yet to allow 50 rushing yards to a running back this season, but Judkins now gets a depleted Jets’ defense — New York has allowed 5.2 yards per carry to running backs with the newly traded Quinnen Williams off the field this season, and game script could easily be positive. Judkins is the RB14 in consensus ranks this week, but he’s my RB11.