We’re on to week 9 of the NFL season and we have to work around some more significant players whose teams are on bye this week. You’ll be without your Detroit Lions, Seattle Seahawks, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Washington Football Team players. Add in players still dealing with injuries, new injuries, and some more COVID-related issues and you’re probably looking for some replacement starters this week. In this article, I will take my best shot at identifying some players who we would classify as sleepers that you can start in your lineup. Before I get into this week’s sleepers, as always I like to review my picks from last week and give you some feedback on those players moving forward.
At quarterback last week, we rolled out Carson Wentz as a sleeper at ECR QB14 and he finished as the QB11 on the week. Wentz is tough to watch as he will look good one moment and then throw an interception that he had no business of even attempting the pass. However, even with the ugliness Wentz is the QB12 on the season and can be played moving forward as a back-end QB1. Lawrence on the other hand was a bust after finishing as the QB20 on the week. Lawrence will have his ups and downs as a rookie, but he’s hard to trust moving forward unless you’re desperate.
At running back, our Boston Scott pick paid off as he finished as the RB9 on the week. He led the “three-headed monster” in snaps last week with 45%. I feel as if he can be used as a flex option moving forward, but it’s possible the pendulum swings a different way in that backfield and he is a letdown. So proceed with caution with Scott. David Johnson was a complete bust despite Mark Ingram leaving town as he rushed just 2 times for 4 yards. Phillip Lindsey also only rushed 3 times for 8 yards so I’d stay away from this Houston backfield.
At Receiver, the Arizona Cardinals put up a stinker on Thursday night and Christian Kirk finished as the WR54. I expect this to be an outlier and Kirk will have better games to come, but we also want to keep an eye on Kyler Murray as he is day to day with an ankle injury. Jaylen Waddle also put up a stinker in another game where Miami appeared to struggle offensively as he finished as the WR62. What is promising though is he still saw 12 targets, but only caught 4 for 29. I feel like he gets a PPR bump, but can be used as a flex play if you’re in need and hope he is able to catch more of his targets.
At Tight End, Tonyan left the game with an injury after catching 3 receptions for 49 yards and managed a TE15 finish on the week. We hope he makes a full recovery as he is expected to be out for the year. Tyler Conklin finished tied for the TE11 spot after having a decent game. Conklin will remain on the streaming radar moving forward if you’re needy at tight end.
As mentioned before, I will utilize several factors when exploring who my weekly sleepers will be. I will be looking at ADP (Fantasypros.com ADP), weekly positional rankings (Fantasypros.com ECR), rostership percentages, and some betting info (to help give perspective on possible outcomes). When referencing scoring in these articles this season I will be looking at Half-PPR scoring and in terms of league size I will stick with 12-team leagues.
Quarterbacks: Fantasy Football Sleepers Week 9
Taysom Hill (QB, NO) vs Atlanta Falcons
This pick has an asterisk next to it as I type as Hill is still progressing through the concussion protocol. Should he start this Sunday, he can be slotted in as a starter against an Atlanta defense that continues to give up 27.9 points per game. He currently sits at the QB ECR16, but that’s likely to move up once he is cleared from the concussion protocol.
Ryan Tannehill (QB, TEN) at Los Angeles Rams
Tannehill currently sits at ECR QB14 in the weekly rankings but will be going up against the Rams without Derrick Henry. Tannehill currently sits as the QB11 on the season. Things will likely change without Henry and Tannehill will need to be relied on more to move the ball in the passing game. He gets a tough Rams defense, but the current over/under of 54 points is a game I want to be involved in when it comes to fantasy players on my roster. The Rams are scoring 30.4 points per game and Tennessee will likely have to try and keep up with Tannehill’s arm, which is why he makes our list this week as streamer/sleeper.
Running Backs: Fantasy Football Sleepers Week 9
Jeremy McNichols (RB, TEN) at Los Angeles Rams
MicNichols currently sits at the RB ECR28, which would make him a back-end RB3 on the week. However, McNichols has some big shoes to fill now with Henry out. With the Titans signing Adrian Peterson I can expect neither to completely step into Henry’s role by themselves (I don’t know if any other running back could). What is interesting with McNichols is that he has already been involved in the passing game prior to Henry’s injury. This season he’s averaged 3.6 targets, 3 receptions, and 29 receiving yards. With his current usage in the passing game and a likely increase in rushing attempts alongside Peterson, McNichols brings some flex appeal this week.
Wide Receivers: Fantasy Football Sleepers Week 9
Kadarius Toney (WR, NYG) vs. Las Vegas Raiders
Toney currently sits as the ECR WR32 at this time heading into week 9. Toney burst onto the scene and then has been dealing with some injuries, but the potential is still there for him to be a quality asset for fantasy. Toney managed just 3 receptions for 36 yards on 3 targets, however, he only played on 34% of snaps. The Giants have been tough to watch at times, but if we’re in need of someone to plug into my lineup I am going to be swinging for the fences and Toney brings that upside. We will want to keep an eye on any injury designations, but hopefully, he can get a few days of practice in this week.
Jarvis Landry (WR, CLE) at Cincinnati Bengals
With Odell Beckham out of the picture, Landry looks to be the beneficiary in terms of fantasy football. Landry sits as the ECR WR34 currently but could be busy on Sunday in what should be a competitive matchup with the Bengals with the current over/under at 47. Landry saw 10 targets last week and caught 5 of them for 65 yards and he gets a PPR bump. However, he looks to be the number one option in the passing offense moving forward.
Tight Ends: Fantasy Football Sleepers Week 9
Pat Freiermuth (TE, PIT) vs. Chicago Bears
Freiermuth now has back-to-back games with 7 targets and currently sits as the ECR TE17. While Eric Ebron has been out, he’s now been able to turn those 14 targets into 11 receptions, 102 receiving yards, and 1 touchdown. Roethlisberger has been averaging about 6.6 yards per attempt this year and continues to rely on Najee Harris, Diontae Johnson, and now Pat Freiermuth. The Bears are a tough matchup, but Freirmuth should be involved in the game plan and can be streamed this week.
