2023 Fantasy Football Week 10 Target Report Preview: Mike Evans to Continue His Strong Run
Targets are paramount when it comes to evaluating pass-catchers for fantasy football. There are no air yards, receiving yards, receptions, or touchdowns without first earning a target. And to earn a target, you need to be deemed “open” by the quarterback. It’s one big trickle-down effect. There’s a reason the biggest and most consistent target-earners are near the top of fantasy football ADP: They can be relied on by not just their team’s offense to earn targets and produce on those targets, but that also trickles down to the fantasy managers drafting those pass-catchers and starting them in their lineups each week.
In this season’s Fantasy Football Target Report, we’ll take a weekly team-by-team look into these target earners and separate the wheat from the chaff. To properly lead into what we’ll be looking at this season, we’ll have to establish a baseline of the most important things we’re looking at with targets and other receiving metrics that paint the full picture for who we should be rostering, who we should be adding, and who we can drop. Combing the box score stats doesn’t paint a clear picture of the players we should target, roster, and start. Fantasy football rankings can only paint so much of the picture as well.
Everything we’ll be talking about here and this season in this season’s Fantasy Football Target Report will be some of the best statistics and metrics that correlate with fantasy football production. Think of targets as a page in a coloring book, just the outline yet to be colored. Coloring on that page adds context and flavor to that page. That’s what we’ll be doing with targets — adding more context than just some target totals and saying, “go add this player,” which doesn’t help anybody.
This season, we're adding a video component, so if you want to get some of the juiciest nuggets of the target report in video form, check out the Target Report Bulletpoints for the upcoming Week 10!
| LEGEND |
Targets | Passes thrown in the direction of a receiver, whether intended or not |
Receptions | Passes caught by a pass-catcher |
Rec. Yards | Yards gained from a completed pass by the pass-catcher. |
TD | Receiving touchdowns |
Air Yards | The distance between where the pass is thrown from a quarterback to where the intended receiver either catches or doesn’t catch the ball. Caught or not caught, the air yards are recorded regardless. This statistic is significant for determining the quarterback and coaching staff's predictive value in an offense and their intent. |
Air Yards Team Share % | A pass-catcher’s percentage share of a team's air yards in a given week. |
Route % | Percentage of routes a pass-catcher runs on a pass play per dropback on their team. |
Snap % | Percentage of snaps a pass-catcher plays on an offensive series on their team. |
Target Share % | Percentage of targets a pass-catcher receives in a given week on their team. |
Yards per Target | Receiving yards a player gets on average per target. YPT is another intent-based metric but more predictive with the more targets a player receives. |
TPRR | Targets per route run (TPRR) is a metric that measures how often a receiver is targeted vs. the amount of routes they run. A higher TPRR means that the player is better at earning targets when he's on the field. A low raw route number or low route % coupled with a high TPRR means that the pass-catcher is efficient at earning targets and could be in line for more routes depending on the team situation. 25%+ TPRR = Elite 17-18% = Close to replacement level Sub 17% = Not fantasy relevant |
aDOT | aDOT is "average depth of target". It’s the average depth of all targets caught or incomplete by a targeted pass-catcher. Shows how a receiver is used in his team’s offense (vertical threat, short area target, etc.) |
YPRR | A metric that contextualizes the efficiency of a pass-catcher with how many receiving yards per route run. It's a much better metric than yards per reception. |
WOPR | WOPR is a weighted average incorporating a player's share of team targets and air yards. |
RACR | RACR is a ratio dividing receiving yards by total air yards. It measures how many receiving yards a player creates for every air yard thrown at him. The percentage of a team's air yards that a player commands based on his average depth of target and volume of targets. Most RACR numbers for running backs skew wildly by the nature of the running back position, which rarely earns air yards. |
Bye Weeks:
- Week 5:
CLE, LAC, SEA, TB - Week 6:
GB, PIT - Week 7:
CAR, CIN, DAL, HOU, NYJ, TEN - Week 9:
DEN, DET, JAX, SF - Week 10: KC, LAR, MIA, PHI
- Week 11: ATL, IND, NE, NO
- Week 13: BAL, BUF, CHI, LV, MIN, NYG
- Week 14: ARI, WAS
NOTE:
- Always Start Your Studs: These are players you should be starting in all formats, regardless of matchup. Use your judgment in shallower leagues where startable players are plentiful.
- Start ‘Em: Players that should be starting most weeks on your fantasy rosters.
- Keep Them Rostered: Players that should be rostered in most formats but shouldn't be started unless you’re in a pinch or during bye weeks. Maybe they’re not startable due to various issues like a backup quarterback playing, a player coming back from injury, a contingent running back, or are just unproductive, consistent, or dependable at the moment. League size designations or other designations (bench stash, etc.) will be in parenthesis next to players for deeper leagues. Depending on your league, this is a general recommendation, so use your best judgment.
- Example: Robert Woods (deeper 12 & 14-team), Royce Freeman (bench stash).
- Add ‘Em: Players that warrant an add due to circumstances, productivity, or metrics that show they’re being utilized heavily in their offenses. These will usually have a format that they should be added in.
- Listing a player as “12-team leagues” assumes that player also be an addition in deeper 12-team and 14-team formats as well.
- Dump ‘Em: Players that you should be dropping from your rosters. Use your judgment in deeper leagues where players with usefulness on waivers aren’t as plentiful.
- Any player not listed in any of these categories for a particular team is assumed to not be rosterable in most fantasy formats.
All statistics below are listed in the following format:
- WR/TE as:
- (10-4-100-2) Targets - Receptions - Rec. Yds. - TD
- RB as:
- (18-75-1; 10-4-100-2) Rush Att. - Rush Yds. - TD; Targets - Receptions - Rec. Yds. - TD
NFL Target Report
Arizona Cardinals
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Marquise Brown | WR | 8 | 4 | 24 | 0 | 36 | 73.5% | 96.9% | 96.1% | 40.0% | 3.0 | 25.8% | 4.5 | 0.77 | 1.114 | 0.667 | 31 | 49 |
| Rondale Moore | WR | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | -5 | -10.2% | 78.1% | 68.6% | 10.0% | 2.5 | 8.0% | -2.5 | 0.20 | 0.079 | -1.000 | 25 | 35 |
| Zach Pascal | WR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 10.2% | 59.4% | 58.8% | 5.0% | 0.0 | 5.3% | 5.0 | 0.00 | 0.146 | 0.000 | 19 | 30 |
| Greg Dortch | WR | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | -2 | -4.1% | 37.5% | 43.1% | 5.0% | 2.0 | 8.3% | -2.0 | 0.17 | 0.046 | -1.000 | 12 | 22 |
| Trey McBride | TE | 5 | 3 | 22 | 0 | 28 | 57.1% | 62.5% | 68.6% | 25.0% | 4.4 | 25.0% | 5.6 | 1.10 | 0.775 | 0.786 | 20 | 35 |
| Geoff Swaim | TE | 0.0% | 37.5% | 49.0% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 12 | 25 | |||||
| Elijah Higgins | TE | 0.0% | 34.4% | 29.4% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 11 | 15 | |||||
| Keaontay Ingram | RB | 0.0% | 31.3% | 39.2% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 10 | 20 | |||||
| Tony Jones | RB | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | -13 | -26.5% | 46.9% | 43.1% | 15.0% | 1.7 | 20.0% | -4.3 | 0.33 | 0.039 | -0.385 | 15 | 22 |
We’re starting out with the Cardinals, who put up a whopping 58 total yards against the Browns. This was Clayton Tune starting, and as long as Kyler Murray has no setbacks, he’s the starter against the Falcons at home. It’s tough to take anything tangible away from this game since the offense should run MUCH smoother with Murray back in the fold.
Marquise Brown (8-4-24; 36 air yards) led the Cardinals in all of the stats after his name. Trey McBride (5-3-22) was also there. We’ve got to move on.
Week 9 Arizona Cardinals Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: N/A
Start ‘Em: Marquise Brown, Kyler Murray
Keep Them Rostered: Trey McBride, Emari Demercado (missed Week 9 - toe), James Conner (on IR), Michael Wilson (deeper 12 & 14-team), Rondale Moore (14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Atlanta Falcons
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Mack Hollins | WR | 3 | 3 | 36 | 0 | 19 | 6.1% | 16.7% | 20.3% | 8.8% | 12.0 | 42.9% | 6.3 | 5.14 | 0.175 | 1.895 | 7 | 14 |
| KhaDarel Hodge | WR | 6 | 3 | 60 | 0 | 135 | 43.5% | 69.0% | 68.1% | 17.6% | 10.0 | 20.7% | 22.5 | 2.07 | 0.570 | 0.444 | 29 | 47 |
| Scott Miller | WR | 0.0% | 31.0% | 31.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 13 | 22 | |||||
| Van Jefferson | WR | 4 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 63 | 20.3% | 66.7% | 63.8% | 11.8% | 3.5 | 14.3% | 15.8 | 0.50 | 0.319 | 0.222 | 28 | 44 |
| Damiere Byrd | WR | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 14.5% | 28.6% | 27.5% | 5.9% | 0.0 | 16.7% | 22.5 | 0.00 | 0.190 | 0.000 | 12 | 19 |
| Kyle Pitts | TE | 5 | 4 | 56 | 0 | 54 | 17.4% | 66.7% | 56.5% | 14.7% | 11.2 | 17.9% | 10.8 | 2.00 | 0.343 | 1.037 | 28 | 39 |
| Jonnu Smith | TE | 6 | 5 | 100 | 1 | 12 | 3.9% | 54.8% | 55.1% | 17.6% | 16.7 | 26.1% | 2.0 | 4.35 | 0.292 | 8.333 | 23 | 38 |
| MyCole Pruitt | TE | 0.0% | 7.1% | 42.0% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 29 | |||||
| Tucker Fisk | TE | 0.0% | 2.4% | 26.1% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 18 | |||||
| Bijan Robinson | RB | 4 | 2 | 8 | 0 | -8 | -2.6% | 57.1% | 60.9% | 11.8% | 2.0 | 16.7% | -2.0 | 0.33 | 0.158 | -1.000 | 24 | 42 |
| Tyler Allgeier | RB | 3 | 2 | -9 | 0 | -7 | -2.3% | 23.8% | 34.8% | 8.8% | -3.0 | 30.0% | -2.3 | -0.90 | 0.117 | 1.286 | 10 | 24 |
| Cordarrelle Patterson | RB | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | -3 | -1.0% | 9.5% | 13.0% | 2.9% | 3.0 | 25.0% | -3.0 | 0.75 | 0.037 | -1.000 | 4 | 9 |
NFL public enemy #1, Arthur Smith, loves to make a mockery of our little game of fantasy football. Anyway, here’s almost six minutes of why the mustache-less Arthur Smith doesn’t want to give the ball to Bijan Robinson (11-51; 4-2-8) at the goal line:
Cool, cool. Tyler Allgeier (12-39-1; 3-2-(-9)) saw all three green-zone touches for the Falcons in their losing effort because of course he did.
There are so many other things wrong with this offense. Why did KhaDarel Hodge (6-3-60) tie for the team lead in targets with Jonnu Smith (6-5-100-1)? Why did Hodge get 135 air yards? Why did Smith also get more goal-line carries than Robinson did? Why can’t we free Kyle Pitts (5-4-56)?
Tune in next week for… more of the same.
#FireArthurSmith
Week 9 Atlanta Falcons Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: N/A
Start ‘Em: Bijan Robinson, Drake London (missed Week 9 - groin), Kyle Pitts
Keep Them Rostered: Jonnu Smith (deeper 12 & 14-team), Tyler Allgeier (14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Baltimore Ravens
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Rashod Bateman | WR | 5 | 3 | 28 | 0 | 108 | 44.4% | 60.5% | 56.6% | 16.1% | 5.6 | 21.7% | 21.6 | 1.22 | 0.553 | 0.259 | 23 | 43 |
| Odell Beckham | WR | 7 | 5 | 56 | 1 | 59 | 24.3% | 65.8% | 46.1% | 22.6% | 8.0 | 28.0% | 8.4 | 2.24 | 0.509 | 0.949 | 25 | 35 |
| Zay Flowers | WR | 1 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 6 | 2.5% | 81.6% | 68.4% | 3.2% | 11.0 | 3.2% | 6.0 | 0.35 | 0.066 | 1.833 | 31 | 52 |
| Nelson Agholor | WR | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | -3 | -1.2% | 42.1% | 55.3% | 3.2% | 2.0 | 6.3% | -3.0 | 0.13 | 0.040 | -0.667 | 16 | 42 |
| Devin Duvernay | WR | 2 | 2 | 10 | 0 | -3 | -1.2% | 15.8% | 21.1% | 6.5% | 5.0 | 33.3% | -1.5 | 1.67 | 0.088 | -3.333 | 6 | 16 |
| Tylan Wallace | WR | 0.0% | 7.9% | 15.8% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 12 | |||||
| Mark Andrews | TE | 10 | 9 | 80 | 0 | 66 | 27.2% | 73.7% | 57.9% | 32.3% | 8.0 | 35.7% | 6.6 | 2.86 | 0.674 | 1.212 | 28 | 44 |
| Isaiah Likely | TE | 4 | 4 | 42 | 0 | 14 | 5.8% | 23.7% | 25.0% | 12.9% | 10.5 | 44.4% | 3.5 | 4.67 | 0.234 | 3.000 | 9 | 19 |
| Charlie Kolar | TE | 0.0% | 7.9% | 22.4% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 17 | |||||
| Gus Edwards | RB | 0.0% | 18.4% | 18.4% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 7 | 14 | |||||
| Keaton Mitchell | RB | 1 | 1 | -4 | 0 | -4 | -1.6% | 7.9% | 18.4% | 3.2% | -4.0 | 33.3% | -4.0 | -1.33 | 0.037 | 1.000 | 3 | 14 |
| Patrick Ricard | FB | 0.0% | 13.2% | 30.3% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 5 | 23 |
With the Ravens’ demolition of the Seahawks 37-3, the Ravens ran the most plays and ran for 298 yards as a team.
