Fantasy Football Week 9: Assessing Top Under-the-Radar Flex Starters

Fantasy football's flex position, like Halloween, is capable of producing many tricks and treats. A double-digit-point performance from a player in this slot is a wonderful treat; however, the wrong play can leave fantasy owners with the worst trick of all—a larger number in the loss column.

Looking ahead at the Week 9 matchups, there are several under-the-radar players who are poised to deliver nice performances. Some of them may even be available on your league's wavier wire, so be sure to comb through obtainable players before you finalize your lineup.

So, who are these mystery players who will provide fantasy teams with post-Halloween treats? Here's a look at this week's flex plays sure to come up big in starting lineups.

Player	Pos	Team	Opp.	Reason
Jeremy Hill	RB	CIN	JAX	No Giovani Bernard allows Hill a huge workload.
Jerick McKinnon	RB	MIN	WAS	He's the clear No. 1 back and will see plenty of carries.
Andrew Hawkins	WR	CLE	TB	He gets a great matchup against a bad Tampa Bay secondary.
Brandon LaFell	WR	NE	DEN	See analysis below.
Cordarrelle Patterson	WR	MIN	WAS	He's finally gaining chemistry with Teddy Bridgewater.
Dwayne Bowe	WR	KC	NYJ	Expect a better week against a poor Jets secondary.
Jared Cook	TE	STL	SF	See analysis below
Shane Vereen	RB	NE	DEN	Expect him to be heavily involved in the team's passing game Sunday.
Odell Beckham Jr.	WR	NYG	IND	He'll be replacing Victor Cruz for the remainder of the season.
Branden Oliver	RB	SD	MIA	See analysis below.

Brandon LaFell, WR, New England Patriots vs. Denver Broncos

USA TODAY Sports

LaFell hasn't exactly been consistent this season, delivering several huge performances but mixing them with a handful of forgettable showings since joining the Patriots. Although, the veteran wide receiver has begun to establish a great rapport with quarterback Tom Brady and has a very favorable Week 9 matchup.

Brady targeted LaFell 11 times in Week 8 against the Chicago Bears, and the wide receiver made the most of it, coming down with 11 receptions for 124 yards and a score. He was the most targeted offensive weapon, and his chemistry with his quarterback was wildly apparent.

Here's a look at the wide receiver's impressive numbers over the past six weeks, via Steve Palazzolo of Pro Football Focus:

New England may find trouble getting its running game going in Week 9 against the Broncos' top-ranked run defense, so expect the team to rely heavily on the passing game. Denver is only allowing an average of 17.9 fantasy points to opposing wide receivers, according to ESPN.com, but that hasn't been the case recently.

Over the past two weeks, Denver has allowed a total of 423 yards and three touchdowns to wide receivers, allowing 36 and 20 points to the San Francisco 49ers and San Diego Chargers, respectively. Expect that trend to continue Sunday due to Brady's ongoing stellar form.

Jared Cook, TE, St. Louis Rams vs. San Francisco 49ers

Billy Hurst/Associated Press

Cook may not seem like a very sexy option this week. After all, he's coming off two poor performances and hasn't recorded a touchdown yet this season. Well, there's reason to believe that will change against the 49ers on Sunday.

Week 9 marks the first time the Rams will take the field without wide receiver Brian Quick in the fold. Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Monday Quick would miss the remainder of the season with a shoulder injury:

The Rams don't have an abundance of offensive weapons, and that has resulted in Cook seeing many looks from quarterback Austin Davis this season. In fact, the tight end has been targeted at least eight times in four of the team's seven contests this season. Expect that number to rise without Quick on the field.

The 49ers may only be allowing an average of 6.0 fantasy points to opposing tight ends this season, according to ESPN.com, but they did allow five receptions for 96 yards and a score when these teams last faced off in Week 6—Cook was targeted 11 times, recording four receptions for 74 yards in that contest.

Branden Oliver, RB, San Diego Chargers vs. Miami Dolphins

Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

Oliver burst onto the scene with huge 100-yard performances in Weeks 5 and 6, gaining plenty of comparisons to Darren Sproles because of his shifty running style. He enters this week coming off two lackluster performances, but ESPN's Ed Werder noted the rookie's effort against a top-ranked Denver run defense:

Miami has a phenomenal pass defense, ranking third in the league; however, the team is allowing an average of 111.1 yards per game on the ground. In Week 8 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, running back Denard Robinson came away with 108 yards on 18 carries against the Dolphins defense.

Expect Oliver to see that same kind of workload, as Ryan Mathews won't be suiting up, leaving the bulk of the carries to the rookie once again. According to ESPN.com, Miami is allowing an average of 17.6 fantasy points per game to opposing ball-carriers. There's no reason to think Oliver can't get most of those points for himself on Sunday.

Fantasy owners shouldn't hesitate to add this running back to fantasy lineups, as he's set to get back on track in Week 9.