Week 9 Fantasy Football Rankings: Philip Rivers and Big Name QBs Who Will Climb

While the 2011 NFL season has been kind to a number of fantasy football quarterbacks—Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Matthew Stafford and Cam Newton, to name a few—it has been equally cruel to a select crop of signal callers who only recently reigned supreme in the virtual world.

Luckily for the afflicted in that group, Week 9 provides plenty of opportunity for underperforming QBs to find their rhythm against some rather soft defenses and climb up the fantasy rankings as a result.

Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers

Philip Rivers will rise up the fantasy rankings this week if for no other reason than the fact that he can't get much lower. Rivers' career-worst season hit a new low against the Chiefs on Monday night, with two interceptions and no touchdowns in San Diego's overtime loss.

The man can still sling it, as evidenced by the 369 yards he racked up in KC, but is carrying a miserable seven-to-11 TD-to-INT ratio at the moment.

Rivers will probably get picked off by the Packers' ballhawking defense, which has racked up 13 interceptions this season, but he should find plenty of room to throw against a unit that allows 289 passing yards per game and is the sixth-friendliest to opposing quarterbacks this season.

Matt Cassel, Kansas City Chiefs

Rivers' KC counterpart, Matt Cassel, has been only marginally better this season. Cassel has already thrown more interceptions this season (nine) than he did throughout the entire 2010 season (seven).

He's due for a big game this weekend against a Dolphins defense that's practically turned getting torn apart by other signal callers into an art form. Miami gives up 271 yards per game and has surrendered a whopping 14 touchdowns through the air while only twice notching interceptions.

Those numbers should come as music to Cassel's ears, as well as those of anyone considering Cassel to be their starting QB this week.

Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons

Matt Ryan has thrown just one touchdown pass in each of his last five games.

Let that sink in for a second. Then remember that the Falcons traded away the farm to select Julio Jones in the 2012 NFL Draft.

All is not lost for Ryan, though, as he'll have a chance to improve his numbers against a beleaguered Colts defense this weekend. Only the Broncos, Dolphins and Patriots have allowed more fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks than Indy.

Now, Ryan simply has to remember that he's a solid NFL quarterback with a bevy of weapons from which to choose and all will be right in the world of fantasy football once again.