New Orleans Saints Start-Sit: Week 10 Fantasy Advice for Tyler Shough, Alvin Kamara, Chris Olave, and Juwan Johnson

The fantasy football landscape shifts each week, bringing fresh opportunities and unexpected challenges that separate the prepared from the pretenders. Savvy managers know that last week’s performance tells only part of the story, and diving deeper into the underlying metrics reveals the accurate picture.

This week presents some intriguing decisions. Here’s insight about key New Orleans Saints players heading into their matchup with the Carolina Panthers to help you craft a winning lineup.

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Tyler Shough, QB

In his first career start, Tyler Shough did about what we expected against a Rams defense that was able to pin their ears back due to the game script.

All things considered, I didn’t think it was that bad. He averaged 7.3 yards per pass and saw his two primary receivers account for the majority of his completions, yards, and targets.

There’s a massive gap between “I didn’t think it was that bad” and “worthy of consideration on our end”.

Shough is 1-of-13 this season with an interception when pressured, something that he will work to improve over the final two months of this season. The idea of starting him now is not to win games or put up numbers; it’s to accelerate the development curve so that if this team can build a competitive roster, their QB has a chance to prove additive.

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I’m not sold that Shough is the man long-term in New Orleans, but at least the team will gather data points to consider during his rookie season.

Alvin Kamara, RB

Alvin Kamara battled an ankle injury through the work week and was able to give it a go in Los Angeles last week, but he was predictably ineffective and is now on the outside looking in at startable RBs.

Every metric you look at, from volume numbers to efficiency and expected ones, it’s clear that Kamara is on the back-nine of his career. Sadly, that process is being sped up due to the ineptitude around him.

His role as a pass catcher hasn’t been the same this year as seasons past, and we were holding out hope that a change under center couldn’t hurt that downward trajectory.

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Well, it certainly didn’t make things better.

If you want to tell yourself that this is going to be a tight game and thus a 16-18 touch day is possible, go for it. You’re an optimist at heart, and I admire that.

I’m actively looking for reasons to bench Kamara as my flex. If pressed, I’d start both Seattle backs over him and wouldn’t shy away from a receiver like Romeo Doubs in his spot.

Chris Olave, WR

Chris Olave’s calling card has been elite volume this season; it’s really that simple.

The New Orleans offense has been bogged down for much of the season, but their willingness to funnel volume to their alpha WR1 has allowed him to stay afloat for our purposes.

But I’m worried.

Or, at least, I was. Before Tuesday.

READ MORE: Soppe’s Week 10 Fantasy Football Start ‘Em Sit ‘Em: Analysis for Every Player in Every Game

Rashid Shaheed had posted better target-per-route numbers in both games in which Tyler Shough has appeared, and that change under center is here to stay, but he’s now in Seattle.

This has been a concentrated offense all season long, and that scheme is here to stay, but now, one of those target magnets is out of the mix.

Olave was a flex for me prior to the Shaheed deal: he’s now sitting at WR16 for this weekend.

Juwan Johnson, TE

It was good to see Juwan Johnson find the end zone for the first time since Week 2, but I’m not labeling any good vibes from last week as transferable with Shough under center.

His average depth of target was dialed back to 5.8 yards last week, and that increases the point expectancy of each look. I just worry about the volume part of that equation as a part of an offense that struggles to move the ball with any level of consistency.

Rashid Shaheed seems to have the eye of Shough, Olave isn’t going away, and Taysom Hill continues to weasel his way into usage. I’d much rather stream a player like Luka Musgrave, a player I view as a lesser talent but is tied to a far superior offense.