Fantasy Football Week 9 Rankings: Each Position's Flex and PPR Projections

The news in the NFL never stops. And by that I mean it never stops impacting fantasy football.

Over the past few days, we've lost San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Pierre Garcon and Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson due to injury.

Well, here's the latest on another player, Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott.

Yup. You know what's happening.

He's playing in Week 9.

According to Dan Graziano of ESPN, the Second District Court granted Zeke a temporary stay on his suspension. As a result, here he is.

This impacts rankings and plenty of other things like the losses of Garcon and Watson.

How much do they? Well, keep scrolling to find out.

Quarterbacks

Week 9 Quarterback Rankings

1. Drew Brees, NO (vs. TB)

2. Russell Wilson, SEA (vs. WAS)

3. Dak Prescott, DAL (vs. KC)

4. Alex Smith, KC (@ DAL)

5. Matthew Stafford, DET (vs. GB)

6. Cam Newton, CAR (vs. ATL)

7. Carson Wentz, PHI (vs. DEN)

8. Jameis Winston, TB (@ NO)

9. Matt Ryan, ATL (@ CAR)

10. Jared Goff, LAR (@ NYG)

I'm a fan of the No. 10-ranked quarterback this week.

That's right, Jared Goff.

In Week 9, Goff will go up against a Giants defense that is slated to be without cornerbacks Janoris Jenkins for the game and Eli Apple for quarter.

Not only that, but the Giants rank 31st, 21st and 22nd in DVOA against opposing No. 2 wide receivers, tight ends and running backs, respectively.

At his disposal, Goff has wide receivers Sammy Watkins and Robert Woods; tight end Tyler Higbee; and running back Todd Gurley.

As noted by us, the Giants have been dreadful as of late against opposing quarterbacks, too.

With the secondary struggling to find bodies after suspensions, Goff should have an easy go of it against the "B" team.

If you need to stream a quarterback this week, Goff is your guy. He's inside the top 10, and the Giants secondary has plenty to do with it. 

Running Backs

Week 9 Running Back Rankings

1. Kareem Hunt, KC (@ DAL)

2. Todd Gurley, LAR (@ NYG)

3. Ezekiel Elliott, DAL (vs. KC)

4. Leonard Fournette, JAC (vs. CIN)

5. Mark Ingram, NO (vs. TB)

6. Devonta Freeman, ATL (@ CAR)

7. Lamar Miller, HOU (vs. IND)

8. Christian McCaffrey, CAR (vs. ATL)

9. Alvin Kamara, NO (vs. TB)

10. Carlos Hyde, SF (vs. ARI)

11. DeMarco Murray, TEN (vs. BAL)

12. Chris Thompson, WAS (@ SEA)

13. Aaron Jones, GB (@ DET)

14. Doug Martin, TB (@ NO)

15. Joe Mixon, CIN (@ JAX)

16. Adrian Peterson, ARI (@ SF)

17. Alex Collins, BAL (@ TEN)

18. C.J. Anderson, DEN (@ PHI)

19. Ameer Abdullah, DET (vs. GB)

20. Tevin Coleman, ATL (@ CAR)

21. Javorius Allen, BAL (@ TEN)

22. Damien Williams, MIA (vs. OAK)

23. Marshawn Lynch, OAK (at MIA)

24. Orleans Darkwa, NYG (vs. LAR)

25. Theo Riddick, DET (vs. GB)

For the 100th time this season, Ezekiel Elliott has been suspended and un-suspended and will play in Week 9. It wasn't looking good for a period there, but after the Second District Court granted a stay, Zeke will suit up.

Zeke will get a valiant opponent in the Kansas City Chiefs. They rank first in DVOA against pass-catching running backs, but they cannot stop the run to save their lives—they're 31st in that category.

The Cowboys will use Zeke plenty. They don't know from week to week whether he'll be on the field or not, so when he plays, you know they're going to use him.

He and Kareem Hunt will fight for the No. 1 spot this week.

RB Flex Advice

Upon trading Jay Ajayi, the Miami Dolphins will need somebody. It's going to be between Damien Williams and Kenyan Drake.

I'm going to side with Williams on this one. Drake does his thing on special teams, and Williams, while he hasn't done a whole lot more than Drake in this offense, has still done more.