Keaton Mitchell’s (9-138-1; 1-1-(-4)) Week 9 started slow, as he got his first carry in the second quarter against the Seahawks, but he crushed in a hyper-efficient outing. Mitchell only saw 8% of routes, 17% of snaps, and 24% of the rush attempts, and the Ravens, in a blowout script, kept Justice Hill (13-40; 1-0-0) out there for 64% of snaps and 71% of routes per dropback. Most of Hill’s work was later in the game as they kept him in to soak up carries. It’s a three-way backfield now with Gus Edwards (5-52-2), Hill and Mitchell, but Mitchell can provide the juice and big play ability he showed this past Sunday; the Ravens can keep him off the field going forward.
Zay Flowers (1-1-11) was super quiet, considering he led the Ravens in routes. Odell Beckham (7-5-56-1) got a squeaky wheel touchdown from backup quarterback Tyler Huntley. Seattle has historically been pretty awful against the tight end position, so Mark Andrews (10-9-80) and even Isaiah Likely (4-4-42) were excellent and efficient as expected.
Week 9 Baltimore Ravens Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Lamar Jackson, Mark Andrews, Zay Flowers
Start ‘Em: N/A
Keep Them Rostered: Gus Edwards, Justice Hill (deeper 12 & 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Buffalo Bills
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Stefon Diggs | WR | 7 | 6 | 86 | 1 | 2 | 1.1% | 93.2% | 94.8% | 22.6% | 12.3 | 17.1% | 0.3 | 2.10 | 0.346 | 43.000 | 41 | 55 |
| Gabe Davis | WR | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 19.8% | 90.9% | 93.1% | 6.5% | 0.0 | 5.0% | 18.0 | 0.00 | 0.235 | 0.000 | 40 | 54 |
| Trent Sherfield | WR | 2 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 17 | 9.3% | 29.5% | 36.2% | 6.5% | 4.5 | 15.4% | 8.5 | 0.69 | 0.162 | 0.529 | 13 | 21 |
| Deonte Harty | WR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 29.1% | 6.8% | 5.2% | 3.2% | 0.0 | 33.3% | 53.0 | 0.00 | 0.252 | 0.000 | 3 | 3 |
| Khalil Shakir | WR | 4 | 4 | 57 | 0 | 36 | 19.8% | 75.0% | 70.7% | 12.9% | 14.3 | 12.1% | 9.0 | 1.73 | 0.332 | 1.583 | 33 | 41 |
| Dalton Kincaid | TE | 11 | 10 | 81 | 0 | 42 | 23.1% | 97.7% | 89.7% | 35.5% | 7.4 | 25.6% | 3.8 | 1.88 | 0.694 | 1.929 | 43 | 52 |
| Quintin Morris | TE | 0.0% | 2.3% | 3.4% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 2 | |||||
| James Cook | RB | 4 | 4 | 19 | 0 | -4 | -2.2% | 45.5% | 55.2% | 12.9% | 4.8 | 20.0% | -1.0 | 0.95 | 0.178 | -4.750 | 20 | 32 |
With the Bills (17.3%) and Bengals passing the ball in almost all situations, that led to some pretty solid fantasy-friendly stat lines for both teams. Except Gabe Davis (2-0-0; 91% routes):
Stefon Diggs (7-6-86-1) is awesome. Dalton Kincaid (11-10-81) saw some fantastic volume opposite of Diggs, as he’s looking like the clear second target now in this offense. Running 75% of routes was Khalil Shakir (4-4-57), who has established himself as a semi-clear third pass-catcher here.
It’s hard to really dive into the running game for the Bills when the backs had just eight rushing attempts between James Cook (6-20; 4-4-19) and Latavius Murray (2-4; 1-1-6).
Week 9 Buffalo Bills Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs, Dalton Kincaid
Start ‘Em: James Cook
Keep Them Rostered: Gabe Davis, Khalil Shakir, Latavius Murray (deeper 12 & 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Carolina Panthers
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Adam Thielen | WR | 6 | 5 | 29 | 0 | 29 | 18.7% | 97.9% | 100.0% | 16.2% | 4.8 | 12.8% | 4.8 | 0.62 | 0.374 | 1.000 | 47 | 71 |
| DJ Chark | WR | 3 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 14 | 9.0% | 54.2% | 57.7% | 8.1% | 3.0 | 11.5% | 4.7 | 0.35 | 0.185 | 0.643 | 26 | 41 |
| Jonathan Mingo | WR | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 37 | 23.9% | 97.9% | 98.6% | 10.8% | 1.3 | 8.5% | 9.3 | 0.11 | 0.329 | 0.135 | 47 | 70 |
| Terrace Marshall | WR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -5 | -3.2% | 50.0% | 45.1% | 2.7% | 0.0 | 4.2% | -5.0 | 0.00 | 0.018 | 0.000 | 24 | 32 |
| Hayden Hurst | TE | 4 | 2 | 54 | 0 | 43 | 27.7% | 41.7% | 33.8% | 10.8% | 13.5 | 20.0% | 10.8 | 2.70 | 0.356 | 1.256 | 20 | 24 |
| Tommy Tremble | TE | 2 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 7.1% | 25.0% | 45.1% | 5.4% | 6.0 | 16.7% | 5.5 | 1.00 | 0.131 | 1.091 | 12 | 32 |
| Stephen Sullivan | TE | 5 | 4 | 28 | 0 | 31 | 20.0% | 27.1% | 19.7% | 13.5% | 5.6 | 38.5% | 6.2 | 2.15 | 0.343 | 0.903 | 13 | 14 |
| Miles Sanders | RB | 5 | 3 | 22 | 0 | -1 | -0.6% | 22.9% | 25.4% | 13.5% | 4.4 | 45.5% | -0.2 | 2.00 | 0.198 | -22.000 | 11 | 18 |
| Chuba Hubbard | RB | 6 | 4 | 9 | 0 | -4 | -2.6% | 62.5% | 64.8% | 16.2% | 1.5 | 20.0% | -0.7 | 0.30 | 0.225 | -2.250 | 30 | 46 |
| Raheem Blackshear | RB | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 12.5% | 9.9% | 2.7% | 5.0 | 16.7% | 0.0 | 0.83 | 0.041 | 0.000 | 6 | 7 |
There has to be some buyer’s remorse with the Panthers taking Bryce Young over C.J. Stroud, even this early. While I’m sure the Panthers fully believe in Young’s potential, it has to sting a bit that Stroud is having the degree of success he’s having in such a short time.
Adam Thielen (6-5-29) was a non-factor in a game where Colts slot man Kenny Moore brought home TWO pick-sixes for touchdowns. I reaped those benefits:
D.J. Chark (3-2-9-1) caught a short touchdown for the only score among the Panthers’ pass-catchers. The Panthers’ tight ends combined for 94 of Young’s 173 passing yards, but you’re not starting any of them since they all get 25-40% of routes weekly.
Chuba Hubbard (16-58; 6-4-9; 65% snaps) still had a significant workload disparity, with Miles Sanders (6-39; 5-3-22; 25% snaps) still the clear backup for now. Sanders probably makes this backfield closer to a 50/50 split when Sanders is healthy, but for now, Hubbard is the running back to roster in Carolina while you can stash Sanders.
Week 9 Carolina Panthers Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Adam Thielen
Start ‘Em: N/A
Keep Them Rostered: Chuba Hubbard, Miles Sanders, Jonathan Mingo (14-team), D.J. Chark (14-team), Bryce Young (14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Chicago Bears
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| DJ Moore | WR | 5 | 3 | 44 | 0 | 95 | 55.6% | 94.6% | 97.0% | 19.2% | 8.8 | 14.3% | 19.0 | 1.26 | 0.677 | 0.463 | 35 | 65 |
| Darnell Mooney | WR | 6 | 5 | 82 | 0 | 26 | 15.2% | 91.9% | 86.6% | 23.1% | 13.7 | 17.6% | 4.3 | 2.41 | 0.453 | 3.154 | 34 | 58 |
| Tyler Scott | WR | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 7.0% | 56.8% | 58.2% | 7.7% | 0.0 | 9.5% | 6.0 | 0.00 | 0.165 | 0.000 | 21 | 39 |
| Velus Jones | WR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -3 | -1.8% | 18.9% | 14.9% | 3.8% | 0.0 | 14.3% | -3.0 | 0.00 | 0.045 | 0.000 | 7 | 10 |
| Trent Taylor | WR | 0.0% | 5.4% | 7.5% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 2 | 5 | |||||
| Cole Kmet | TE | 8 | 6 | 55 | 2 | 41 | 24.0% | 83.8% | 85.1% | 30.8% | 6.9 | 25.8% | 5.1 | 1.77 | 0.629 | 1.341 | 31 | 57 |
| Robert Tonyan | TE | 1 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 6 | 3.5% | 24.3% | 22.4% | 3.8% | 11.0 | 11.1% | 6.0 | 1.22 | 0.082 | 1.833 | 9 | 15 |
| Marcedes Lewis | TE | 0.0% | 2.7% | 20.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 14 | |||||
| D'Onta Foreman | RB | 0.0% | 29.7% | 58.2% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 11 | 39 | |||||
| Roschon Johnson | RB | 1 | 1 | 9 | 0 | -5 | -2.9% | 35.1% | 29.9% | 3.8% | 9.0 | 7.7% | -5.0 | 0.69 | 0.037 | -1.800 | 13 | 20 |
| Darrynton Evans | RB | 2 | 2 | 19 | 0 | -1 | -0.6% | 10.8% | 9.0% | 7.7% | 9.5 | 50.0% | -0.5 | 4.75 | 0.111 | -19.000 | 4 | 6 |
| Khari Blasingame | FB | 0.0% | 5.4% | 10.4% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 2 | 7 |
Front and center on the Andrew Cooper bingo card is never playing a tight end against the Saints’ Demario Davis and Tyrann Mathieu, both of whom typically lock down the opposing tight end and making fantasy managers wonder if they are even playing in the game in most instances. That was not the case in Week 9, as Cole Kmet (8-6-55-2) had an AWESOME first touchdown grab and then tacked on another while leading the Bears in everything but receiving yards.
DJ Moore (5-3-44) missed a touchdown that was knocked out of his hands and lost a fumble on a day that should have been much better. Darnell Mooney (6-5-82) had his most relevant game of the season, but that seems more like a blip on the radar than something he can build off of.
D’Onta Foreman (20-83) saw virtually all the run on 58% of snaps, but Roschon Johnson (2-6; 1-1-9) was a bit involved as he ran routes on 35% of Tyson Bagent’s dropbacks. Khalil Herbert may be in play for Week 10, which should muddy things up in this backfield if he does. How will touches be distributed? That’s the thought on everybody’s mind. Thanks to the short turnaround for Thursday Night’s game against the Carolina Panthers, Bagent is likely starting for one more week before giving way to Justin Fields.
