Weekly Hail Mary: Week 10

Each week, HMF will provide you with at least one “Hail Mary” at RB, WR, and TE - a guy who is not generally regarded as a starter for the week, but who has the potential to pay off big. These are lottery tickets that are not likely to hit, but if they do, you’ll be thrilled, as you can likely grab them for free off your waiver wire. We only focus on players who are available in at least one-third of Yahoo! leagues.

In other words, if you’re desperate, we’re giving you a prayer. The Hail Marys for Week 10:

Running Backs

Mike Davis, Seahawks (24% owned). Chris Carson is hurt, and Davis is the next man up. OC Brian Schottenheimer wants to run, run, run in Seattle, and Carson was averaging more than 22 carries per game in the four games leading up to his injury. Davis is in line for a heavy workload against the Rams this week.

Frank Gore, Dolphins (28%). I know, I know. I said, “I know,” okay? I get it. It’s Frank Gore. He’s uninspiring. He doesn’t score touchdowns. But, like a cheap cup of coffee from Speedway, you know exactly what you’re going to get. It’s not going to wow you, but at least it’s something. Gore had 20 rushing attempts this past Sunday and is averaging almost 15 touches per game over the last six weeks. Volume counts for something, right?

Nyheim Hines, Colts (26%). Marlon Mack is still banged up, and Hines has some pass-catching chops in a decent offense. He’s about as high-upside of a dart throw as you can get at this point in the season.

Elijah McGuire, Jets (14%). In his first game of the season he turned 12 touches into 67 yards from scrimmage. He has the hapless Bills on tap next and his role should only increase as the season wears on.

Wide Receivers

Maurice Harris, Redskins (1%). Paul Richardson was placed on IR. Jamison Crowder is still hurt. Harris, one of the only men left standing, grabbed 10 of 12 targets for 124 yards on Sunday. Looks like he’s going to continue to get opportunities, so he’s worth a flier.

Christian Kirk, Cardinals (25%). As Matthew Berry often says, sometimes you don’t have to be the prettiest girl at the bar, you just have to be the only girl at the bar. This is an offense devoid of playmakers, and Kirk is ascending. He appears to have a rapport with QB Josh Rosen, which is critical to a young receiver’s development. Hopefully new OC Byron Leftwich will know how to use him better than Mike McCoy did.

Donte Moncrief, Jaguars (10%). See last week’s writeup on Moncrief. He is the number one target for the Jaguars.

David Moore, Seahawks (16%). He finally sees an uptick in targets, but stops producing. He had seven targets this past week, which is encouraging, and still has four touchdowns over his last four games. Seattle’s release of Brandon Marshall only solidifies his place in the passing attack.

John Ross, Bengals (3%). He’s returning from an injury this week in the nick of time, as A.J. Green is out with a toe injury. Tyler Boyd will operate as the team’s de facto #1 wideout, and Ross will likely serve as the number 2. With him, you’re basically hoping he gets loose for a deep score, given his speed.

Curtis Samuel, Panthers (1%). Honestly don’t love Samuel all that much, but the Panthers are using him in creative ways. You can’t ignore his two touchdowns from this past Sunday, one in the rushing column and one in the receiving column. His low volume is still concerning, though.

Tight Ends

Jeff Heuerman, Broncos (1%). He has touchdowns in back-to-back weeks, and more targets should be available following Demaryius Thomas’ trade to the Texans. He’s on bye this week, but had 11 targets on Sunday, so keep him in mind for Week 11.

Jordan Thomas, Texans (6%). Strikingly low volume, but he still has 3 TDs in the past two weeks. Deshaun Watson is looking for him in the end zone. Like, Heuerman, he’s also on a bye this week, so if you need a tight end for this week, you’re probably going to have to look to…

C.J. Uzomah, Bengals (23%). The last time we saw Uzomah he was playing nearly every snap yet not recording a single catch. He was dropped after a poor performance and the Bengals bye week, but I’m back on him this week. The Bengals are playing the Saints, a terrible defense, and are without top pass-catcher A.J. Green. Opportunity is there for the taking with Uzomah.

BONUS NAME: The Colts’ Jack Doyle is still available in more than 60% of leagues. In his first game back in Week 8, he caught 6 of 7 targets and scored a touchdown. He has Andrew Luck’s trust, and should be a frequent target in the passing game. With as dreadful as tight end has been this year, he’s more of a sure thing than anything else you’ll be able to find on the waiver wire at that position.