Rizzla takes a look at Mike Davis’ upside and floor for Week 10 of the 2020 fantasy football season.
While Christian McCaffrey appears to have avoided a long-term injury, he has been ruled out for Week 10. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that McCaffrey sought a second opinion on his shoulder, and now has a realistic chance of playing in Week 11. That is music to the ears of his fantasy managers who feared another lengthy absence following the surprise news of the new injury.
For Week 11, it will be the Mike Davis show. Davis was the RB10 between Week 3 and Week 8 and did his best impression of McCaffrey for the first three weeks. Between Week 3 and Week 5, Davis was the RB4 in fantasy points per game. Between Week 6 and Week 8, his play fell off significantly (perhaps due to opponent), and Davis was the RB40.
What version of Mike Davis will we see in Week 10?
Mike Davis is going to be a chalky DFS play, and is an obvious must-start due to the large role he is expected to have but is he worth the risk against one of the best defensive fronts in football? Davis has proven that he can have down weeks and saw his involvement as a receiver slashed over his last three games as the spot starter.
Gamescript may not be in Davis favor, as the Panthers are listed as +6 point underdogs for this weekend’s contest. This sort of gamescript could limit Davis’ carries, as could the fact that the Panthers signed Reggie Bonnafon from the practice squad. Bonnafon is dealing with an ankle injury but is expected to play this weekend.
If Davis can see the 7.5 receptions he averaged from Week 2 to Week 5, he could explode in a contest with a 50.5 point over/under. However, if he is held to just 3.3 targets per game like he was from Week 6 to Week 8, he could fall flat, especially if the Buccaneers front seven can limit his efficiency on the carries he does get.
All in all, Davis is more of a DFS option due to his price tag than someone we would be clamoring for if he was priced at the levels he was pegged at prior to Chrisitan McCaffrey’s return. Consider him an RB2 with RB1 upside but an RB4 floor for Week 10.