Week 9 Chicago Bears Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: DJ Moore
Start ‘Em: Justin Fields (missed Week 6-9 - thumb)
Keep Them Rostered: D’Onta Foreman, Cole Kmet, Khalil Herbert (Missed Week 6-9 - ankle), Roschon Johnson (deeper 12 & 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Cincinnati Bengals
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Ja'Marr Chase | WR | 8 | 4 | 41 | 0 | 69 | 27.7% | 97.8% | 90.0% | 19.0% | 5.1 | 17.8% | 8.6 | 0.91 | 0.480 | 0.594 | 45 | 63 |
| Tee Higgins | WR | 9 | 8 | 110 | 0 | 83 | 33.3% | 93.5% | 82.9% | 21.4% | 12.2 | 20.9% | 9.2 | 2.56 | 0.555 | 1.325 | 43 | 58 |
| Tyler Boyd | WR | 5 | 3 | 56 | 0 | 71 | 28.5% | 89.1% | 84.3% | 11.9% | 11.2 | 12.2% | 14.2 | 1.37 | 0.378 | 0.789 | 41 | 59 |
| Trenton Irwin | WR | 0.0% | 19.6% | 20.0% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 9 | 14 | |||||
| Andrei Iosivas | WR | 1 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 8 | 3.2% | 6.5% | 10.0% | 2.4% | 9.0 | 33.3% | 8.0 | 3.00 | 0.058 | 1.125 | 3 | 7 |
| Irv Smith | TE | 4 | 3 | 26 | 1 | 19 | 7.6% | 47.8% | 35.7% | 9.5% | 6.5 | 18.2% | 4.8 | 1.18 | 0.196 | 1.368 | 22 | 25 |
| Drew Sample | TE | 4 | 3 | 30 | 1 | -6 | -2.4% | 10.9% | 37.1% | 9.5% | 7.5 | 80.0% | -1.5 | 6.00 | 0.126 | -5.000 | 5 | 26 |
| Mitchell Wilcox | TE | 0.0% | 0.0% | 14.3% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | 10 | |||||
| Tanner Hudson | TE | 5 | 4 | 45 | 0 | 27 | 10.8% | 28.3% | 22.9% | 11.9% | 9.0 | 38.5% | 5.4 | 3.46 | 0.254 | 1.667 | 13 | 16 |
| Joe Mixon | RB | 6 | 5 | 31 | 0 | -22 | -8.8% | 60.9% | 72.9% | 14.3% | 5.2 | 21.4% | -3.7 | 1.11 | 0.152 | -1.409 | 28 | 51 |
| Trayveon Williams | RB | 0.0% | 8.7% | 18.6% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 4 | 13 | |||||
| Chris Evans | RB | 0.0% | 8.7% | 7.1% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 4 | 5 |
The Bengals are BACK.
+17.3% pass rate over expected, Joe Burrow mobile in the pocket, and a consolidated passing attack. Never mind that Ja'Marr Chase (8-4-41) is dealing with a back injury; we’ve been waiting for our passing kings to return, and we got it. Tee Higgins (9-8-110) led the way in all passing categories but the touchdowns as both went to the tight ends. The trio of Chase, Higgins, and Tyler Boyd (5-3-56) all saw at least 89%+ routes in typical Bengals fashion.
Joe Mixon (14-37-1; 6-5-31) was Joe Mixon and got a touchdown here and was third on the team in targets.
Week 9 Cincinnati Bengals Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Ja'Marr Chase
Start ‘Em: Joe Burrow, Tee Higgins, Joe Mixon
Keep Them Rostered: Tyler Boyd
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Cleveland Browns
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Amari Cooper | WR | 5 | 5 | 139 | 1 | 106 | 52.7% | 97.1% | 79.5% | 17.9% | 27.8 | 15.2% | 21.2 | 4.21 | 0.637 | 1.311 | 33 | 58 |
| Elijah Moore | WR | 2 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 5.0% | 82.4% | 61.6% | 7.1% | 7.0 | 7.1% | 5.0 | 0.50 | 0.142 | 1.400 | 28 | 45 |
| Cedric Tillman | WR | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | -2 | -1.0% | 73.5% | 74.0% | 3.6% | 3.0 | 4.0% | -2.0 | 0.12 | 0.047 | -1.500 | 25 | 54 |
| Marquise Goodwin | WR | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 76 | 37.8% | 17.6% | 11.0% | 7.1% | 0.0 | 33.3% | 38.0 | 0.00 | 0.372 | 0.000 | 6 | 8 |
| James Proche | WR | 0.0% | 2.9% | 8.2% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 6 | |||||
| David Njoku | TE | 6 | 4 | 26 | 1 | 6 | 3.0% | 67.6% | 76.7% | 21.4% | 4.3 | 26.1% | 1.0 | 1.13 | 0.342 | 4.333 | 23 | 56 |
| Jordan Akins | TE | 3 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 8 | 4.0% | 20.6% | 26.0% | 10.7% | 3.7 | 42.9% | 2.7 | 1.57 | 0.189 | 1.375 | 7 | 19 |
| Harrison Bryant | TE | 0.0% | 8.8% | 32.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 24 | |||||
| Jerome Ford | RB | 7 | 5 | 33 | 0 | 1 | 0.5% | 58.8% | 64.4% | 25.0% | 4.7 | 35.0% | 0.1 | 1.65 | 0.378 | 33.000 | 20 | 47 |
| Pierre Strong | RB | 1 | 1 | -7 | 0 | -8 | -4.0% | 5.9% | 6.8% | 3.6% | -7.0 | 50.0% | -8.0 | -3.50 | 0.026 | 0.875 | 2 | 5 |
| Kareem Hunt | RB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2.0% | 17.6% | 28.8% | 3.6% | 0.0 | 16.7% | 4.0 | 0.00 | 0.068 | 0.000 | 6 | 21 |
It’s hard to average less than 3.0 yards per carry on a whopping 40 carries, but the Cleveland Browns did it in Week 9. Frankly, it didn’t matter as they shut out the Clayton Tune-led Cardinals 27-0. They could do what they wanted, including helmet doinks off an offensive lineman to get Amari Cooper (5-5-139-1) his touchdown. David Njoku (6-4-26-1) led the pass-catchers in targets and caught the other touchdown pass from Deshaun Watson. With Donovan Peoples-Jones in Detroit, Cedric Tillman (1-1-3; season-high 74% routes) saw those routes transfer to him, but just like DPJ, it didn’t translate into much production.
Jerome Ford (20-44; 7-5-33) had a strong 64% snap rate and led the Browns in carries, although he was pretty inefficient. It's the same with Kareem Hunt (14-38-1; 1-0-0), though he saw a short touchdown on the ground. That seems to be how this backfield should go most weeks, with Hunt getting the high-value touches in the green zone with sporadic usage while Ford leads the Browns in touches most weeks.
Week 9 Cleveland Browns Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: N/A
Start ‘Em: Deshaun Watson, Amari Cooper, Jerome Ford
Keep Them Rostered: Kareem Hunt, David Njoku, Elijah Moore
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Dallas Cowboys
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| CeeDee Lamb | WR | 16 | 11 | 192 | 0 | 234 | 55.7% | 96.2% | 93.3% | 36.4% | 12.0 | 31.4% | 14.6 | 3.76 | 0.935 | 0.821 | 51 | 70 |
| Brandin Cooks | WR | 2 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 24 | 5.7% | 86.8% | 77.3% | 4.5% | 3.5 | 4.3% | 12.0 | 0.15 | 0.108 | 0.292 | 46 | 58 |
| Michael Gallup | WR | 3 | 2 | 19 | 0 | 22 | 5.2% | 49.1% | 48.0% | 6.8% | 6.3 | 11.5% | 7.3 | 0.73 | 0.139 | 0.864 | 26 | 36 |
| Jalen Tolbert | WR | 5 | 3 | 49 | 1 | 72 | 17.1% | 43.4% | 41.3% | 11.4% | 9.8 | 21.7% | 14.4 | 2.13 | 0.290 | 0.681 | 23 | 31 |
| KaVontae Turpin | WR | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 1.2% | 20.8% | 17.3% | 2.3% | 5.0 | 9.1% | 5.0 | 0.45 | 0.042 | 1.000 | 11 | 13 |
| Jake Ferguson | TE | 10 | 7 | 91 | 1 | 75 | 17.9% | 88.7% | 89.3% | 22.7% | 9.1 | 21.3% | 7.5 | 1.94 | 0.466 | 1.213 | 47 | 67 |
| Luke Schoonmaker | TE | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 13.2% | 16.0% | 2.3% | 0.0 | 14.3% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.034 | 0.000 | 7 | 12 |
| Sean McKeon | TE | 0.0% | 5.7% | 12.0% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 9 | |||||
| Tony Pollard | RB | 5 | 3 | 12 | 0 | -8 | -1.9% | 62.3% | 77.3% | 11.4% | 2.4 | 15.2% | -1.6 | 0.36 | 0.157 | -1.500 | 33 | 58 |
| Rico Dowdle | RB | 0.0% | 22.6% | 18.7% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 12 | 14 | |||||
| Hunter Luepke | RB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -4 | -1.0% | 3.8% | 6.7% | 2.3% | 0.0 | 50.0% | -4.0 | 0.00 | 0.027 | 0.000 | 2 | 5 |
CeeDee Lamb (16-11-191) is HIM.
It always helps to be pushed in a game throughout by the Philadelphia Eagles instead of the weird game scripts the Cowboys have had seemingly every week. Jake Ferguson (10-7-91-1) has looked outstanding in his two games after Dallas’ Week 7 bye, with a 4-47-1 line last week and following it up with a volume week and another touchdown. Ferguson is looking more and more like the clear second target in this offense, as Brandin Cooks (2-1-7; 87% routes) has been sporadic when he’s been in the lineup with only one week with more than four targets all season. I wouldn’t be surprised if Jalen Tolbert (5-3-49-1; 43% routes) gets more of a look opposite of Lamb, as he produced this week with Cooks and Michael Gallup (3-2-19) being major disappointments.
Speaking of disappointment, Tony Pollard (12-51; 5-3-12). Look, I‘m still a card-carrying member of the “Cult of Pollard,” but watching Mike McCarthy call run plays where Pollard is just running into the center every play is nauseating. Pollard had a touchdown, but an illegal formation penalty nullified it.
We’re still starting Pollard and hoping some of the efficiency clears up. Being in a bunch of weird game scripts early in the season where the focus wasn’t on getting Pollard going doesn’t help, but we’re in a results-oriented game, and people will ding him for the game scripts. Perhaps unfairly. I’m still in; he’s getting a huge workload each week and isn’t in danger of losing that to anybody.
Week 9 Dallas Cowboys Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: CeeDee Lamb
Start ‘Em: Tony Pollard, Dak Prescott, Jake Ferguson
Keep Them Rostered: Brandin Cooks
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Denver Broncos
BYE WEEK
Week 9 Denver Broncos Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: N/A
Start ‘Em: Courtland Sutton, Javonte Williams
Keep Them Rostered: Jerry Jeudy, Russell Wilson (deeper 12 & 14-team), Jaleel McLaughlin (14-team), Samaje Perine (14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Detroit Lions
BYE WEEK
Week 9 Detroit Lions Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam LaPorta, Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery (Missed Week 7/8 - rib)
Start ‘Em: Jared Goff
Keep Them Rostered: Jameson Williams (deeper 12 & 14-team; the fact that the Lions traded for Donovan Peoples-Jones doesn’t seem like the most ringing endorsement for Jamo here), Josh Reynolds (14-team), Craig Reynolds (14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Green Bay Packers
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Christian Watson | WR | 2 | 1 | 37 | 0 | 75 | 43.1% | 80.6% | 77.8% | 8.0% | 18.5 | 8.0% | 37.5 | 1.48 | 0.422 | 0.493 | 25 | 56 |
| Romeo Doubs | WR | 3 | 3 | 36 | 0 | 35 | 20.1% | 80.6% | 86.1% | 12.0% | 12.0 | 12.0% | 11.7 | 1.44 | 0.321 | 1.029 | 25 | 62 |
| Jayden Reed | WR | 3 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 13 | 7.5% | 45.2% | 38.9% | 12.0% | 6.3 | 21.4% | 4.3 | 1.36 | 0.232 | 1.462 | 14 | 28 |
| Dontayvion Wicks | WR | 4 | 4 | 49 | 0 | 37 | 21.3% | 48.4% | 31.9% | 16.0% | 12.3 | 26.7% | 9.3 | 3.27 | 0.389 | 1.324 | 15 | 23 |
| Malik Heath | WR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 9.8% | 3.2% | 9.7% | 4.0% | 0.0 | 100.0% | 17.0 | 0.00 | 0.128 | 0.000 | 1 | 7 |
| Luke Musgrave | TE | 4 | 3 | 51 | 1 | 31 | 17.8% | 80.6% | 83.3% | 16.0% | 12.8 | 16.0% | 7.8 | 2.04 | 0.365 | 1.645 | 25 | 60 |
| Tucker Kraft | TE | 0.0% | 19.4% | 38.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 6 | 28 | |||||
| Josiah Deguara | TE | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 2.9% | 16.1% | 18.1% | 4.0% | 7.0 | 20.0% | 5.0 | 1.40 | 0.080 | 1.400 | 5 | 13 |
| Ben Sims | TE | 0.0% | 0.0% | 6.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | 5 | |||||
| Aaron Jones | RB | 6 | 4 | 26 | 0 | -31 | -17.8% | 51.6% | 56.9% | 24.0% | 4.3 | 37.5% | -5.2 | 1.63 | 0.235 | -0.839 | 16 | 41 |
| AJ Dillon | RB | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | -8 | -4.6% | 41.9% | 40.3% | 4.0% | 3.0 | 7.7% | -8.0 | 0.23 | 0.028 | -0.375 | 13 | 29 |
| Emanuel Wilson | RB | 0.0% | 3.2% | 11.1% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 8 |
The Packers didn’t have to exert much effort to beat the Brett Rypien-led Los Angeles Rams 20-3. Jordan Love still isn’t great and isn’t keying on one or two specific targets each week, which isn’t ideal for fantasy. Christian Watson (2-1-37) has been a fantasy disaster as a third or fourth-round pick thanks to the offensive woes. Love keyed on Aaron Jones (20-73-1; 6-4-26) and Luke Musgrave (4-3-51-1) primarily in the passing game. Romeo Doubs (3-3-36) was just kind of there, and Dontayvion Wicks (4-4-49; 48% routes) ran more routes than Jayden Reed (3-3-19; 45% routes), who seems more like a specialized player in their offense than a full-time “featured” part right now. They apparently must like what Wicks offers them to gain a regular foothold in this offense. That made Samori Toure a healthy scratch for the first time this season.
