FantasyPros publishes approximately 7.7 million pieces of weekly fantasy football content to help you win your league and eventually take home fantasy gold. It can be difficult to read such a vast amount of content, which is why we’ve rounded up a few of the most actionable, can’t-miss stat nuggets you absolutely need to know each week to aid with fantasy football start sit decisions.
We’ve broken down this weekly TL;DR (Too Long; Didn’t Read) article by each of the four main skill positions in fantasy football (quarterback, running back, wide receiver and tight end), with at least two stats per position. Click on each author’s byline to read the entire article. Good luck this week.
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TL;DR Fantasy Football Week 9
Week 9 Byes: Cleveland Browns, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Must-Know Quarterback Fantasy Football Stats
Sam Darnold (QB – SEA)
Fantasy players might feel like the clock hit midnight on Darnold in Seattle’s last game against the Houston Texans. The veteran completed only 54.8% of his pass attempts for 213 yards, one touchdown, two turnovers and 8.6 fantasy points. However, he faced arguably a top-three pass defense in that game. Meanwhile, Darnold had been on fire, averaging 274 passing yards, 2.3 touchdowns and 20.1 fantasy points per game over the previous four contests, totaling at least 295 yards, two touchdowns and 20 fantasy points in the final two outings.
More importantly, the former USC star has an excellent matchup against a struggling Commanders defense on Sunday night. Washington had surrendered 19.6 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks over the first seven weeks, the sixth-most in the NFL. Furthermore, they gave up 265.6 passing yards, two touchdowns and 21.1 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks over their previous five contests before last week’s matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs. Meanwhile, Patrick Mahomes finished with 299 passing yards, three touchdowns and 23 fantasy points against the Commanders on Monday night.
Aaron Rodgers (QB – PIT)
Aaron Rodgers has turned back the clock over the last few weeks. It was remarkable to see him and Joe Flacco duel it out in Week 7. Rodgers performed respectably against his old team in Week 8, completing 24-of-36 passes against the Packers for 219 yards with two touchdowns and zero interceptions. With the Steelers’ defense allowing the fifth-most yards, Rodgers will be forced to keep the ball moving each week. Against the red-hot Colts, he will need to continue to drink from the Fountain of Youth to keep the Steelers in the race for the division. If you need a quarterback, you could do worse than the grizzled veteran over the next few weeks.
Must-Know Running Back Fantasy Football Stats
Jacory Croskey-Merritt (RB – WSH)
There is no way fantasy players can trust starting Jacory Croskey-Merritt, despite multiple star running backs having their bye this week. The seventh-round rookie running back has been awful since his Week 5 performance against the Los Angeles Chargers. He has averaged 13 rushing attempts for 39.7 yards and 4.2 PPR fantasy points per game over the past three weeks, totaling fewer than 4.3 fantasy points and fewer than 34 yards in back-to-back contests. More importantly, Croskey-Merritt has had no impact in the passing game, totaling only seven receptions this year.
Not only has the rookie been awful for most of the season, but Croskey-Merritt has an awful matchup Sunday night against the Seahawks. They have surrendered 21 fantasy points per game to running backs, slightly below the league average. However, Seattle has shut down running backs on the ground, allowing the fewest rushing yards per game (57.4) and the second-fewest rushing touchdowns (two) this year. The Seahawks have struggled to stop running backs in the air, surrendering the most receptions (47) and the fourth-most receiving yards (359) to the position.
Tyjae Spears (RB – TEN)
On the surface, Tyjae Spears might not seem like a safe option, considering that he is technically not actually a lead back and he’s in a committee that should theoretically lean more toward Tony Pollard. However, Spears has been fairly reliable since returning from injury this season because he’s a consistent presence in the pass game. Spears has had a minimum of three receptions over the past three games and has finished as the fantasy RB21, RB32 and RB12 in full PPR over that stretch.
It’s not much, but if you compare it to the aforementioned Jacory Croskey-Merritt, whose floor is legitimately one fantasy point, you can understand why Spears is truly a safe option. Spears did have a one-point performance in his first game back from injury this season in Week 5.
