Fantasy Football Week 10 Waiver Wire Debate: Sam Darnold vs Joe Flacco

Sam Darnold and Joe Flacco are two highly undervalued quarterbacks in Fantasy Football. They can be added on the waiver wire.

Bengals Joe Flacco (16) enters the field before their game against the Bears at Paycor Stadium on Sunday November 2, 2025. | Phil Didion/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

At one point in time, the New York Jets rostered Sam Darnold and Joe Flacco on the same roster. It did not work out with either quarterback, but it has worked out for them in the long term. Darnold is playing at a near MVP level right now while Flacco is throwing 400 Yard games with the Bengals. Both quarterbacks have shown to be very fantasy viable and they pop up on the Waiver Wire for Week 10.

The Case for Sam Darnold

Darnold is having career year through 8 Games. He has a 70.4% Completion Percentage while comes to 261 Yards per Game, 16 Touchdowns, and 5 Interceptions. He marks as the QB11 in Fantasy Football, yet he remains rostered under 50%.

In NFL history, 4 QBs have done the following over their team's first 8 games of a season:

completed 70% of passes
thrown for 2000+ yards
thrown for 15+ TDs
taken fewer than 10 sacks

Those QBs are Tom Brady (2007), Peyton Manning (2009), Drew Brees (2018) & Sam Darnold (2025). pic.twitter.com/6rqP1iYXHk

— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) November 3, 2025

There are a few under rostered players out there right now. Troy Franklin is our white horse of them all. Darnold is another.

The only thing holding Darnold back from top 10 status is this Seattle Red Zone offense. Seattle has one of the highest rates in the NFL with 65% of Red Zone plays being on the ground. That has Darnold limited to just 3.1 Red Zone Pass Attempts per game. He is highly efficient with 10 Touchdowns on 17 Completions, yet he could have more.

The Case for Joe Flacco

Flacco was trade to the Bengals just a month ago and it begged many questions. Was Flacco still any good? Was it a worthwhile deal to surpass Jake Browning and try to make a playoff run? The move was somewhat risky, but is has paid off, or at least it has in Fantasy Football.

The Bengals are 1-3 with Flacco, but not at his fantasy cost. Flacco has achieved 20+ Fantasy Points in all four of his games. He is averaging a whopping 314 Yards per Game with a TD:INT ratio of 12:2. Flacco is up to QB16 in and that is with only half of his games as a Bengal.

Most pass yards in a single game by any player 40+ years old:

🟠 470 - Joe Flacco
🟠 447 - Tom Brady
🟠 446 - Brett Favre pic.twitter.com/zvXYTNj8WY

— NFL+ (@NFLPlus) November 2, 2025

If we were talking Fantasy Points per Game, Flacco would be leading all quarterbacks by 3+ Points per Game. That would be if we took his last four games and made them his entire season's average. It is clear that Flacco is a weapon with Chase and Higgins.

Reasonably, we can expect Flacco to come down to earth a bit. No quarterback averages over 300 Yards on the season. However, proof is in the pudding and it tastes great. Flacco should be able to maintain borderline top 10 status despite being a pocket passing statue.

Waiver Wire Debate: Sam Darnold vs Joe Flacco

The one minor issue here is that Flacco is going on his bye week. If you need a quarterback immediately, you have to take Darnold, of course.

The waiver wire is all about opportunity. Flacco has more of it. As Seattle is very run-heavy, Cleveland is very pass-heavy. They are top 5 in pass-rate in the NFL. That means that Flacco has high touchdown opportunity.

After the bye, Flacco has the 32nd rated Steelers coverage followed by moderate matchups including the Patriots, Ravens, and Bills. In the playoff weeks, Flacco gets the Ravens, Dolphins, and Cardinals. The last of those three will be difficult, but the first two are bad. Flacco could be a league-winner.

Pickup Joe Flacco for long-term upside.