Start vs. Sit: Who to Play, Who to Bench Week 10

PLAYERS TO START

Skyler Howard, QB, West Virginia (vs. Texas Tech)
Any game involving Texas Tech is a game you want to be part of. That doesn't just mean that you want Red Raiders on your team. Get yourself a piece of their opponent's offense as well, and this week Howard gets to throw against Texas Tech. Howard has struggled a bit through the air recently, but he did throw for four touchdowns against one interception against Baylor. Plus, he has run for at least 40 yards in each of his last three games. There is no better cure for what ails a quarterback than a visit from Kliff Kingsbury's squad.

Dane Evans, QB, Tulsa (vs. Central Florida)
Evans is coming off a surprisingly poor game, as he threw for only 240 yards with no touchdowns against an SMU team that passing offenses usually feed on. However, the week prior he threw for 421 yards and four touchdowns against Memphis, and he has 15 touchdowns to five interceptions overall. The team is still ninth in passing yards per game, and UCF is a truly awful team. The SMU game was probably a fluke for Evans, and he should rebound against the Golden Knights.

Cody Kessler, QB, USC (vs. Arizona)
Early in the year, Kessler was paying real dividends to fantasy owners. However, since his five-touchdown performance against Arizona State, he has thrown three touchdowns to four picks, although he has added a couple of rushing touchdowns. There was some turmoil in L.A., though, which may not have helped, and Kessler is still a talented quarterback. Just as important, he's playing against an Arizona team that just let Washington score 49 points, and overall the Wildcats are allowing almost 35 points per game. Eventually, Kessler is going to have another big game, and this seems like it will be the week.

Alex Gardner, RB, Florida International (vs. Charlotte)
Gardner has been of particular use in PPR leagues recently, as he has had at least five catches in his has six games, and he has 48 catches for 396 yards overall. On top of that, he's rushed for four touchdowns in his last five games, and last week, while he didn't score, he rushed for 105 yards. Charlotte, meanwhile, is in their its season in the FBS, and it shows, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

Marteze Waller, RB, Fresno State (vs. Nevada)
Waller is not going to replicate what he did last year, but in recent weeks he is starting to deliver what was expected of him. He's gained at least 70 yards on the ground in each of his last three games, and he has four touchdowns over that span. He also caught two passes for 40 yards in his last game. Nevada is giving up over 170 yards per game on the ground, so Waller has a great chance to continue his streak of strong play.

Jahad Thomas, RB, Temple (at Southern Methodist)
Thomas has been given the ball a ton this season, with at least 20 totes in all but one of his games. He's done well with those carries, as he has 904 yards and 13 touchdowns. Thomas has found the end zone in every game this season, and now he gets to run against SMU's porous defense. He has topped 190 rushing yards twice this season, and he could do something like that again with this matchup. If nothing else, his touchdown streak should continue.

Trent Taylor, WR, Louisiana Tech (vs. North Texas)
Yes, North Texas managed to win last week, but make no mistake - this is still a terrible team. Their defense is awful, and the Bulldogs will be able to name their score. Taylor has seven touchdowns and five 100-yard games on the season. In fact, Taylor has been good every single week of the year, without an off game to speak of. It seems very unlikely that this matchup with the Mean Green is going to be the one that stops him. If anything, Taylor should be able to reach his performance from last week, when he had 142 yards and two touchdowns.

Teddy Ruben, WR, Troy (vs. Louisiana-Monroe)
Ruben has had a couple rough games this season, but these include road games against NC State, Wisconsin, and Mississippi State. In his last few weeks, against Sun Belt competition, he has four touchdowns and has twice topped 100 yards. Louisiana-Monroe as at the bottom of the Sun Belt with a 1-7 record, and they have given up 35.8 points per game. Ruben should be able to continue his success against conference competition.

Isaiah Jones, WR, East Carolina (vs. South Florida)
Jones has only notched three touchdowns this season, but touchdowns can come and go haphazardly. Jones also has 70 catches for 786 yards, and he has five games with at least nine receptions, including his last two. Jones is getting the ball plenty, and when you are getting so many looks, touchdowns can easily follow. South Florida is not a particularly staunch challenge, so Jones should get plenty of catches again, and perhaps this time he'll find himself returning to the end zone.

PLAYERS TO SIT

Dak Prescott, QB, Mississippi State (vs. Missouri)
Prescott has been a one-man offense for Mississippi State, and he's been very impressive. However, for all of Missouri's offensive woes - and they have been truly woeful – the Tigers' defense is outstanding. They are third in points per game allowed, and they are only allowing 280.9 yards per game. On the road, against this tough defense, Prescott could be kept in check, at least to a degree.

Gunner Kiel, QB, Cincinnati (at Houston)
Kiel was outstanding last week, going a perfect 15-for-15 for 319 yards and five touchdowns. That was against UCF, though. Now, he is visiting Houston, who just shut out Vanderbilt and is allowing 17.3 points per game. It seems very unlikely Kiel will be perfect again, and it will be much tougher for him to have a good fantasy day against the Cougars.

Sefo Liufau, QB, Colorado (vs. Stanford)
Liufau has had some passing struggles, but he's run the ball well enough to still have some good fantasy value. However, up to this point he has been playing a lot of bad defenses. Last week, he played UCLA, and he threw for 312 yards with two interceptions. Stanford's defense is even tougher than the Bruins' D, so Liufau could be in another long day.

Justin Jackson, RB, Northwestern (vs. Penn State)
After rushing for at least 120 yards in four of his first five games, Jackson's numbers have taken a real dive recently. He hasn't rushed for more than 40 yards in any of his last three games, and he only has one touchdown on the season. Penn State won't make things any easier for Jackson, as they have been a stingy defense so far.

Jordan Howard, RB, Indiana (vs. Iowa)
Howard got off to a great start to the season before injuring himself against Ohio State. He returned, but wasn't completely healthy, against Michigan State, but still ran fairly well. Now, he's had a bye week to heal up. That being said, even if Howard is completely healthy, a matchup with Iowa doesn't bode well for him, as the undefeated Hawkeyes are very formidable defensively. Howard probably has a few more good games in him, but this week isn't likely to be one of them.

Artavis Scott, WR, Clemson (vs. Florida State)
Clemson is great, and their offense was impressive last week, but even in that game Scott only had seven receptions for 64 yards. He only has one game with over 100 yards receiving, and that was against Boston College. Florida State has a strong defense, especially in the secondary, so Scott probably won't cross the century mark this week.

Tyler Boyd, WR, Pittsburgh (vs. Notre Dame)
Boyd has four games with double-digit catches, albeit only one in which he had over 100 yards, including an impressive game against Iowa's defense. However, when you are looking for matchups to avoid, Boyd has one of the more difficult matchups with a game against Notre Dame coming up. He will get plenty of looks, of course, but will he be able to do much with them against the Fighting Irish?

Malachi Dupre, WR, Louisiana State (at Alabama)
Dupre has picked up his play recently, with four touchdowns in his last three games, and five in his last five. His yardage and reception totals have also picked up as well. That's all well and good, but when LSU and Alabama get together, it's a defensive slugfest. While Leonard Fournette and Derrick Henry are both too good to really risk benching, everybody else on these two offenses are probably best left on your bench, Dupre included.