What a wild week Week 9 was on and off the field. That also shows itself in the red zone plays that were run and who was on the receiving end of them. At this point in the season it’s important to pay attention to who’s seeing the red zone work as it could give sneaky fantasy value to them given that most touchdowns are scored inside the 20 yard line.

Red Zone Passing

Derek Carr, LV - Carr is in the midst of a great season, for him, but his best game in terms of red zone volume came last week when he had 12 attempts and six inside the 10. One of those passes went for a score. Given how much he targets just two pass catchers, the loss of Henry Ruggs shouldn’t be a problem going forward for him and there are plenty of red zone targets still on the team to focus on.

TyRod Taylor, HOU - Back from his injury, Taylor picked up right where he left off and posted nine red zone passes in Week 9. That’s the most on the year for him though he did open Week 1 strong with seven such attempts. While none of the nine attempts resulted in a score, it’s still good to see the Texans offense getting back to moving the ball with Taylor under center and bringing the fantasy value back for him and his fellow offensive weapons.

Justin Herbert, LAC - The eight red zone passing attempts in Week 9 for Herbert were his most in a game since Week 3 and of those eight, two went for scores not including the additional rushing touchdown he had inside the 20 as well. It’s no secret that the Chargers’ offense is capable of being electric every given week with the talent they have but it hasn’t necessarily been that for the last few weeks, at least inside the 20.

Red Zone Rushing

Dalvin Cook, MIN - How good was Cook’s Week 9? He has 18 total red zone carries on the year and seven of them came in Week 9. That’s the most in any single game this year. While he had the volume, including four inside the five-yard-line, he didn’t score inside the 20 on the day. He’ll continue to be a focal point of the Vikings’ offense but getting the chances near the goal line have been a bit tough to come by consistently this year.

Darrel Williams, KC - His four red zone rushes in Week 9 puts him in third in the league for most carries but it was also his most voluminous red zone week of the season. Of the four carries, two came inside the five and he had a catch inside the five as well. The Chiefs are still trying to regain their offensive prowess but adding in a run game will certainly help, though Clyde Edwards-Helaire should be back in the next week or two as well.

James Conner, ARI - Conner was a big part of the Cardinals’ offense last week after Chase Edmonds went down injured and he should remain a big part of the offense. Just how big? He had five red zone attempts and two of those were scores. The Cardinals’ offense is good at rushing and passing and even without Kyler Murray on the field they can move the ball well which keeps Conner’s value high.

Red Zone Receiving

Brandin Cooks, HOU - Was there anyone in Houston more happy to see Taylor back under center than Cooks? He went from having little to no fantasy value with Davis Mills and his long neck at quarterback to immediately seeing four targets inside the 20. He caught one of them and doesn't have a score from it but the return to volume is good to see for him. If Taylor can keep this up like he did the first few weeks, Cook can keep his WR2 fantasy status going.

Mike Williams, LAC - Where have you been Mike Williams? Not quite the same ring as “Where have you been Joe DiMaggio?” but it still works. He hadn’t seen a red zone target in the last five games coming into Week 9 but then bam, he saw three come his way against the Eagles. He didn’t catch a single one, but the return to volume is at least comforting for fantasy players as he’d not even been getting looks near the goal line. Getting the targets back is the first step to getting results. 

Keelan Cole, NYJ - Holy cow, a Jets’ receiver made the piece. Well we’ve got to mention his best target day inside the 20 of the year, right? The Jets’ offense hadn’t done much of anything until Mike White took over and then Josh Johnson as well. That QB combo combined to give Cole three targets in the red zone in Week 9 of which he caught one. If we’re talking efficiency with the Jets it has to go to Elijah Moore who saw two targets and caught both for touchdowns. Now that Mike White is the QB1, at least in the near future, both Cole and Moore should continue to see reliable targets inside the 20.

David Njoku, CLE - The benefits of not having OBJ on the roster are becoming reality for Njoku as he had the most targets inside the 20 as he’s had all year last week. Of the six red zone attempts that Baker Mayfield had, three went to Njoku of which he caught one for a score. The Browns will have to keep piecing together the passing game and it appears that Njoku might remain on the radar inside the 20 going forward.

Red Zone Defense

Tennessee Titans - A big reason for the Titans turnaround this season has been their defense inside the 20 and slowing teams down. Earlier this year they were getting burned inside the 20 with allowing scores at above league average rates, and while they still have allowed the fifth-most trips inside the 20 of any team in the league, they rank among the best 10 teams in the league in stopping opponents from scoring. Now that they’re through a very tough stretch of games, they have one of the easier schedules left on the year after this week.

Buffalo Bills - The only team in the league to allow less than double-digit touchdowns to this point in the season, at least inside the 20. Even though the offense hasn’t been helping as much recently, the defense is clearly still doing their job in stopping teams from scoring inside the 20. That being said, four of the nine scores they’ve allowed have come in the last two games they’ve played. Playing against the Bills this year is not good news for your fantasy players chances of scoring.