It's up in the air and both guys have a shot, but Williams is more experienced, was had more run with this offense than Drake and is making close to $1.8 million this season—might as well use him.

RB PPR Advice

Atop the rankings is Alvin Kamara. He's right up there with Christian McCaffrey, another running back who almost solely relies on the receiving game.

However, Kamara has a juicy matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a team ranking 25th in DVOA against pass-catching backs.

The Bucs offense has been up and down this season, but this game has a chance to result in a shootout should Jameis Winston's shoulder cooperate.

Kamara will get plenty of action out of the backfield, as will his running back counterpart Mark Ingram, but if you're in a PPR league, don't hesitate to start Kamara. He's basically a lock for double-digit points every week.

Wide Receivers

Week 9 Wide Receiver Rankings

1. Michael Thomas, NO (vs. TB)

2. Mike Evans, TB (@ NO)

3. Dez Bryant, DAL (vs. KC)

4. Julio Jones, ATL (@ CAR)

5. A.J. Green, CIN (@ JAC)

6. Doug Baldwin, SEA (vs. WAS)

7. Tyreek Hill, KC (@ DAL)

8. Michael Crabtree, OAK (at MIA)

9. Jarvis Landry, MIA (vs. OAK)

10. Golden Tate, DET (vs. GB)

11. Demaryius Thomas, DEN (@ PHI)

12. DeAndre Hopkins, HOU (vs. IND)

13. Larry Fitzgerald, ARI (@ SF)

14. Devin Funchess, CAR (vs. ATL)

15. Alshon Jeffery, PHI (vs. DEN)

16. Amari Cooper, OAK (@ MIA)

17. Jordy Nelson, GB (@ DET)

18. DeSean Jackson, TB (@ NO)

19. Mohamed Sanu, ATL (@ CAR)

20. Will Fuller, HOU (vs. IND)

21. Emmanuel Sanders, DEN (@ PHI)

22. Marvin Jones, DET (vs. GB)

23. T.Y. Hilton, IND (@ HOU)

24. Rishard Matthews, TEN (vs. BAL)

25. DeVante Parker, MIA (vs. OAK)

This is the game where Dez Bryant finally really goes off. 

The Chiefs use Marcus Peters almost solely on the left side of the field (right side if you look from the offense's point of view). As a result, Bryant will line up on the opposite side and have a date with Kenneth Acker.

Oh boy.

He ranks near the down near 100th "best" corners in pass coverage, per Pro Football Focus.

Zeke being back will take a little away from Bryant, but it won't matter—he'll make his targets count. Buckle up, Mr. Acker. You're going to be shredded.

WR Flex Advice

Traveling to the great state of New Jersey, the Los Angeles Rams will go up against a New York Giants secondary that, well, has seen better days.

With cornerbacks Janoris Jenkins and Eli Apple suspended for the game and for a quarter, respectively, this secondary is going to be in trouble.

All the Rams receivers have a shot at a fine day, including Cooper Kupp. Kupp gets mentioned after Sammy Watkins and Robert Woods, but he's featured in this offense enough to be more than relevant as the third peg.

Kupp is coming off a touchdown in Week 7 and could repeat here.

If you need a flex this week with so many teams on bye, look Kupp's way.

WR PPR Advice

Not to cop out, but I'm going with Woods here, also on the Rams.

He gets plenty of targets, but he has yet to find the end zone. That's changing this week. Looking at Woods' stat sheet, his weekly production is already solid enough in PPR league for a starting role, but you add some touchdowns in there and we have a serious threat on our hands.

Watkins doesn't seem to be getting used much at all in this offense. This could be the week, but Woods and Kupp are my two guys on the receiving depth chart.

This is a rare occasion where you should start both, if needed. One is going to do something; don't sit one out because they are on the same team.

