Our Week 9 fantasy sleepers have a wide range as we look for the players to put your lineups over the top. Just look at our quarterbacks: There's a veteran quarterback in Philip Rivers flanked by an unexciting mid-20s QB in Derek Carr and a mustachioed rookie in Gardner Minshew. It feels like that across the board, and maybe that's a good summary of how to find sleepers: You have got to consider everything. Matchups, trends, injuries, and the occasional revenge game can factor into the decision making for your Sunday start-sit decisions.
At running back, we have a rookie in Devin Singletary. He's joined by two "backups", Jamaal Williams and Jaylen Samuels, who occasionally look like fantasy starters. Receiver has a second-year player and a couple journeymen. Tight end has a rookie, an old guy, and an emerging athletic talent. Different strokes for different folks, or something like that.
WEEK 9 NON-PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
It was a hit-and-miss week for our Week 8 sleeper picks. David Montgomery and Latavius Murray both looked great, but Ty Johnson let everybody down. Mason Rudolph and Josh Allen both looked terrible at times but somehow each had a respectable fantasy stat line at the end of the day. DK Metcalf and A.J. Brown both caught touchdowns, while Kenny Stills underwhelmed from a production standpoint, although his playing time was as high as we expected it to be.
And hey, we speculated that Darren Fells would let us down for a second-straight week. Instead, he delivered a majestic two-touchdown performance. Our defensive sleepers may have only been one-for-three, but man, New Orleans was a good call against the Cardinals.
WEEK 9 PPR RANKINGS: Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end
To be clear, these sleepers aren't must starts -- you very well might have two RB options better than Jamaal Williams, for example. You should think about finding a way to use these guys if you can, though.
To see our Week 9 busts, click here.
Week 9 Fantasy Sleepers: Running backs
Devin Singletary, Bills vs. Redskins (Billy Heyen). Singletary played nearly triple the snaps Frank Gore played in Week 8, and that split is only likely to widen as the rookie continues to improve. Against a poor Redskins defense in Week 9, Singletary is a solid fantasy start.
Jamaal Williams, Packers @ Chargers (Vinnie Iyer). Aaron Jones is the man, but with their wide receivers shaky, Williams will get solid run behind him again in a great matchup.
Jaylen Samuels, Steelers vs. Colts (Matt Lutovsky). Samuels has been out since Week 5 because of a knee injury, but after practicing in full last week and getting cleared by Steelers coach Mike Tomlin on Tuesday, he should be good to go this week against the Colts. Even if James Conner (shoulder) plays, Samuels should approach or surpass double-digit touches in Pittsburgh’s run-heavy/checkdown-heavy offense. Indianapolis hasn’t allowed a lot of fantasy points to RBs because it’s limited TDs, but it has given up a healthy 4.4 yards per carry to backs. If Conner is out, Samuels is a must-start, and even if Conner plays, he can have PPR FLEX value. (Update: Conner is doubtful for Week 9.)
WEEK 9 DFS LINEUPS:
Y! cash | Y! GPP | DK cash | DK GPP | FD cash | FD GPP
Week 9 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Quarterbacks
Gardner Minshew, Jaguars vs. Texans in London (Heyen). The Texans have allowed the fourth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks in 2019, and Minshew continues to play solid, interception-free football. Add in a bit of rushing and you have a sleeper at QB in a week with a lot of good matchups.
Philip Rivers, Chargers vs. Packers (Iyer). He should be throwing often to keep up with Rodgers and see plenty of matchups he likes with a new play-caller at home.
Derek Carr, Raiders vs. Lions (Lutovsky). Carr has come alive the past two weeks, throwing for 578 yards and five scores. With Tyrell Williams back, he’s in good position to keep it going against a Detroit defense giving up the most passing yards per game. The only worry is Josh Jacobs running all over the Lions, thus limiting Carr’s pass attempts, but that’s a (small) risk worth taking.
WEEK 9: Waiver wire | FAAB planner | Trade values | Snap counts
Week 9 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Wide receivers
Phillip Dorsett, Patriots @ Ravens (Heyen). Dorsett is now New England's No. 2 WR and best deep threat with Josh Gordon out of the picture. The Ravens haven't locked up wideouts much this year, so Dorsett's chance of a big-play score is pretty high.
Golden Tate, Giants vs. Cowboys (Iyer). He should be busy as Daniel Jones throws short-to-intermediate routes often in the second half.
Anthony Miller, Bears @ Eagles (Lutovsky). After an injury-hampered start to the year, Miller has stepped up over the past three games, catching 12-of-19 targets for 173 yards. Those numbers aren’t going to wow you, but at least he’s trending in the right direction. No team allows more fantasy points per game (FPPG) to WRs than the Eagles, so this is a great spot for Miller to really break out.
MORE WEEK 9 DFS: Stacks | Values | Lineup builder
Week 9 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Tight ends
Jonnu Smith, Titans @ Panthers (Heyen). Whether Delanie Walker is out or not, Smith appears to be the tight end to own from Tennessee. There's nothing special about this matchup, but Smith's seven targets and a score from a week ago are more than most TEs will get in a week.
Greg Olsen, Panthers vs. Titans (Iyer). He should come through at home against a defense that’s softest covering his position.
T.J. Hockenson, Lions @ Raiders (Lutovsky). Hockenson is tied for fifth in TE red-zone targets (9) despite missing half of Week 4 (concussion) and having a bye already this year. The Lions love to look his way around the goal line, and against the Raiders, who allow the third-most FPPG to TEs, he could even rack up some yards.
Week 9 Fantasy Sleepers: Defenses
Indianapolis Colts @ Steelers (Heyen). With the Steelers' RB room filled with injuries and Mason Rudolph looking like a below-average QB, the Colts should be able to slow down the Pittsburgh offense and force a few turnovers.
Cleveland Browns @ Broncos (Iyer). Myles Garrett will get to know Brandon Allen well this week.
Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Texans in London (Lutovsky). We picked on Daniel Jones in this spot last week, and sure enough, the Lions got to him for three sacks and a scoop-and-score fumble recovery on a disastrous backwards pass. We’re sticking with that process and going with a Dallas defense that’s coming off its best fantasy day of the season in Week 7 (three sacks, four takeaways against Philadelphia).