The Fantasy Footballers’ “Starts of the Week” for Week 9

We have made it to Week 9, and on this Thursday’s show, the Ballers discussed their Starts of the Week. Before diving into starts, the guys touched on their “Taking It Up To 100” players for the week. Andy selected Robby Anderson, Jason picked Henry Ruggs III, and Mike went with Darnell Mooney.

Towards the end of the episode, Andy, Jason, and Mike discussed their Starts of the Week. If you missed the episode, you can listen to the podcast here or watch it on Youtube. Subscribe and hit the bell so you make sure to get alerts. Also, give JoinTheFoot.com a look as it provides lots of additional resources exclusively for #FootClan members.

Andy’s Starts

QB: Josh Allen vs. Seattle Seahawks

This game sees Josh Allen face a Seattle defense allowing the second-most fantasy points on the ground to the quarterback position. Allen is a running quarterback, so this situation sets itself up beautifully for him. Seattle has already given up 192 yards and four touchdowns on the ground to quarterbacks. Additionally, the Seahawks concede an average of 366.4 passing yards a game, the most allowed by any team. Seattle gives up big plays, so Allen can take advantage of the defenses’ weakness here. Allen has had four straight games outside the top-15 QB, but he looks to right the ship this week. Andy thinks this will be one of those barn burner games.

RB: James Conner vs. Dallas Cowboys

All you have to do is see you have a running back on your roster facing the Dallas Cowboys and know you have an outstanding starter. This week, the Steelers take on a defense yielding the most rushing yards to running backs this year (1,109 total). James Conner finds himself in a juicy role this week in another ideal situation, especially considering he has had 15 or more rushing attempts every game this season except the first game where he sprained his ankle. Last week, Conner had a score on top of the 15 carries he saw. In the prior five outings, Dallas has given up the most fantasy points. The game has a strong shot of quickly getting out of hand for the Cowboys, so Conner should see a large workload. He possibly scores twice in this game.

WR: Justin Jefferson vs. Detroit Lions

Last week, Dalvin Cook took center stage for the Vikings. Quarterback Kirk Cousins only attempted 14 passes in that same game against Green Bay. This week, Cook should be the star of the show again. Andy still believes Justin Jefferson will have a big showing this week as he will be playing in a dome and not dealing with weather. The Lions defense has only slowed down Indianapolis and Jacksonville’s wide receivers, two teams that do not have good wide receivers overall. Seven different wide receivers have scored against the Lions this year. Detroit is additionally averaging just over 180 receiving yards allowed to wide receivers and 250 passing yards given up overall per game. Jefferson already has three touchdowns this year, and he has tallied over 100 yards in three games. He looks to add to that this weekend.

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TE: TJ Hockenson vs. Minnesota Vikings

TJ Hockenson was productive in last week’s loss, catching seven balls on ten targets. He also went for 65-yards in that outing. This week, Hock steps up due to the absence of Kenny Golladay. It is a great week to have to step up as the Lions face the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings are currently 19th in the league versus opposing tight ends, and they give up a league-high 11.9 yards per target to the tight end position. Hockenson has been a top-5 TE for two weeks in a row, seeing double-digit targets for the second time in his NFL career. He also leads his teammates with four touchdowns and 29 receptions. This is the perfect set-up for Hockenson to have an explosive game.

Jason’s Starts

QB: Justin Herbert vs. Las Vegas Raiders

Justin Herbert has a favorable matchup against the Raiders this week, a team that has given up 20 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks every game this year. Herbert has been a reliable option this season, totaling at least three touchdowns in his previous four matchups. He is also averaging 303.3 passing yards a game this year. Last week, he took on Denver and recorded 29 completions on 43 attempts, three touchdowns, and two interceptions. Herbert is going to continue his streak of being a consistent quarterback in Week 9. The Chargers have allotted the most fantasy points per game to the quarterback position over the last five weeks. That makes them close behind the Raiders, who give up the second-most fantasy points to the position over the same period. Herbert ranks as QB2 across a five-game span, only trailing Kyler Murray by 0.9 points a game. This is Jason’s second favorite game to get a piece of, and Herbert is one of the strongest starts.

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RB: Chase Edmonds @ Miami Dolphins

Chase Edmonds blew up last week, going for 145 total yards. The runner has 15 or more points in three of his previous four games and is averaging 6-yards per rush on the season. He has additionally caught five or more balls in three games this year. Kenyan Drake is likely out against Miami due to an ankle injury, so Edmonds will see more work. He will be facing a Dolphins defense allowing the seventh-most fantasy points to the running back position. This running back is a player Jason is exceptionally high on this week. He is THE start of the week. You are getting with Edmonds what you were expecting to get from Kenyan Drake, with Edmonds being a top-20 back in four of seven games as well as top-10 in two of the last three games. He has been the backup running back, so those finishes are impressive. Jason points out that local beat writers in Arizona are stating that the backup to Edmonds is Edmonds. If Drake is activated, and he is not expected to be, Jason feels Edmonds is still a start.