With Jones (20-73-1; 6-4-26) “unleashed” for the Packers, he saw double-digit carries for the first time all season, and his routes jumped up to 52% — his highest since Week 1’s 53%. He’s a pretty safe start going forward now, where you don’t have to worry as much about the workload due to his previous hamstring injury. AJ Dillon (9-40; 1-1-3) looked as efficient in Week 9 as he has all season in his reduced role as the spell for Jones.
Week 9 Green Bay Packers Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: N/A
Start ‘Em: Aaron Jones
Keep Them Rostered: Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs (deeper 12 & 14-team), Luke Musgrave (deeper 12 & 14-team), AJ Dillon (14-team and weak contingent play)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: Jayden Reed (team’s WR3/4 in a poor offensive environment running less than 50% of routes)
Houston Texans
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Nico Collins | WR | 5 | 3 | 54 | 1 | 48 | 11.5% | 80.9% | 79.2% | 13.2% | 10.8 | 13.2% | 9.6 | 1.42 | 0.278 | 1.125 | 38 | 57 |
| Noah Brown | WR | 6 | 6 | 153 | 1 | 75 | 18.0% | 74.5% | 72.2% | 15.8% | 25.5 | 17.1% | 12.5 | 4.37 | 0.363 | 2.040 | 35 | 52 |
| John Metchie | WR | 1 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 1.0% | 17.0% | 15.3% | 2.6% | 14.0 | 12.5% | 4.0 | 1.75 | 0.046 | 3.500 | 8 | 11 |
| Xavier Hutchinson | WR | 0.0% | 10.6% | 12.5% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 5 | 9 | |||||
| Tank Dell | WR | 11 | 6 | 114 | 2 | 222 | 53.4% | 87.2% | 84.7% | 28.9% | 10.4 | 26.8% | 20.2 | 2.78 | 0.808 | 0.514 | 41 | 61 |
| Dalton Schultz | TE | 11 | 10 | 130 | 1 | 68 | 16.3% | 80.9% | 79.2% | 28.9% | 11.8 | 28.9% | 6.2 | 3.42 | 0.549 | 1.912 | 38 | 57 |
| Eric Saubert | TE | 0.0% | 6.4% | 16.7% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 12 | |||||
| Devin Singletary | RB | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | -3 | -0.7% | 57.4% | 75.0% | 5.3% | 0.0 | 7.4% | -1.5 | 0.00 | 0.074 | 0.000 | 27 | 54 |
| Mike Boone | RB | 0.0% | 34.0% | 26.4% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 16 | 19 | |||||
| Andrew Beck | FB | 2 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0.5% | 21.3% | 37.5% | 5.3% | 2.5 | 20.0% | 1.0 | 0.50 | 0.082 | 2.500 | 10 | 27 |
Just a week after the Houston Texans galaxy-brained themselves into thinking they needed to run, run, and run some more to beat the 0-6 Carolina Panthers (and they didn’t), the Texans got back to their passing ways (+5.5% pass rate over expected) and C.J. Stroud engineered a game-winning touchdown drive in the final 46 seconds to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Stroud crushed with 470 yards and five touchdowns and that quarterback choice the Panthers made with Bryce Young is already looking rather dubious early on.
Two of those five touchdowns went to Tank Dell (11-6-114-2; 2-2), who tied for the target lead with Dalton Schultz (11-10-130-1). The Buccaneers aren’t super great against the tight end position, certainly weaker than against wide receivers, but clearly it didn’t matter. Noah Brown (6-6-153-1) and Nico Collins (5-3-54-1) only saw six and five targets respectively, but both caught a touchdown and Brown led the team in receiving yardage thanks to his 75-yard score in the third quarter. It will be interesting to see who the fourth man in this wide receiver group will be once Robert Woods is healthy, so I have some hesitancy in picking up Noah Brown based on this game.
With Dameon Pierce out, Devin Singletary (13-26; 2-2-0) had the backfield mostly to himself with 75% snaps, but averaged 2.0 yards per carry and didn’t really factor into anything as it was all about the passing game. We continue to be less than enthused about the Texans’ running backs.
Week 9 Houston Texans Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: N/A
Start ‘Em: Nico Collins, Tank Dell, C.J. Stroud
Keep Them Rostered: Dameon Pierce (missed Week 9 - ankle), Devin Singletary, Dalton Schultz, Robert Woods (missed Week 8/9 - foot)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Indianapolis Colts
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Michael Pittman | WR | 8 | 8 | 64 | 0 | 38 | 55.1% | 92.9% | 88.5% | 36.4% | 8.0 | 30.8% | 4.8 | 2.46 | 0.931 | 1.684 | 26 | 54 |
| Josh Downs | WR | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 7.2% | 17.9% | 19.7% | 4.5% | 10.0 | 20.0% | 5.0 | 2.00 | 0.119 | 2.000 | 5 | 12 |
| Isaiah McKenzie | WR | 3 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 16 | 23.2% | 60.7% | 44.3% | 13.6% | 4.0 | 17.6% | 5.3 | 0.71 | 0.367 | 0.750 | 17 | 27 |
| Juwann Winfree | WR | 0.0% | 3.6% | 9.8% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 6 | |||||
| Mo Alie-Cox | TE | 0.0% | 14.3% | 50.8% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 4 | 31 | |||||
| Kylen Granson | TE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 18.8% | 46.4% | 49.2% | 9.1% | 0.0 | 15.4% | 6.5 | 0.00 | 0.268 | 0.000 | 13 | 30 |
| Andrew Ogletree | TE | 3 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 11 | 15.9% | 21.4% | 37.7% | 13.6% | 6.3 | 50.0% | 3.7 | 3.17 | 0.316 | 1.727 | 6 | 23 |
| Jonathan Taylor | RB | 5 | 5 | 22 | 1 | -14 | -20.3% | 75.0% | 73.8% | 22.7% | 4.4 | 23.8% | -2.8 | 1.05 | 0.199 | -1.571 | 21 | 45 |
| Zack Moss | RB | 0.0% | 10.7% | 21.3% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 13 | |||||
| Trey Sermon | RB | 0.0% | 0.0% | 4.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | 3 |
The Colts were pretty run-heavy in Week 9, and they weren’t exactly pushed too much by the Carolina Panthers here, as Gardner Minshew only threw for 127 yards and a touchdown. Michael Pittman (8-8-64) saw most of that passing-game workload, with Josh Downs (1-1-10; 18% routes) leaving the game after reaggravating his knee injury. There is nothing really new or actionable in this passing game, as the Colts love to use a bunch of tight ends and rotational wide receivers. Though if Downs cannot go in Week 10, Isaiah McKenzie (3-2-12; season-high 61% routes) gets some sleeper buzz in the slot for them in their upcoming game in Germany against the Patriots.
Jonathan Taylor (18-47; 5-5-22-1) saw his highest snap share of the season at 74% as his ramp-up should plateau out a bit here. In a leading script, the Colts were able to get Taylor and Zack Moss (7-26) a bit of work. Moss saw just a 21% snap share and figures to be more of the spell going forward with Taylor now stretched out. That said, if something happens to Taylor, Moss remains one of the better contingency backs in fantasy football.
Week 9 Indianapolis Colts Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Michael Pittman, Jonathan Taylor
Start ‘Em: N/A
Keep Them Rostered: Zack Moss (back to being a fringe starter/contingent play), Josh Downs (left Week 9 - knee), Gardner Minshew (deeper 12 & 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Jacksonville Jaguars
BYE WEEK
Week 9 Jacksonville Jaguars Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Travis Etienne, Trevor Lawrence
Start ‘Em: Calvin Ridley, Christian Kirk, Evan Engram
Keep Them Rostered: Zay Jones (missed Week 6-8 - knee)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Kansas City Chiefs
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Kadarius Toney | WR | 1 | 1 | 18 | 0 | 5 | 2.9% | 11.4% | 11.7% | 3.6% | 18.0 | 25.0% | 5.0 | 4.50 | 0.074 | 3.600 | 4 | 7 |
| Skyy Moore | WR | 3 | 2 | 33 | 0 | 19 | 11.1% | 28.6% | 25.0% | 10.7% | 11.0 | 30.0% | 6.3 | 3.30 | 0.238 | 1.737 | 10 | 15 |
| Marquez Valdes-Scantling | WR | 3 | 2 | 22 | 0 | 57 | 33.3% | 62.9% | 55.0% | 10.7% | 7.3 | 13.6% | 19.0 | 1.00 | 0.394 | 0.386 | 22 | 33 |
| Rashee Rice | WR | 2 | 2 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 1.8% | 60.0% | 68.3% | 7.1% | 8.5 | 9.5% | 1.5 | 0.81 | 0.119 | 5.667 | 21 | 41 |
| Justin Watson | WR | 5 | 2 | 15 | 0 | 77 | 45.0% | 71.4% | 63.3% | 17.9% | 3.0 | 20.0% | 15.4 | 0.60 | 0.583 | 0.195 | 25 | 38 |
| Mecole Hardman | WR | 3 | 3 | 10 | 0 | -8 | -4.7% | 14.3% | 21.7% | 10.7% | 3.3 | 60.0% | -2.7 | 2.00 | 0.128 | -1.250 | 5 | 13 |
| Travis Kelce | TE | 4 | 3 | 14 | 0 | -3 | -1.8% | 80.0% | 76.7% | 14.3% | 3.5 | 14.3% | -0.8 | 0.50 | 0.202 | -4.667 | 28 | 46 |
| Noah Gray | TE | 3 | 3 | 34 | 0 | 24 | 14.0% | 51.4% | 51.7% | 10.7% | 11.3 | 16.7% | 8.0 | 1.89 | 0.259 | 1.417 | 18 | 31 |
| Blake Bell | TE | 0.0% | 14.3% | 26.7% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 5 | 16 | |||||
| Isiah Pacheco | RB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -5 | -2.9% | 54.3% | 68.3% | 3.6% | 0.0 | 5.3% | -5.0 | 0.00 | 0.033 | 0.000 | 19 | 41 |
| Jerick McKinnon | RB | 2 | 2 | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0.6% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 7.1% | 11.0 | 28.6% | 0.5 | 3.14 | 0.111 | 22.000 | 7 | 15 |
| La'Mical Perine | RB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.6% | 2.9% | 6.7% | 3.6% | 0.0 | 100.0% | 1.0 | 0.00 | 0.058 | 0.000 | 1 | 4 |
One day, we will see Rashee Rice (2-2-17-1; 60% routes) take the mantle as the top route-runner on this Chiefs’ team that needs consistency with their receiver room. Week 9 was not that week, as the Chiefs traveled to Germany and played a game with the Miami Dolphins that was a dud despite the hype as two of the top teams in the AFC.
No Chief besides Justin Watson (5-2-15; 71% routes) had over four targets. Eleven total Chiefs players earned targets in Week 9. Production (no Chief had over 34 yards receiving) and routes are spread so thin that it actually doesn’t matter. You’re always starting Patrick Mahomes. But besides Travis Kelce (4-3-14; 80% routes) and sometimes Rice, there’s no soul you can start as a pass-catcher and feel good about anything but minor production.
Isiah Pacheco (16-66; 1-0-0) was Isiah Pacheco seeing 68% of snaps and Jerick McKinnon (1-2; 2-2-22-1) got into the end zone with a touchdown reception. This backfield is pretty much the same every week.
