November 10, 2016

Pierre Camus breaks down the Thursday night game for week 10 of the 2016 NFL season. He analyzes which players to start or sit for fantasy football leagues according to matchups.

It's time for the Week 10 installment of Thursday night matchups with my start/sit recommendations. This week, the Cleveland Browns continue to seek their first victory of the year in Baltimore against the 4-4 Ravens, who are currently tied for first in the AFC North.

Each week of the NFL season, we will be breaking down every game and providing you with some fantasy football advice and lineup recommendations based on matchups that we love, matchups that we hate, and injury information as well. Later this week, you will find parts one and two of our Week 10 NFL matchups, which should help you prepare your lineups to win this week. It’s essential to analyze the weekly NFL matchups to find lineup sleepers and gems, while also avoiding those players who may turn out to be busts.

Editor's Note: New users that sign up on FantasyAces, make a $20 deposit, and enter any game will receive our full season NFL (or NBA) Premium Pass for free, a $59.99 value. Just email [email protected] with your new FantasyAces username - and boom, that's it! We will email you with your Premium pass.

Browns @ Ravens - Thursday 11/10 @ 8:25 PM EST

Matchups We Love

Corey Coleman (WR, CLE) - It's been eight weeks since Coleman had his coming out party before missing the next six weeks due to injury. In Week 2, he caught five passes for 102 yards and two long touchdowns against none other than the Baltimore Ravens. That was with veteran Josh McCown at the helm, however, not Cody Kessler. If Kessler remains the starting QB, which appears to be the case, temper your expectations. Coleman still has a chance to provide WR3 value, but don't supplant your regular starters for him in shallow leagues.

Terrance West (RB, BAL) - He's been on the list of top fantasy fallers for weeks now, but this is the game to redeem himself. The Browns have allowed more rushing yards and TD than any team in the league other than San Francisco, who is on pace to be one of the historically worst run defenses ever. West has a chance to face his former team and should get a steady diet of carries, despite the increasing presence of Kenneth Dixon. This could even be a situation similar to Ingram/Hightower last week where both backs provide fantasy points in abundance. If you've held onto West, keep him as your RB2 this week.

Mike Wallace (WR, BAL) - Wallace made a lot of fantasy managers happy with his 95-yard score last week, but his recent value extends far beyond one big play. He hit 120 yards the game before on a whopping 10 receptions (deep threat only, huh?) The week before that, he reached 97 yards. Although some are touting Steve Smith as the better value due to lower price tag this week, he may not produce nearly the same output. In six career games against the Browns, Smith has no touchdowns and one 100-yard game. From a fantasy standpoint, Smith has only one standout game on the year, compared to five games of double digit points for Wallace. He is simply the better option at this point of their respective careers and a must-start in this matchup.

Matchups We Hate

Isaiah Crowell (RB, CLE) - Few players have fallen off the fantasy map as quickly as Crowell. He has failed to run for so much as 30 yards in four of the last five games. He managed to score two TDs during that span, but he still rates out as the RB31 among all running backs over the last month. Baltimore's defense won't do him any favors, as they allow the fewest fantasy PPG to running backs in the entire league. For what it's worth, Duke Johnson shouldn't fare any better, if you are still holding onto him for some reason.

Gary Barnidge (TE, CLE) - The Ravens allow the second-fewest fantasy points per game to the tight end position and haven't let a tight end cross the goal line yet. Barnidge himself hasn't scored a touchdown in 2016. He is averaging a decent 47.3 Y/G and is getting targeted 5.5 times a game, but it just isn't paying off for fantasy owners. Kessler sticking at QB and Coleman returning only make his prospects worse. Barnidge isn't start-worthy in this matchup.

Notable Players

Kenneth Dixon (RB, BAL) - If he is healthy, this would be the perfect time for Dixon to show that he deserves a larger piece of the pie in the Ravens backfield. We've been hearing all year that the coaching staff loves Dixon and his role will expand once he's ready to contribute. That translated into just 13 yards on nine carries last week. If he is going to have a coming-out party, it will be against Cleveland's 31st ranked run defense. He is strictly a desperation play in standard leagues, but if you're looking for a tournament buster type, he may be worth a shot.

Terrelle Pryor (WR, CLE) - It's hard to imagine this sentence would have been uttered before the 2016 season began, but Terrelle Pryor is matchup-proof. Since he truly became involved in the offense (Week 3 once Corey Coleman was out), Pryor has just two sub-par games on his resume. In Week 2 against these same Ravens, Pryor was held to just three catches for 32 yards, but this Browns team is different. Cody Kessler is running things, which doesn't seem to have slowed Pryor down. Coleman is back, but if anything that should help draw coverage away on deep routes. A lingering hamstring issue shouldn't cost Pryor time, but it is the one thing holding me back from whole-heartedly recommending Pryor. In most standard leagues, he should be starting as a WR2.

Key Injuries: Terrelle Pryor (WR, CLE) - questionable, Kenneth Dixon (RB, BAL) - questionable