Tight Ends

Week 9 Tight End Rankings

1. Zach Ertz, PHI (vs. DEN)

2. Travis Kelce, KC (@ DAL)

3. Jimmy Graham, SEA (vs. WAS)

4. Cameron Brate, TB (@ NO)

5. Evan Engram, NYG (vs. LAR)

6. Delanie Walker, TEN (vs. BAL)

7. Jack Doyle, IND (@ HOU)

8. Jason Witten, DAL (vs. KC)

9. Jared Cook, OAK (@ MIA)

10. Vernon Davis, WAS (@ SEA)

11. Tyler Kroft, CIN (@ JAC)

12. Austin Hooper, ATL (@ CAR)

13. Ed Dickson, CAR (vs. ATL)

14. Tyler Higbee, LAR (@ NYG)

15. Martellus Bennett, GB (@ DET)

Not only is Zach Ertz just great week in and week out, but in Week 9, he has a date with the Denver Broncos.

Uh oh. Bad news, right? After all, it is the Broncos.

*Buzzer noise* wrong.

The Broncos have been remarkably bad against tight ends this season, ranking 27th in DVOA against them and giving up the second-most fantasy points. The only team to give up more fantasy points to opposing tight ends are the New York Giants. 

Yup, the Broncos are worse than the Browns when it comes to that.  

Get ready for another great game for Ertz.

TE Flex Advice

Ugh. After, really, the top eight or so tight ends, it becomes a dart-throwing contest. Sure, you can look at matchups, but it's still uncertain.

Well, this week's dart-throw is Baltimore Ravens tight end Benjamin Watson. The Titans rank 23rd in DVOA against opposing tight ends, and in seven games this season, the Titans have allowed eight receptions per game to the position.

There are almost quite literally no other tight ends on the Ravens roster.

Again, a total dart-throw, but if you're praying for a cheap touchdown, give Watson a shot.

Hopefully, you're not in the much of a need, but who knows. Bye weeks can hinder you!

TE PPR Advice

I'm going back to the well here on Rams players. Yup, tight end Tyler Higbee. 

Look, this Rams offense is one of the best in the league (that's still odd to say), so they can support multiple skill-position players as far as points go.

Over his last three games, Higbee has a four-catch game (Week 5) and a three-catch game (Week 7). In his four-catch game, he saw eight targets, and saw three in back to back games.

Those aren't all that appealing, but now let's factor in his opponent, the Giants.

We mentioned earlier they give up the most fantasy points to opposing tight ends—that means something.

Higbee should be open often enough to see upwards of six targets or more.

Give him a shot.

Kickers

Week 9 Kicker Rankings

1. Justin Tucker, BAL (@ TEN)

2. Jake Elliott, PHI (vs. DEN)

3. Harrison Butker, KC (@ DAL)

4. Greg Zuerlein, LAR (@ NYG)

5. Ryan Succop, TEN (vs. BAL)

6. Wil Lutz, NO (vs. TB)

7. Matt Bryant, ATL (@ CAR)

8. Matt Prater, DET (vs. GB)

9. Graham Gano, CAR (vs. ATL)

10. Ka'imi Fairbairn, HOU (vs. IND)

Here are the kickers on bye this week: Stephen Gostkowski (Patriots), Nick Novak (Chargers), Chris Boswell (Steelers), Kai Forbath (Vikings), Zane Gonzalez (Browns) and Connor Barth (Bears).

If you have any of these kickers in your lineup, get them out of there.

Defense/Special Teams

Week 9 Defense/Special Teams Rankings

1. Jacksonville Jaguars (vs. CIN)

2. Philadelphia Eagles (vs. DEN)

3. Houston Texans (vs. IND)

4. Los Angeles Rams (@ NYG)

5. Detroit Lions (vs. GB)

6. Arizona Cardinals (@ SF)

7. Cincinnati Bengals (@ JAC)

8. Seattle Seahawks (vs. WAS)

9. Denver Broncos (@ PHI)

10. New Orleans Saints (vs. TB)

Oh man, oh man, oh man.

The Cincinnati Bengals offensive line is in for a hell of a day against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

It's well-known that the Bengals offensive line is terrible.

According to PFF, the only offensive lineman worth mentioning is Clint Boling. Other than that, quarterback Andy Dalton has been sacked 22 times (tied for sixth).

The Jaguars defensive front—with the newly added Marcel Dareus—is going to chew this line up and spit it out. Expect Dalton to be on his back plenty and the Jaguars to rack up tons of fantasy points.

They are the must-have defense in Week 9.

Statistics courtesy of Football Outsiders, ESPN.com and Pro Football Focus.