Week 9 Kansas City Chiefs Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes
Start ‘Em: Isiah Pacheco
Keep Them Rostered: Rashee Rice, Jerick McKinnon (14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Las Vegas Raiders
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Davante Adams | WR | 7 | 4 | 34 | 0 | 76 | 37.1% | 96.0% | 88.3% | 29.2% | 4.9 | 29.2% | 10.9 | 1.42 | 0.697 | 0.447 | 24 | 53 |
| Jakobi Meyers | WR | 5 | 2 | 38 | 0 | 48 | 23.4% | 84.0% | 81.7% | 20.8% | 7.6 | 23.8% | 9.6 | 1.81 | 0.476 | 0.792 | 21 | 49 |
| Hunter Renfrow | WR | 3 | 2 | 32 | 0 | 8 | 3.9% | 32.0% | 21.7% | 12.5% | 10.7 | 37.5% | 2.7 | 4.00 | 0.215 | 4.000 | 8 | 13 |
| Tre Tucker | WR | 3 | 2 | 52 | 0 | 72 | 35.1% | 36.0% | 46.7% | 12.5% | 17.3 | 33.3% | 24.0 | 5.78 | 0.433 | 0.722 | 9 | 28 |
| DeAndre Carter | WR | 1 | 1 | 15 | 0 | -4 | -2.0% | 16.0% | 15.0% | 4.2% | 15.0 | 25.0% | -4.0 | 3.75 | 0.049 | -3.750 | 4 | 9 |
| DJ Turner | WR | 0.0% | 0.0% | 5.0% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | 3 | |||||
| Austin Hooper | TE | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0.5% | 40.0% | 48.3% | 4.2% | 10.0 | 10.0% | 1.0 | 1.00 | 0.066 | 10.000 | 10 | 29 |
| Michael Mayer | TE | 2 | 2 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 60.0% | 88.3% | 8.3% | 5.5 | 13.3% | 0.0 | 0.73 | 0.125 | 0.000 | 15 | 53 |
| Jesper Horsted | TE | 0.0% | 4.0% | 1.7% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Josh Jacobs | RB | 0.0% | 56.0% | 78.3% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 14 | 47 | |||||
| Zamir White | RB | 0.0% | 4.0% | 8.3% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 5 | |||||
| Ameer Abdullah | RB | 2 | 2 | 17 | 0 | 4 | 2.0% | 16.0% | 13.3% | 8.3% | 8.5 | 50.0% | 2.0 | 4.25 | 0.139 | 4.250 | 4 | 8 |
Make it make sense.
The first week of the Antonio Pierce interim head coach regime was a resounding success as the post-firing first-game narrative was in full effect and didn’t disappoint. The Giants threw a ton of double coverage on Davante Adams (7-4-34), so he didn’t beat them, but everybody else did. Josh Jacobs (26-98-2) got a massive workload, and Jakobi Meyers (5-2-38; 1-17-1) tossed in a rushing score on top of a middling day in terms of volume.
Michael Mayer’s (2-2-11) routes slid from 82% in Week 8 to just 60% in Week 8. Hopefully, that’s a blip on the radar, but it’s worth noting that Austin Hooper’s (1-1-10) routes came back up from 29% to 40%.
Week 9 Las Vegas Raiders Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Davante Adams, Josh Jacobs
Start ‘Em: Jakobi Meyers
Keep Them Rostered: Michael Mayer (deeper 12 & 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Los Angeles Chargers
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Keenan Allen | WR | 9 | 8 | 77 | 0 | 67 | 48.2% | 91.9% | 87.7% | 32.1% | 8.6 | 26.5% | 7.4 | 2.26 | 0.820 | 1.149 | 34 | 50 |
| Quentin Johnston | WR | 3 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 50 | 36.0% | 94.6% | 84.2% | 10.7% | 4.7 | 8.6% | 16.7 | 0.40 | 0.413 | 0.280 | 35 | 48 |
| Derius Davis | WR | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | -4 | -2.9% | 10.8% | 14.0% | 3.6% | 0.0 | 25.0% | -4.0 | 0.00 | 0.033 | 0.000 | 4 | 8 |
| Simi Fehoko | WR | 0.0% | 0.0% | 5.3% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | 3 | |||||
| Jalen Guyton | WR | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 17.3% | 73.0% | 57.9% | 7.1% | 0.0 | 7.4% | 12.0 | 0.00 | 0.228 | 0.000 | 27 | 33 |
| Gerald Everett | TE | 2 | 2 | 18 | 0 | -7 | -5.0% | 59.5% | 56.1% | 7.1% | 9.0 | 9.1% | -3.5 | 0.82 | 0.072 | -2.571 | 22 | 32 |
| Donald Parham | TE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 7.2% | 40.5% | 54.4% | 7.1% | 0.0 | 13.3% | 5.0 | 0.00 | 0.158 | 0.000 | 15 | 31 |
| Stone Smartt | TE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | -0.7% | 13.5% | 14.0% | 3.6% | 0.0 | 20.0% | -1.0 | 0.00 | 0.049 | 0.000 | 5 | 8 |
| Nick Vannett | TE | 0.0% | 5.4% | 19.3% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 2 | 11 | |||||
| Austin Ekeler | RB | 7 | 2 | 23 | 0 | -4 | -2.9% | 59.5% | 66.7% | 25.0% | 3.3 | 31.8% | -0.6 | 1.05 | 0.355 | -5.750 | 22 | 38 |
| Joshua Kelley | RB | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2.9% | 32.4% | 35.1% | 3.6% | 4.0 | 8.3% | 4.0 | 0.33 | 0.074 | 1.000 | 12 | 20 |
Despite putting up 27 points on the Jets, Justin Herbert did #not have a day. He only completed 16 passes, and the Jets defense gave him a lot of fits, sacking him five times and pressuring him into some bad throws and a couple of drops by his receivers.
Keenan Allen (9-8-77) still had a solid day at the offense, while no other Charger caught more than two balls. It didn’t help that Quentin Johnston (3-2-14; 1-2; 95% routes) saw Sauce Gardner in front of him, so I think Johnston can be excused for his performance (or lack thereof). The only other player with more than three targets was Austin Ekeler (14-47-2; 7-2-23), who really consolidated most of the work in total with Allen, as all of the ancillary targets mixed in sparingly. Ekeler had both offensive touchdowns to add to the punt return touchdown by rookie Derius Davis.
Week 9 Los Angeles Chargers Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Keenan Allen, Justin Herbert, Austin Ekeler
Start ‘Em: N/A
Keep Them Rostered: Joshua Palmer (placed on IR - knee), Quentin Johnson (deeper 12 & 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Los Angeles Rams
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Cooper Kupp | WR | 7 | 2 | 48 | 0 | 131 | 52.6% | 87.9% | 84.5% | 25.9% | 6.9 | 24.1% | 18.7 | 1.66 | 0.757 | 0.366 | 29 | 49 |
| Tutu Atwell | WR | 7 | 4 | 13 | 0 | 59 | 23.7% | 78.8% | 67.2% | 25.9% | 1.9 | 26.9% | 8.4 | 0.50 | 0.555 | 0.220 | 26 | 39 |
| Puka Nacua | WR | 7 | 3 | 32 | 0 | 41 | 16.5% | 87.9% | 81.0% | 25.9% | 4.6 | 24.1% | 5.9 | 1.10 | 0.504 | 0.780 | 29 | 47 |
| Ben Skowronek | WR | 0.0% | 9.1% | 25.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 15 | |||||
| Demarcus Robinson | WR | 1 | 1 | 15 | 0 | 6 | 2.4% | 12.1% | 15.5% | 3.7% | 15.0 | 25.0% | 6.0 | 3.75 | 0.072 | 2.500 | 4 | 9 |
| Austin Trammell | WR | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 2.0% | 9.1% | 5.2% | 3.7% | 6.0 | 33.3% | 5.0 | 2.00 | 0.070 | 1.200 | 3 | 3 |
| Tyler Higbee | TE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1.6% | 75.8% | 91.4% | 3.7% | 0.0 | 4.0% | 4.0 | 0.00 | 0.067 | 0.000 | 25 | 53 |
| Brycen Hopkins | TE | 0.0% | 21.2% | 19.0% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 7 | 11 | |||||
| Davis Allen | TE | 0.0% | 3.0% | 10.3% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 6 | |||||
| Darrell Henderson | RB | 2 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0.8% | 51.5% | 58.6% | 7.4% | 8.0 | 11.8% | 1.0 | 0.94 | 0.117 | 8.000 | 17 | 34 |
| Royce Freeman | RB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.4% | 27.3% | 41.4% | 3.7% | 0.0 | 11.1% | 1.0 | 0.00 | 0.058 | 0.000 | 9 | 24 |
I, for one, was shocked that Brett Rypien couldn’t rally these troops and put up more than a field goal on the similarly-hamstrung Packers offense. Rypien only put up 130 passing yards, and the offense couldn’t lean on the run game as the Packers caved in and dared Rypien to beat them. Rypien then proceeded to complete his second pass of the game with 4:20 left in the first half.
Yikes.
Even with Cooper Kupp (7-2-48; 131 air yards) and Puka Nacua (7-3-32), Rypien couldn’t get into a rhythm. He was so bad that the team had to pick Carson Wentz out of the trash heap to be their backup for Matthew Stafford in case Stafford can’t go in Week 10 or later in the season.
It seems to be a week-to-week thing with the backs because Darrell Henderson’s (10-19; 2-2-16; 59% snaps, 52% routes) role was a bit greater than Royce Freeman’s (12-32; 1-0-0; 41% snaps, 27% routes) role, especially in terms of routes run.
Week 9 Los Angeles Rams Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Cooper Kupp, Puca Nacua (both as long as Stafford is starting)
Start ‘Em: N/A
Keep Them Rostered: Darrell Henderson, Royce Freeman, Matthew Stafford (missed Week 9 - thumb), Tyler Higbee (14-team), Tutu Atwell (14-team), Kyren Williams (on IR - ankle)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Miami Dolphins
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Tyreek Hill | WR | 10 | 8 | 62 | 0 | 76 | 27.0% | 89.5% | 90.5% | 30.3% | 6.2 | 29.4% | 7.6 | 1.82 | 0.644 | 0.816 | 34 | 57 |
| Jaylen Waddle | WR | 6 | 3 | 42 | 0 | 98 | 34.9% | 55.3% | 54.0% | 18.2% | 7.0 | 28.6% | 16.3 | 2.00 | 0.517 | 0.429 | 21 | 34 |
| Braxton Berrios | WR | 0.0% | 36.8% | 27.0% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 14 | 17 | |||||
| Cedrick Wilson | WR | 5 | 1 | 31 | 1 | 87 | 31.0% | 76.3% | 65.1% | 15.2% | 6.2 | 17.2% | 17.4 | 1.07 | 0.444 | 0.356 | 29 | 41 |
| Chase Claypool | WR | 0.0% | 13.2% | 22.2% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 5 | 14 | |||||
| Durham Smythe | TE | 3 | 3 | 17 | 0 | 4 | 1.4% | 65.8% | 84.1% | 9.1% | 5.7 | 12.0% | 1.3 | 0.68 | 0.146 | 4.250 | 25 | 53 |
| Julian Hill | TE | 0.0% | 7.9% | 11.1% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 7 | |||||
| Raheem Mostert | RB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.4% | 31.6% | 55.6% | 3.0% | 0.0 | 8.3% | 1.0 | 0.00 | 0.048 | 0.000 | 12 | 35 |
| Jeff Wilson | RB | 4 | 3 | 32 | 0 | 11 | 3.9% | 21.1% | 17.5% | 12.1% | 8.0 | 50.0% | 2.8 | 4.00 | 0.209 | 2.909 | 8 | 11 |
| Salvon Ahmed | RB | 3 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 1.1% | 36.8% | 30.2% | 9.1% | 2.7 | 21.4% | 1.0 | 0.57 | 0.144 | 2.667 | 14 | 19 |
| Alec Ingold | FB | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.4% | 21.1% | 42.9% | 3.0% | 1.0 | 12.5% | 1.0 | 0.13 | 0.048 | 1.000 | 8 | 27 |
This was a weird game, but you could definitely see what the Chiefs were trying to do to contain Tyreek Hill (10-8-62; 90% routes). Hill had a solid game, but obviously not game-breaking. His day was a bit hampered by Jaylen Waddle (6-3-42; 55% routes) leaving for stretches with a knee injury. Cedrick Wilson (5-1-31-1; 76% routes) ended up getting the lone passing-game touchdown on the day and he saw more routes because of Waddle being in and out of the lineup.
Raheem Mostert (12-85-1; 1-0-0) was in his usual lead role and scored, but the fact that Jeff Wilson (2-6; 4-3-32) hasn’t gotten run in this offense over Salvon Ahmed (3-4; 3-2-8) should tell you what you need to know about the hierarchy of this backfield. And that’s without De’Von Achane, who could be back after this week’s bye and play in Week 11.
