Week eight has come and gone and now we are officially in week 9, at the point halfway of the new 18 week NFL season. After we only had two teams on bye last week, week nine has four teams on bye including the reigning Super Bowl champion Buccaneers.

Some serious injuries also were sustained to some top fantasy players in week eight which could open the door to some new faces. Let’s get into some of the best waiver wire pickups, some players to sit or start, and some players that you could have on your roster that you are deciding between putting into your lineups this week.

RB’s in Week 9

The first position to fill through the waiver wire is running back as they are usually the most in demand in fantasy leagues.

Adrian Peterson can replace Derrick Henry due to his injury

This week the big injury was to the leading rusher from the past two seasons and so far this year, Derrick Henry.  Henry is expected to miss six to 10 weeks so a pickup of his replacement will be a big one.  The trick is to find which running back will take on that role in Tennessee.

The Titans signed Adrian Peterson who hasn’t played this season yet.  He had a decent season in 2020 with the Lions last year but it remains to be seen what his role will be with the Titans. Peterson is a heavy workload runner so he could be a great pickup this week for the rest of the season.

Jeremy McNichols

The other running back to look at from the Titans is Jeremy McNichols who is more of a third down and pass catching back. McNichols was the primary backup to Henry but hasn’t received a carry since week five and hasn’t had more than two in a game all year.

Peterson seems like the pickup here unless the Titans sign another running back as well.

Boston Scott seems best pickup of the bunch in week 9

Another running back to add is Boston Scott who was a good pickup last week and showed up with two touchdowns.  Scott will get that goal line work but Jordan Howard stole work from Scott and Gainwell making it a tricky situation in Philadelphia.  Scott seems like the best pickup of the bunch this week.

WR’s in Week 9

Wide receiver is another position where you can hit the waiver wire and find some solid pickups.

Devante Parker

Devante Parker is one who returned to the lineup for the Miami Dolphins and commanded 11 targets catching eight of them.  In his five games played this year Parker has had at least seven targets in each of them.

For a bye week replacement in week 9, Parker will face Houston who he should have a good chance to score a touchdown against given his target share in the offense.  He is only about 50% owned in leagues now after he was dropped due to his injury that caused him to miss some games.

Van Jefferson

Van Jefferson has emerged as the third wide receiver in the Los Angeles Rams offense and when the Rams find themself in a more competitive game, Jefferson should have even more opportunities.  He had six targets for three catches and 88 yards in week eight but should have even more targets next week against the Titans.

Jefferson is also owned in less than 10% of most sites.

Jamal Agnew can be the most popular pickup in Week 9

Maybe one of the most popular pickups this week at wide receiver is Jamal Agnew.  He led the Jaguars with 12 targets in week eight and had six and seven the two weeks before that.  With that many targets he should be a solid play any week and has surpassed Shenault as the second receiver on the team.

QB’s in Week 9

Is Taysom Hill the best quarterback to add this week?

The best quarterback to add for the rest of the season is going to be Taysom Hill.  Hill was in a quarterback competition with Winston in the preseason but now Winston has torn his ACL and is out for the season.

Hill still hasn’t returned from a concussion that he suffered in week eight but it seems he potentially could return here in week 9.  When starting at quarterback, Hill has a floor of about 40 yards rushing with the potential to get upwards of 100 in any given game with multiple rushing touchdowns.

Justin Fields is at his best!

Another quarterback to add is Justin Fields who, like Hill, can rack up fantasy points with his legs and is playing his best football of the season right now.  Fields will face the Steelers in week 9 but with his rushing upside he could be a good play regardless of the matchup.

TE’s in Week 9

Is Peter Freiermuth the best pickup in TE’s?

In another slim week of tight end pickups the rookie from the Steelers, Peter Freiermuth, is probably the best pickup. He has back to back weeks with at least seven targets and has 11 catches for 102 yards and a touchdown in those games. He won’t be explosive like some of the big name tight ends but is a serviceable backup or bye week tight end due to his target share the past couple of weeks.

Other tight ends to look at in Week 9

Other tight ends to look at are some more highly targeted tight ends such as Tyler Conklin or Dan Arnold.  Freiermuth seems like the best touchdown catcher out of the three but all could work as tight ends on your team due to the lack of quality and consistent tight ends right now.