However, it was very clear he was on limited work and played just 25% of snaps as he was being eased into action. This week’s matchup against the Chargers will likely be a blowout, meaning we should see a solid baseline of pass volume for Spears.
Jaylen Warren handled 65% of the snaps and produced 62 yards on 13 carries in Week 8, continuing his season-long efficiency. He ranks in the top 10 in rushing success rate and Pro Football Focus (PFF) grade and has a fantasy-friendly schedule, with some plus spots in the fantasy playoffs. The Steelers’ offense is settling in, so Warren’s RB2 floor is valuable. He is also the RB15 in expected points per game (XPPG).
Must-Know Wide Receiver Fantasy Football Stats
Jameson Williams (WR – DET)
Jameson Williams has been quite volatile and disappointing this season, with two weeks as the WR12 in weekly scoring, but in his other five games this season, he has finished outside of the top 55 fantasy wide receivers. He has a 14.7% target share, a 36.9% air-yard share, 41.3 receiving yards per game (1.47 yards per route run) and a 14.8% first-read share.
Minnesota has the highest two-high rate in the NFL (69.4%). Against two-high coverage, Williams has only a 10% target per route run rate and 1.20 yards per route run, but his downfield role could save him this week, even if the volume isn’t amazing.
Since Week 4, Minnesota has given up the highest completion rate and highest passer rating to downfield passing. Williams leads the team with nine deep targets (the next closest receiving option has only two). Williams should have a strong day this week against a secondary that has given up the most PPR points per target to perimeter wide receivers since Week 4.
Hollywood Brown (WR – KC)
Hollywood Brown has been a complete afterthought in the Chiefs’ offense with Rashee Rice back in the lineup, catching two balls for 14 yards in his last two games combined. He saved his day with a touchdown in Week 7, but was completely shut out Monday night against the Commanders, failing to haul in his lone target, playing on only 38.6% of the team’s offensive snaps, and running a route on just 51.4% of Patrick Mahomes‘s dropbacks.
Chris Olave (WR – NO)
Chris Olave has seen double-digit targets in six out of eight games this year and is currently the WR2 overall in targets, behind only Ja’Marr Chase. Olave is the WR6 in first-read targets, the WR7 in target rate and the WR6 in red-zone targets. Despite being on a struggling offense, Olave has scored 14.9 PPR points per game this year, and his 17.3 expected points per game rank WR7 overall this season.
Must-Know Tight End Fantasy Football Stats
Oronde Gadsden II (TE – LAC)
Since taking over as a full-time starter in Week 6, Oronde Gadsden has been the TE3 in fantasy points per game. Across the last three weeks, he has had a 17.8% target share with 103 receiving yards per game (2.94 yards per route run) and a 23.8% first-read share. Since Week 6, he has recorded six red-zone targets and three deep targets. Tennessee has the third-highest two-high rate in the NFL (59.9%).
Since Week 6, against two-high coverage, Gadsden has ranked third on the team with a 23% target per route run rate and led the way with 2.84 yards per route run. Keep your expectations in check for the talented rookie this week against a defense that has held tight ends to the eighth-fewest yards per reception, the ninth-fewest receiving yards per game and the seventh-fewest schedule-adjusted fantasy points per game.
Colston Loveland (TE – CHI)
In Week 8, with Cole Kmet sidelined by a back injury, the 10th overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft set a new career high with a 76% route participation rate. However, that didn’t turn into too much production. Colston Loveland saw just four targets for an 11% target share, catching three for 38 scoreless yards. He has yet to score even six half-PPR points in a given week.
However, Loveland gets an excellent shot to change that this week. The Bengals have allowed 18.5 points per game to opposing tight ends, 4.5 more than the third-softest team and 7.8 more than the median team. They have given up the third-most receptions, second-most yards and most touchdowns to opposing tight ends. If there was ever a week for the rookie to have a breakout, this is it (assuming Kmet remains sidelined). Loveland is a solid streaming option if you’re looking for tight end help.
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