Week 9 Miami Dolphins Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, Tua Tagovailoa
Start ‘Em: Raheem Mostert
Keep Them Rostered: De’Von Achane (on IR - knee), Jeff Wilson (14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Minnesota Vikings
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Jordan Addison | WR | 7 | 5 | 52 | 0 | 72 | 34.0% | 97.9% | 97.3% | 20.0% | 7.4 | 15.2% | 10.3 | 1.13 | 0.538 | 0.722 | 46 | 73 |
| K.J. Osborn | WR | 2 | 2 | 17 | 0 | 15 | 7.1% | 23.4% | 26.7% | 5.7% | 8.5 | 18.2% | 7.5 | 1.55 | 0.135 | 1.133 | 11 | 20 |
| Trishton Jackson | WR | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 5.7% | 72.3% | 70.7% | 8.6% | 0.7 | 8.8% | 4.0 | 0.06 | 0.168 | 0.167 | 34 | 53 |
| Brandon Powell | WR | 3 | 2 | 15 | 1 | 25 | 11.8% | 74.5% | 69.3% | 8.6% | 5.0 | 8.6% | 8.3 | 0.43 | 0.211 | 0.600 | 35 | 52 |
| N'Keal Harry | WR | 0.0% | 6.4% | 8.0% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 6 | |||||
| T.J. Hockenson | TE | 12 | 7 | 69 | 0 | 76 | 35.8% | 91.5% | 84.0% | 34.3% | 5.8 | 27.9% | 6.3 | 1.60 | 0.765 | 0.908 | 43 | 63 |
| Josh Oliver | TE | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | -7 | -3.3% | 21.3% | 30.7% | 5.7% | 0.5 | 20.0% | -3.5 | 0.10 | 0.063 | -0.143 | 10 | 23 |
| Johnny Mundt | TE | 1 | 1 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 6.4% | 8.0% | 2.9% | 18.0 | 33.3% | 0.0 | 6.00 | 0.043 | 0.000 | 3 | 6 |
| Alexander Mattison | RB | 2 | 2 | 49 | 1 | 25 | 11.8% | 48.9% | 57.3% | 5.7% | 24.5 | 8.7% | 12.5 | 2.13 | 0.168 | 1.960 | 23 | 43 |
| Cam Akers | RB | 3 | 3 | 13 | 0 | -6 | -2.8% | 21.3% | 30.7% | 8.6% | 4.3 | 30.0% | -2.0 | 1.30 | 0.109 | -2.167 | 10 | 23 |
| C.J. Ham | FB | 0.0% | 8.5% | 17.3% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 4 | 13 |
Jaren Hall started this game at quarterback, suffered a concussion, was ruled out for the game, and then Joshua Dobbs — with all of a handful of days as a Viking — comes in to beat the Falcons. Take THAT, Disney (and Arthur Smith).
When combing through all of the available quarterback options last week that the Vikings could sign or acquire, hearing Dobbs’ name called as he was traded from Arizona to Minnesota was met with universal applause. The fantasy options would be (mostly) saved! Hall would get the start in Week 9 while Dobbs got up to speed, and then he would assume the job for the rest of the season.
Turns out all Dobbs needed to do was learn it all on the fly.
Dobbs finished as QB5 in Week 9, tossing two touchdowns and adding 66 rushing yards and a rushing score. Dobbs peppered T.J. Hockenson (12-7-69) and Jordan Addison (7-5-52) with 54% of the target volume and hit Brandon Powell (3-2-15-1) with the game-winning touchdown with 22 seconds remaining. Absent, for the most part, was K.J. Osborn (2-2-17; 23% routes), who suffered a concussion early on. In his absence, Trishton Jackson (3-1-2; 72% routes) took most of Osborn’s routes.
Cam Akers (8-25; 3-3-13) suffered another Achilles’ tear (on the other foot from the previous one), so he’ll be out for the season. That puts Ty Chandler back in the sidecar for Alexander Mattison’s (16-44; 2-2-49-1) lead role.
Also of note: Justin Jefferson’s return from IR window opened up this week, but head coach Kevin O’Connell said it was pretty unlikely we’d see Jefferson this week.
Week 9 Minnesota Vikings Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: T.J. Hockenson
Start ‘Em: Jordan Addison
Keep Them Rostered: Alexander Mattison, K.J. Osborn, Joshua Dobbs (deeper 12 & 14-team), Justin Jefferson (on IR - hamstring)
Add ‘Em: Ty Chandler (contingent play once again with Akers done for 2023)
Dump ‘Em: Cam Akers (tore Achilles’ tendon, out for season)
New England Patriots
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| JuJu Smith-Schuster | WR | 7 | 6 | 51 | 0 | 34 | 8.9% | 41.3% | 35.9% | 16.3% | 7.3 | 36.8% | 4.9 | 2.68 | 0.307 | 1.500 | 19 | 23 |
| Demario Douglas | WR | 7 | 5 | 55 | 0 | 48 | 12.6% | 82.6% | 82.8% | 16.3% | 7.9 | 18.4% | 6.9 | 1.45 | 0.332 | 1.146 | 38 | 53 |
| Tyquan Thornton | WR | 4 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 55 | 14.4% | 21.7% | 18.8% | 9.3% | 1.8 | 40.0% | 13.8 | 0.70 | 0.241 | 0.127 | 10 | 12 |
| Jalen Reagor | WR | 6 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 118 | 31.0% | 67.4% | 76.6% | 14.0% | 1.8 | 19.4% | 19.7 | 0.35 | 0.426 | 0.093 | 31 | 49 |
| Hunter Henry | TE | 7 | 4 | 39 | 1 | 72 | 18.9% | 84.8% | 87.5% | 16.3% | 5.6 | 17.9% | 10.3 | 1.00 | 0.376 | 0.542 | 39 | 56 |
| Mike Gesicki | TE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 7.3% | 87.0% | 85.9% | 2.3% | 0.0 | 2.5% | 28.0 | 0.00 | 0.086 | 0.000 | 40 | 55 |
| Pharaoh Brown | TE | 0.0% | 6.5% | 10.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 7 | |||||
| Rhamondre Stevenson | RB | 6 | 4 | 42 | 0 | 21 | 5.5% | 60.9% | 62.5% | 14.0% | 7.0 | 21.4% | 3.5 | 1.50 | 0.248 | 2.000 | 28 | 40 |
| Ezekiel Elliott | RB | 5 | 3 | 15 | 0 | 5 | 1.3% | 34.8% | 39.1% | 11.6% | 3.0 | 31.3% | 1.0 | 0.94 | 0.184 | 3.000 | 16 | 25 |
In a game where the Commanders and Patriots tossed the ball around in the passing game, both teams didn’t really convert in the scoring department, as it was only a 20-17 final. Three Patriots led the way with seven targets, including a reemergence of JuJu Smith-Schuster (7-6-51; 41% routes) on minimal routes. Demario Douglas (7-5-55; 83% routes) led the way with 55 receiving yards and is the receiver to add moving forward for the Patriots vs. the others who just don’t run enough routes.
Rhamondre Stevenson (9-87-1; 6-4-42) hit paydirt for a 64-yard touchdown run, which made most of his day because, besides that, Stevenson was not great besides some receiving work. Ezekiel Elliott (6-17l 5-3-15) wasn’t really efficient either.
Week 9 New England Patriots Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: N/A
Start ‘Em: Rhamondre Stevenson, Demario Douglas
Keep Them Rostered: Hunter Henry (deeper 12 & 14-team), Ezekiel Elliott (deeper 12 & 14-team), JuJu Smith-Schuster (deeper 12 & 14-team), Mike Gesicki (deeper 12 & 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
New Orleans Saints
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Chris Olave | WR | 8 | 6 | 46 | 1 | 64 | 51.2% | 83.3% | 71.4% | 25.0% | 5.8 | 26.7% | 8.0 | 1.53 | 0.733 | 0.719 | 30 | 45 |
| Michael Thomas | WR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 7.2% | 72.2% | 63.5% | 3.1% | 0.0 | 3.8% | 9.0 | 0.00 | 0.097 | 0.000 | 26 | 40 |
| Rashid Shaheed | WR | 3 | 3 | 22 | 0 | 6 | 4.8% | 63.9% | 50.8% | 9.4% | 7.3 | 13.0% | 2.0 | 0.96 | 0.174 | 3.667 | 23 | 32 |
| A.T. Perry | WR | 0.0% | 22.2% | 25.4% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 8 | 16 | |||||
| Lynn Bowden | WR | 0.0% | 13.9% | 22.2% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 5 | 14 | |||||
| Juwan Johnson | TE | 5 | 5 | 29 | 1 | 20 | 16.0% | 69.4% | 74.6% | 15.6% | 5.8 | 20.0% | 4.0 | 1.16 | 0.346 | 1.450 | 25 | 47 |
| Foster Moreau | TE | 1 | 1 | 23 | 0 | 10 | 8.0% | 25.0% | 49.2% | 3.1% | 23.0 | 11.1% | 10.0 | 2.56 | 0.103 | 2.300 | 9 | 31 |
| Taysom Hill | TE | 5 | 4 | 13 | 1 | 12 | 9.6% | 36.1% | 46.0% | 15.6% | 2.6 | 38.5% | 2.4 | 1.00 | 0.302 | 1.083 | 13 | 29 |
| Alvin Kamara | RB | 5 | 4 | 44 | 0 | 6 | 4.8% | 50.0% | 49.2% | 15.6% | 8.8 | 27.8% | 1.2 | 2.44 | 0.268 | 7.333 | 18 | 31 |
| Jamaal Williams | RB | 3 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 2.4% | 30.6% | 42.9% | 9.4% | 2.0 | 27.3% | 1.0 | 0.55 | 0.157 | 2.000 | 11 | 27 |
| Kendre Miller | RB | 1 | 1 | 31 | 0 | -5 | -4.0% | 13.9% | 9.5% | 3.1% | 31.0 | 20.0% | -5.0 | 6.20 | 0.019 | -6.200 | 5 | 6 |
Over the last six seasons, we’ve been through an odyssey with Taysom Hill (5-4-13-1; 11-52, TD pass). Is he a quarterback? Is he a running back? Tight end? He’s a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. We DO know that over the last four weeks, Hill has averaged 18 fantasy points per game as fantasy TE2, with just 1.4 fewer fantasy points than Travis Kelce. With EVERYBODY healthy in New Orleans, all tight ends, all running backs, it doesn’t matter. Taysom Hill still has a sizable role on this team, especially in the red zone. Everybody is pretty much the same after the elite fantasy tight end options; you’re hoping for a touchdown.
Hill saw his largest rush attempt share of his career, taking 42% of the team’s Week 9 carries against the Bears. In three of the last four weeks, Hill has at least five targets, and if he’s passing for a touchdown, getting 8-10 carries per game, and seeing a handful of targets, you’ve got to put him up as a mid-range TE1 in fantasy. We can revolt and say this is all fool’s gold as we have in previous seasons, but with a body of work that’s been pretty sustainable through multiple weeks and with every player healthy in New Orleans, we’ve got new information, and we must adjust.
It’s looking like Alvin Kamara (9-26; 5-4-44) is taking a slight step back in snaps, as he’s gone from 81% in Week 6 with a steady drop each week to a season-low 49% in Week 9. Jamaal Williams (3-6; 3-2-6) is getting more involved in his snaps, with them almost doubling from the last two weeks to 43%.
On the receiver side, Michael Thomas (1-0-0) had by far his worst game of 2023. Chris Olave (8-6-46-1) got into the end zone as the only Saint with over 31 receiving yards. Juwan Johnson (5-5-29-1) caught Hill's TD pass, proving he is still, indeed, alive.
Week 9 New Orleans Saints Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Chris Olave
Start ‘Em: Alvin Kamara, Michael Thomas, Taysom Hill (better starter where he’s TE eligible as well as a better start in half-PPR vs. full PPR)
Keep Them Rostered: Derek Carr, Rashid Shaheed (deeper 12 & 14-team),
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
New York Giants
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Darius Slayton | WR | 7 | 4 | 59 | 0 | 66 | 22.9% | 90.5% | 81.0% | 25.9% | 8.4 | 18.4% | 9.4 | 1.55 | 0.549 | 0.894 | 38 | 51 |
| Isaiah Hodgins | WR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 4.5% | 45.2% | 47.6% | 3.7% | 0.0 | 5.3% | 13.0 | 0.00 | 0.087 | 0.000 | 19 | 30 |
| Jalin Hyatt | WR | 5 | 2 | 19 | 0 | 151 | 52.4% | 64.3% | 58.7% | 18.5% | 3.8 | 18.5% | 30.2 | 0.70 | 0.645 | 0.126 | 27 | 37 |
| Wan'Dale Robinson | WR | 5 | 4 | 35 | 1 | 28 | 9.7% | 52.4% | 54.0% | 18.5% | 7.0 | 22.7% | 5.6 | 1.59 | 0.346 | 1.250 | 22 | 34 |
| Sterling Shepard | WR | 0.0% | 0.0% | 1.6% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | 1 | |||||
| Daniel Bellinger | TE | 3 | 3 | 43 | 0 | 24 | 8.3% | 76.2% | 85.7% | 11.1% | 14.3 | 9.4% | 8.0 | 1.34 | 0.225 | 1.792 | 32 | 54 |
| Lawrence Cager | TE | 0.0% | 21.4% | 42.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 9 | 27 | |||||
| Saquon Barkley | RB | 4 | 3 | 23 | 0 | 2 | 0.7% | 61.9% | 74.6% | 14.8% | 5.8 | 15.4% | 0.5 | 0.88 | 0.227 | 11.500 | 26 | 47 |
| Matt Breida | RB | 2 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 1.4% | 33.3% | 28.6% | 7.4% | 3.0 | 14.3% | 2.0 | 0.43 | 0.121 | 1.500 | 14 | 18 |
| Deon Jackson | RB | 0.0% | 0.0% | 1.6% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | 1 |
The Giants are cursed. They lost the returning Daniel Jones to a torn ACL, and he’s out for the season. The Tommy DeVito reign of terror continues as the Giants did have him throw a little bit more, but he never really locked on to any one target and spread some of the target love around.
