Daily Dr. Roto — November 8, 2018
Week 10 Thursday Night Football Preview
Quarterbacks
Cam Newton — It’s always hard to predict how well Newton will do in a game. In the games where he is not throwing well, he can still run for a bunch of yards and impact the box scores. The Steelers pass rush has been very solid recently, and I think that will force Cam out of the pocket for most of the night. There will be times when Cam is rushed, and he might make a few bad throws, but I can also see him getting about 220 yards passing and 50+ yards rushing. Regardless of how the numbers shakeout, Cam is a must-start if you own him.
Ben Roethlisberger — Big Ben always plays well at home and the Panthers secondary tends to try to play man to man defense on the outside receivers which could make for a huge night. So long as he can evade the Panthers pass rush and find time to hook up with his receivers downfield, Ben should have 300+ yards passing easily along with 2-3 TDs.
Running Backs
Christian McCaffrey — The Steelers have been incredibly stingy against opposing running backs, but that doesn’t mean that you should sit CMC for any reason. CMC is always a threat, and he should be able to get about 10-12 points receiving even if he won’t have huge rushing stats.
James Conner — The Panthers, too, have been very solid against the run all season, but that shouldn’t prevent Conner from having a solid all-around game. Conner has excelled in the passing attack as well as running short yardage plays, plus he should get about 20-25 touches in this contest making him a must play.
Wide Receivers
Devin Funchess — The Steelers have been generous to wide receivers all season and Funchess presents a difficult problem for them due to his size. With the Steelers run defense being so good, I think Cam will be forced to pass more than usual, making Funchess an excellent start in all formats.
D.J. Moore — Moore disappointed his Fantasy owners last week with only one catch, but I expect that to change on Thursday. Cam won’t have a lot of time to sit back in the pocket and look for his receivers downfield, so I expect Moore to get a lot of quick throws to see if he can turn them into big plays. He’s not a “must” start by any means, but I see a pathway for 12-14 points.
Curtis Samuel — Samuel is a tricky player to own as he rarely touches the football, but when he does, he seems to make an impact. I expect him to be used on gadget plays throughout the game and he is someone I might throw into a DFS lineup.
Antonio Brown — Brown has six TDs in his last six games, but we haven’t seen the really huge game from him this season — Yet. Thursday could be that big night for Brown as the Panthers secondary is too young and inexperienced to handle someone of Brown’s level. I think Brown will have close to 150 receiving yards and 1-2 TDs this week, making his Fantasy owners very happy.
Juju Smith-Schuster — Even though I expect Brown to have a big game I think there is room for Juju to do well also. Big Ben always plays well at home and the Panthers are much tougher stopping the run than they are stopping the pass. Juju should take advantage of the one on one coverage he will see for most of the night, and I think he gets 90 receiving yards and TD.
James Washington — Washington is emerging as the Steelers WR3, and although he won’t see a huge number of targets, it might be a good idea to pick him up on waivers before the game just in case Brown or Juju should get hurt.
Tight Ends
Greg Olsen — The Steelers are the fourth-worst team in the NFL against opposing tight ends which makes Olsen a tremendous start on Thursday. Olsen is not as fast as he once was, but he still runs good routes and gets excellent positioning on opposing linebackers. He should score.
Vance McDonald/Jesse James — Statistically, Carolina is the worst team in the NFL against the tight end, giving up seven TDs on the year. McDonald is the better receiver, but it’s hard to know which tight end will be targeted more often. James has a way of getting open on play-action passes, and Ben finds him running down the field in space at least once per game. One of these players (if not both) should make a Fantasy impact on Thursday night.
