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John's fantasy football start 'em, sit 'em picks for Week 10 of 2025. Are the breakout performances from Colston Loveland, Alec Pierce, Tory Horton legit or flukes?
Chicago Bears tight end Colston Loveland, Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce, and Seattle Seahawks WR Tory Horton's Week 9 performances were easily the biggest games they've had this season.
With each of these players rostered in under 30 percent of Sleeper fantasy football leagues pre-waivers, it seems that not many fantasy managers were expecting such monster games from these three.
But a huge part of fantasy football is reacting quickly, and properly, to big performances from players you might not even have known about beforehand. So, should you grab Loveland, Pierce, and Horton in fantasy leagues? Where their big games legit or flukes? And should they be started in Week 10? Let's dive in.
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Was Colston Loveland's Performance Legit Or A Fluke?
Loveland followed up six straight games scoring single-digit PPR fantasy points and one missed game due to injury with a monster 29.8 point explosion against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 9. The hapless defense had no answer for his separation skills, size, catch radius, and run-after-catch abilities.
It was a surprise for many fantasy football managers, as Loveland had been completely off the radar up to that point outside of dynasty leagues. But rookies have a way of coming on strong in the later parts of their first season in the NFL.
COLSTON LOVELAND ARE YOU KIDDING?
📺: CBS pic.twitter.com/OMOzjsl6vC
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) November 2, 2025
Loveland's huge touchdown catch to ice the win was very impressive. It's noteworthy that the Bengals have what can only be described as one of the worst defenses in recent memory right now. They've been absolutely gashed all season, and last week, they gave up nearly 50 points, including a last-minute game-winning drive.
Loveland was the No. 10 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, though. He's a highly talented player, possessing a lethal combination of traits that will make him an excellent player in the NFL for years to come. But Chicago has a crowded room of pass-catchers.
Additionally, he's had extra playing time in the absence of TE Cole Kmet (concussion), who is likely to return next week. It's been a bit odd to see Kmet get so much playing time at the expense of an early first-round pick, but usually, freshman seasons in the NFL aren't marked by a ton of playing time.
Bears.
Colston Loveland’s first TD catch vs. Cincy. Align as the boundary X receiver. Isolation throw on the glance route.
Loveland’s alignments on routes run in Week 9…
Tight = 11
Wide = 10
Slot = 7
Backfield = 1 pic.twitter.com/VqIawDEyvw— Matt Bowen (@MattBowen41) November 4, 2025
And he is a versatile player. But his upside probably won't fully be realized until next season. There are a ton of mouths to feed on this offense, anyway -- wide receivers Rome Odunze, DJ Moore, and Luther Burden III (concussion), and the aforementioned Kmet.
We could see some more Loveland spike games, and his matchup in Week 10 against a poor New York Giants defense is favorable, but he might be far from consistent in the short term.
Week 10 Outlook: Start in 12+ Team Leagues
Was Alec Pierce's Performance Legit Or A Fluke?
Pierce's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers was impressive. Though Colts quarterback Daniel Jones had a rough day, throwing three interceptions and losing two fumbles for a total of five turnovers, Pierce was the lone bright spot of the offense. He caught six of his 13 targets for 115 yards.
Pierce has flashed major downfield catching prowess and has been the Colts' primary deep threat all season. But his route tree expanded last week, and it looks like Colts head coach Shane Steichen wants to use him in an expanded role moving forward. This is especially true now that they traded away WR Adonai Mitchell to the New York Jets.
Alec Pierce down there somewhere!
TENvsIND on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/I0ch3Rb0Qu
— NFL (@NFL) October 26, 2025
A 6-foot-3, 211-pound speedster with good hands and improving separation skills who's on the last year of his rookie contract should be a player an offense decides to utilize heavily. It seems likely that Pierce will be signed to an extension by Indy in the near future, of course.
We could see him finish very close to Colts WR1 Michael Pittman Jr. in targets moving forward. Those two, along with rookie tight end Tyler Warren, form the core of the Colts' pass-catching group, though Pierce and Pittman easily out-targeted Warren last week.
Alec Pierce is the most improved receiver that I've seen on film this season.
Always been a big play guy down the field, but he's transformed into such a crafty route runner.
He's gonna get a big bag this spring. pic.twitter.com/JB7w3ZZf4F
— Derrick (@Steelers_DB) November 1, 2025
Moving forward, it's becoming easier to trust Pierce as a flex. The problem is the target competition -- slot receiver Josh Downs gets in on the action a bit, too, making this a diluted offense to be bought into. But he should start in Week 10, as he has a favorable coverage matchup against the Atlanta Falcons.
Week 10 Outlook: Start in 12+ Team Leagues
Was Tory Horton's Performance Legit Or A Fluke?
Horton caught all four of his targets for 48 yards and two touchdowns in his team's blowout win against the Washington Commanders on Sunday Night Football. While it looked like he was right on the cusp of seizing the WR2 role from Cooper Kupp (hamstring, heel), that hype train died pretty quickly.
Seattle traded for WR Rashid Shaheed from the New Orleans Saints right before the trade deadline on November 4. It's now incredibly unlikely that Horton has a consistent role this season. Shaheed helps the Seahawks become even more of a contender in the NFL playoffs than they already were, though.
Tory Horton beats Sainristil off the line and leaves him in the dust for a TD. Not your typical 166th overall pick! pic.twitter.com/dTcHpOZXN2
— William Herman (@_williamherman) November 4, 2025
Horton showed nice route-running ability and separation skills against Washington's depleted secondary. The problem will simply be playing time moving forward. It's not certain yet whether Seattle plans on extending Shaheed, but it seems pretty likely, considering that it needs a long-term solution at WR2.
Shaheed is 27 years old and is reuniting with offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, who was with the Saints last season in the same position. Horton will now battle for the WR3 job, which he should win. But the Seahawks run a ton of two-WR sets.
This means that we'll likely see a ton of formations in which WR1 Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Shaheed are the only two wideouts on the field, with Horton on the sidelines. At least if they ran three-WR sets, we could see Horton play out of the slot. Then again, we could see Kupp in a slot role, which would further tank Horton's value.
TORY HORTON AGAIN.
SEAvsWAS on NBC
Stream on @NFLPlus + Peacock pic.twitter.com/5hHRO65o7N— NFL (@NFL) November 3, 2025
It's fine to stash him in deep leagues, but other than that, he should probably remain on waivers for now. He's likely rostered in the majority of dynasty leagues, but if he's available in yours, he's a solid waiver pickup worth quite a bit of FAAB.
The dream of him becoming a stud in redraft leagues is probably dead, though. I wouldn't say his performance was a fluke, but Shaheed is very likely to simply be the better player between the two.
Week 10 Outlook: Stash in Deep Leagues
Who Should I Start Tool
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Popular Week 10 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Need a replacement? Below are some popular Week 10 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Colston Loveland, Alec Pierce, and Tory Horton compared to others:
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