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Should I start Demarcus Robinson for fantasy football in Week 10? Read Demarcus Robinson's fantasy football outlook for Week 10 of the 2024 season and going forward.
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Demarcus Robinson had his second game scoring over 17 PPR fantasy points. He was dominant against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 9, scoring 27.5 PPR fantasy points by catching six passes on nine targets for 94 yards and two touchdowns.
Most impressively, he caught the game-winner, a 39-yard touchdown, in overtime. He hauled in the pass with one hand through tight coverage from the opposing defense, icing the game and delivering Rams' divisional rival with a loss in their territory. It was truly an impressive effort.
So was his big game legit or a fluke? Why did he have such a big game? Will he continue to dominate this season, and what will the rest of his season look like? And most importantly, should you pick him up off waivers or free agency and start him in Week 10?
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Why Did Demarcus Robinson Have a Huge Game?
The first and primary reason is that he's in a good offensive system with a great quarterback and an excellent offensive coordinator. The receivers that get opportunities in Los Angeles head coach Sean McVay's system tend to produce very well for fantasy. He's one of the league's best offensive minds.
Love this play design in the Rams offense from Sean McVay.
Puts the defense in a lot of conflict. Puka Nacua sucks the nickel CB to the flat. Outside CB has to carry with Robinson. Leaves Cooper Kupp open on the wheel route on the boundary. pic.twitter.com/wjxBiwMvAp
— Blaine Grisak 💭 (@bgrisakTST) November 5, 2024
He's not only game-planned one of the best offenses in the league year in and year out, he's helped a long line of coaches pick up offensive coordinator and head coach jobs. The "Sean McVay coaching tree" has produced an inordinately large amount of prominent coaching figures in the league.
Quarterbacks of coaches from the Mike Shanahan/Sean McVay/Kyle Shanahan coaching tree went 6-0 with a 124.5 passer rating (14 TDs, 0 INTs) in Week 13 — including the Bengals' Jake Browning (!). Hmmm... pic.twitter.com/I9rJbuk0TI
— Mark Potash (@MarkPotash) December 5, 2023
Quarterbacks and receivers from his tree see consistent success. And their entire offenses tend to be some of the best in the NFL. It's remarkable what he's done so far in his tenure with the team. And WRs like Robinson benefit.
The second reason is that WR Puka Nacua, one of the stars of the offense, was ejected on a soft call for unnecessary roughness at the end of the first half. This allowed DRob additional opportunities to serve as the effective WR2 in the offense, which is a valuable role, earning targets while elite receiver Cooper Kupp draws away primary coverages.
Puka Nacua has been ejected after seemingly throwing a punch
(via @NFLonFOX)pic.twitter.com/aZwEnnSXDz
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 3, 2024
The ninth-year pro was then able to capitalize on his opportunities. Obviously.
Will Demarcus Robinson Continue to Dominate?
The answer may disappoint you. It will be tough for him to have such big games without huge plays, long touchdowns, or the absences of Nacua or rookie WR Jordan Whittington (shoulder). Whit has missed two games now, strangely perfectly coinciding with No. 15's breakout. In addition, DRob had his biggest game when neither were on the field.
DEMARCUS ROBINSON ARE YOU KIDDING ME pic.twitter.com/GxQILHwi6E
— Rams Bros. (@RamsBrothers) November 4, 2024
Simply making a play like this doesn't make you a dominant NFL receiver. The truly alpha players win consistently, put up big games more often than not, and sometimes fundamentally change the way opposing teams play defense against them. We've seen Robinson for years now -- he's a 9th year veteran in the league.
Taking samples from a few weeks can make many receivers look like dominant forces. Last year, he had a streak of four games with a touchdown catch in each. Extrapolate that over the whole season, and that's 18 touchdowns! Yet he scored five total on the season. Streaks happen, flukes happen.
We saw what the offense looked like with both Kupp and Nacua out. Robinson was hardly a factor, as defenses were able to slide their best coverages toward him. He failed to gain more than 50 receiving yards in a single one of those games. In fact, his Week 9 performance was his first effort over 50 yards all year.
He's been a player that's had big games here and there throughout his career, but it would be a massive anomaly if he continued dominating to this degree for the rest of the year.
What Will the Rest of Demarcus Robinson's Season Look Like?
He's a bit of an odd handcuff style stash. It's true that the other receivers, namely Kupp, Nacua and Whittington, have all dealt with injuries and missed significant time this season. Kupp missed four games with a high-ankle sprain, Nacua was out for five with an MCL injury, and the rookie has now missed the majority of three games with a shoulder issue.
Rams WR Puka Nacua left practice early today with a knee injury. It is the same knee that was previously injured, per @JourdanRodrigue. pic.twitter.com/9IUFPM6VEW
— NFL Retweet (@NFLRT) October 31, 2024
As many know, No. 17 had an injury scare, on Halloween no less, when he fell on his knee and re-aggravated the injury that kept him out for so long. Granted that all three have suffered significant injuries, it's possible we see them miss more time, allowing DRob to get more action.
But it's worth noting that the only situation that seems to hugely benefit him is when Kupp is on the field, and only sometimes. We know he hasn't been able to do it when he's the top dog left on the field out of that WR room. So it's hard to see this big performance as something that will continue. We have a mountain of evidence that it won't.
Should I Pick Up or Start Demarcus Robinson Week 10?
He should probably be rostered in the majority of leagues, but it's hard to see him having a big role if Nacua is in the lineup, and Whittington's return could push his snaps down even further. Before injuries muddied the waters, it looked as if Whit would take the WR3 role, while Kupp and Nacua would retain the leading roles.
Really nice play from Rams WR Demarcus Robinson on his first TD.
Sells the block inside with a hard step to bait Riq Woolen. Creates separation, making an easy throw for Stafford. pic.twitter.com/7dvt1Ugfto
— Blaine Grisak 💭 (@bgrisakTST) November 5, 2024
It's easy to call this a "massive breakout game" or a "coming online game", but the reality is that sometimes offensive schemes are great at getting players open, and defenses matter. The Rams' Week 8 and 9 opponents, the Minnesota Vikings and the aforementioned Seahawks, have given up tons of fantasy points to opposing wide receivers this season.
Seattle has allowed the ninth-most PPR fantasy points per game to opposing wideouts. The Vikes have allowed the most. In tougher matchups, Robinson's path to success is far more difficult.
But he's shown enough upside that you should pick him up if he's available in your league.
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