2021 – 2022 Fantasy Sits & Starts in Week 9

While there are four teams on byes this week there are still players that should be sits in your lineup and some players who look like good starts in week nine.

Sits & Starts in Running Backs

Josh Jacobs

Looking at running backs this week a great player to start is Josh Jacobs.  He broke his streak of having at least 10 carries in a game last week but that was due to being sidelined for part of the game.

Jacobs still managed a touchdown for his third straight game and three catches for 39 yards in that game.  He is expected to be fine and now faces the New York Giants who were gashed on the ground by Derrick Gore who got his first NFL carries of his career last week.

Derrick Gore or Damien Williams

Speaking of Kansas City running backs, Gore seems the most likely to get goal line carries but in a matchup against Green Bay the Chiefs may be looking to throw more and that is where Damien Williams comes in.

Williams did have 13 carries but also six catches for 61 yards last week.  It seems the strategy for defenses against the Chiefs is to not give up anything deep which gives Williams running room and space to catch the ball out of the backfield.

Carlos Hyde is highly ranked for Week 9

Carlos Hyde is highly ranked for week 9, as high as top 20 of running backs, but he should be a player to sit. The Jaguars play the Bills who will most likely be in the lead the whole game and can stuff the run.  Hyde is filling in for James Robinson in Jacksonville but managed only nine carries for 32 yards last week.

Starts in Wide Receivers in Week 9

Jamison Crowder

Jamison Crowder is a wide receiver to start this week.  He is undoubtedly the wide receiver one in New York for the Jets with Corey Davis out of the lineup and gets a massive amount of targets.

Also, Mike White threw 405 yards in his first start so there are plenty of yards to go around against the Colts.  Crowder has at least four catches in every game this year and those numbers should only go up.

Marquise Brown

Another wide receiver who looks like a great play is Baltimore Raven Marquise Brown.  The Ravens are coming off of a bye week and Brown has been great up until this point.In his last game he even got a season high 14 targets.

Brown now gets a good matchup against the Minnesota Vikings in what should be one of the higher scoring matchups of the week.

Wide Receivers to sit in Week 9

Players to sit this week are all Denver Broncos wide receivers.  With the return of Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton only had two receptions and Tim Patrick had just three.  It seems there are too many wide receivers on this team that all command about the same amount of targets that they cancel each other out.  Especially, in a passing offense that has not been stellar this year, it doesn’t seem like the week to chase one of these Broncos wideouts.

Quarterbacks to start in Week 9

Looking at some of the quarterbacks to start this week, besides the obvious ones, we have a player who has been playing well and finds themself in really good matchups this week.  That is going to be Tua Tagovailoa who faces the Houston Texans.

The Texans have been beat up on all year and the Rams were able to score 38 points on them in three quarters last week. Tua has been able to put up points himself against lesser opponents such as the Jaguars and Falcons where he averaged over 300 yards in those contests and threw six total touchdowns.

The Dolphins also have their weapons fully healthy now with Parker, Waddle, and Gesicki all breaking out this year.

Quarterbacks to sit in Week 9

A quarterback you can leave on the bench this week is Jimmy Garoppolo who had a standout game last week with about 300 yards passing but also two rushing touchdowns. The 49ers get the Cardinals this week which should be a tough matchup and Jimmy G could struggle fantasy wise.

Tight End to start in Week 9

The tight end position is back strong this week with Kelce, Kittle, Pitts, Andrews, and Waller all expected to play this week.  If you don’t have one of them, Mike Gesicki looks like a nice player to start this week.  He had an off week in week eight with just three catches for 40 yards but with the Dolphins in a great matchup against Houston they should be able to throw the ball all over the place and Gesicki should have a big game in store.

Tight End to sit in Week 9

A tight end to sit is Hunter Henry.  He is so touchdown dependent and the Panthers don’t give up many touchdowns so it will be hard for him to hit value if he doesn’t find the end zone.

One on one Comparison of Some Players for your Fantasy Lineups in Week 9

For the last section of this we are going to compare some players one on one to see who should be starting in your fantasy lineups this week.

Running Backs

Michael Carter

An interesting one to look at here is running back Michael Carter from the New York Jets.  Carter had struggled all year until recently due to his sudden involvement in the passing game.  He has 17 catches in just the last two games and the five games before that he had a combined nine catches.