It’s hard to find optimism here in this offense; even for Saquon Barkley (16-90; 4-3-23). This offensive environment is putrid and definitely isn’t able to support any pass-catchers with regularity. That may trickle down to Barkley, who defenses know will get the ball almost every time. With Jones now out, just yikes for the rest of the season with this offense.
Week 9 New York Giants Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Saquon Barkley
Start ‘Em: N/A
Keep Them Rostered: Wan’Dale Robinson (14-team), Jalin Hyatt (14-team), Darren Waller (placed on IR - hamstring)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: Daniel Jones (out for season - torn ACL)
New York Jets
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Garrett Wilson | WR | 13 | 7 | 80 | 0 | 165 | 46.1% | 98.3% | 97.5% | 27.1% | 6.2 | 22.8% | 12.7 | 1.40 | 0.729 | 0.485 | 57 | 79 |
| Allen Lazard | WR | 6 | 2 | 18 | 0 | 56 | 15.6% | 87.9% | 88.9% | 12.5% | 3.0 | 11.8% | 9.3 | 0.35 | 0.297 | 0.321 | 51 | 72 |
| Xavier Gipson | WR | 2 | 2 | 32 | 0 | 26 | 7.3% | 62.1% | 58.0% | 4.2% | 16.0 | 5.6% | 13.0 | 0.89 | 0.113 | 1.231 | 36 | 47 |
| Irvin Charles | WR | 0.0% | 5.2% | 4.9% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 4 | |||||
| Malik Taylor | WR | 2 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 46 | 12.8% | 24.1% | 22.2% | 4.2% | 3.5 | 14.3% | 23.0 | 0.50 | 0.152 | 0.152 | 14 | 18 |
| Tyler Conklin | TE | 6 | 6 | 66 | 0 | 48 | 13.4% | 65.5% | 61.7% | 12.5% | 11.0 | 15.8% | 8.0 | 1.74 | 0.281 | 1.375 | 38 | 50 |
| C.J. Uzomah | TE | 5 | 2 | 11 | 0 | 30 | 8.4% | 29.3% | 34.6% | 10.4% | 2.2 | 29.4% | 6.0 | 0.65 | 0.215 | 0.367 | 17 | 28 |
| Jeremy Ruckert | TE | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 1.1% | 20.7% | 28.4% | 2.1% | 7.0 | 8.3% | 4.0 | 0.58 | 0.039 | 1.750 | 12 | 23 |
| Breece Hall | RB | 4 | 4 | 10 | 0 | -13 | -3.6% | 43.1% | 60.5% | 8.3% | 2.5 | 16.0% | -3.3 | 0.40 | 0.100 | -0.769 | 25 | 49 |
| Dalvin Cook | RB | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 6.9% | 8.6% | 4.2% | 0.5 | 50.0% | 0.0 | 0.25 | 0.063 | 0.000 | 4 | 7 |
| Michael Carter | RB | 6 | 6 | 24 | 0 | -1 | -0.3% | 39.7% | 30.9% | 12.5% | 4.0 | 26.1% | -0.2 | 1.04 | 0.186 | -24.000 | 23 | 25 |
| Nick Bawden | FB | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | -3 | -0.8% | 1.7% | 3.7% | 2.1% | 7.0 | 100.0% | -3.0 | 7.00 | 0.025 | -2.333 | 1 | 3 |
Zach Wilson is terrible, and I’m not sure how the Jets can keep this charade going, wasting a solid roster and opportunistic defense with Wilson leading the charge. Head coaches and general managers hate being wrong and rarely admit it. It sure seems like Aaron Rodgers wants to try to come back this season off of his torn Achilles’, which is wild, but there’s no witch doctor in the world that can heal that injury quick enough to get Rodgers back on the field. However, 65% of Rodgers may still be better than Wilson.
Leading the way was Garrett Wilson (13-7-80), and at the very least, the quarterback Wilson knows to target the receiver Wilson as he has had four games of 12+ targets in his last five games. Tyler Conklin (6-6-66) had a mark of the devil game, and no other pass-catcher caught more than two balls besides Breece Hall (16-50; 4-4-10).
Week 9 New York Jets Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Garrell Wilson
Start ‘Em: Breece Hall
Keep Them Rostered: Tyler Conklin (14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Philadelphia Eagles
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| A.J. Brown | WR | 9 | 7 | 66 | 1 | 103 | 54.2% | 96.9% | 96.8% | 42.9% | 7.3 | 29.0% | 11.4 | 2.13 | 1.022 | 0.641 | 31 | 60 |
| DeVonta Smith | WR | 3 | 3 | 51 | 1 | 43 | 22.6% | 100.0% | 93.5% | 14.3% | 17.0 | 9.4% | 14.3 | 1.59 | 0.373 | 1.186 | 32 | 58 |
| Olamide Zaccheaus | WR | 2 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 4.2% | 46.9% | 41.9% | 9.5% | 4.0 | 13.3% | 4.0 | 0.53 | 0.172 | 1.000 | 15 | 26 |
| Julio Jones | WR | 0.0% | 37.5% | 30.6% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 12 | 19 | |||||
| Dallas Goedert | TE | 4 | 3 | 50 | 0 | 29 | 15.3% | 75.0% | 77.4% | 19.0% | 12.5 | 16.7% | 7.3 | 2.08 | 0.393 | 1.724 | 24 | 48 |
| Jack Stoll | TE | 0.0% | 21.9% | 43.5% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 7 | 27 | |||||
| Albert Okwuegbunam | TE | 0.0% | 6.3% | 9.7% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 2 | 6 | |||||
| D'Andre Swift | RB | 2 | 2 | 31 | 0 | 6 | 3.2% | 46.9% | 64.5% | 9.5% | 15.5 | 13.3% | 3.0 | 2.07 | 0.165 | 5.167 | 15 | 40 |
| Kenneth Gainwell | RB | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.5% | 43.8% | 37.1% | 4.8% | 1.0 | 7.1% | 1.0 | 0.07 | 0.075 | 1.000 | 14 | 23 |
| Rashaad Penny | RB | 0.0% | 0.0% | 3.2% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | 2 |
On the other side of the NFC East showdown with the Cowboys, Jalen Hurts didn’t need to do as much production-wise as far as passing volume. He only threw 23 passes but was pretty efficient, tossing touchdowns to A.J. Brown (9-7-66-1) and DeVonta Smith (3-3-51-1), plus taking a QB sneak for a score.
With Dallas Goedert (4-3-50; 75% routes) fracturing his forearm, that injury will narrow the target tree to Brown and Smith even more, which is great for their fantasy prospects as it raises both their floor and ceiling. I’m not very interested in any of the ancillary guys in this offense, like Julio Jones (untargeted; 38% routes) or Olamide Zaccheaus (2-1-8; 47% routes), who run routes but aren’t targeted enough to matter weekly. Even at tight end, Jack Stoll (untargeted; 22% routes) isn’t worth the pickup. Perhaps a glimmer of hope for Albert Okwuegbunam’s (untargeted; 10% routes) future prospects?
D’Andre Swift (18-43; 2-2-31) has been a compiler lately with another performance under 4.0 yards per carry; perhaps that’s why Kenneth Gainwell (3-22-1; 1-1-1)is seeing slightly more work? He got the non-Hurts rushing touchdown in Week 9.
Week 9 Philadelphia Eagles Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith
Start ‘Em: D’Andre Swift
Keep Them Rostered: Dallas Goedert (placed on IR - forearm)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Pittsburgh Steelers
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Diontae Johnson | WR | 9 | 7 | 90 | 1 | 75 | 51.0% | 96.7% | 87.5% | 31.0% | 10.0 | 31.0% | 8.3 | 3.10 | 0.823 | 1.200 | 29 | 56 |
| George Pickens | WR | 5 | 2 | -1 | 0 | 29 | 19.7% | 93.3% | 89.1% | 17.2% | -0.2 | 17.9% | 5.8 | -0.04 | 0.397 | -0.034 | 28 | 57 |
| Allen Robinson | WR | 2 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 16 | 10.9% | 76.7% | 71.9% | 6.9% | 5.0 | 8.7% | 8.0 | 0.43 | 0.180 | 0.625 | 23 | 46 |
| Calvin Austin | WR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 23.8% | 20.0% | 26.6% | 3.4% | 0.0 | 16.7% | 35.0 | 0.00 | 0.218 | 0.000 | 6 | 17 |
| Miles Boykin | WR | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 3.4% | 6.7% | 9.4% | 3.4% | 6.0 | 50.0% | 5.0 | 3.00 | 0.076 | 1.200 | 2 | 6 |
| Darnell Washington | TE | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1.4% | 33.3% | 48.4% | 3.4% | 7.0 | 10.0% | 2.0 | 0.70 | 0.061 | 3.500 | 10 | 31 |
| Rodney Williams | TE | 0.0% | 0.0% | 4.7% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | 3 | |||||
| Najee Harris | RB | 4 | 2 | 7 | 0 | -10 | -6.8% | 50.0% | 59.4% | 13.8% | 1.8 | 26.7% | -2.5 | 0.47 | 0.159 | -0.700 | 15 | 38 |
| Jaylen Warren | RB | 3 | 3 | 25 | 0 | -9 | -6.1% | 33.3% | 40.6% | 10.3% | 8.3 | 30.0% | -3.0 | 2.50 | 0.112 | -2.778 | 10 | 26 |
| Connor Heyward | FB | 3 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 4 | 2.7% | 66.7% | 60.9% | 10.3% | 5.3 | 15.0% | 1.3 | 0.80 | 0.174 | 4.000 | 20 | 39 |
Diontae Johnson (9-7-90-1) scored his first touchdown since Week 17 of 2021 to cap off a Steelers’ win on Thursday night. On the flip side, George Pickens (5-2-(-1)) didn’t drag his toe after catching a would-be touchdown, then scrubbed his social media, removing all Steelers references from his Instagram, and then putting out an Instagram story that said “free me.” A totally rational thing that any normal NFL player would do after a win that moved Pittsburgh to 5-3. Pickens has suffered a bit in the stat sheet since Johnson returned to the lineup, with 10 targets, but just three catches for 21 yards and a touchdown in his last two games. He may be just going through it, but Pickens may have a ways to go before being mentioned as a 1A or 1B in tandem with Johnson.
Stop me if you’ve heard me say this, but Jaylen Warren (11-88; 3-3-25) looked much better than Najee Harris (16-69-1; 4-2-7) as a much more dynamic runner in space. That said, Harris did crack the end zone and was much more efficient (4.3 yards per carry) than he has been in recent weeks, so both backs are certainly usable, and it’s not likely to be a “one over the other” thing unless injury strikes.