WR: Antonio Brown vs. New Orleans Saints

Jason was going to select John Brown here, but he was downgraded on Wednesday with his knee injury. He was able to practice the previous Wednesday, so it does not look promising for Brown. Jason shifts his focus from John Brown to Antonio Brown. This is the first week Brown will be playing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, so it could be scary to start him. Still, Jason asserts you can start him this week because he has done this before. Brown had come off the street, had short practice with Tom Brady and the Patriots, and now finds himself in a similar situation. The last time he played with Brady, Brown marked eight targets for 56 yards and a touchdown on only 33-percent of the snaps. Brown finds himself in a great situation as he takes on a Saints team that has given up 44, 52, and 47 points to the wideout position over the last three games. Even if Brown is used limitedly, he should still come out of the game with a decent amount of fantasy points.

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TE: Noah Fant @ Atlanta Falcons

For Week 9, Jason is selecting Noah Fant to start at tight end. Last week, Fant was targeted nine times, hauling in seven of them. Fant is a security blanket for his quarterback Drew Lock, so keep an eye on Fant being thrown at frequently. Albert Okwuebunam has been playing more as of late, but not enough to hurt Fant’s value. Fant was in for 33 routes and was targeted nine times last week, while Okwuebunam saw one target on 12 routes. Okwuebunam’s one target turned into a touchdown, something that is helping him see more time. This week, Fant is up against an Atlanta team allowing the most fantasy points to tight ends out of all teams. Every tight end that played the Falcons has produced, minus Ian Thomas. Those tight ends include Robert Tonyan, Jimmy Graham, Dalton Schultz, Greg Olsen, and Irv Smith Jr., so Fant should follow in their footsteps.

Mike’s Starts

QB: Derek Carr @ Los Angeles Chargers

Derek Carr saw horrible weather conditions the last time he played, only throwing for 112 yards versus the Browns due to wind. Before that week, the Raiders quarterback was averaging 23 fantasy points per game. In this contest, Carr and company face a Chargers team giving up 25.7 points to quarterbacks over the past five weeks. The Chargers are allowing the third-most fantasy points to wide receivers as well, something that bodes well for Carr. Carr should have healthy pass catchers for this game, including a potential Bryan Edwards return.

RB: JaMycal Hasty vs. Green Bay Packers (Thursday Night Football)

The running back position has seen top-10 points in six of seven games facing Green Bay, and Hasty wants to join in on the fun. Dalvin Cook obliterated the Packers defense last week (226-yards, four touchdowns), a dead last defense in the league at stopping opposing running backs. Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, Brandon Aiyuk, and Jimmy Garoppolo are all out to go along with Raheem Mostert, Jeff Davis Jr., and now a reinjured Tevin Coleman. Hasty is one of the only healthy running backs on the team, and the other RBs do not have time to heal up before their Thursday night game against the Packers. The matchup should be an ideal one for starting Hasty. Hopefully, you were able to catch this episode before the Thursday night game so you would have been in the know.

WR: Marquise Brown @ Indianapolis Colts

Mike stated we will see a Hollywood Brown matchup with Rock Ya-Sin, a cornerback that has not been great this season, via Pro Football Focus. The Colts are strong against the run, so look for Lamar Jackson to air it out in this match. Brown is a big-play guy who sees a healthy portion of the Ravens volume, although he just saw two targets on Sunday. The lack of production has frustrated Brown, leading him to tweet out how he felt after the game. Hopefully in this game, Brown will see an abundance of volume. He is already fourth in average air yards per game at the wide receiver position, and if Jackson can get more accurate, look for Brown to continue seeing balls through the air.

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TE: Eric Ebron vs. Dallas Cowboys

Eric Ebron finds himself in the perfect place this week as he faces a Dallas Cowboys team that has been horrid on defense. That defense has conceded four touchdowns to the tight end position while giving up a whopping 65 fantasy points to tight ends overall. Ebron should flourish in Week 9. The Steelers big man has seen 37 targets over the season, and he should be targeted even more on Sunday as a reliable weapon for Ben Roethlisberger. The Steelers’ tight end is possessing a 17-percent target share while also obtaining 88-percent of the tight end targets on the team. He is now cemented as the full-time tight end for the only undefeated team in the league.

Finally, the episode was topped off with the most anticipated segment of the episode — Jason Moore‘s Iron-Clad Locked and Loaded 100% Guaranteed Boom Boom Kicker of the Week:

“This week, I’m going with a guy who’s way cool. So pick up and play the Falcons’ Younghoe Koo.“