Which under the radar players will prove to be helpful this week? Let’s take a look at this week’s Raider Ramble edition of Fantasy Football Sleepers Week 9.
Fantasy Football Sleepers: Raider Ramble Week 9 Edition
Week 8 Recap
Well, it wasn’t as bad as the week before. The Raiders’ lack of competition killed any chances of Andy Dalton scoring more than 17.16 points. Antonio Gibson boomed for 20.70 points in a week where 11 running backs scored 20 or more points. Donovan Peoples-Jones scored 12.10 fantasy points, which was well above his projection but still only put him at WR34. Irv Smith Jr. caught four passes for 28 yards but failed to score a touchdown. Lastly, the Jaguars defense got a takeaway but allowed 21 points. Onto Week 9.
*Disclaimer, all stats are gathered from NFL and NFL Fantasy websites.
QB Justin Fields vs MIA
Don’t look now, but Justin Fields is QB11 so far this season and QB2 over the last four weeks. He’s only thrown for 200+ yards in a game once so far, but his rushing has carried him into fantasy relevance. Fields has rushed for 60 or more yards in each of the last three games and has two rushing touchdowns in that span. Last week, the Dolphins’ defense allowed Jared Goff to throw for over 300 yards and a touchdown. The Dolphins also allow the fifth-most rushing yards to quarterbacks, though most of it came from Lamar Jackson in Week 2.
RB Deon Jackson @ NE
With Jonathan Taylor officially out and Nyheim Hines traded to the Bills, Deon Jackson will be the lead back. When he was the starter in Week 6, Jackson only rushed for 42 yards on 12 carries (scoring a touchdown) but caught 10 passes for 79 yards. The Patriots have a sturdy defense and are third-best in points allowed to running backs. Jackson may not be amazing, but he should still see a high volume of touches to warrant fantasy managers’ attention.
WR Devin Duvernay @ NO
Devin Duvernay has recently been promoted to the No. 1 wideout after it was announced that Rashod Bateman will miss the rest of the season due to injury. Duvernay hasn’t had a high volume of touches this season but has potential this week. It should also be a factor that Mark Andrews hasn’t been 100% the last two weeks and Duvernay is coming off of one of his best games last week, scoring a touchdown with 64 yards on 6 total touches. The Saints’ defense also allows an average of 36.46 points per game to wide receivers.
TE Robert Tonyan @ DET
The Packers’ offense has been a mess, but with a defense like the Lions, there’s always boom potential. Robert Tonyan leads the team in receptions and is third in receiving yards. He has only scored one touchdown, but that is bound to go up with the rapport he has with Aaron Rodgers. It also helps that the Lions are the sixth-worst team against tight ends.
DST Minnesota Vikings @ WAS
Not a good week for DST sleepers. It’s hard to find potential, but the Vikings pass rush is more than capable of making Taylor Heinicke uncomfortable for four quarters. The points allowed by the defense haven’t been remarkable, but they are fifth in takeaways with 13. Heinicke has been serviceable but has thrown an interception in both of his starts so far.
The Raiders Face A Big Problem With Jaguars RB Travis Etienne
*Top Photo: Sports Illustrated
