Fantasy Football Week 9 Cheat Sheet: Waiver, Rankings, Projections and More

Fantasy football players will have to take solace in the fact that their Week 9 lineup isn't the only one decimated by byes. Six teams will take their scheduled weekend of rest, creating several holes with stars forced to take a seat.

It will prove especially difficult to roll with your usual starters this week, with the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions among the squads on the sideline for Week 9. Good news for anyone facing the person who owns Aaron Rodgers, but not so much for the poor soul who needs to replace the star quarterback's production.

In preparation for playing short-handed, here's a look at top rankings, sleepers and waiver-wire adds to bolster your odds of securing a victory this weekend.

Skill Position Rankings

Rank	QB	RB	WR	TE
1	Peyton Manning	Jamaal Charles	Antonio Brown	Rob Gronkowski
2	Drew Brees	DeMarco Murray	Demaryius Thomas	Jimmy Graham
3	Andrew Luck	Arian Foster	Dez Bryant	Julius Thomas
4	Cam Newton	Andre Ellington	Jeremy Maclin	Antonio Gates
5	Tom Brady	Giovani Bernard	T.Y. Hilton	Greg Olsen
6	Philip Rivers	Le'Veon Bell	Kelvin Benjamin	Jordan Reed
7	Nick Foles	LeSean McCoy	Steve Smith	Dwayne Allen
8	Colin Kaepernick	Marshawn Lynch	Andre Johnson	Zach Ertz
9	Tony Romo	Ronnie Hillman	Emmanuel Sanders	Travis Kelce
10	Russell Wilson	Mark Ingram	A.J. Green	Jason Witten

Welcome back, Tom Brady. Amassing 1,269 passing yards, 14 touchdowns and zero interceptions over the past four games vaults him back up as a viable starter. When he faces arch-nemesis Peyton Manning, neither has a glorious matchup, but start either future Hall of Famer with confidence.

An unmistakable top tier has developed at running back, and all of them besides Matt Forte are in action this week. Fresh off gaining 172 rushing yards against the Green Bay Packers, Mark Ingram invades the group of must-start studs for Week 9.

Chris Graythen/Getty Images

With Pierre Thomas and Khiry Robinson on the shelf, Ingram finally received the bulk of the carries, and he made an indelible impact on a career-high 24 rushes. 

Although he's played only four games this season, Ingram leads all qualified running backs with 5.7 yards per carry. He has a golden opportunity to maintain, or even embellish, that clip against the Carolina Panthers, who surrender an NFL-worst 5.2 yards per run.

Wide receiver takes the biggest bye hit, as Julio Jones, Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb, Sammy Watkins, Alshon Jeffery, Brandon Marshall and Calvin Johnson are all off duty. That gives Jeremy Maclin and Kelvin Benjamin easy top-10 admission against bottom-five defenses.

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Another stud could return in A.J. Green, who expressed confidence to the Cincinnati Enquirer's Richard Skinner that he'll lace up against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

"I'll practice this week and see how it goes, but I think I'll be fine," Green said. "I was at 40 percent last week and I feel about 80 percent today. I haven't had any soreness after I've worked out."

If he does, start him. If not, Mohamed Sanu rises up the ranks, as he has exploited Green's absence to tremendous results.

Week 9 Sleepers

Pos.	Player	Team	Opp.	Projection
QB	Alex Smith	KC	NYJ	255 Pass Yds, 20 Rush Yds 2 TD, 0 INT
RB	Travaris Cadet	NO	CAR	15 Rush Yds, 5 Rec. 60 Rec. Yds.
WR	Odell Beckham Jr.	NYG	IND	6 Rec., 90 Rec. Yds, 1 TD
TE	Clay Harbor	JAC	CIN	5 Rec. 60 Rec. Yds, 1 TD
D/ST	Cleveland Browns	CLE	TB	2 Sacks, 2 Turnovers, 13 PA

While the New York Jets rank 15th in passing yards allowed per game, their 113.5 opposing quarterback rating places last. Kyle Orton needed just 17 attempts to produce 238 passing yards and four touchdowns against them.

Alex Smith wasn't fortunate enough to ascertain four touchdowns (yet alone one) against the St. Louis Rams, but he completed 24 out of 28 pass attempts. He's a fine plug-in play for someone needing to replace Aaron Rodgers or Matt Ryan.

Peter Aiken/Getty Images

Let's go right back to the Saints' backfield to identify another fantasy option. He certainly doesn't have the same clout as Ingram, but Travaris Cadet is filling Thomas' role as a pass-catcher, reeling in four receptions for 40 yards on Sunday night. He's a sneaky flex play in point-per-reception (PPR) formats.

The Indianapolis Colts just allowed 522 passing yards last weekend. Before the New York Giants' Week 8 bye, Odell Beckham Jr. scored a pair of touchdowns in their first game without Victor Cruz. Give the rookie a chance to reach the end zone for the fourth time in as many games.

Heading into Week 8, the Bengals surrendered the most points to opposing tight ends in ESPN leagues. They got a break when Owen Daniels couldn't play, but Clay Harbor can exploit that weakness up the middle.

Waiver-Wire Targets 

Pos.	Player	ESPN Ownership %*
QB	Carson Palmer	13.3
QB	Michael Vick	2.6
RB	Jonathan Stewart	24.2
RB	Denard Robinson	16.4
RB	Lorenzo Taliaferro	12.2
RB	Theo Riddick	0.2
RB	Jonas Gray	0.1
WR	Andrew Hawkins	9.9
WR	Brandon LaFell	8.8
WR	Allen Robinson	3.8
WR	John Brown	2.5
WR	Martavis Bryant	0.5
WR	Donte Moncrief	0.2
TE	Heath Miller	19.0
TE	Tim Wright	3.3
D/ST	Cleveland Browns	20.2
K	Cairo Santos	19.5

Last call for Carson Palmer, who has now thrown a pair of touchdowns in all four games played this season. He shouldn't be available in any competitive leagues.

Darn you, Bill Belichick! Everyone should have known better when leaping for Brandon Bolden, as the New England Patriots instead turned to Jonas Gray, a member of the practice squad a mere two weeks ago. 

He responded with 86 yards on 17 carries, fighting hard for every gain. CSNNE.com's Phil Perry relayed his impressive work after contact, via Pro Football Focus:

Will Belichick play James White or the peanut vendor next week? Maybe, but a running back with regular carries is too tempting to ignore, so give Gray a speculative add.

So many wide receiver options to discuss. Donte Montcrief became a major asset in Reggie Wayne's asset. John Brown is a blur running down the field, as he's become every bit as important as Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd in Arizona.

Martavis Bryant now has seven catches, 123 receiving yards and two touchdowns in his last two games for a Pittsburgh Steelers offense rolling on all cylinders. Brandon LaFell is certainly worth adding if still floating around free agency.

Assuming LaFell is off the table, Andrew Hawkins represents the best add. Brian Hoyer has targeted him nine or more times in six games this season. His 62 targets places him No. 22 on the leaderboard, so more scores should come for the 28-year-old, who is on pace to procure a 1,000-yard season.