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DRAFT NFL Lineup Advice: Week 9 (Thur/Sun/Mon)

DRAFT NFL Lineup Advice: Week 9 (Thur/Sun/Mon)

For the Week 8 recap, our highlighted options (Carson Wentz, Le’Veon Bell, and A.J. Green) weren’t as stellar as advertised.

However, we suggested Alshon Jeffery as a late-round WR/TE and he delivered. Jeffery only caught two passes, but one was for a 53-yard touchdown against the 49ers.

Now, on to the Week 9 rankings…

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Quarterback

1. Deshaun Watson, Texans (vs. Colts)
2. Drew Brees, Saints (vs. Buccaneers)
3. Russell Wilson, Seahawks (vs. Redskins)
4. Dak Prescott, Cowboys (vs. Chiefs)
5. Alex Smith, Chiefs (@ Cowboys)
6. Matthew Stafford, Lions (@ Packers)
7. Carson Wentz, Eagles (vs. Broncos)
8. Cam Newton, Panthers (vs. Falcons)
9. Jameis Winston, Buccaneers (@ Saints)
10. Tyrod Taylor, Bills (@ Jets)

In your three-entry DRAFT contests, I would recommend waiting until the final round to select your QB. There are three studs who I wouldn’t mind selecting for my team this week and I don’t need to spend a high pick on any of them.

After last week’s performance, Deshaun Watson made a case to be the No. 1 quarterback for Week 9 even if Tom Brady‘s Patriots weren’t on a bye. Watson threw for 402 yards and four TDs in Seattle. He also added 67 rushing yards on eight attempts.

Drew Brees nearly surpassed the 300-yard mark in Week 9 (299 passing yards) and he hasn’t thrown for multiple touchdowns in a game since Week 6. This week, he’s home against one of the worst pass defenses in football, Tampa Bay. Though Cam Newton continued to struggle last week against the Bucs, I can’t foresee the same result occurring for Brees.

As for Russell Wilson, he decimated the Texans secondary last week: 452 passing yards and four TDs. This week, the Redskins will provide a tougher task for Wilson, but that defense also allowed 268 passing yards and four TDs to Carson Wentz in Week 7. Seattle is still struggling to get their running game going. Eddie Lacy is rumored to be the starting RB in Week 9. If he can’t get the job done, Wilson will be asked to take on more of the scoring responsibilities.

Tyrod Taylor doesn’t pass for an exuberant amount of yards – he’s only surpassed the 200-yard mark three times this season – but his opponent this week has allowed a plethora of passing TDs in 2017. The Jets lead the league with 17 passing TDs allowed this season. New York’s secondary allowed two passing touchdowns to five quarterbacks in the past four games (both Jay Cutler and Matt Moore threw two TDs apiece in Week 7).

Running back

1. LeSean McCoy, Bills (@ Jets)
2. Todd Gurley, Rams (@ Giants)
3. Kareem Hunt, Chiefs (@ Cowboys)
4. Leonard Fournette, Jaguars (vs. Bengals)
5. Mark Ingram, Saints (vs. Buccaneers)
6. Lamar Miller, Texans (vs. Colts)
7. Devonta Freeman, Falcons (@ Panthers)
8. Christian McCaffrey, Panthers (vs. Falcons)
9. Alvin Kamara, Saints (vs. Buccaneers)
10. Doug Martin, Buccaneers (@ Saints)
11. Carlos Hyde, 49ers (vs. Cardinals)
12. Chris Thompson, Redskins (@ Seahawks)
13. Aaron Jones, Packers (vs. Lions)
14. Adrian Peterson, Cardinals (@ 49ers)
15. DeMarco Murray, Titans (vs. Ravens)
16. Joe Mixon, Bengals (@ Jaguars)
17. Alex Collins, Ravens (@ Titans)
18. Ameer Abdullah, Lions (@ Packers)
19. Tevin Coleman, Falcons (@ Panthers)
20. Javorius Allen, Ravens (@ Titans)

He’s baaack! Leonard Fournette hasn’t played since October 15th and he’s ready to tear up more defenses. Fournette rushed for over 100 yards in back-to-back games and has scored in five of the six games he’s played in this season.

For the Panthers, they’ve shipped their No. 1 wide receiver, Kelvin Benjamin to Buffalo. While that will boost the rankings of a certain WR on the Carolina depth chart – more on that later – it also boosts the potential stat total for Christian McCaffrey. Run CMC was already the leading target-getter on the team and has a team-high 49 receptions this season. Now, his numbers should jump even higher with limited options for Cam Newton. Also, Atlanta has allowed the fourth-most receptions to opposing running backs this season.

Wide receiver/Tight end

1. DeAndre Hopkins, Texans (vs. Colts)
2. Michael Thomas, Saints (vs. Buccaneers)
3. Julio Jones, Falcons (@ Panthers)
4. Mike Evans, Buccaneers (@ Saints)
5. Dez Bryant, Cowboys (vs. Chiefs)
6. A.J. Green, Bengals (@ Jaguars)
7. Doug Baldwin, Seahawks (vs. Redskins)
8. Tyreek Hill, Chiefs (@ Cowboys)
9. Jarvis Landry, Dolphins (vs. Raiders)
10. Michael Crabtree, Raiders (@ Dolphins)
11. Will Fuller V, Texans (vs. Colts)
12. Demaryius Thomas, Broncos (@ Eagles)
13. Golden Tate, Lions (@ Packers)
14. Emmanuel Sanders, Broncos (@ Eagles)
15. Amari Cooper, Raiders (@ Dolphins)
16. Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals (@ 49ers)
17. Devin Funchess, Panthers (vs. Falcons)
18. Jordy Nelson, Packers (vs. Lions)
19. Zach Ertz, Eagles (vs. Broncos)
20. Travis Kelce, Chiefs (@ Cowboys)

If Deshaun Watson is the No. 1 quarterback, then it just makes sense to name DeAndre Hopkins as the No. 1 wide receiver in Week 9. Nuk is third among wide receivers in targets this season and he leads his team by a significant margin. Hopkins has tallied 76 targets with Ryan Griffin being the second-highest option (26 targets).

Hopkins’ other teammate, Will Fuller V, also cracks our list of Top 20 WR/TE for Week 9 due to his knack of finding the end zone. Though Fuller has only caught 13 passes, seven of them have resulted in a touchdown.

I previously referred to the Panthers’ trade of Kelvin Benjamin. That should boost the stock of Devin Funchess. Surprisingly, he already led Carolina wide receivers in targets (58) and receptions (33). Now, Cam Newton will rely even more on the former Michigan pass-catcher.

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Adam Meyer is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Adam, check out his archive and follow him @CharlieSideHstl.

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