Fantasy Football fool’s gold: 3 players you should believe in, 2 players you shouldn’t in Week 10

We are approaching the stretch run in the fantasy football season and managers are trying to gear up for a postseason push. The fly in the ointment is a slew of bye weeks for key NFL stars, including four teams in Week 9 that include the Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns and Las Vegas Raiders.

The absence of those teams will remove not only established fantasy studs like Kenneth Walker and Josh Jacobs but also some of the most impactful pickups of the year like Cleveland's Cedric Tillman (who we covered in this space last week). Which of Week 9's breakout fantasy stars can you trust to help fill your fantasy lineup in Week 10 and beyond? Read on for this week's fool's gold report.

Fantasy Football fool's gold: Week 10 report

Taysom Hill, QB/TE, New Orleans Saints

It feels like there is a point every season where fantasy managers are staring at the waiver wire trying to justify picking up Taysom Hill to help their team. That moment has arrived after Hill had a solid performance in New Orleans' 23-22 loss to Carolina, rushing five times for 19 yards and a touchdown while catching four passes for 41 yards on five targets.

The reason the Hill buzz is building is due to the sheer amount of attrition that the Saints' receiver room has gone through. Rashid Shaheed is already gone for the year and Chris Olave suffered a scary concussion on Sunday that required him to leave the stadium in an ambulance, forcing Hill into more offensive reps than he's seen in a while.

While the potential exists for a Hill breakout, its hard to see how the Saints utilize him in more than the gadget capacity that they have for the past several years. New Orleans also fired head coach Dennis Allen on Monday, creating more chaos in New Orleans and making it best to avoid all Saints outside of Alvin Kamara for your fantasy lineups until we can see how the dust settles.

Verdict: Bust

Quentin Johnston, WR, Los Angeles Chargers

Reports of Justin Herbert's decline into a game-managing quarterback under the run-heavy game plans of Jim Harbaugh and Greg Roman appear to be greatly exaggerated. Since Los Angeles returned from its bye in Week 5 Herbert has been airing it out more frequently, averaging over 300 yards passing in his past three games and recording multiple touchdowns in the past two, and one of the biggest beneficiaries has been Quentin Johnston.

The former first-round pick had his biggest game of the season on Sunday, catching four passes for 118 yards and a score on five targets. The highlight of Johnston's day was a 66-yard touchdown strike in the second quarter, which was an encouraging sign of explosiveness after Johnston missed the Chargers' previous three games with an ankle injury.

While there is the chance Los Angeles could add a pass catcher prior to the trade deadline, Johnston's big-play ability should make him a preferred target for Herbert on downfield shots. Ladd McConkey and Joshua Palmer haven't exactly lit the world on fire this season either so there is plenty of room for Johnston to claim the top spot on Los Angeles' passing tree and establish himself as a weekly WR3 in fantasy circles.

Verdict: Trust

Mike Gesicki, TE, Cincinnati Bengals

Mike Gesicki was one of the trendiest fantasy tight ends after the 2021 season when he caught 73 passes for 780 yards and was set to be an integral part of Miami's explosive passing game under new head coach Mike McDaniel. That vision never materialized as Gesicki took a backseat to new acquisitions Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, leaving Miami for a lost year in New England before landing with Joe Burrow in Cincinnati.

The on-and-off injury concerns for Tee Higgins have allowed Gesicki to establish a nice rapport with Burrow and the pair had their most productive day of the season in Week 9 when Gesicki caught six passes for 100 yards and a pair of touchdowns in Cincinnati's blowout win over the Las Vegas Raiders. This is the second consecutive blowup week for Gesicki, who caught seven passes for 73 yards in Week 8 as part of the National Tight Ends Day festivities.

Ja'Marr Chase is still Burrow's top target but Burrow has shown the ability to make his tight ends usable fantasy commodities over the years. Gesicki is arguably the most skilled tight end that Burrow has had to work with so expect the Bengals to make him a prominent part of their game plans going forward, offering him some solid value at a position that is hard to fill on fantasy rosters.

Verdict: Trust

Theo Johnson, TE, New York Giants

The Giants' offense is nothing to write home about but Daniel Jones is capable of occasional moments of brilliance, such as Week 9's 27-22 loss to the Washington Commanders. Jones scored his first touchdown at MetLife Stadium in almost two years in the game and one of the beneficiaries was rookie tight end Theo Johnson, who had his best day as a pro.

Johnson was targeted six times against the Commanders and caught three of them for 51 yards and a score. The spike was on a 35-yard connection, which is the high point of Johnson's day, although he has been a consistent secondary option in New York's passing attack.

While a good matchup awaits against Carolina's shaky defense in Germany in Week 10, Johnson simply doesn't get enough looks to merit starter status, even at a position where fantasy players are desperate for production like tight end. Malik Nabers, WanDale Robinson and Darius Slayton all rate above Johnson in the Giants' passing attack, which isn't dynamic to begin with, so chasing this line from Week 9 with him is the definition of fool's gold.

Verdict: Bust

Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, WR, Tennessee Titans

Let's wrap up this week's edition of the fool's gold report with a look at Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, another guy who feels like a perennial waiver-wire consideration in fantasy leagues. Westbrook-Ikhine has actually found the end zone in four consecutive weeks, which is no small accomplishment given Tennessee's mediocre passing attack, including a season-best 5/50/1 line on six targets in Week 9.

The positive for Westbrook-Ikhine backers is that he has taken on an expanded role in the Titans' offense after Tennessee traded DeAndre Hopkins to the Kansas City Chiefs prior to Week 8. While Calvin Ridley is Tennessee's top receiver and an explosive deep threat, Westbrook-Ikhine is more of a slot merchant who can collect check-down targets to offer some upside in PPR-based leagues.

Next week's trip to Los Angeles isn't a fun one for Westbrook-Ikhine but Tennessee's next four matchups (Minnesota, at Houston, at Washington, Jacksonville) offer contests with shaky pass defenses where the Titans should be chasing points, offering plenty of garbage time for him to work with. While the quarterback situation isn't ideal, Westbrook-Ikhine is the kind of safe flex option fantasy players can use to navigate the last set of byes before the postseason starts.

Verdict: Trust