Taking a look at the Week 10 touches and targets leaders can go a long way in projecting where fantasy points may come from in the near future. Each week I’ll break down which running backs led the way in touches, including red zone opportunities. Most of the top performers in touches and targets from a week-to-week basis are not only owned in most leagues, but started as well. This will give us a clearer view of where touchdowns may come from. A plus for the DFS players out there. As you’ll see below, Leonard Fournette returned in a big way, Nick Chubb continues to rack up the touches and Zach Ertz is on pace for the best season ever from a tight end.
Week 10 Touches Leaders
- Leonard Fournette – 29
- David Johnson – 28
- LeSean McCoy – 27
- Ezekiel Elliott – 25
- Saquon Barkley – 24
- Melvin Gordon – 23
- Nick Chubb – 23
- Dion Lewis – 22
- Adrian Peterson – 21
- Kerryon Johnson – 20
Leonard Fournette, RB – Jacksonville Jaguars
Week 10 marked the return of Leonard Fournette and he looked like the Leonard Fournette of old. The one you drafted early and have been frustrated with for most of the season. It’s very clear that the Jacksonville Jaguars want to run their offense through Fournette. I think it’s a good thing they were patient with his return and he looked healthy. The question is, for how long? If your trade deadline didn’t pass, I would consider selling high in case he suffered a setback, because he’s been dealing with injuries for most of his career. If he’s healthy, you can expect the same usage as we saw in Week 10; 24 carries for 53 yards and five grabs for another 56 yards. He found the end zone twice, once on the ground and once through the air. He should be a staple inside the week-to-week touches as long as he’s healthy. He may not rack up five catches in each game, but the work the ground should be consistent.
David Johnson, RB – Arizona Cardinals
David Johnson owners have to feel great about what they’ve seen over the past couple weeks. Johnson had a season-high 28 touches in Week 10 and racked up a season high 183 yards. He had 98 yards on 21 carries with a rushing touchdown, and seven catches on nine targets for 85 yards along with a receiving touchdown. Johnson has 11 catches on 13 targets in his last two games and it’s clear he’s trending up with the OC change in Arizona. DJ has a terrific schedule going forward as well, which includes games against Oakland, Detroit and Atlanta. Even he agrees he’s back…
Gettin back to my old ways! ?? pic.twitter.com/mqmmc23JVs
— David Johnson (@DavidJohnson31) November 14, 2018
Nick Chubb, RB – Cleveland Browns
Nick Chubb churned out another 20 touches this past week and has had at least 18 in each of his last four games. Chubb racked up 178 rushing yards on 20 carries and added another 33 through the air on three grabs. He had two touchdowns and has four in four games since the Cleveland Browns dealt Carlos Hyde. Chubb is a lock to touch the ball 18-20 times in each game from here on out with all the red zone rushing attempts.
Kerryon Johnson, RB – Detroit Lions
Kerryon Johnson turned out to have a pretty good game in a tough matchup after a disappointing showing in Week 9. The Detroit Lions still gave the ball to LeGarrette Blount in the red zone, but when he failed to get in (twice), the ball finally when to Johnson. He scored just the second rushing touchdown against the Chicago Bears this season. Johnson had 51 yards on 14 carries, but it was encouraging to see six catches on six targets. Johnson also had a receiving touchdown and nas how caught 15 passes on 19 targets in his last three games. Theo Riddick is not going anywhere, in fact, he has led the Lions in catches over the past two weeks. Riddick played a little bit out of the slot and will continue to get looks with Golden Tate sidelined, but it was nice to see Johnson still involved through the air. It’s likely the point in the season where Blount gets phased out of the offense. At least that’s what should happen.
Overall Touches Leaders
- Todd Gurley – 238
- James Conner – 203
- Ezekiel Elliott – 203
- Saquon Barkley – 193
- Kareem Hunt – 190
- Alvin Kamara – 178
- Christian McCaffrey – 177
- David Johnson – 174
- Adrian Peterson – 169
- Melvin Gordon – 161
Week 10 Targets Leaders
- Zach Ertz – 16
- Kenny Golladay – 13
- Julian Edelman – 12
- Brandin Cooks – 12
- Josh Gordon – 12
- Zay Jones – 11
- DeVante Parker – 11
- Julio Jones – 11
- Austin Hooper – 11
- Amari Cooper – 10
Zach Ertz, TE – Philadelphia Eagles
There’s really not much to say about Zach Ertz, besides the fact that he’s awesome. He led Week 10 in targets with 16 and catches with 14. He found the end zone twice, on two red zone targets and now ranks inside the top 5 in overall targets. He also ranks fifth in red zone targets and will continue to be the number one option for Carson Wentz the rest of the season. I know it’s only one game, but like I said before…Golden Tate will be the third option at best in this offense going forward. Ertz is the guy, followed by Alshon Jeffery. Think of Ertz as a WR1 in fantasy terms as his 75 catches are three off his career high and they are the most from a tight end in NFL history through the first 10 weeks of a season, despite only playing nine games. He’s on pace for 133 catches and 1,403 yards, which would be all-time marks at the position. Rob Gronkowski had 1,327 yards in 2011 and Jason Witten holds the catch record with 110 in 2012.
Amari Cooper, WR – Dallas Cowboys
Last week was a very nice matchup for Amari Cooper as he had six catches for 75 yards and would have had a couple scores if not for some poor throws from Dak Prescott. No surprise on Prescott missing Cooper, but definitely some positives to take away in his first two games with the Dallas Cowboys. Cooper has 11 catches on 18 targets for 133 yards. He has a touchdown in those two games and is very good for this offense, especially Ezekiel Elliott. Cooper stretches the field and has pretty good matchups going forward; Atlanta, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Indianapolis and Tampa Bay.
Overall Targets Leaders
- Jarvis Landry – 106
- Adam Thielen – 103
- Odell Beckham Jr. – 102
- Julio Jones – 102
- Zach Ertz – 100
- Antonio Brown – 96
- Davante Adams – 94
- DeAndre Hopkins – 90
- James White – 89
- Michael Thomas – 87
Overall Red Zone Rushing Attempts
- Todd Gurley – 52
- Alvin Kamara – 36
- James Conner – 28
- Kareem Hunt – 25
- Adrian Peterson – 23
- Sony Michel – 23
- Ezekiel Elliott – 23
- Saquon Barkley – 22
- Alfred Morris – 22
- Jordan Howard – 21
Overall Red Zone Targets
- Alvin Kamara – 21
- JuJu Smith-Schuster – 20
- Davante Adams – 20
- Michael Thomas – 20
- Zach Ertz – 17
- Odell Beckham Jr. – 17
- Jarvis Landry – 16
- Eric Ebron – 16
- DeAndre Hopkins – 15
- Todd Gurley – 15
Eric Ebron, TE – Indianapolis Colts
Eric Ebron only played 21-of-55 snaps against Jacksonville and saw just three targets. That’s all he needed to score three touchdowns (one rushing), to give him nine on the season. He now has four touchdowns in the last two games with Jack Doyle in the lineup. This has been a wild season for Ebron and it seems very unsustainable, but there isn’t a lot to offer when it comes to the tight end position and he’s scoring touchdowns. I would rather roster Doyle as he’s getting more play and targets, but you can’t ignore Ebron, especially in standard formats. Ebron has been inside the top 10 in red zone targets all season long and is clearly heavily involved in red zone packages.
Also check out our Week 11 Sleepers: Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Wide Receivers | Tight Ends
Get more Chris Meaney on his new podcast, By Any Means. Each week he’ll bring in guests from around the industry to break down all the fantasy news you need to know for your march to the championship.
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