Fantasy football: Week 10 start/sit advice for Team Outsports Equality

With fantasy football so popular, we decided to start our own Outsports team comprised of players who are LGBT supportive.

With no openly gay players in the league, the idea is to form a fantasy team from players who have shown their support for LGBT issues in interviews with us and other media.

Keep in mind that all of the players on our roster have expressed support of LGBT equality. Players benched are not against LGBT equality, but simply the players we do not feel you should start on your fantasy team this week.

Despite a poor performance from our running backs, the team picked up the load and scored 120.58 points last week. In the Outsports fantasy league, it ranked above all 10 teams for the second week in a row. The team is on a roll and hopefully it will continue this week.

Week 10 start/sits

Quarterback

Start: Russell Wilson vs. Cardinals (Thursday)

Despite only scoring 14 points as a team last week, Wilson still had a strong performance with 27.58 points in the loss to the Redskins. Wilson is the Seattle offense and not much gets done without him because the running game is exceptionally poor. Even on a short week against the Cardinals, Wilson is the best quarterback on our roster and he should have a strong week against a Cardinals team that is struggling mightily right now.

Sit: Cam Newton vs. Dolphins (Monday)

Carolina is 6-3, but the team is incredibly inconsistent. The offense has good weeks and it has bad weeks so it’s hard to rely on any Carolina offensive playmaker, especially its most dynamic player. Newton is someone I would not be pushing to start 100% but if the team can start playing more consistently, Newton would gain more interest in potentially joining the starting lineup.

Running back

Start: Jordan Howard vs. Packers, Doug Martin vs. Jets

Jordan Howard is our best running back, and he was on a tear this season before hitting his bye week last week. After getting less than double digits from our running backs last week, it will be nice to have our top guy back with a favorable matchup against the Packers.

Jameis Winston is out for a few weeks with his shoulder injury, which likely means the team will rely more on its running attack, lead by Doug Martin. Martin had a poor week last week, but with a strong matchup against the Jets at home, I like Martin’s chances to succeed this week.

Sit: DeMarco Murray vs. Bengals, Frank Gore vs. Steelers, Mike Tolbert vs. Saints, Giovani Bernard vs. Titans

Murray and Bernard face each other this week in opposing crowded backfields. One could go off, but the chances aren’t as likely as Martin or Howard.

Tolbert remains LeSean McCoy’s backup, but if McCoy goes down, Tolbert is someone people should pick up in deeper leagues as a handcuff. It would be a sneaky pickup as fantasy owners head into the final weeks of the regular season.

Frank Gore was actually our strongest running back last week and he’s still getting a decent amount of carries, but in a bad matchup against Pittsburgh, Gore is not the guy I would be starting this week.

Wide receiver

Start: DeAndre Hopkins vs. Rams, T.Y. Hilton vs. Steelers

Hopkins and Hilton had nearly 40% of the team’s points last week and it’s definitely the strongest unit on the team. Even receiving passes from mediocre at best quarterbacks is not stopping these two from being dynamic. It’s a no-brainer to name these two the starting receivers this week.

Sit: Marquise Goodwin vs. Giants, Eric Decker vs. Bengals, Kenny Stills vs. Panthers

Goodwin is the top receiver for the 49ers after Pierre Garcon went to IR last week. Pick up Goodwin in leagues if you can. He’s a great depth option and will become a potential starting option if and when Jimmy Garoppolo becomes the starter.

Decker had a touchdown last week against the Ravens and is approaching starter status. I want to see some consistency from him first before I feel completely comfortable about starting him.

Stills got his first start last week in his Sunday Night Football matchup against the Raiders. His performance wasn’t exactly up to par but he is certainly someone to look out for as he can break out in any given week.

Tight end/flex

Start: Rob Gronkowski vs. Broncos, Robert Woods vs. Texans

Travis Kelce is on a bye this week, so we insert Gronk back into the tight end spot. The Patriots will likely be without popular target Chris Hogan for Sunday’s contest, so Brady will be looking to Gronk early and often in Sunday’s game.

Woods had a stellar game against the Giants last Sunday. His 70 yards and pair of touchdowns helped lead the first place Rams to a blowout victory. This week, the Texans are on the schedule and their lackluster secondary spells success for Woods.

Sit: Coby Fleener vs. Bills, Delanie Walker vs. Bengals, Martellus Bennett vs. Bears

The players above have a combined two touchdowns from season and have not scored a touchdown since Week 2. Walker is the only one of the three who plays a strong role in their team’s offense anymore. If you had to pick one of the three, Walker is your guy but it’s hard to start any of these three.

Defense

Start: Los Angeles Rams vs. Texans

We are going back to the Rams for the second week in a row as they face Tom Savage and the Texans this week. Houston averaged slightly above 30 points per game with Deshaun Watson starting at quarterback, but the team only averages 10.5 with Savage. Connor Barwin and the Rams should have a field day this week against Houston.

Kicker

Start: Matt Prater vs. Browns

Prater continues to knock in strong performances week after week. Now, he gets to face the Browns in what should be an offensive explosion for Detroit.

Sit: Brandon McManus vs. Patriots

McManus has had a rough go at it this season with a Denver team struggling to put points on the board. With Brock Osweiler starting against the Patriots this week, I can’t see the Broncos offense experiencing a renaissance.

LGBT focus

Rams WR Robert Woods, who had two touchdowns last week.

Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images

Read more on these players’ LGBT views:

• 14 NFL Pro Bowlers say they would welcome a gay teammate (from 2017)
• NFL players react to Michael Sam coming out (from 2014)
• 62 active NFL players who have made statements in support of gays (from 2013)
• Carson Palmer, 12 Indianapolis Colts Would Embrace Openly Gay Teammate (from 2013)

Jeremy Brener is a student at the University of Central Florida who writes for Outsports. He can be reached via email (jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com) and followed on Twitter.