Week 9 Pittsburgh Steelers Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Diontae Johnson
Start ‘Em: George Pickens
Keep Them Rostered: Najee Harris, Jaylen Warren, Kenny Pickett (deeper 12 & 14-team), Pat Freiermuth (on IR - hamstring)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
San Francisco 49ers
BYE WEEK
Week 9 San Francisco 49ers Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Christian McCaffrey, Brandon Aiyuk
Start ‘Em: Deebo Samuel (missed Week 7-8 - shoulder), George Kittle, Brock Purdy
Keep Them Rostered: Elijah Mitchell (purely a contingent play should something happen to CMC; 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Seattle Seahawks
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| DK Metcalf | WR | 4 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 52 | 26.5% | 88.2% | 85.7% | 16.0% | 12.5 | 13.3% | 13.0 | 1.67 | 0.426 | 0.962 | 30 | 42 |
| Tyler Lockett | WR | 8 | 3 | 32 | 0 | 82 | 41.8% | 94.1% | 89.8% | 32.0% | 4.0 | 25.0% | 10.3 | 1.00 | 0.773 | 0.390 | 32 | 44 |
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba | WR | 7 | 6 | 63 | 0 | 46 | 23.5% | 88.2% | 81.6% | 28.0% | 9.0 | 23.3% | 6.6 | 2.10 | 0.584 | 1.370 | 30 | 40 |
| Jake Bobo | WR | 0.0% | 17.6% | 18.4% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 6 | 9 | |||||
| Noah Fant | TE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.5% | 41.2% | 53.1% | 4.0% | 0.0 | 7.1% | 1.0 | 0.00 | 0.064 | 0.000 | 14 | 26 |
| Will Dissly | TE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 4.1% | 8.8% | 22.4% | 4.0% | 0.0 | 33.3% | 8.0 | 0.00 | 0.089 | 0.000 | 3 | 11 |
| Colby Parkinson | TE | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 3.1% | 41.2% | 44.9% | 4.0% | 6.0 | 7.1% | 6.0 | 0.43 | 0.081 | 1.000 | 14 | 22 |
| Kenneth Walker | RB | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.5% | 41.2% | 49.0% | 8.0% | 0.5 | 14.3% | 0.5 | 0.07 | 0.124 | 1.000 | 14 | 24 |
| Zach Charbonnet | RB | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 52.9% | 55.1% | 4.0% | 5.0 | 5.6% | 0.0 | 0.28 | 0.060 | 0.000 | 18 | 27 |
Seattle was 100% shut down by the Baltimore Ravens 37-3, ran the fewest plays of any team in Week 9, and was stymied at every turn. It was still a game at halftime, but it got out of hand in the third quarter.
76% of the targets went to the trio of DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Metcalf (4-1-50) saw just a 50-yard catch, and Lockett (8-3-32) caught a few meaningless passes from Geno Smith. Smith-Njigba (7-6-63) produced in the fourth quarter when the game was out of reach. All three ran routes on at least 88% of Smith’s dropbacks.
Kenneth Walker (9-16; 2-1-1) and Zach Charbonnet (4-8; 1-1-5) split the workload again, with Charbonnet getting the more significant share, but we know Walker is dealing with a calf injury and now a chest injury heading into Week 10.
Week 9 Seattle Seahawks Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, Kenneth Walker
Start ‘Em: Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Keep Them Rostered: Geno Smith, Zach Charbonnet
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Mike Evans | WR | 5 | 4 | 87 | 0 | 82 | 31.1% | 90.9% | 83.3% | 16.7% | 17.4 | 16.7% | 16.4 | 2.90 | 0.467 | 1.061 | 30 | 55 |
| Chris Godwin | WR | 6 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 48 | 18.2% | 90.9% | 87.9% | 20.0% | 2.7 | 20.0% | 8.0 | 0.53 | 0.427 | 0.333 | 30 | 58 |
| Trey Palmer | WR | 4 | 3 | 51 | 0 | 58 | 22.0% | 84.8% | 72.7% | 13.3% | 12.8 | 14.3% | 14.5 | 1.82 | 0.354 | 0.879 | 28 | 48 |
| Deven Thompkins | WR | 0.0% | 6.1% | 13.6% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 2 | 9 | |||||
| Rakim Jarrett | WR | 0.0% | 9.1% | 12.1% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 8 | |||||
| Cade Otton | TE | 9 | 6 | 70 | 2 | 73 | 27.7% | 90.9% | 100.0% | 30.0% | 7.8 | 30.0% | 8.1 | 2.33 | 0.644 | 0.959 | 30 | 66 |
| Ko Kieft | TE | 0.0% | 3.0% | 15.2% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 10 | |||||
| Payne Durham | TE | 0.0% | 6.1% | 15.2% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 2 | 10 | |||||
| Rachaad White | RB | 4 | 4 | 46 | 0 | 6 | 2.3% | 75.8% | 80.3% | 13.3% | 11.5 | 16.0% | 1.5 | 1.84 | 0.216 | 7.667 | 25 | 53 |
| Chase Edmonds | RB | 1 | 1 | -1 | 0 | -2 | -0.8% | 12.1% | 12.1% | 3.3% | -1.0 | 25.0% | -2.0 | -0.25 | 0.045 | 0.500 | 4 | 8 |
| Ke'Shawn Vaughn | RB | 1 | 1 | -1 | 0 | -1 | -0.4% | 3.0% | 7.6% | 3.3% | -1.0 | 100.0% | -1.0 | -1.00 | 0.047 | 1.000 | 1 | 5 |
Obviously, the Bucs took a backseat here to the Texans in terms of passing game prowess, but Baker Mayfield led a game-winning touchdown drive culminating in Cade Otton’s (9-6-70-2) second touchdown of the day with 46 seconds left. It’s just that C.J. Stroud is a maniac and drove the Texans down in 40 seconds to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
Outside of Otton’s big day, it was a mediocre production effort from Mike Evans (5-4-87) and Chris Godwin (6-2-16) outside of one Evans 53-yard reception.
Rachaad White (20-73-2; 4-4-46) was solid on the ground and in the receiving game with two touchdowns, but it still came on 3.7 yards per carry. Efficiency (or lack thereof) has been the name of the game for White, and that makes him a low-end RB2 for fantasy. That said, it was nice not to see him be a near-zero in a game script that had both teams combine for 76 points.
Week 9 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: Mike Evans
Start ‘Em: Chris Godwin
Keep Them Rostered: Rachaad White, Cade Otton (deep 12 & 14-team), Trey Palmer (14-team), Baker Mayfield (14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Tennessee Titans
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| DeAndre Hopkins | WR | 11 | 4 | 60 | 0 | 150 | 40.0% | 82.2% | 68.9% | 30.6% | 5.5 | 29.7% | 13.6 | 1.62 | 0.738 | 0.400 | 37 | 51 |
| Treylon Burks | WR | 3 | 2 | 23 | 0 | 61 | 16.3% | 53.3% | 51.4% | 8.3% | 7.7 | 12.5% | 20.3 | 0.96 | 0.239 | 0.377 | 24 | 38 |
| Nick Westbrook-Ikhine | WR | 1 | 1 | 23 | 0 | 23 | 6.1% | 44.4% | 58.1% | 2.8% | 23.0 | 5.0% | 23.0 | 1.15 | 0.085 | 1.000 | 20 | 43 |
| Kyle Philips | WR | 5 | 4 | 68 | 0 | 72 | 19.2% | 48.9% | 31.1% | 13.9% | 13.6 | 22.7% | 14.4 | 3.09 | 0.343 | 0.944 | 22 | 23 |
| Chris Moore | WR | 2 | 1 | 29 | 0 | 44 | 11.7% | 35.6% | 41.9% | 5.6% | 14.5 | 12.5% | 22.0 | 1.81 | 0.165 | 0.659 | 16 | 31 |
| Chigoziem Okonkwo | TE | 4 | 3 | 28 | 0 | 34 | 9.1% | 82.2% | 73.0% | 11.1% | 7.0 | 10.8% | 8.5 | 0.76 | 0.230 | 0.824 | 37 | 54 |
| Trevon Wesco | TE | 0.0% | 11.1% | 52.7% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 5 | 39 | |||||
| Josh Whyle | TE | 0.0% | 2.2% | 5.4% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 4 | |||||
| Kevin Rader | TE | 0.0% | 2.2% | 8.1% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 1 | 6 | |||||
| Derrick Henry | RB | 4 | 3 | 27 | 0 | -9 | -2.4% | 26.7% | 48.6% | 11.1% | 6.8 | 33.3% | -2.3 | 2.25 | 0.150 | -3.000 | 12 | 36 |
| Tyjae Spears | RB | 6 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 64.4% | 59.5% | 16.7% | 0.7 | 20.7% | 0.0 | 0.14 | 0.250 | 0.000 | 29 | 44 |
The Tennessee Titans have done the best thing they could do in naming Will Levis the starting quarterback even when Ryan Tannehill is healthy, especially for fantasy managers. DeAndre Hopkins (11-4-60) gets his fantasy floor — even if the efficiency didn’t come along for the ride this week — raised even more so with a more competent downfield passer in Levis with his 10.1-yard aDOT in Week 9 and Levis’ maneuverability in the pocket to break out upon pressure and allow for some off-script passing.
It even led Kyle Philips (5-4-68; 49% routes) to a relevant day, though nobody would have started him. Treylon Burks (3-2-23) took a nasty hit and was diagnosed with a concussion late in the fourth quarter.
Tyjae Spears (5-18; 6-4-4) continues to out-snap Derrick Henry (17-75-1; 3-3-27), but Henry gets his weekly 15+ carries. Spears is still a low-end flex play with contingent value. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Week 9 Tennessee Titans Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: DeAndre Hopkins, Derrick Henry
Start ‘Em: N/A
Keep Them Rostered: Will Levis (deeper 12 & 14-team), Tyjae Spears (deeper 12 & 14-team), Chigoziem Okonkwo (deeper 12 & 14-team), Treylon Burks (left Week 9 - concussion; 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Washington Commanders
| Name | Pos | Targets | Rec. | Rec. Yards | TD | Air Yards | Air Yards % | Route % | Snap % | Target Share % | Yards per Target | TPRR | aDOT | YPRR | WOPR | RACR | Player Routes | Player Snaps |
| Terry McLaurin | WR | 7 | 5 | 73 | 0 | 64 | 16.8% | 84.6% | 85.9% | 15.9% | 10.4 | 15.9% | 9.1 | 1.66 | 0.357 | 1.141 | 44 | 67 |
| Jahan Dotson | WR | 8 | 4 | 69 | 1 | 115 | 30.3% | 78.8% | 75.6% | 18.2% | 8.6 | 19.5% | 14.4 | 1.68 | 0.485 | 0.600 | 41 | 59 |
| Dyami Brown | WR | 4 | 2 | 33 | 0 | 77 | 20.3% | 26.9% | 28.2% | 9.1% | 8.3 | 28.6% | 19.3 | 2.36 | 0.278 | 0.429 | 14 | 22 |
| Byron Pringle | WR | 4 | 3 | 55 | 0 | 55 | 14.5% | 28.8% | 23.1% | 9.1% | 13.8 | 26.7% | 13.8 | 3.67 | 0.238 | 1.000 | 15 | 18 |
| Jamison Crowder | WR | 6 | 4 | 23 | 0 | 40 | 10.5% | 46.2% | 48.7% | 13.6% | 3.8 | 25.0% | 6.7 | 0.96 | 0.278 | 0.575 | 24 | 38 |
| Logan Thomas | TE | 6 | 4 | 31 | 0 | 20 | 5.3% | 84.6% | 73.1% | 13.6% | 5.2 | 13.6% | 3.3 | 0.70 | 0.241 | 1.550 | 44 | 57 |
| John Bates | TE | 2 | 1 | -5 | 0 | 14 | 3.7% | 30.8% | 47.4% | 4.5% | -2.5 | 12.5% | 7.0 | -0.31 | 0.094 | -0.357 | 16 | 37 |
| Cole Turner | TE | 0.0% | 5.8% | 5.1% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 3 | 4 | |||||
| Brian Robinson | RB | 2 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 1.3% | 34.6% | 56.4% | 4.5% | 2.0 | 11.1% | 2.5 | 0.22 | 0.077 | 0.800 | 18 | 44 |
| Antonio Gibson | RB | 5 | 5 | 42 | 0 | -10 | -2.6% | 42.3% | 43.6% | 11.4% | 8.4 | 22.7% | -2.0 | 1.91 | 0.152 | -4.200 | 22 | 34 |
| Alex Armah | FB | 0.0% | 3.8% | 12.8% | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 2 | 10 |
The Commanders love to pass, and in this fake shootout where lots of passing happened but not so much in the scoring department, the ever-present volume was there. Four Commanders saw six or more targets, including Terry McLaurin (7-5-73), Logan Thomas (6-4-31) and Jamison Crowder (6-4-23; 45% routes), who saw more work in the slot without Curtis Samuel in Week
Two straight weeks with a touchdown and stacking some solid performances together is what Jahan Dotson (8-4-69-1; 79% routes) sorely needed. He has at least eight targets in the last three games.
The usual workload split with the Commanders continued in Week 9, as Brian Robinson (18-63-1; 2-1-4) took most of the carries, and Antonio Gibson (6-34; 5-5-42) runs the routes and saw solid receiving work.
Week 9 Washington Commanders Fantasy Takeaways:
Start Your Studs: N/A
Start ‘Em: Terry McLaurin
Keep Them Rostered: Jahan Dotson, Brian Robinson, Sam Howell, Logan Thomas, Antonio Gibson (deeper 12 & 14-team)
Add ‘Em: N/A
Dump ‘Em: N/A
Stat Credits:
- Pro Football Focus
- NFL Next Gen Stats
- NFLGSIS.com
- Fantasy Life (All running back short down and distance, long down and distance, and two-minute snaps data)