It may prove to be hard to replicate what he has done in the pass game the last two weeks for this week however against the Colts who don’t give up many points to opposing running backs.  Carter is in the top 10 of some expert running back rankings this week but some guys look like safer and better plays than him in week 9.

Nick Chubb

One is Nick Chubb who returned to the lineup and got 16 carries.  That is a good sign for him and he should see even more work in week nine in a better matchup for him against the Bengals.

Damien Harris or Carter?

A running back that Carter does look better than is Damien Harris, especially in ppr leagues.  Harris has been great but now faces the Panthers who give up the least amount of points to running backs and Harris only has 10 catches in eight games this season.

Devontae Booker

Another running back to look at here is Devontae Booker who plays the Las Vegas Raiders in week nine.  He has been solid in filling in for Barkley in New York and now he finally has a good matchup.  He looks to be in a better fantasy spot than some guys like Chuba Hubbard who hasn’t been the pass catching back we thought he would be.

Khalil Herbert looks better thean Booker

A player who does look better than Booker this week is Khalil Herbert.  Herbert is matchup proof as last week he still got 23 carries while losing.  Herbert is going to get carries and he has started to be more involved in the pass game as well.

Wide Receiver

Julio Jones

One game that should be fairly high scoring is the Rams against the Titans.  Julio Jones is a receiver to look at in this matchup.  With Derrick Henry being out it would make sense to get the pass game going more or just incorporate more short passes to their big play wide receivers.

Julio Jones has struggled with injuries but was expected to play last week but didn’t so it would seem a week later he would be in line to play.  Jones should be a better play in this game than a guy like Brandin Cooks who has a big explosive play every few games but doesn’t do much outside of that.

Can you trust on Robert Woods?

A receiver to trust more is one in the same game, Robert Woods of the Rams.  Woods doesn’t get the same consistent targets as Kupp but still had nine turrets last week and has four touchdowns on the year.

Mike Williams vs Keenan Allen

The other Los Angeles team has an interesting wide receiver situation as well with Mike Williams and Keenan Allen of the Chargers.  Williams was going off in the beginning of the year with a game of 122 yards and also a game with 165 where he had two touchdowns in each.  The last two weeks he only has four total catches, however.

Many like Allen better than Willaims now but this week we like Williams to have a bounce back game against the Eagles.  He even could be a better play than DJ Moore and the Miami Dolphins wide receivers.  Williams has huge upside and in this matchup he should be back on track.

Quarterbacks

Joe Burrow

Looking at quarterbacks this week Joe Burrow comes in around the 10th ranked on the week.  Burrow faces the Cleveland Browns who give up a lot to quarterbacks and Burrow has three straight weeks with three touchdown passes.

Joe Burrow or Justin Herbert

Joe Burrow seems like a good play in this one but one guy from the same draft class in Justin Herbert could be even better.  Herbert started off the year playing amazingly but the last two games he has been under 225 yards passing.  This is a bounce back week for him and Mike Williams against the Eagles and it is expected for Herbert to have a big game here.

This one is close but Herbert has a slight edge this week based on his potential higher ceiling than Burrow.

Kyler Murray

Another quarterback to consider here is Kyler Murray.  Murray had one of his worst games of the year against the 49ers and plays them again here in week 9.  Playing a team for the second time in a year gives them opportunities to figure out how to gameplan better and it is expected that Kyler Murray has a good game this week.

It is close because of the matchup and since Murray hasn’t been running much this year but both Burrow and Herbert look like better plays still over Murray in week 9.  It may pain some people to bench Murray for one of these two young studs but it should pay off in the end.

Tight End

Our favorite plays of the week-Mike Gesicki

One of our favorite plays of the week is Mike Gesicki at tight end but who would we play over him if we had them on the roster?  The only tight ends to play over Gesicki should be the ultimate studs.  This means Travis Kelce, Darren Waller, and Mark Andrews.  These guys have about the same floor as Gesick but a lot higher upsides.

Some tight end studs close to Gesicki this week are George Kittle who is coming back from injury for the 49ers and Falcons rookie Kyle Pitts.  Both of them are good plays this week but Kittle hasn’t been great even when in the lineup and now will most likely be eased back in a little bit and Pitts has a really low floor and limited touchdown upside.  Gesicki is your guy for a low floor and fairly high ceiling at tight end.