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Thursday Night Football starts/sits and matchups analysis for Week 10 of the 2019 NFL season. Which Chargers and Raiders to start or sit for fantasy football lineups.
San Francisco stands alone as the sole remaining undefeated team in the NFL after a close battle in the desert. The 49ers win streak was almost interrupted by an NFC West rival Arizona Cardinals squad in Week 9, with the difference between the two teams being a field goal. Newly-acquired Cardinals running back Kenyan Drake learned the playbook quickly and prospered, accumulating 162 yards from scrimmage and a score on 19 total touches.
Unfortunately for Arizona, an incredible performance from 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (317 passing yards, four touchdowns) relying on his trusty connection with former Denver Bronco receiver Emmanuel Sanders (112 receiving yards, seven receptions, one touchdown) proved insurmountable.
Our Thursday Night Football battle for this week shifts to the AFC West with the Los Angeles Chargers travelling to Oakland to take on a Raiders team that is coming off of a last second victory against Detroit. Let's dive in to Thursday Night Football Matchups Analysis for Week 10!
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Los Angeles Chargers @ Oakland Raiders
Date and Start Time: November 7 at 8:00 PM ET
Notable Injuries and Status:
- Josh Jacobs (RB, OAK) - Shoulder - Active
- Dwayne Harris (WR, OAK) - Foot - Questionable
- Justin Jackson (RB, LAC) - Calf - Inactive
- Geremy Davis (WR, LAC) - Inactive
Offensive and Defensive Rankings in 2019:
| Chargers | Raiders | |
| Passing Yards | 6th | 15th |
| Rushing Yards | 28th | 6th |
| Pass Defense | 5th | 32nd |
| Rush Defense | 20th | 7th |
Must Starts
Top Performers That Have To Be In Your Lineups
Keenan Allen (WR, LAC)
Fantasy owners have had to put up with some stinkers from Allen, who currently sits as the WR-39 through nine weeks. If there was ever a game for him to show up, now would be that time against the league's worst passing defense that also gives up the second-most fantasy points to the wide receiver position.
Hunter Henry (TE, LAC)
Since his return in Week 6, Henry is averaging eight targets, 5.6 receptions, and 82 receiving yards while proving to be one of Philip Rivers most reliable targets. A favorable matchup with an Oakland linebacking core that struggles to contain tight ends, giving up 15.7 fantasy points to them per game, makes Henry a TE1 play this week.
Josh Jacobs (RB, OAK)
Jacobs is practicing in full for Thursday night, meaning he should be a go for his usual workload. The Alabama product has had at least 17 touches in his last three games and clearly dominates snaps in the Raider backfield. Expect him to be relied on early and often with the Chargers proving to be particularly susceptible to the run this season.
Solid Options and Potential Sleepers
Which Players Will Have Solid Games and Which Could Surprise?
Solid Option: Philip Rivers (QB, LAC)
If we take a slightly deeper look at Oakland's lackluster passing defense, it is worth noting that Pro Football Focus ranks the Raiders Defense as 27th in coverage and 30th in rushing the passer. Rivers will have plenty of time to throw to his bevy of receiving targets and carries a higher fantasy ceiling than usual heading into this contest.
Solid Options: Melvin Gordon / Austin Ekeler (RBs, LAC)
Gordon and Ekeler likely to split snaps virtually equally like they did in Week 8. Although Oakland has been particularly effective at limiting yards on the ground, the Raiders Defense has given up 132 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns over their last three games. With Gordon and Ekeler both having a pass-catching pedigree, either one is a good bet to find the end zone at some point.
Solid Option: Darren Waller (TE, OAK)
Opposing defensive coordinators have seemed to catch on to Waller's usage in the Oakland offense, forcing double coverage his way and trying to take him out of the game plan. That said, Waller has had less than seven targets in only two games this season and he is still one of the best tight end options for fantasy purposes.
Sleeper: Mike Williams (WR, LAC)
With bye weeks thinning out the startable wide receivers in fantasy football and Oakland being one of the most exploitable defenses through the air, Williams deserves some extra attention as a high upside play. He quietly eclipsed the 100-receiving yard mark for the first time in his career last week against the Green Bay Packers and did so on his lowest target total of the season. Week 10 presents an opportunity for an encore performance that fantasy owners might have to bet on out of necessity.
Consider Sitting
Players To Avoid Putting In Your Lineup If Possible
Derek Carr (QB, OAK)
The Oakland signal-caller has been hot as of late, throwing for multiple scores in each of his last three games. However, aside from an anomalous performance by Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill, the Chargers haven't allowed a a top-11 quarterback finish since Week 3. Carr isn't one of those fantasy quarterbacks who can buck the trend.
Deandre Washington / Jalen Richard (RBs, OAK)
The assumption in putting Washington and Richard as sit candidates is that lead back Josh Jacobs will be able to play through his shoulder injury, as appears is likely to be the case. Should Jacobs be on the field, Washington and Richard will only serve in relief with very little opportunity to return solid fantasy production. The duo has combined for 150 total yards on 18 touches with no touchdowns in their last two games.
Tyrell Williams (WR, OAK)
Williams' touchdown streak came to an end last week when he was kept under 50 receiving yards by the Detroit Lions in no small part due to the return of shutdown corner Darius Slay. This week, he will face off against another one of Pro Football Focus's highly rated cover corners in Chargers defensive back Casey Hayward and shouldn't be expected to get back on track to scoring touchdowns.
Hunter Renfrow / Zay Jones (WRs, OAK)
While the Raiders may have a passing offense that ranks in the top half of the league, they currently average the seventh-fewest pass attempts per game. Factor in that the Chargers secondary has been largely successful containing opposing wide receivers and you have two receivers with uncertain volume and little upside in Renfrow and Jones.
