Flex Options For Week 9 (Fantasy Football)
With all the byes and injuries around the league, this article has been a bit tough to write for the past few weeks. Identifying startable players outside the starter ranks is tough when even a lot of the starter-ranked players aren’t looking so hot. We still managed to hit on Tyler Allgeier, Chuba Hubbard, and Troy Franklin last week, but two of those were because of garbage-time TDs. This week, though, I’ve got a feeling. Maybe it’s because there are fewer teams on bye this week, and two of those teams are the fantasy irrelevant Browns and Jets, but I really like the plays I’m about to give you. If you ask my leaguemates, that means they’re all about to bust, but I digress.
Without further ado, let’s get into this week’s flex options:
Bam Knight, RB, Arizona Cardinals
Knight hit waivers in a lot of leagues thanks to the bye-pocalypse last week, but he is set to lead the Arizona backfield for at least another week while Trey Benson finishes his IR stint. Knight has produced in the two games since he took over starting duties, finishing as the RB14 and RB24 despite running up against some tough defenses.
It’s an excellent matchup for Knight this week against a porous Dallas run defense in a game with a 54.0 point O/U. JK Dobbins and RJ Harvey absolutely shredded this defense last week, so I expected Arizona to at least try to employ a similar approach. Knight should be rostered in all leagues, and I would start him this week over bigger names like Alvin Kamara, Aaron Jones Jr., and Tony Pollard.
Zach Charbonnet, RB, Seattle Seahawks
Charbonnet still isn’t starting for Seattle, but he’s operating as the lead back from the second snap of the game onward. He should be treated as such for fantasy, making him an every-week flex consideration. He’s still quite TD-dependent, averaging 13.0 FPTS in games in which he scores at least one TD, and 2.6 FPTS in games in which he doesn’t. His role as the goal-line back in this offense is firmly established, however, and his matchup with Washington this week lends itself to plenty of red zone trips for this Seattle offense. Fire up Charbs in your flex and smile when he lumbers out onto the field to plunge in yet another of Ken Walker’s TDs.
Kayshon Boutte, WR, New England Patriots
Boutte is on fire, folks! His TD last week extended his scoring streak to three games, and he’s now sitting as the WR18 on the season, albeit on only 23 receptions over eight games. Despite his recent success, the odds remain stacked against him. The lack of volume is not overly encouraging; he’s a prime candidate for TD regression, and the matchup with Atlanta is not all that great.
Despite those negatives, I think you’ve got to stay in the flames with Boutte this week. His QB Drake Maye is having a special season, and sometimes you just have to ride that out even when it feels improbable. With the way Maye is spinning it right now, Boutte is a threat to score on any drive. You can start him as a high-upside option in your Flex spot.
Robert Goddin-Imagn Images
Josh Downs, WR, Indianapolis Colts
Speaking of red-hot QBs, Daniel Jones is also putting together a career year in Indianapolis. Jonathan Taylor, Michael Pittman, and Tyler Warren tend to steal the show there, but another beneficiary of late has been Josh Downs. In his last two starts (he missed a game in the middle for a concussion), he’s finished as the WR16 and WR20. His upside is a bit limited as the third option in the Colts’ passing attack, but he’s shown a nose for the endzone lately in an offense that scores a ton of points.
He’s not an every-week start, but the matchup this week with Pittsburgh is one you want pieces of. It’s a 50-point O/U, and Pittsburgh ranks as the eighth-best matchup for opposing WRs. You can start Downs this week, and I think you can even take a chase on his teammate, Alec Pierce, in deeper leagues, who has also been playing good football lately.
Tre Tucker, WR, Las Vegas Raiders
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Tucker. He was on bye last week, and the entire Raiders’ offense went into hiding the previous week against Kansas City. The matchup with Jacksonville isn’t quite as imposing this week, as the Raiders return home as only three-point underdogs. Tucker has been operating as the number one target for Geno Smith for a while now, with Jakobi Meyers taking a backseat before getting banged up and missing Week 7 entirely. The Raiders are likely to get Brock Bowers back from injury this week, but Bowers was on the field in Week 3 for Tre Tucker’s massive three TD explosion. That’s not to say that Bowers helps Tucker, but rather just to prove that his existence does not preclude Tucker’s fantasy success. I certainly don’t think Tucker is a must-start, but he’s in the Wan’Dale Robinson tier as a guy you can always throw in your lineup in a pinch. He’s got a decent floor and a high ceiling.