Should I start Deshaun Watson or Michael Mayer in Week 10?

The market-based projections

Deshaun Watson's market-based projection is 13.0 PPR points a game, built from 5 markets across 14 market sources. That is the 50th highest figure of the 213 players with a market-based projection.

Michael Mayer's market-based projection is 5.6 PPR points a game, built from 3 markets across 13 market sources. That is the 121st highest figure of the 213 players with a market-based projection.

Where the draft room stands

Live drafts hold no current pick on Deshaun Watson, and the board ranks him 138th overall on the rest of his evidence.

Live drafts hold no current pick on Michael Mayer, and the board ranks him 136th overall on the rest of his evidence.

This season so far

Through Week 8, Deshaun Watson has been on the field for 99 percent of CLE snaps, dropped back 306 times and thrown 7.2 air yards an attempt.

He has been sacked or hit on 65 of 306 dropbacks and scrambled 24 times.

In Week 6 against BAL he completed 16 of 26 passes for 164 yards, threw 0 touchdowns and 0 interceptions and ran 8 times for 29 yards.

In Week 7 against TEN he completed 25 of 36 passes for 308 yards, threw 0 touchdowns and 1 interception and ran 3 times for 19 yards.

In Week 8 against PIT he completed 27 of 39 passes for 324 yards, threw 0 touchdowns and 0 interceptions and ran 2 times for 3 yards.

Through Week 9, Michael Mayer has been on the field for 81 percent of LV snaps, drawn 15 percent of the targets and had 3 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 8 of the offence's 84 third down targets, had 2 of its 27 chances inside the five and seen 9 of its 43 two minute targets.

His 46 targets have averaged 5.2 air yards.

In Week 7 against LAR he caught 3 of 3 targets for 32 yards and did not score.

In Week 8 against NYJ he caught 5 of 6 targets for 53 yards and did not score.

In Week 9 against SF he caught 3 of 3 targets for 37 yards and did not score.

Their 2025 seasons

The season feed carries no line for Deshaun Watson in the last completed season.

In 2025 Michael Mayer played 13 games and scored 73.8 PPR points, 5.7 a game, finishing TE38.

He caught 35 of 50 targets for 328 yards and 1 touchdown, with 6 red zone targets.

That came to 3.8 targets a game, a 70 percent catch rate and 9.4 yards a catch.

He was on the field for 57 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

Side by side

Deshaun Watson is a quarterback and Michael Mayer a tight end, so the question is which slot you fill first rather than which of them is better.

Byes and availability

Deshaun Watson is off in Week 11 and Michael Mayer in Week 13, so either can cover the other's bye.

What would change the answer

7.4 points a game is the entire case. The market restates it every week, and a line that moves moves the order with it.

The draft market is the half that is missing: when live drafts hold these two again they can order them differently from the projection, and this page will follow the drafts rather than the market-based projection when they do.